428 
NATURE 
[March 30, 1871 

Syria, Egypt, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Persia, N. Af- 
ghdnstan, Panjab, Middle China, Southern Japan? 7. 
Mongolian Sub-region—Mongolia, Tibet, and Chinese 
Tartary.* 
Il. Zhe Columbian Region.—South America, minus the 
chain of the Andes and the extreme south. Divided into 
—1. Brazilian Sub-region ; the forest countries east of the 
Andes. 2. Pampian Sub-region; the Pampas territory. 
3. Peruvian Sub-region ; Bolivia, Peru, Chili, and the 
Galldpagos Archipelago. 
Ill. The Ethiopian Region.—Africa, south of the Atlas 
and of Egypt. Divided into—1. Lybian Sub-region ; ex- 
tending from Senegal to Nubia and Arabia, the country 
bordering on the head of the Persian Gulf (Mekran), S. 
» Afghdnstan, Beluchistan, and the desert country of N.W. 
Hindustan. An outlying strip of this sub-region extends 
along the cleft, or wady, continuous with the Gulf of Ormuz, 
in which is situate the depression of the Dead Sea and 
beyond it the Valley of the Jordan. 2. Nigritian Sub- 
region; Negroland. 3. Caffrarian Sub-region ; Southern 
Africa. 4. Indian Sub-region ; Hindustan proper, or the 
plains of Upper India E. and S. of the N.W. desert ; 
Dukhun, or table-land of the peninsula of India; and the 
intervening territory, inclusive of the Vindhaian ghats ; 
Coromandel coast ; low northern half of Ceylon. 
IV. The Lemurian Region.—Madagascar, the Masca- 
rine Islands, Seychelles, &c. Probably an extensive region 
of dry land formerly, but now for the most part submerged, 
where the coral formations occupy so extensive an area. 
V. The Australasian Region:t The Indo-Chinese 
peninsula, together with the Indo-Malayan region of 
Wallace ; the southern watershed of the Himialyas, 
* It may seem a bold idea to put forward, but I have an exceedingly strong 
impression that the Stannavoi mountains, and the country eastward of them, 
the Valley of the Amurand all Mantchuria, with the Korean (or Koriak ?) 
Peninsula, the country of the Tchuktchi who, though pastoral, are veritable 
Eskimo, (I adopt the spelling of Sir J. Richardson), the peninsula of Kam- 
chatka (asMr. F. Whymper spells 1t), the Kurile Islands, the Japanese Archi- 
pelago in part, and the Island of Saghalian or Sankhalin, which separates the 
Gulf of Tahtary from the Sea of Okhotsk, together with the Alaska terri- 
tory, eastward of Bering’s Straits (constituting part of the mainland of 
America) appertain alike to my Neo-septentrional sub-region, however the 
area may be subdivisible into provinces and sub-provinces; the Palzo- 
septentrional, the Neo-septentrional, and Arctic sub-regions being there 
variously interposed, with a certain amount of blending as in all such cases. 
Be it remarked that the Outs canadensis is identical on the Stannavoi 
Mountains, those of Kamchatka, and the Rocky Mountain chain in North 
America; also that the insectivorous genus Uvotadfa (even the species 
apparently) is identical in Western North America and Japan, and there are 
very remarkable ethnological affinities pervading the entire area, to which 
it is sufficient here thus cursorily toallude. Indeed, the Japanese themselves 
are more nearly akin to the Columbians (or redskins, the so-called ‘* American 
Indians”) than to the Asiatic nations of pronounced Mongolian type, to which 
latter the Eimo of Yeso and kindred Kamchatkadales strictly appertain. 
The Ovibos moschatus (or musk-sheep) is asserted to exist on the Island 
of Saghalian! May not the species prove, however, to be Ovibos Pallantis 
of De Blainville, supposed hitherto to be extinct, rather than O. soschatus 
of the Arctic-American Barren-grounds? If I mistake not (writing from 
memory) the O Padlantis is identical with the North American Bootherium 
bombifrons of Trans-Atlantic palzontologists. O. moschatus would appear 
at one time to have been distriouted over my Palzo-septentrional sub-region 
even to the area now constituting the British islands. The present Arctic 
sub-region must at that time have been co-extensive with the existent 
Palzo-septentrional if not also the existent Neo-septentrional sub-regions. 
Together with Ovzbos moschatus on the Arctic American Barren-grounds, 
the Eurepean and Asiatic Uvsus arctos there exists, which is significant of 
a former connection with the major continent! The Barren-grounds phy- 
sically resemble the *‘ Tundras” of Siberia and likewise mountain Lapland. 
