THE NEOTROPICAL REGION 53 



and the West Indies, the Falkland Islands and the 

 Galapagos must likewise be included in the Neotropical 

 Region. 



The West Indies form an important sub-region, con- 

 taining some forms of great interest, and will be treated 

 of in detail below. 



The Falkland Islands are situated in the south Atlantic, 

 about 250 miles east of the nearest point of Patagonia. 

 They are, however, known to be connected with the main- 

 land by a shallow sea of less than 100 feet in depth, and 

 therefore present all the characteristic features of a 

 " continental " group of islands. The only indigenous 

 mammals are a Wild Dog (Canis antarcticus) and a 

 Vesper-mouse (Hesperomys), which seem to be distinct, 

 though closely allied to the mainland forms. The birds 

 also are mostly identical with those of the mainland, 

 though there are some just recognisable representative 

 forms. 



The Galapagos, a group of five larger and ten smaller 

 islands, are situated in the Pacific, exactly under the 

 Equator, at a distance of from 500 to 600 miles west of 

 Ecuador. They rise up from very deep water, and are 

 entirely of volcanic origin. They are therefore typical 

 " Oceanic " islands. With the exception of two Vesper- 

 mice, slightly differing from those of the mainland, and a 

 peculiar Bat (Atalap>1ia brachyotis), there are no indigenous 

 mammals (2) in the Galapagos. There are, however, a 

 considerable number of birds in these islands, most of 

 them not found elsewhere, and many of them restricted 

 to individual islands in which they represent each 

 other (7). 



There can be no doubt that the Galapagos have never, 



