VI.] LEMUROIDS. 217 



At the present day lemuroids are represented elsewhere only 

 in the Ethiopian and Oriental regions ; the African forms being 

 more nearly allied to the Malagasy types than are those of Asia. 

 As stated in an earlier chapter, the group was, however, well 

 represented in the lower Oligocene of western Europe, where 

 certain forms (Mtcroc/ioerus) distinctly approximate some of the 

 living kinds, although differing in the conformation of the first 

 lower premolar tooth, which in the existing Lemuridce, assumes 



FlG. 48. SKULL OF LEMUR. 



tic. upper canine ; k. lower canine ; pm. premolars ; m. molars. 



the form and function of a canine or tusk. In the latter family (of 

 which the distribution is coextensive with that of the suborder) the 

 first three genera in the foregoing list belong to a subfamily 

 (Galagina) distinguished by the elongation of the bones of the 

 tarsus, and represented by an allied genus (Galago) on the African 

 mainland. The next four genera constitute the typical subfamily 

 (Lemurincz\ which is absolutely confined to Madagascar and some 

 of the islands of the Comoro group, and of which the ring-tailed 

 lemur (Lemur cattd) is one of the most familiar examples in 

 European menageries. All these lemurs, which have long, 

 although non- prehensile tails, differ from the first subfamily by the 

 normal structure of the bones of the ankle. The third subfamily 

 (Indrisin<z\ which is likewise peculiar to this region, includes the 

 avahi, sifakas, and the endrina, all of which differ from the two 

 preceding groups by having only thirty, in place of thirty-six teeth ; 

 while the endrina is peculiar in having the tail rudimentary. The 

 group includes the largest living lemurs ; the sifakas and endrina 



