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20 



THE AMERICA]^ BISOI^S, 



■r ■ L 



X'r- 



regarded as only the female of ^, latifrom^ although as late as 1873 he deemed 

 the question as to the number of species of American fossil oxen as not sat- 

 isfactorily settled.* 



Sir John Richardsorij in 1854^ in his report on the bison remains from 

 Eschscholtz Bajj expressed himself as inclined to believe in a greater num- 

 ber of fossil species of bison than previous writers had been willing to admit. 

 He had convinced himself^ he says, that in the collections from Eschscholtz 

 Bay were " remains of one^ and perhaps twOj species of the bison type, 

 related as closely to the American bison as to the aurochs." Again he says 

 that some of the remains more closely resemble corresponding parts of the 

 American bison than the aurochS; though differing decidedly from both, and 



inclines to the opinion that what he calls '•^ Bison priseiis?'' together with the 

 remains from Big-bone Lick, Dr. Leidy had described and i^eferred doubtfully 

 to Bison americanus, should be regarded as a distinct species and receive a 

 new name. The remains from Big-bone Lick referred to by Richardson 

 prove, however, to belong unquestionably to Bison americamis. The larger 

 specimens from Eschscholtz Bay Richardson regarded as belonging to a 

 species distinct from any that had been previously described, to which he 

 gave the name Bison crassicornis. 



Most authors have since regarded these 



a view 



larger specimens as representing only the female oi B, latifrons^ 

 wholly untenable, as sufficiently shown in the preceding pages. 



In 1854 Dr. Leidy recognized five species of bisons from America as more 

 or less well established, namely : 1. Bison americanus (recent and fossil). 

 2. Bison latifrons. 3. Bison prisciis ? Richar'dson. 4. Bison crassicornis Rich- 

 ardson. 5. Bison anticjims Leidy. Later, however, as already noticed, he 

 referred his own B, antiquiis^ and also J5. cmssicornis^ to B. latifrons. In 1869 

 he recognized Bison jyriscus as distinct from B. latifrons^ refei-ring to the for- 

 mer the remains from Eschscholtz Bay, doubtfully referred by Richardson to 

 B. priscits. In 1873, however, as already stated, he considered the question 

 as to the number of species of American fossil bisons as still unsettled. 



All European writers of note have always regarded the American and Old 

 World fossil bison remains as pertaining to one and the same species. 

 Recent authorities, particularly Professor L. Rutimeyer and Dr. J. F. Brandt, 

 as previously noticed, have regarded this fossil species as the immediate pro- 

 genitor of the European aurochs and the American bison, Brandt f at the 



* Contr. to Ext. Vertebrates, Faunaj ctc.j p. 253. 



t Zoogcog. und Palaiont Beitrage, pp. 101 -152 (Verhandl. mineral. Gesells. St. Petersburg, 11, 1865). 



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