The more that I reflect upon what is known of the fauna and flora of the 
debatable land in the extreme N.E. of Asia, the more thoroughly do I feel 
conyinced that the Stannavoi mountains constitute the true and real 
boundary between Asia and America. Southward of the Stannayoi moun- 
tains, in Mantchuria, the two continents blend. The Japanese archipelago 
belongs to America, and not to Asia; at least in great part, as indicated by 
the presence of the Uvofa/fa ; but there is also a true 7a/fa indicative of 
both Palzo-septentrional and a Palzo-meridional relations, and Phasianus 
versicolor and P. Séemmeringii indicate the latter, while many of the 
insessorial birds of Japan indicate the former, and the bulbul ef the genus 
Microcelis indicates an Australasian element, so that the Japanese Archi- 
pelago is, after all, a debatable land where different zoological regions and 
sub-regions meet and blend more or le-s: Cerwus pseudaxis of the moun- 
tain spine of Formosa, so nearly akin to the much smaller C. szka of 
Japan and the much larger C. »antchuricus of Mantchuria, agajn indi- 
cating the propriety of recognising a Japanese or Korean province of the 
Neo-septentrional sub-region of the grand Boreal region. All qualified 
botanists will surely bear me out m this opinion. 
+ Austral-Asia as distinguished from Australia : approximately the same as 
‘the Indian region” of Dr. Sclater, but shorn of the greater part of Jndia 
properly so denominated. 

at least up to the zone of oaks and rhododendrons, 
and jungle-clad hill country of Southern India and of 
Ceylon, if not also certain fertile hill territory in Southern 
Arabia ; Lower and Eastern Bengal; Philippine Islands ; 
Chinese islands of Hainan and Formosa (minus its moun- 
tain spine), and probably so much of the south of China 
as is inhabited by the A/anzs or pangolin, the Pal@ornis 
cyanocephalus, the genus Centyropus, and other Austral- 
asian and Ethiopian forms. Divided into: 1. Indo- 
Chinese Sub-region—extending southward over one-half 
of the Malayan peninsula, as far as Pinang and Province 
Wellesley; Hainan and lowlands of Formosa, and more 
or less of the southern part of China. 2. Malayan Sub- 
region—southern half of the Malayan peninsula, Sumatra, 
Banka, Borneo, Java, and Bali. 3. Philippian Sub-region 
(which has Melanesian affinities, as indicated by the 
presence of a peculiar species of cockatoo—mammiferous 
animals few in number), Philippine Islands. 4. Himdalyan 
Sub-region—the southern watershed of the Himalyas, 
with the /érad region at its base, Asim, and Eastern and 
Lower Bengal (z.e. the Sundarbdns). 5. Cinghalese Sub- 
region—the hilly parts of Ceylon (occupying the southern 
half of the island), those of southernmost India, and the 
Malabar ghats; perhaps also the little-known fertile 
mountain territory of Southern Arabia, from which Mekka 
is supplied with grapes and other fruit. , 
VIL. The Melanesian Region.—Divided into: 1. Aus- 
tralian Sub-region—Australia (minus York peninsula and 
part of Queensland), Tasmania. 2. Papuan Sub-region—- 
Papua, New Britain and New Ireland, Jilolo or Halmahira, 
Ceram, Buru, Moluccas, Aru Islands, and Timor Lat; 
Louisiade Archipelago ; York Peninsula and eastern half 
of Queensland (as far as the dividing range) on the main- 
land of Australia, 3. Celebesian Sub-region—the very re- 
markable island of Celebes, which has Australasian 
affinities, but subordinates to the present region : Islands 
of Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Wetter, Timor, and Sandal- 
wood Island. (Austro-Malayan region of Wallace.) 4. An- 
tarctic Sub-region, inclusive of Kerguelin’s Land. 
VII. The Polynesian Region.—Divided into: 1. Moa- 
rian* Sub-region—New Zealand, with the islets apper- 
taining to it, inclusive of Macquairie Island (upon which 
far southern land a peculiar species of ground-parrakeet 
inhabits, ofa Polynesian genus—Cyanorhamphus). 2. Poly- 
nesian Sub-region—comprehending the Archipelagos of 
the Pacific, excepting those which appertain to the Co- 
lumbian region. 
All of these Zoological Divisions of the dry land upon 
the surface of our planet might be amply illustrated by an 
enumeration of the species and genera, or even higher 
groups,which are respectively peculiar tothem. Thus, the 
presence of the true raven (Corvus corax) exactly coincides 
with the limits which are here assigned to the vast Boreal 
region, even to the Indian Panjab, and assuming that the 
so-called American species (C. carnivorus and C. mexi- 
canus) do not really differ, which I believe to be the case, 
as likewise the so-called C. ¢zbefanus,; the sole exception 
being that of the Andisian sub-region, inasmuch as there is 
no Corvis in all South America. Be it always remembered 
that the major and the minor continents approximate in the 
Northern Pacific, to say nothing of the connection between 
them afforded by the chain of the Aleutian islands, and 
that a remarkable wild mountain sheep (Ov7s canadensis) 
inhabits both sides of the Pacific, and not only the penin- 
sula of Kamchatka, but the Stannavoi mountains which 
lie west of the sea of Ochotsk. 
The southern watershed of the Himdlya (below at 
least the zone of oaks and rhododendrons) consists, de- 
cidedly, of an extension westward of the Australasian 
* I propose Moaria rather than Maoria, following Dr. Sclater’s example of 
Lemuria ; naming the land from the indigenous ‘‘ moa” genus (Déo7%1s) rather 
than from the present Maori inhabitants. Of course, it is well known that 
in the Polynesian languages ‘‘moa” merely signifies a fowl; but it has 
become |specialised since the discovery of the extinct Dinornis genus by 
Europeans. 
