206 DR. H. GADOW ON MEXICAN [June 6, 



Isthmus, B. coccifer and B. sternosignatus ; or they extend into 

 the Atlantic hot-lands, canaliferus ; or along the Western Sierra 

 Madre into Jalisco, intermedius, with viarmoreus peculiar to 

 South-western Mexico ; or they go as typical hot-country Toads 

 into both the eastern and western Tierra Caliente, inarimts, 

 vallicejjs on the Atlantic side from Nicaragua to Texas, not on the 

 plateau, but recorded from Jalisco and Presidio near Mazatlan ; 

 lastly, B. simns from Panama on to and over most of the Mexican 

 plateau. 



3. Northerners, chiefly at home in the South-western United 

 States and in the northern half of Mexico, eventuallly extending 

 south over the Central plateau : B. ^mnciaPas, debilis, coonpactilis. 



Of the Bufonidee which are found in the Greater Antilles all 

 are now separate, insular species, except B. marinus, which has 

 probably been introduced. 



HYLiDiE. — The creative centre of this family is decidedly South 

 America. Every one of the 14 genera of Hylidee is found in 

 America, and it is only by the lai-ge genus Hyla (inch the slightly 

 modified Ilylella) that this family has attained its world-wide 

 range with the remarkable exception of the whole Palseo-tropical 

 region. From North-western South America they have spread 

 through Centi'al America into the Antilles (about 7 or 8 species, 

 mostly peculiar), and through Mexico into North America. 



Concerning Mexico they fall into the following groups : — 



1 . Genera peculiar to Mexico : Fternohyla, P. fodiens of 

 Presidio near Mazatlan ; Triprion^ T, petasatus of Yucatan ; but 

 Diaglena jo7'dani of Ecuador and Corythommitis greeningi of 

 Brazil point to the south as the old centre of these peculiar 

 Mexicans. 



2. Genera with preponderating numbers of species in Central 

 and South America, while comparatively few have reached, or have 

 been developed in, Mexico : Phyllomedusa with only P. dacnicolor 

 on the Pacific side, Agalychnis calUdryas and Nototrema oviferum 

 in the Atlantic Tierra Caliente. 



P. dacnicolor is saturated green, often with the same white 

 temporary patches or sj)ots as happen so frequently in the 

 Australian Hyla cceridea. They were pairing at Rio Balsas in the 

 month of June. During the nightly thunderstorms the males 

 kept up an incessant noise like the snarling bark of little dogs. 

 The couples were sitting in low shrubs or amongst herbs, a foot 

 above the ground, overhanging little ditches which led into a dirty 

 stagnant pool. During the daytime the ditches were absolutely 

 dry. The eggs are very small, very numerous, and of a light 

 grass-green colour. 



3. Hyla. About 15 species are recorded from Mexico, to which 

 no less than 11 seem to be peculiar, but at least 8 of these have 

 hitherto been found in single localities only. Our knowledge of 

 the distribution of Tree-frogs is still very defective. Most of them 

 inhabit the forest -regions of the Atlantic slope. They are dis- 



