The Zoologist — July, 1868. 



1289 



But why pursue a speculation that can lead to no satisfactory 

 result ? the evidence of actual metamorphosis is confined to the life- 

 history of each individual ; there is not, and cannot be, any evidence 

 that it extends to species. On the other side, also, it must be 

 admitted that the evideuce is simply negative; no one can prove that 

 metamorphosis does not take place ; no one can show that the hippo- 

 potamus and the crocodile, the ostrich and the humming bird, the 

 bird of paradise and the earth-worm, the sensitive plant and the sper- 

 maceti whale, have not descended from three or four, aye, even from 

 one, primordial germ. Let me, therefore, leave these temptations to 

 speculation, and devote the limited space at my command to statistics 

 more relevant to Zoology as a science of facts. 



Mr. Wollaston finds the Coleopterous fauna of the Cape Verdes to 

 be comprised of two hundred and seventy-eight species : three of 

 these are only indicated by fragments, the rest by perfect individuals; 

 the whole are arranged by Mr. Wollaston under the following twelve 

 primary divisions : — 



Six islands were "partially" examined. I quote the word "par- 

 tially" because used by Mr. Wollaston, but I believe the examination 

 has been very much more complete than Mr. Wollaston's modesty 

 would lead us to suppose. I give the names of these six islands, and 

 append to each name the number of species that the island so called 

 produced : — 



S. Vicente . . .132 species. 



S. Jago 130 „ 



S. Antonio ... 114 „ 



SECOND SERIES — VOL. III. 2 M 



