38 ZOOLOGICAL GEOGRAPHY. [part hi. 



*Pseudalopex (two wolf-like foxes), Fclis (the puma), Mephitis 

 (skunks), Cervus (deer), *Auchenia (guanaco), *Ctcnomys (tucu- 

 tucu), *Beithrodon and *Hespcromys (American mice). 



Birds. — Three families of Birds are confined to this sub-region, 

 — Phytotomidae (1 genus, 3 sp.), inhabiting Chili, La Plata, and 

 Bolivia; Chionididse (1 genus, 2 sp.) the "sheath-bills," found 

 only at the southern extremity of the continent and in Kerguelen's 

 Island, which with the other antarctic lands perhaps comes best 

 here ; Thinocoridse (2 genera, 6 species) an isolated family of 

 waders, ranging over the whole sub-region and extending north- 

 ward to the equatorial Andes. Many genera are also peculiar : 

 3 of Fringillidse, and 1 of Icteridse ; 9 of Dendrocolaptidas, 6 of 

 Tyrannidee, 3 of Trochilidse, and 4 of Pteroptochidse, — the last four 

 South American families. There is also a peculiar genus of par- 

 rots (Henicognathus) in Chili ; two of pigeons {Metriopelia and 

 Oymnopelia) confined to the Andes and west coast from Peru to 

 Chili ; two of Tinamous, Tinamotes in the Andes, and Calo- 

 dromus in La Plata ; three of Charadriidee, Phwgornis, Phcvia- 

 nellus, and Oreophilus ; and Rhea, the American ostriches, 

 inhabiting all Patagonia and the pampas. Perhaps the Caria- 

 midse have almost as much right here as in the last sub-region, 

 inhabiting as they do, the "pampas" of La Plata and the up- 

 land " campos " of Brazil ; and even among the wide-ranging 

 aquatic birds, we have a peculiar genus, Merganettd,one of the duck 

 family, which is confined to the temperate plateau of the Andes. 



Against this extensive series of characteristic groups, all either 

 of American type or very distinct forms of Old World families, 

 and therefore implying great antiquity, we find, in mammalia 

 and birds, very scanty evidence of that direct affinity with the 

 north temperate zone, on which some naturalists lay so much 

 stress. We cannot point to a single terrestrial genus, which is 

 characteristic of the north and reappears in this south temperate 

 region without also occurring over much of the intervening 

 land. Mustcla seems only to have reached Peru ; Zepus is iso- 

 lated in Brazil ; true Ursus does not pass south of Mexico. In 

 birds, the northern groups rarely go further south than Mexico 

 or the Columbian Andes ; and the only case of discontinuous 



