338 MR. O.THOMAS ON THE RACES OF ECHIDNA. [Apr. 21, 



These modifications are, so to speak, the characters of incipient 

 species ; but in my opinion they have neither yet gone far enough, nor 

 are yet sufficiently constant to necessitate our recognizing more than 

 a single species of true Echidna, with three geographical varieties, 

 of which the characters and synonymy are as follows. 



1. E. ACULEATA LAWESi. (Plate XXIII. fig. A.) 



Tach/glossus latvesi, E. P. Ramsay, P. Linn. Soc. N. S. W. ii. 

 p. 31 (1877), iii. p. 244 (1879); A. Dubois, Bull. Soc. Zool. vi. 

 p. 2G8 (18S 1 ) ; Peters & Doria, Ann, Mus. Genov. xvi. p. 688 (1881). 



Hab. New Guinea (as yet only known from Port Moresby). 



Size small. Spines rather short, with the hairs partly visible 

 between them ; crown of head, bell)', and legs clothed almost entirely 

 with flattened bristles. Third hind claw only from one third to 

 one half the length of the second, and but little larger than the 

 fourth. 



Skull small and very narrow (breadth about 4 1 mm. ; index 

 37 or 38), with a small low brain-case (capacity 17 or 18 cubic 

 centimetres), and with a proportionally long slender snout (rostral 

 index, 109-114). No condyloid vacuities. 



2. E. ACULEATA TYPiCA. (Plate XXIII. fig. B.) 



Myrmecophaga aculeata, Shaw, Nat. Misc. iii. pi. 109 (1792). 



Ornithorhynchus hystrLv, Home, Phil. Trans. 18('2, p. 348, 

 pi. X. 



Echidna aculeata, Waterhouse, N. H. Mamm. i. p. 41 (1846); 

 Flower & Garson, Cat. Coll. Surg. ii. p. 751 (1884). 



E. hystrix, Cuv. Regn. Anim. i. p. 226 (1817); Gould, Mamm. 

 Austr. i. pi. ii. 18.52 ; Mivart, Tr. Linn. Soc. xxv. p. 379 (1866) ; 

 Murie, J. Linn. Soc. xvi. p. 413 (1878) {et auctorum plurimorum). 



E. australiensis, Less. Man. Mamm. p. 318 (1827). 



E. longiaculeata, Tiedem. Zoologie, i. p. 592 (1808). 



E. acanthion, R. CoUett, Forh. Vid. Selsk. No. 13 ; P. Z. S. 1885, 

 p. 150. 



Hab. The whole continent of Australia. 



Size medium. Spines very long, entirely hiding the hairs ; crown 

 of the head, belly, and legs covered with a mixture of hairs and 

 bristles. Third hind claw as in latoesi. 



Skull of medium size and proportions (breadth 43-49 mm., index 

 40 to 42), with a medium-sized brain-case (capacity 22-27 c. cm.), 

 and a long slender snout (rostral index generally from 93 to 103). 

 Condyloid vacuities generally absent. 



3. E. ACULEATA SETOsA. (Plate XXIII. figs. C and D.) 



" Another species of Ornithorhynchus," Home, Phil. Trans. 1802, 

 p. 357, pi. xiii. 



Echidna setosa,Cny. Regn. Anim. i. p. 226 (1817); Waterh. 



