494 ZOOLOGY. 



incisors is ocoupied by several shorter teeth. The snout is ver}'- short, and 

 the eyes still larger than in the galagos. The species are from the Moluccas 

 and feed upon insects. 



The Monkeys (Simise) are divided into two groups or families, one ex- 

 clusively peculiar to the Old, the other to the New World. 



Fam. 4. Cebiid.e (Simile platyrrhini), comprises the monkeys of the 

 New World. They have the nostrils directed laterally and outwards, placed 

 at the side, and wide asunder, and are provided with three false molars on 

 each side of both jaws. The thumb of the fore hands is not opposable to 

 the fingers, and is wanting very frequently. The cheek pouches and callo- 

 sities are absent. The tail is long and always present, often prehensile, 

 especially in those species that are destitute of thumbs. The molars are 

 six above and six beneath, on each side, a single case excepted, that is one 

 more than the monkeys of the Old World. Cebiidse are confined to the 

 warmer portions of the New World, from the Caribbean Sea to about the 

 twentj-fifth degree of south latitude, and are especially numerous in those 

 vast forests extending over the plains between the rivers Oronoco and 

 Amazon. All of them are arboreal in their mode of life. 



The genus Hapale (ouistitis), like the majority of American monkeys, 

 hasJJ|ounded head, a flat face, the buttocks hairy. They have only twenty 

 molBB, like the monkeys of the Old World. They have compressed and 

 pointed nails, except to the hind thumbs ; the thumbs of the anterior 

 extremities are but slightly separated from the fingers. They are pretty 

 little creatures, with agreeable forms, which is seldom the case in monkeys, 

 and are easily tamed. The name of lacchiis is restricted to those species 

 whose inferior incisors are pointed and arranged on a curved line equal to 

 the canines. The tail is annulated and well covered with hairs, the ears 

 themselves being generally tufted. In those species in which the incisors 

 are placed on a straight line and less than the canines, the name of Mydaus 

 (tamarins) is applied. The tail is not annulated and more slender. 



The species are quite numerous, and spread all over the area occupied by 

 the order. Two are known in a fossil state, the remains of which are found 

 in the diluvial deposits of Brazil. 



The genus Nyctipithecus (night monkeys) has a large and round head, a 

 short snout, very small ears, and large approximating eyes. The tail is 

 long, and covered with short hairs, not prehensile. The nails are all flat. 

 A species lives in Guiana and Brazil. 



The genus Callithrix (squirrel monkeys) is distinguished by a tail very 

 long and slender, but not prehensile. It has a general resemblance to the 

 squirrels, from which it, however, greatly differs by the shape of the head. 

 The ears are very large, the snout short, and the nostrils narrow. The 

 animals of this genus are little and extremely light creatures, active during 

 daytime and resting during night. Their food seems to consist more of 

 insects, eggs, and small birds, than of fruits ; and although habitually gentle 

 and timid, they become animated even to ferocity at the sight of a living 

 prey. 



A species of Callithrix has been found in a fossil state in South America. 

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