the Bats of the Famili/ McgaJermatiiUe. Ml 



Cardioderma cor, Ptrs. 



1872. ^fegadenna cor, IVters, MB. Akftd. Boil. (18th March, 1872) 

 p. l'J4. 



Specimens examined. — 10 (3 skins) and 8 skulls, viz. 

 Zanzibar (2), Mombasa (2), Somali (G). 



Viters' Meijaderma cor. — Type locality : Abyssinia. Peters 

 based his dia^^nosis of Megaderma cor on the sha[)e and size 

 ut" the nose-leat" and tra<f us. 



Wing-struclure. 



The four Aimilies Nycterida;, Megadermatida?, llippo- 

 siderida^, and Khinolophidaj are rather closely inter-related ; 

 they have probably luui a common origin. When trying to 

 form an idea of the stage of development at which the wing- 

 structure of the MegadermatidjB has arrived, it is therefore 

 fair to compare them with such species of the other families 

 as have, in this respect, remained on a low level, f. i. Hippo- 

 sidtrus diadema. 



In II. diadema the third metacarpal is the longest, the 

 fiith the shortest, the indices of the tliird, fourth, and fiftii 

 metacarpals being, respectively, 716, 696, and 640; that this 

 is a primitive condition needs hardly any comment (a similar 

 mutual length of the metacarpals is found in many primitive 

 fruit-bats). In the ilegaderniatidfe the tliird metacarpal is 

 the shortest, the iifth the longest, the indices being 727, 781, 

 and 8-i5 ; the third motacar|)al, it will be noticed, has retained 

 practically the same length (727) in proportion to the forearm 

 as in U. diadema (716), whereas the fourth and, still more, 

 the fifth have been very considerably lengthened. 



]n //. diadema the first j)halanx of tiie tliird digit (index: 

 329) is somewhat less than half the lenglli of the third 

 metacarpal (716) ; in the Megadermatidie it is decidedly 

 lengthened (index : 404), being always more than one half of 

 the metacari)al (727). The first phalanx of the fourth digit 

 has retained the .'^ame length in proportion to the forearm as 

 in U. diadema ['1A.2 against 237); the first phalanx of the 

 fifth digit is slightly lengthened (280 against 247). 



In ll. diadema the second phalanx of the third digit (327) 

 is only equal in length to the first j)halanx (329; ; in the 

 Megaclerniatidie it is enormously lengthened (693), being 

 almost \ of the first phalanx (404). In //. diadema the 

 di?tal phalanges of the tourth and filth digits are considerably 

 shorter than the proximal j)lialanges; in the Megadermatidte 

 the second phalanx of the fourth digit is at least equal to 



