PRIMATES PEOM MADAGASCAR. 119 



fossil forms having come to light, as in the case of the Indrisinse, proving conclusively 

 that the existing genera are allied to obviously pithecoid forms *, still even in their case 

 analogy would suggest that they also are descended from Ape-like ancestors. The 

 undoubted degeneracy of the allied Megaladapinae and the fact that certain members 

 both of Malagasy and continental genera appear to retain Simian characteristics 

 which have disappeared in the Lemurs properly so called {e.g., the postorbital septum 

 of Tarsius, the shorter muzzle of Hapalemur, the proportionately larger incisors of 

 Perodicticus and Nycticebus), would suggest that in the case of the Lemurs also many of 

 the so-called " Lemuroid " characters may be the result of convergent specialisation. 



Dr. Elliot Smith informs me that the histology of the brain-cortex of certain of the 

 Lemuridse supplies a complete link with some of the South- American forms, while 

 " the furrow-pattern of Perodicticus is an almost exact copy of that of Pithecia.'^ 

 There is thus a strong presumption that the various genera of the Lemuridse as well as 

 the New World Monkeys have had a common origin ; that, in fact, the Lemuridse are, 

 in general, specialised and more or less degenerate decendants of ancestors more Simian 

 in character. This subject will be further discussed in the concluding sections. 



In the Ampasambazimba deposit eleven perfect or almost perfect skulls of Lemur 

 have been discovered. These are evidently closely allied to the species described by 

 Dr. Filhol from Belo and named by him L. insigm's. 1 have given in the ' Bulletin de 

 I'Academie Malgache ' my reasons for differentiating the two specimens there briefly 

 described from- L. insignis. In view of the complete series of skulls, one of the 

 characters on which I based my distinction — viz. the differences in the line of the facial 

 profile — has less weight than I at first attributed to it, since considerable variation occurs 

 in this respect throughout the series. 



The broad oval shape of the palate of L. insignis, however, especially in the region 

 of the premolars, is not reproduced in any of the new specimens — the anterior part of 

 the palate in all of them shewing more resemblance to the narrow elongated form 

 seen in existing genera than to the broad comparatively ovoid form of L. insignis. But 

 since the variations of form among the specimens found at Ampasambazimba are very 

 considerable, I do not feel it safe to speak too dogmatically as to the value of the 

 specific distinctions made among such a series of skulls all obviously closely allied, 

 especially in view of the great variations which we have seen to exist in the case of 

 the subfossil genera already described. The same remark will apply to the specific 

 distinction which I make in the case of one of this series of skulls, in which the occur- 

 rence of certain distinctive characters appears to justify a separate notice. For this 

 latter skull I propose the name of Lemur majori. 



* The evident resemblance of the humerus of Lemur jullyi to that of Archceolemw referred to in the 

 following section goes far towards furnishing such evidence, as also do certain characters of the skull of Lemur 

 jullyi to which attention is called in the present section. 



