GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS, ETC. 11 
highlands of Central Asia being poor and stunted, as might be expected 
from the severity of the climate. There is an intimate connection 
between physical geography and distribution of animals and plants which 
enables one to predict with tolerable certainty the character of the fauna 
and flora of any newly explored tracts. The oriental region having 
been already alluded to, it was necessary to offer a few remarks upon 
its subdivisions, and first of all on that of Ceylon. This sub-region 
(which includes the western parts of India) possesses some forms of 
animal life which are not present in the Indian sub-region, such as some 
mammals, as lemurs, tupaia and monkeys, as well as reptiles. Thus 
the Uropeltide and other genera of snakes and lizards are peculiar 
to it. The insects are more akin to those of Malayana than of India. The 
fishes of the Malay sub-region confirm the justice of its separation from 
the Australian region, for the fresh water forms of Siluroids and 
Cyprinoids, consisting of thirteen genera of the former and twenty-three 
_ of the latter, range to Java and Borneo, but do not extend further. 
The Ethiopian region shows a great variety and abundance of large 
mammals with an absence of bears, deer, goats, and sheep. The Hast 
African sub-region is the least peculiar portion of Africa, and is perhaps 
not so well marked as the West, which latter is the home of the 
anthropoid apes, in fact this sub-region has a Malayan affinity. The 
South African sub-region is the most peculiar and interesting of the 
three, especially as regards its botany. It has great numbers of heaths, 
bulbous and succulent plants, composites, &c., and an abundance of 
large game. The Madagascar sub-region is very peculiar; it is the land 
of the lemurs, and in fact if we received a curious bird, having very 
slight affinities to anything known, we should at once suspect that its 
native home must be Madagascar. The Australian region is very well 
marked: amongst mammals it is deficient in the orders present in the 
other regions, except bats and some rodents, while the great family of 
marsupials is almost restricted to it, the ornithorhynchus and echidna are 
peculiar to it. The birds are not quite so restricted to this region as the 
mammals, but we find the lyre birds, parrots, megapodes, emus, casso- 
waries, birds of paradise, and some curious pigeons. The Polynesian 
birds are very few in numbers, while mammals are absent. The New 
Zealand fauna is likewise very peculiar, among its birds is or was the 
moa; while species of another wingless family, Apteryx, still linger; there 
are, likewise, peculiar parrots, as the nestor and the stringops, the curious 
notornis among the rails, and the unique anarhynchus among the 
Charadriidz. We find a great poverty of insects, only eleven species of 
butterflies and no snakes. Itis curious what a deficiency of hardiness 
exists in Australian plants as compared with those of some other regions; - 
rapidly succumbing before introduced species, many of them are with 
great difficulty, if at all, raised in other climes. 
Mr. Symonds congratulated Mr. Elwes on the interesting address 
which he had just delivered, wherein he had illustrated point after point 
with great clearness. 
Mr. Longe, Rev. W. Boyce, and Major Barnard made observations 
upon the failure of New Zealand plants in this climate. 
