NOTICES OF NEW BOOKS. 317 
coral beak and legs; and a handsome Shrike, Laniellus leuco- 
grammicus, known only from Java. 
In the forests of Sumatra Mr. Forbes added to his collection 
some of the fairest of the feathered tribes—a crested Bee-eater, 
Nyctiornis amicta, with rose-coloured head and vermilion throat ; 
orange and scarlet-crested Woodpeckers; green Barbets, blue 
and bronze Doves, green and scarlet twittering Lories; and, on 
the dead snags of the lonely outliers, large hawks and falcons. 
Amongst the Mammalia his most interesting capture in Sumatra 
was a Flying Squirrel (Sciwropterus), with large gentle Lemur- 
like eyes, soft fur, and black-margined parachute expansions. 
Butterflies were numerous and beautiful, none perhaps more so 
than the lovely Amblypodia eumolopus, the upper sides of whose 
wings are of the most sparkling emerald. 
Of the Natural History of Timor-laut previous to Mr. Forbes’ 
visit hardly anything was known. If we except birds, animal- 
life seems to be but poorly represented. Besides a Cuscus (a 
genus of Marsupials common to the Moluccas and New Guinea) 
and a wild pig, Mr. Forbes found no large indigenous mammals, 
although, so far as native tradition goes, the herds of Buffaloes 
which live in a wild state on the mainland are believed to be 
indigenous. Mr. Forbes, however, considers it more likely that 
they have been brought there by the accident of shipwreck, or 
by design. No Deer were seen or heard of, no Kangaroo, and 
no Squirrels; a few small insectivorous Bats, one fruit-eating 
Bat, and a small mouse-like animal (Perameles) were all that 
were observed, although the Dugong, Halicore australis, frequents 
the shore, and is hunted by the natives for its ivory. 
One species of Frog was collected, while Snakes and Lizards 
were found in considerable numbers, one species of each proving 
to be new to science. Out of sixty species of birds collected on 
Timor-laut no less than twenty were new; and of the butterflies 
and other insects brought home from here nearly one half were 
previously undescribed. 
With this glance at its contents we must close Mr. Forbes’ 
volume, though we should like to have quoted much more from 
it. It is extremely interesting from beginning to end, and is 
quite the best Natural-History book of the season. 
