﻿MUDGE] 
  CRETACEOUS 
  SYSTEM 
  NIOBRARA. 
  285 
  

  

  Professor 
  Cope, 
  in 
  his 
  " 
  Cretaceous 
  Vertebrata," 
  has 
  described 
  thirty- 
  

   six 
  species 
  of 
  fish, 
  and 
  some 
  twenty 
  others 
  have 
  quite 
  recently 
  been 
  

   found. 
  In 
  1872, 
  only 
  twenty-four 
  species 
  had 
  been 
  collected 
  from 
  Kan- 
  

   sas. 
  The 
  most 
  novel 
  is 
  a 
  new 
  genus 
  (three 
  species), 
  which 
  had 
  a 
  suout 
  

   appended 
  to 
  the 
  skull 
  like 
  the 
  sword 
  of 
  the 
  sword-fish, 
  but 
  conical 
  in 
  

   shape, 
  composed 
  of 
  a 
  compact 
  bundle 
  of 
  fibers. 
  In 
  the 
  largest 
  species, 
  

   this 
  snout 
  is 
  about 
  15 
  inches 
  long 
  and 
  1^ 
  in 
  diameter 
  at 
  the 
  base. 
  Pro- 
  

   fessor 
  Cope 
  has 
  a 
  representation 
  of 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  jaws 
  in 
  Plate 
  

   XLVIII, 
  Figs. 
  3-8, 
  under 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  JErisictJie 
  nitida. 
  But, 
  unfortu- 
  

   nately, 
  his 
  specimen 
  did 
  not 
  embrace 
  the 
  snout 
  or 
  much 
  of 
  the 
  skull, 
  so 
  

   that 
  a 
  correct 
  idea 
  of 
  the 
  fish 
  is 
  not 
  obtained 
  from 
  his 
  description. 
  Pro- 
  

   lessor 
  Marsh 
  has 
  a 
  dozen 
  specimeus, 
  recently 
  obtained 
  by 
  us, 
  from 
  which 
  

   a 
  more 
  detailed 
  description 
  may 
  be 
  made. 
  

  

  In 
  individuals, 
  the 
  fish 
  were 
  quite 
  numerously 
  represented. 
  In 
  the 
  

   season 
  of 
  1875, 
  our 
  party 
  saw, 
  according 
  to 
  my 
  note-book, 
  1,207 
  speci- 
  

   mens, 
  without 
  counting 
  the 
  teeth 
  of 
  sharks. 
  Many 
  of 
  these, 
  however, 
  

   were 
  so 
  fragmentary 
  that 
  we 
  did 
  not 
  collect 
  them. 
  The 
  genera 
  Por- 
  

   tlieus 
  and 
  Empo 
  were 
  most 
  abundant. 
  

  

  Several 
  species 
  of 
  marine 
  turtle 
  have 
  been 
  obtained. 
  One 
  described 
  

   by 
  Cope, 
  Protostrga 
  gigas, 
  was 
  15 
  feet 
  in 
  the 
  expanded 
  flipper. 
  The 
  type 
  

   is 
  embryonic. 
  This 
  is 
  seen 
  in 
  the 
  structure 
  of 
  the 
  ribs, 
  which 
  are 
  more 
  

   free 
  and 
  detached 
  from 
  the 
  dermal 
  plates 
  of 
  the 
  carapace 
  than 
  those 
  

   now 
  living. 
  Other 
  species, 
  however, 
  from 
  the 
  same 
  horizon, 
  did 
  not 
  

   show 
  any 
  embryonic 
  features. 
  O^ue, 
  apparently 
  a 
  Protosfe^a 
  one-fourth 
  

   as 
  long, 
  has 
  its 
  ribs 
  closely 
  united 
  with 
  the 
  plates, 
  and 
  in 
  other 
  charac- 
  

   teristics 
  had 
  the 
  semblance 
  of 
  a 
  mature 
  type. 
  

