TKANSACTIONS OF THE SKCTIONS. 95 



2. SotJTH-WESTEEN AFRICA. 



Tlie Portuguese colonies of Angola and Benguela, which seem to belong to a 

 zoological subregion distinct from both that of West Africa and that of the Cape, 

 were until i^cently almost unexplored. Within these last few ypai-s, however, 

 Prof. Barboza du Bocage has acquired extensive series of specimens in nearly every 

 department of natural history from these countries for the Lisbon Museum, and 

 has published several important memoirs on the subject (10), which he vrill pro- 

 bably ultimately incorporate into a general work. Mr. J. J. Monteiro has also sent 

 to this country collections of Mammals and Birds, which have formed the subject 

 of several papers (11, 12). 



3. Southern Aebica. 



Sir Andrew Smith's ' Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa ' (13) consti- 

 tute four solid quarto volumes, devoted to the new and rare vertebrates met with 

 during that energetic traveller's many explorations of the Cape colony and the 

 adjoining districts, and supplementing LevaUlant's celebrated 'Oiseaux d'Afrique' 

 (14). But there is no perfect list of the Cape fauna given in Sir Andrew 

 Smith's work ; and therefore Mr. Layard's ' Bh-ds of South Africa ' (15), though 

 not very completely elaborated, was a most acceptable and convenient work 

 to the ornithologist. Still more agreeable will it be to witness the completion 

 of the new and enlarged edition of Mr. Layard's little volume, which Mr. Sharpe 

 has undertaken (IG), and of which he has just issued the first part. Mr. Sharpe 

 will, however, I trust, pardon me for remarking that he has cut the synonymy 

 of the species rather short in his pages; it is hard to expect every South- 

 African colonist to have at his side the British-Museum Catalogue of Birds, to 

 which he always refers us. The omission of generic and family characters is also 

 much to be regretted in a work of this kind. Another modern and much-to-be- 

 recommended bird-book belonging to this subregion is Mr. J. H. Gurney's ' Birds of 

 Damara-land ' (17), founded on the extensive collections of the late C. J. Andersson. 

 No less than 428 species of birds were obtained by that indefatigable collector ; and 

 the task of editing his field-notes has been well performed by Mr. Gurney. 



4. Soutii-eastebn Africa. 



Our knowledge of the fauna of Mozambique is chiefly due to the scientific visit 

 made to that country by Dr. W. Peters, of Beriin, in 1842 and the following years. 

 The volume of this distinguished naturalist's ' Naturwissenschaftliche Eeise nach 

 Mossambique ' (18) on the Mammals was published in 1852, that on the Fishes in 

 1864, The delay in the issue of the portions relating to the Eeptiles and Bu-ds is 

 much to be regretted, more especially when we consider the high standard of the 

 work, although diagnoses of the new species discovered in these groups (19, 20) 

 have been long since published ; and I am sure I am expressing the sentiments of 

 naturalists in general when I say that 1 hope to see the series shortly completed. 

 Proceeding further north along the African coast, we come to Zanzibar, where an 

 excellent ichthyologist. Consul Playfair, was lately resident. The ' Fishes of Zan- 

 zibar,' by Giiuther and Playfair (21), founded on the extensive collections made 

 bj the latter, was published in 1866, and gives an account of above 500 species, and 

 many excellent figm-es. ^ , » . ^ nn- 



The Ornithology of the whole East- African coast, from Cape Gardafui to Mozam- 

 bique, has been elaborately worked out by Drs. Fiusch and Hartlaub. The results 

 ai-e contained in these authors' 'Vogel Ost-Afrika's ' (22), foi-ming the fourth 

 volume of the unfortunate Baron Cari Clans von der Decken's ' Reisen in Ost- 

 Afrika.' Full details as to previous authorities on the subject are given in this 

 excellent work ; so that it is not necessary to allude to them. 



As regards the Mammals of this part of Africa, however, it is expedient to say a 

 few words. Our knowledge of this class of animals is, as regards the coast opposite 

 Zanzibar and the country surrounding the great lakes of the interior, mainly com- 

 prised in. the fragmentary collections of Speke and Grant, of which an accoimt has 

 been published in the Zoological Society's ' Proceedings ' (23), and in the few speci- 



