1 62 TEETH OF EDENTATES chap. 



inasmuch as many Edentates have teeth. It is, however, by 

 a number of small tooth -characters that the order can be 

 defined. Thus if teeth are present they are simple in struc- 

 ture, without enamel in the adult condition, though a rudi- 

 mentary enamel -organ has been discovered in an Armadillo. 

 The teeth, moreover, are not found in the anterior part of the 

 mouth, and they grow from persistent pulps ; neither is there 

 much differentiation among them. It is not possible, however, 

 to speak of the Edentates as quite homodont, since in Orycterojms 

 there are large cheek-teeth ; but there is at any rate not a marked 

 heterodonty in that or in any other Edentate. It used to be said 

 that the Edentates were monophyodont. But the Armadillo 

 Tatusia was subsequently found to possess a second suppressed 

 dentition, and after this discovery Mr. Thomas proved that 

 Ori/cterojnis is also diphyodout. Since then other Armadillos 

 have been shown to ])e diphyodont ; and the whole group there- 

 fore, so far as concerns those members that have teeth, may in ail 

 probability be regarded as typically mammalitin in this respect. 



These characters are slender enough, but there seem to be 

 no others by means of which the members of this order can be 

 satisfactorily linked together. The fact is, that we have here 

 a polymorphic order which contains in all probability repre- 

 sentatives of at least two separate orders. We have at present 

 a very few, and these perhaps highly modified, descendants of a 

 large and diverse group of mammals. For convenience' sake they 

 will be all treated of under the head of Edentata. 



Although for the probable reasons already stated it is a 

 hard matter to frame such a definition as will include all 

 existing Edentates, it is easy enough to define two groups in this 

 heterogeneous order ; to define one group we should say, rather, 

 and then to regard the leavings as forming another not so easily 

 definable a group. 



The perfectly -definable group is that which includes the 

 American Anteaters, the Armadillos, and the Sloths. In all 

 these creatures, which may certainly be regarded as representing 

 on their own account as many family types, there are a number 

 of important and highly-characteristic anatomical features which 

 they share in common. So exceedingly different are these three 

 types in general appearance and (correlated with that) in way of 

 life that these common characters acquire increased importance. 



