120 



ME. a. BUSK ON THE ANCIENT OE 



lower third, more faintly above. In the Alpine the annulation is finer throughout, 

 corresponding perhaps with its younger age. 



7. In both, the cores diverge from the base, and the sulcation of the surface shows 

 no indication of a twist ; but, in both, the points of the horns themselves show a 

 tendency to turn in, as in C. liispanica, but less markedly. 



The transverse section of the horn-cores is exactly alike in both, although that of the 

 horns themselves diifers considerably. 



In the Royal College of Surgeons there are several skulls of both the Alpine and 

 Spanish Ibex : — 



Two from the Sierra de Gredos, presented by Senor Graells, Director of the Museum 

 of Natural History of Madrid, and a magnificent specimen, with the horns, of a fine 

 young male, which was shot in the Sierra de Honda by Capt. Austruther, of the Rifle 

 Brigade, who was stationed at the time of our visit at Gibraltar, and took the greatest 

 interest in the investigation of the animal remains of the breccia. He kindly took 

 the trouble to procure the above specimen for the purpose of facilitating our inquiry, 

 but was unfortunately not able to convey the entire skeleton — preserving, however, the 

 fore and hind feet. 



Of the Alpine Ibex the College possesses a skull from the north of Italy, presented 

 to the College by Sir James Hudson (3742 c) with one or two others, amongst which 

 I have used one numbered 3742 a. 



The comparative dimensions of certain parts of two of these Spanish and two Alpine 

 Ibexes are given in the following Table : — 



These figures may suffice to give a correct idea of the characters of the two forms. 



1. From the figures it will be seen that the proportion between the basal circum- 

 ference and the length of the horn-core aff'ords no distinctive character. 



2. That the proportion of the width to the length of the nasals is very nearly the 

 same in both, though it is rather less in the Alpine form in the middle. 



