MAMMALIA. 497 



They are further known by the annulated or ringed character of their fur, 

 which gives them a speckled appearance. They are slender in their struc- 

 ture, and light and agile in their movements. Their character displays 

 vivacity, impetuosity, and restlessness, with occasional caprice, and petu- 

 lance. They never abandon the forests, and live .chiefly upon wild fruits, 

 and the seeds and buds of trees, with an occasional intermixture of insects 

 and birds' eggs. The true Cercopitheci are confined to Africa. The patras, 

 C. rubra {pi. 118, fig. 5), is from Senegal ; the holoway, C. diana {pi. 117, 

 fig. 14), is from Guinea ; and C. gn'seiis {pi. 118, fig. 6) from the north-west 

 of Africa. 



The genus Preshytis (tailed gibbons) is destitute of cheek-pouches and 

 possesses callosities. The arms reach the knees ; the tail is very long. The 

 species inhabit India and Sumatra. 



The genus Semnopitliecus differs from the long-tailed monkeys generally 

 by an additional small tubercle on the last of the inferior molars ; their long 

 limbs and very long tail give them a peculiar appearance. They have, 

 like gibbons, callosities on the buttocks. The animals included in this 

 genus are commonly termed slow monkeys, from their gravity of habits, 

 and the absence of the restlessness usually seen in the tribe. Several 

 species of this genus inhabit India, Cochin-China, Borneo, and the Malay 

 Archipelago. 



The second section of monkeys, those totally without a tail, are subdivided 

 into the following genera. 



The genus Hylohates (gibbons) has the long arms of the true orangs, and 

 the low forehead of the chii|(|||)anse, along with the callous buttocks of the 

 guenons. All the species inhabit the most remote parts of India. Their 

 hands and feet are adapted for climbing. They sweep from branch to branch 

 with arrow-like velocity ; their mode is to suspend themselves by their long 

 arms, and by an energetic muscular movement to launch themselves on- 

 wards, aiming at distant branches, which they seize with the most wonderful 

 precision ; and often without any pause, and almost without any perceptible 

 effort, they swing themselves forwards in a similar manner to another equally 

 distant branch. The most remarkable known species in this respect is the 

 agile gibbon, H. agilis {idI. 111^ fig. 15). 



The genus Siraia (orang-outang and chimpanse) is principally confined to 

 the peninsula of Malacca and the great islands of the Indian Ocean, One 

 species, the chimpanse, Troglodytes nigeror Simia troglodytes {2)1. 118, fig. 10), 

 inhabits "Western Africa ; and this is the one which presents the nearest 

 approach to man of the entire group. The conformation of the lower ex- 

 tremities enables it to walk erect with considerable firmness ; and, in the same 

 proportion, it is rendered unfit for climbing. All the accounts we possess 

 represent this animal in its natural state as living on the ground rather than 

 among trees. In many res}>ects it exhibits a degree of intelligence which is 

 manifested by no other monkey. The orang-outangs, Pithecus satynis, {pli 

 118, fig. 11), of which several species are known, are natives of Borneo and* 

 Sumatra. They are evidently adapted for arboreal rather than terrestrial 

 habits ; that is, for living among trees rather than for residing on the ground. 



701 



