396 Natural History 



CHAPTER XXYH. 



THE NATURAL HISTORY OF THE MOLUCCAS. 



The Moluccas consist of three large islands, Gilolo, Ceram, 

 and Bouru, the two former being each about two hundred 

 miles long, and a great number of smaller isles and islets, the 

 most important of which are Batchian, Morty, Obi, Ke,Timor- 

 laut, and Amboyna ; and among the smaller ones, Ternate, 

 Tidore, Kaioa, and Banda. These occupy a space of ten 

 degrees of latitude by eight of longitude, and they are con- 

 nected by groups of small islets to New Guinea on the east, 

 the Philippines on the north, Celebes on the west, and Timor 

 on the south. It will be as well to bear in mind these main 

 features of extent and geographical position, while we survey 

 their animal productions and discuss their relations to the 

 countries which surround them on every side in almost equal 

 proximity. 



We will first consider the Mammalia, or warm-blooded 

 quadrupeds, which present us with some singular anomalies. 

 The land mammals are exceedingly few in number, only ten 

 being yet known from the entire group. The bats or aerial 

 mammals, on the other hand, are numerous — not less than 

 twenty-five species being already known. But even this ex- 

 ceeding poverty of terrestrial mammals does not at all repre- 

 sent the real poverty of the Moluccas in this class of animals ; 

 for, as we shall soon see, there is good reason to believe that 

 several of the species have been introduced by men, either 

 purposely or by accident. 



The only quadruraanous animal in the group is the curious 

 baboon-monkey (Cynopithecus nigrescens), already described 

 as being one of the characteristic animals of Celebes. This 

 is found only in the island of Batchian ; and it seems so much 

 out of place there — as it is difficult to imagine how it could 

 have reached the island by any natural means of dispersal, 

 and yet not have passed by the same means over the narrow 



