XIV 



DTSTRTBUTION 631 



west of this line — conveniently distinguished as the Tn<h>-Malaijan 

 Islands — belong to the Oriental region, those to the south-east — 

 the Austro-Malayau Islands — to the Australian region. Curiously 

 enough, the zoological differences between the two groups of 

 islanils are more marked between Bali and Lombok, separated 

 by a deep charmel of only about twenty miles in width, than 

 between Borneo and Celebes, separated by the whole width of the 

 Straits of Macassar. 



The most characteristic members of the Oriental fauna are the 

 Orang-utan (Simi'(), the Gibbons (Hi/lohites and Bvimanga), and 

 lunuerous Lemurs; the Tiger, which, however, extends into the 

 Bala arctic region, and several Bears and Civets ; the Indian 

 Elephant, the Indian Tapir, three species of Rhinoceros, and the 

 Chevrotains or Mouse-deer {Traxjidida:); and several large and 

 handsome Gallinaceous Birds, such as the Peacock, Argus 

 Pheasant and Jungle-fowl. The resemblances to the Ethiopian 

 Region are numerous and striking, among the most important 

 being the presence of the Elephant, Rhinoceros, the higher Apes, 

 Lemurs, and Manis. On the other hand, the presence of Deer and 

 Bears furnish a characteristic difference. 



The Australian Region includes Australia, Tasmania, and the 

 Austro-Malayan Islands as defined above, from Celebes and 

 Lombok on the west, to the Solomon Islands on the east, the 

 most important of them being the immense island of Papua or 

 New Guinea. New Zealand and Polynesia are very generally 

 included in this region, but it is more convenient, on the whole, 

 to treat them apart. 



The most striking feature of the region is the almost total 

 absence of Eutheria, the Mammalian fauna belonging mainly to 

 the Marsupials and Monotremes. The last-named order is en- 

 tirely confined to this region, while Marsupials occur elsewhere 

 only in America. The only exceptions are the Dingo or Aus- 

 tralian Wild Dog, which is probably indigenous, the universally 

 distributed groups of Rats, Mice, and Bats, and, in some 

 of the islands bordering on the Oriental region, Deer, Civets, 

 and Pigs. The abundance of Marsupials is very remarkable, all 

 the leading groups of that sub-class, with the exception of 

 the Didelphyidai, or American Opossums, and Ccenolesfes, being 

 strictly endemic. 



Equally striking is the number and peculiarity of the endemic 

 Birds, the most important of which are the Emus and Cassowaries, 

 the Mound-makers or Brush Turkeys {Takgallus, &c.), the Birds 

 of Paradise and Bower-birds, the Lyre-bird {Menura), the Cockatoos 

 and Brush-tongued Lories. The great number and variety of 

 Parrots, Kingfishers, and Pigeons is also a marked feature, as also 

 is the absence of Pheasants, Woodpeckers, Finches, and other 



