66 M. A. Grandidier on the Egg-heds of ^pyornis. 



trees, interspersed with arborescent Euphorbiacea and " nopals " 

 [Opuntice]. This country is little inhabited; it is not, how- 

 ever, altogether a desert, and here and there are found some 

 miserable huts, the abode of the poor wretches who vegetate in 

 these desolate tracts. 



On seeing this bare region, which man daily traverses in all 

 parts, there can be no doubt as to the complete disappearance 

 of the jEpyornis. The oldest of the Antandrouis have never 

 heard the gigantic bird spoken of; no tradition, conti'ary to 

 what has been often said, exists amongst them on the subject, 

 as 1 have convinced myself at many kahars or public gatherings. 

 The vast forests of the centre, cut up by paths in every direc- 

 tion, and frequented by the Hovas, no longer permit a hope of 

 hereafter finding there this bird, the existence of which is 

 attested by the numerous remains one daily finds on the south 

 coast of Madagascar ; for although entire eggs are rare, frag- 

 ments are not, and of them I myself was able to collect a 

 tolerable quantity. 



The eggs brought to Europe have always been found in the 

 middle of the deposits caused by unusual falls of rain, — the acci- 

 dental torrents, which bear down the sand with them, leaving 

 the eggs discovered. It is only on the portion of the coast 

 comprised between Cape S. Mary and Machikora, that to my 

 knowledge eggs, or fragments of eggs, have been found ; Ma- 

 nanzari, the island of S. Mary, and Port Leven, however, are 

 also spoken of as places where they have been found. 



In exploring the neighbourhood of Cape S. Mary I applied 

 myself chiefly to the study of the soil, wherein I found the 

 remains which I lay before the Academy ; I have not been for- 

 tunate enough, in spite of all my efforts, to procure any bones. 



Immense dunes accumulated on the sea-shore rise upon a 

 horizontal limestone. This limestone, which stretches nearlyatthe 

 water-level to about a hundred metres from the bank, continues 

 under the dunes themselves ; of a yellowish white, an irregular 

 texture, sometimes very compact, without fossils, it is here and 

 there hollowed into circular holes, of which some contain a re- 

 cent breccia, formed of grains of quartz and fragments of shells 

 united by a calcareous cement. 



