GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION 355 
explain one portion of the facts presented by the Fauna of Mada- 
gascar, and inadequate to explain the rest ; but he has demonstrated, 
so far as can be, that the existence of such a continent was impossible. 
Here there is only room to indicate the line he has taken (Island 
Ihfe, pp. 390-399). He incontestably shews (1) that Madagascar 
must have been united to Africa in very ancient days, (2) that it 
must have received its stock of Lemurs thence at a time when 
Lemurs inhabited not only Africa but Europe (for Lemurian remains 
have been found fossil in France—if not in England), and probably 
Asia, (3) that Lemurs made their way to the Indo-Malay Islands 
by passing through Asia, just as they passed through Africa to 
Madagascar, (4) that Madagascar must have been separated from 
Africa before the now prevailing African types overran that con- 
tinent, and (5) finally, that the Indian facies of the Fauna of Mada- 
gascar, which is chiefly shewn by certain Birds, and is of course 
very striking to an ornithologist, is caused by forms of existing 
Indian genera, and by species very closely allied to those of India, 
this last fact shewing their comparatively recent arrival in the 
Mascarene Islands and Madagascar, where they must be regarded 
as colonists. The hypothesis of a “Lemuria” is in fact exactly 
like that of an “ Atlantis,” which was for a long while thought 
requisite for the explanation of the Fauna of the Atlantic Islands, 
but has proved to be untenable in the face of more complete 
knowledge. 
VI. The Indian Region! completes our survey of the globe; and 
its boundaries, so far as they can be defined, have been already 
sketched out when treating of the adjoining areas. Large as is 
its extent and varied as are its physical features, it would seem to 
have but 2 peculiar Families of Birds, Phyllornithide and Eury- 
lemidx, out of upwards of 70 which occur within its limits. There 
is peculiar difficulty in settling the Subregions and Provinces into 
_ which it should be separated. While the Fauna of some districts 
has been studied so that we possess a very fair knowledge of them, 
the greater part is no better known zoologically than the centre 
of Africa. Yet we cannot treat this Indian Region with the same 
audacity of ignorance that we did the Ethiopian, for our acquaint- 
ance with it is such as to shew that there are in it districts, large 
or small, which have an unmistakable affinity to one another and 
1 It must be mentioned that objection has been taken, and not without show 
of reason, to the name ‘‘Indian” applied to this Region, since what is correctly 
ealled “India” forms but a small and perhaps not the most characteristic part 
of it. Mr. Wallace has used the name ‘‘ Oriental,” against which it may be 
urged that it errs on the side of vagueness, just as ‘‘ Indian” does on the side of 
particularity. Though in this use he has had several followers, it seems on the 
whole that ‘‘ Indian,” being the distinguishing term first applied to this Region, 
had better be retained for it. 
