﻿434 
  Mr. 
  0. 
  Thomas 
  on 
  Mammals 
  from 
  

  

  XLTX. 
  — 
  (Jn 
  Mavimah 
  from 
  Manns 
  Island 
  Admiraltij 
  Group, 
  

   and 
  liul- 
  Island, 
  Bismarck 
  Archipelago. 
  Bj 
  OldfieLD 
  

   Thomas. 
  - 
  

  

  (Published 
  by 
  permiasion 
  of 
  the 
  Trustees 
  of 
  the 
  British 
  Museum.) 
  

  

  By 
  the 
  kindness 
  of 
  tlie 
  Hon. 
  Walter 
  Rothscliild 
  the 
  British 
  

   Museum 
  has 
  had 
  the 
  opportunity 
  of 
  acquiring 
  two 
  collectiotis 
  

   of 
  mammals, 
  mostly 
  bats, 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  obtained 
  on 
  the 
  

   islands 
  mentioned 
  in 
  the 
  title 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Av 
  S. 
  Meek 
  and 
  his 
  

   brother-in-law 
  Mr. 
  Eichliorn. 
  

  

  With 
  the 
  exception 
  of 
  tlie 
  few 
  specimens 
  collected 
  by 
  the 
  

   'Challenger' 
  Expedition 
  in 
  1875 
  (including 
  the 
  original 
  

   series 
  of 
  Pteropus 
  admirolitatum) 
  the 
  British 
  Museum 
  

   j)0ssessed 
  no 
  mammals 
  at 
  all 
  from 
  the 
  Admiralty 
  Islands, 
  

   and 
  from 
  the 
  Bismarck 
  Archipelago 
  only 
  those 
  got 
  by 
  the 
  

   Rev. 
  G. 
  Brown 
  on 
  " 
  Duke 
  of 
  York 
  Island 
  and 
  tiie 
  neigh- 
  

   bouring 
  shores 
  of 
  New 
  Britain 
  and 
  New 
  Ireland," 
  and 
  

   tlierefore 
  little 
  adapted 
  for 
  exact 
  work 
  on 
  the 
  insular 
  distri- 
  

   bution 
  of 
  the 
  species. 
  The 
  two 
  present 
  collections 
  are 
  

   therefore 
  extremely 
  acceptable. 
  

  

  Curiously 
  enough, 
  there 
  proves 
  to 
  be 
  practically 
  no 
  

   difference 
  between 
  the 
  corresponding 
  species 
  of 
  the 
  two 
  

   collections 
  ; 
  so 
  that 
  it 
  w^ould 
  appear 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  one 
  common 
  

   fauna 
  through 
  the 
  wdiole 
  crescent 
  of 
  islands, 
  from 
  the 
  

   Admiralties, 
  through 
  the 
  main 
  islands 
  of 
  the 
  Bismarck 
  

   Archipelago, 
  to 
  its 
  extreme 
  southern 
  member 
  Ruk 
  Island. 
  

  

  Most 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  occurring 
  in 
  the 
  two 
  collections 
  are 
  

   already 
  known 
  from 
  the 
  larger 
  Bismarck 
  Islands, 
  but 
  in 
  the 
  

   case 
  of 
  Dohsonia 
  anderseni 
  it 
  is 
  possible 
  that 
  the 
  similar-sized 
  

   D. 
  pra^datrix 
  may 
  prove 
  to 
  represent 
  it 
  in 
  the 
  intermediate 
  

   islands, 
  even 
  though 
  it 
  does 
  belong 
  to 
  a 
  different 
  group 
  of 
  

   the 
  genus. 
  

  

  The 
  whole 
  series 
  consists 
  of 
  43 
  specimens, 
  belonging 
  to 
  16 
  

   species, 
  of 
  which 
  4 
  have 
  proved 
  to 
  need 
  description 
  as 
  new. 
  

   Some 
  other 
  new 
  Australasian 
  species 
  which 
  have 
  now 
  become 
  

   evident 
  are 
  described 
  in 
  the 
  succeeding 
  paper. 
  

  

  1. 
  Pteropus 
  neohihernicus, 
  Pet. 
  

   Two 
  from 
  Manus 
  and 
  one 
  from 
  Ruk. 
  

  

  2, 
  Pteropus 
  capistratus, 
  Pet. 
  

  

  Two 
  from 
  Ruk. 
  

  

  These 
  additional 
  specimens 
  of 
  this 
  rare 
  and 
  beautiful 
  fruit- 
  

   bat 
  are 
  very 
  welcome. 
  

  

  