3G4 Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 



of the Chiroptera in the Collection of the British Museum, 

 1878," by a E. Dobson, M.A, M.B, A.M.D., I find Mr 

 Dobson had been able to get a female only of this bat for 

 examination, apparently the single specimen at that date 

 in the collection of the British Museum. He was accord- 

 ingly in some little doubt as to the presence of some of the 

 specialities of the male. As these specimens of mine give an 

 additional locality to this species along the extensive African 

 coasts (the genus Epomophorus, indeed, being entirely con- 

 fined to the great continent of Africa), I exhibit them to the 

 Society, and shall also attempt to supplement, so far, Mr 

 Dobson's excellent description, with some details of these 

 different specimens, and a table of their various relative 

 measurements. 



The Head of these bats is large and full, especially in the 

 temporal region; the muzzle rather broad; nostrils lateral, 

 about four-tenths of an inch apart, deep groove vertically 

 between them with distinct mesial line. {See the annexed 

 careful drawings of head of bat and palate, by Mr John Adam.) 



Ear, oval in outline, slightly concave at outer surface 

 below tip, measures about '6 of an inch in male (a), in 

 greatest breadth below this, and '9 of an inch in length from 

 base of outer margin. Small tuft of lighter coloured hair at 

 base of inner margin. 



Lips, smooth, large, and full. A warty projection from the 

 inside of upper lip on each side fits in behind the first pro- 

 jecting ridge of palate, when the mouth is shut. 



Palate. — The variety in the ridges of the palate in this 

 genus, is a valuable, distinctive, and specific character, first 

 pointed out, I believe, by Mr Dobson in his British Museum 

 Catalogue of Chiroptera. They are very distinct and similar 

 in all these specimens, and a carefully drawn figure of the 

 palate of the male (a) is here given, the size of nature. This 

 character, of course, can only be distinctly seen in a recent 

 specimen or one preserved in spirits. The arrangement of 

 ridges and lobes on the palate is like, in a general way, to 

 that figured by Mr Dobson in his " Catalogue," the difference 

 being probably due to his specimen being apparently a skin, 

 afterwards preserved in spirits (?). 



