ANTARCTIC EXPEDITIONS 433 



from the South Polar regions, Dr. Bruce took a series of 

 soundings proving that the South Atlantic rise extended 

 a thousand miles further south than was previously known. 

 Now Dr. Bruce believes that this comparatively shallow 

 water area extends westward to the Sandwich group (not 

 to be confounded with the Sandwich islands in the Pacific 

 Ocean), and eastward to Bouyet island. By demonstrating 

 the presence of a long ridge of about three hundred miles 

 in breadth between Madagascar and Bouvet island to the 

 Sandwich group, with a forked connection towards the South 

 Orkneys a ad the antarctic regions on the one hand, and the 

 Falkland islands and Tierra del Fuego on the other, Dr. 

 Bruce * has made a valuable addition to our knowledge of the 

 zoogeographical affinities referred to. 



Professor Carpenter ,f who described the Collembola brought 

 back from the South Orkney islands by the Scottish antarctic 

 Expedition, concludes that these minute insects support the 

 view of the former existence of extensive land tracts south of 

 the American continent. It may be mentioned incidentally 

 that sedimentary rocks have now been discovered not only in 

 the South Orkney islands by Dr. Pirie, but also in the island 

 of South Georgia. 



A very important contribution to the subject of the 

 ant-arctic problem is that by Dr. Enderlein. He deals with 

 the geographical distribution in the South Polar regions 

 of insects as a whole. Chile, Tierra del Fuego, the Falk- 

 land islands and South Georgia all belong, according to him, 

 to Dr. von Ihering's " Archiplata " region, while the Auck- 

 land isles, Campbell islands and the Macquarie islands are 

 grouped as part of New Zealand. The former has a large num- 

 ber of endemic genera of insects. Dr. Enderlein regards the 

 family Thynnidae as one of the most valuable supports in 

 favour of a former land connection between Archiplata and the 

 whole Australian region, all the females of this family of 

 Hymenoptera being wingless. "These insects are confined to 

 the Australian region and southern South America. Numbers 

 of similar instances are cited. After quoting all the recorded 



* Bruce, W. S., " Survey of South Atlantic," p. 10. 

 f Carpenter, G. H., " Collembola from South Orkneys," p 479. 

 L.A. F F 



