viii PREFACE 



for allowing me to reproduce two of their beautiful oroscopic 

 maps, while the council of the Royal Irish Academy, Prof. 

 Osborn, Dr. von Ihering, Dr. Ortmann, Mr. Thompson Seton, 

 Dr. True and Dr. Hornaday were good enough to give me 

 permission to copy maps illustrating their works. 



I can scarcely hope that all the conclusions I have arrived 

 at in this book will be readily accepted, but I trust to have 

 succeeded in impressing those who have not made a serious 

 study of the science of geographical distribution of animals 

 with the profound importance of the subject as an aid to 

 palaeogeographical researches. 



R. F. S. 



TUDOR HOUSE, 



DUNDRUM, Co. DUBLIN, 



hwember 21th, 1911. 