  

  A 
  small 
  species 
  was 
  somewhat 
  common, 
  whose 
  size 
  was 
  about 
  that 
  of 
  

   a 
  fresh 
  water 
  turtle 
  now 
  found 
  in 
  Kansas. 
  Some 
  species, 
  which 
  Pro- 
  

   fessor 
  Marsh 
  has 
  not 
  yet 
  had 
  time 
  to 
  examine, 
  will 
  undoubtedly 
  be 
  new 
  

   to 
  science. 
  

  

  Less 
  in 
  number 
  than 
  the 
  fish, 
  but 
  of 
  more 
  importance, 
  are 
  the 
  reptiles 
  

   of 
  the 
  crocodile 
  and 
  Saurian 
  type. 
  My 
  note-book 
  shows 
  476 
  specimens 
  

   seen 
  by 
  our 
  party 
  in 
  1875, 
  of 
  which 
  one-half 
  might 
  be 
  called 
  good, 
  and 
  

   some 
  of 
  them 
  equal, 
  if 
  not 
  superior, 
  to 
  anything 
  before 
  found 
  in 
  Europe 
  

   or 
  America. 
  Professor 
  Cope, 
  in 
  the 
  work 
  above 
  quoted, 
  has 
  made 
  a 
  list 
  

   of 
  all 
  the 
  genera 
  and 
  species 
  now 
  known 
  in 
  the 
  Cretaceous, 
  which 
  shows 
  

   fifty-one 
  hitherto 
  described, 
  of 
  which 
  Europe 
  furnishes 
  but 
  four, 
  and 
  

   Kansas 
  twenty 
  six. 
  To 
  this 
  number 
  must 
  be 
  added 
  six 
  or 
  eight 
  which 
  

   have 
  been 
  discovered 
  by 
  our 
  party 
  within 
  two 
  years, 
  which 
  are 
  now 
  in 
  

   possession 
  of 
  Professor 
  Marsh, 
  who 
  will 
  soon 
  publish 
  a 
  technical 
  de- 
  

   scription 
  of 
  them. 
  

  

  New 
  Jersey 
  comes 
  next, 
  furnishing 
  fifteen 
  species. 
  Although 
  this 
  

   formation 
  extends 
  quite 
  widely 
  into 
  Nebraska, 
  but 
  few 
  vertebrates 
  have 
  

   been 
  found 
  within 
  that 
  State. 
  They 
  have 
  been 
  collected 
  most 
  abun- 
  

   dantly 
  in 
  the 
  Saline 
  and 
  Smoky 
  Hill 
  Valleys, 
  and 
  nearly 
  all 
  from 
  the 
  

   Niobrara 
  proper, 
  above 
  the 
  massive 
  limestone 
  of 
  the 
  Fort 
  Hays 
  division. 
  

   It 
  must 
  be 
  recollected 
  that 
  this 
  deposit 
  is 
  never 
  over 
  200 
  feet 
  in 
  thick- 
  

   ness. 
  

  

  Our 
  labors 
  during 
  three 
  years 
  past 
  have 
  added 
  much 
  to 
  the 
  knowledge 
  

   previously 
  obtained 
  in 
  regard 
  to 
  the 
  structure 
  of 
  this 
  class 
  of 
  reptiles, 
  

   particularly 
  of 
  the 
  smaller 
  bones 
  and 
  hind 
  limbs. 
  The 
  collections 
  in 
  the 
  

   possession 
  of 
  Professor 
  Marsh 
  from 
  Kansas 
  will 
  leave 
  little 
  to 
  be 
  needed 
  

   in 
  the 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  anatomy 
  of 
  Saurians, 
  as 
  they 
  are 
  more 
  full 
  and 
  com- 
  

   plete 
  than 
  any 
  in 
  Europe. 
  

  

  The 
  Saurians 
  are 
  of 
  all 
  sizes. 
  One 
  from 
  Jewell 
  Countv 
  was 
  about 
  70 
  

  

  