ORDER PRIMATES: PRIMATES 153 



Crossley secured a number of specimens in the Forest of Manerine- 

 rina and in the plains north of Ankavandra [lat. 19 15' S.]. These 

 Sifakas inhabit the forests scattered here and there in the midst of 

 the great Jurassic plains lying between the Mananbolo and Manza- 

 ray [ = Mahavavy] Rivers. The Antimailaka natives consider them 

 sacred animals and never kill them. (Milne Edwards and Grandi- 

 dier, 1876, pp. 313-314.) 



Decken's Sifaka is very common in the forests south of Lake 

 Kinkony (near the lower Mahavavy) , and five specimens were ob- 

 tained there. It is said not to occur in the forests between this lake 

 and Cape Tanjona. The Mahavavy River appears to form its north- 

 eastern limit. (Kaudern, 1915, pp. 6-7, map, p. 5.) 



Beravina, 17 10' S., NW. coast, is one of the localities from 

 which Schwarz (1931, p. 424) records specimens. 



No less than 30 specimens were collected by the Mission Zoologi- 

 que Franco-Anglo-Americaine of 1929-31 (Delacour, 1932, p. 220) . 



"This Propithecus was common in the country from Namo- 

 roka to the Mahavavy Rivers, and a number apparently of the 

 same subspecies were seen between the Mahavavy and Betsiboka 

 Rivers. . . . 



"This is a common, diurnal animal, found in parties of some- 

 times as many as nine individuals. It frequented the heavy gallery 

 forest, the lower, dryer forest, and at Soala I found a party in the 

 coast mangroves. . . . We found them rather tame here and easily 

 approached." (Rand, 1935, p. 99.) 



Major's Sifaka 



PROPITHECUS VERREAUXI MAJORI Rothschild 



Propithecus majori Rothschild, Novit. Zool., vol. 1, p. 666, 1894. ("The 

 Antinosy country in south-west Madagascar" ; according to Schwarz (1931, 

 p. 424), this is the "country of the emigrated Antanosy, S. Central 

 Madagascar.") 



FIG.: Rothschild, 1894, pi. 14. 



Apparently no additional information has been secured concern- 

 ing this Sifaka since the original series was collected in 1889 and 

 described in 1894. 



"Adult. Head and neck black. Face, snout, and ears naked, 

 and of a blackish colour, encircled by a broad band of long white 

 hairs, joining under the throat, slightly intermixed with darker 

 hairs. Rest of fur, including the tail, white on the upper surface, 

 back and upper rump dark brown. The large white patch on and 

 between the shoulders much grizzled with brown hairs. Upper sur- 

 face of hind limbs to just below the knees blackish brown. Inside 



