410 THE AGE OF MAMMALS 



by the dwarfing of several types of large mammals confined there or made 

 captive by the sea. The occurrence of closely related but specifically dif- 

 ferent pigmy elephants and hippopotami in widely separated islands is an. 

 instance of independent evolution, Avith some divergence, from common 

 ancestors. It appears probable that Cyprus became an island first. The 

 extinct Elephas Cypriotes and Hippopotamus minutus are both more prim- 

 itive than the Maltese-Sicilian species. The affinity of Malta to Sicily is 

 indicated by the common occurrence in cavern deposits on both islands of 

 two species, Elephas mnaidriensis and Hippopotamus pentlandi. E. meli- 

 tensis, a dwarf race characteristic of Malta", has been found also near Rome,^ 

 which would appear to indicate that the land connection with the Italian 

 mainland existed probably at two different times. Pohlig believes - that 

 toward the end of the first glacial period the large mammals migrated to 

 Sicily, which at that time was connected both with Europe and Africa; the 

 land bridges then became submerged, and the large mammals became dwarf 

 races. The dwarf elephants (E. melitensis, E. mnaidriensis), however, are 

 both believed to be derived from the European straight-tusked elephant 

 {E. antiquus), of Asiatic origin. The African elephant (Loxodonta) never 

 crossed the Mediterranean. The reduced existing fauna of Cyprus con- 

 tains a mingling of European and North African forms, and shows the effects 

 of deforestation in historic times. 



Human Culture Stage 



Mousterian. — The Mousterian was in part interglacial and in part 

 glacial, corresponding, according to Penck, with the Riss, or third glacial 

 advance, the most extensive known. We are still in the second life zone, 

 or period of the straight-tusked elephant (E. antiquus) and of the broad- 

 nosed rhinoceros {D. merckii), which may alternate, by migration, with 

 mammals of the third life zone. Together with these mammals in the 

 Prince's Cave in Monaco are found the remains of hippopotamus, but this 

 animal does not occur to the north of the Alps at this time. 



To this period belongs the fauna of the Wildkirchli Cave on Mont 

 Sentis in Switzerland (Fig. 176, 20) and, still more important for the re- 

 mains of man which they contain, the caves of Neandertal (22), in western 

 Germany, of Spy (23) in Belgium, and of Krapina (23 a) in Croatia. Wliile 

 Penck regards this Mousterian as belonging to the third glaciation, Boule 

 maintains that it belongs to the Wiirm, or fourth glaciation.^ 



This period is that of the Neandertal race of men {Homo neandertalen- 



1 Pohlig H., Die Cerviden des thliringischen Diluvialtravert nes mit Beitragen iiber andere 

 diluviale und iiber recente Hirschformen. Paldontographica, Vol. XXXIX, 1892, pp. 215-262. 



2 Pohlig, H., Eine Elephantenhohle Siciliens und der erste Nachweis des Cranialdomes 

 von Elephas antiquus. Ahhand. konigl. bayer. Akad. Wissensch., Miinchen, 189.3, pp. 37 seq. 



3 Boule, M., Observations sur un Silex Taille du Jura et sur la Chronologie de M. Penck. 

 L'AnthropoL, Vol. XIX, 1908. 



