ART. III.— DESCRIPTION OF A GIBBON. 



By WiNSLow Lewis, Jr. M. D. 



r 



These animals have been placed, by recent systematic 

 naturalists, as a sub-genus of the Ourangs, with which they 

 were confounded by the earher writers. But their organ- 

 ization demonstrates much more recession from the great 

 standard, man, than the latter, more especially in the 

 elongation of the anterior extremities, and their dental 

 peculiarities* lUiger, a Prussian anatomist, has designated 

 them under the term Hylobates, to express their habits as 

 inhabitants of the forests, and some remarkable additions 

 have been made to the genus, so that five species have 

 been described by Lesson in his supplement to BufFon,* 



viz. 



H. Syndactylus, the Siamang. 



H. Lar, the Great or Black Gibbon. 



H. Leuc'iscus, Moloch or Cinereous Gibbon* 



H. Variegatus, Little Gibbon or Wouwou. 



H. Unko, the OunJco. ■ ■ ' 



To which number Dr, Harlan, of Philadelphia, added 

 another which he termed Concolor.ji 



A Gibbon w^hich I had an opportunity of dissecting, 

 presenting differences from any of the above, I have been 

 induced to detail the results of my investigation. And 

 as we possess in our cabinet, a finely prepared skeleton of 



* Histoire Naturelle Generale et Particullere des Mammiferes et 

 des Oiseaux decouverts depuis 1788, jusqu' a nos jours. Par R. P. 

 Lesson, Vol. III. p. 362. 



t Journal of the Academy of Nat. Sciences of Philadelphia, Vol. 

 V. p. 229. 





I 



