33 



May 26, 1 840. 



William Yarrell, Esq., Vice-President, in the Chair. 



A letter from Hugh Cuming, Esq., was read. This letter is dated 

 Manilla, November 5, 1839, and gives an account of some cases of 

 specimens forwarded to the Society. Mr. Cuming states that he 

 has not yet been successful in procuring a certain Ruminant, known 

 by the name Tamaroo, but he entertains hopes of having a specimen 

 forwarded to England after him, he being about to return. With 

 the exception of this animal, he had procured all the quadrupeds of 

 the Philippines of which he could obtain any information. ^Phe 

 letter, moreover, states that he observed two varieties of the Monkey 

 he had sent home {Macacus cynomolgus), and which is the only spe- 

 cies found in the Philippine Islands ; one was variegated with black 

 and white, and the other is of a light chestnut colour, and varied 

 with white. Only one of each of these varieties was seen by Mr. 

 Cuming, and the variety was, in both cases, in company with ordi- 

 nary coloured individuals. 



A letter from the President of the Society, the Earl of Derby, 

 was also read; it is dated Prescot, May 13, 1840, and relates to 

 some crosses which have taken place among the animals in his Lord- 

 ship's menagerie. " A female common Zebra (Equus Zebra)," says 

 his Lordship, " has lately taken to my young Dshiggetai (Equus 

 hemionus), and is the only animal he has yet appeared to notice in 

 this way. The produce, if any, would, I should think, be curious. 



" I think I have often heard that Foxes will not breed in confine- 

 ment, but I have a female which, about two days since, produced 

 three young ; they only lived about two days. The sire is from 

 America." 



His Lordship has reason to believe that a female Fox also pro- 

 duced a similar litter about four years back, but destroyed them. 



On the ' Great Water' of his Lordship's park, a Bernicle paired 

 with, and constantly accompanied, a Canada Goose, but there was 

 no produce ; this happened last season. In the present one the 

 same Bernicle has paired with a white-fronted Goose, and the pair 

 have a nest with nine or ten eggs. It is not known, in either case, 

 which was the goose and which the gander. 



The Polish Swan has bred with the common species, and his Lord- 

 ship further states, that this year a pair of their cross-breed have 

 laid again, but the eggs are not yet hatched. 



In a letter from Madame Power, dated Messina, March 25, 1840, 

 which was read, that lady states that she had forwarded for the So- 

 ciety's museum some packages containing some bird-skins, and also 



Nos. LXXXVIII. & LXXXIX.— Proceedings of the Zool. Soc. 



