MAMMALS AND REPTILES COLLECTED BY THEODOOR 

 DE BOOY IN THE VIRGIN ISLANDS. 



By Gerrit S. Miller, Jr., 



Curator, Division of Mammals. United States National Museum. 



INTRODUCTION. 



During the winter of 1916-17 Mr. Theodoor de Booy excavated 

 two Indian sites in the Virgin Islands — one at Magen's Bay, St. 

 Thomas, the other at Salt River, St. Croix. This work was done 

 for the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, New 

 York City. The remains of mammals and reptiles found in the 

 deposits were submitted to me for identification, and a representa- 

 tive series of the bones has been given to the United States National 

 Museum by Mr. George G. Heye. A wild-killed agouti from St. 

 Thomas was presented by Mr, de Booy. 



As regards the localities, Mr. de Booy writes as follows under 

 date of March 15, 1917 : 



The bones from St. Thomas were found in a kitchen midden at Magen's Bay 

 on the north coast of the island. This bay abounds in shell food and in fish of 

 all kinds. Ii must have offered an ideal dwelling place for the pre-Columbian 

 inhabitants ol St. Thomas. The midden was fairly large in extent and from 

 4 to 7 feet deep. From this depth must be deducted the covering of diluvium, 

 which was from 1 to 2 feet thick according to the slope. The animal bones were 

 found below the diluvial deposit in a semi-indurated mass of clay-like soil plenti- 

 fully mixed with shells, charcoal, sherds, and other artifacts. As I dug up 

 the entire midden, the bones that were found can fairly be regarded as repre- 

 senting the entire range of animals represented in the deposit. The St. Croix site 

 was near the mouth of Salt River on the western bank. Conditions did not differ 

 materially from those found in St. Thomas. Evidence was discovered in the depos- 

 its that the inhabitants of St. Thomas led an adventurous and roving existence. 

 Several artifacts were procured of Porto Rican and Santo Domingan origin, unmis- 

 takably so, as they diifered totally from the normal culture found in the midden. 

 Further proof of this roving disposition was found when I excavated in the 

 same midden four shells of Helix [Pleurodonte] bornii, which is not found in 

 St. Thomas but has its nearest habitat in Porto Rico. The lips of these shells 

 were perforated as if to facilitate carrying them. 



MAMMALS. 

 ISOLOBODON PORTORICENSIS Allen. 



St. Thomas: 92 specimens (representing probably about 30 indi- 

 viduals) : palates 3; frontals 2 pairs and 1 odd; parietals 2 pairs; 



Proceedings U. S. National Museum, Vol. 54— No. 2244. 



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