4 BEITISH AND EUKOPEAN FOSSIL MASTODONS 



Val d'Arno Proboscidean remains contained in the Museum 

 at Florence ; the collections of Turin, Milan, and Pavia ; of 

 Geneva, Lausanne, Berne, Zurich, Basle, and Winterthur in 

 Switzerland ; of Darmstadt, Mannheim, and Strasbourg on 

 the Bhine ; of the Jardin des Plantes and EJcole des Mines 

 in Paris ; the Due de Luynes's fine collection of the Chartres 

 Fossil Elephant, in Chateau Dampierre ; and the surpassingly- 

 rich and unrivalled collection made by my friend M. Lartet, 

 of the Sub-Pyrenean Proboscidea, at Seissan on the Ga- 

 ronne ; together with some of the principal collections at 

 Toulouse. In one or other of these Museums I had oppor- 

 tunities of studying all the fossil species hitherto described 

 as having been met with in Europe, together with one fine 

 species of Mastodon discovered by M. Lartet, but which has 

 not yet been published. 



Generic distinctions and nomenclature of the Proboscidea. — 

 Before entering on the special consideration of the British 

 fossil forms, it will be necessary to give some explanation of 

 the principles on which the genera have been limited, and 

 subdivided into subgeneric groups, in order to comprehend 

 the reasons for the nomenclature adopted in this communica- 

 tion. A detailed pala3ontological disquisition would be out of 

 place on the present occasion. Such salient points only will 

 be touched upon as are essential to the elucidation of the 

 subject. 



The Proboscidean species, fossil and recent, constitute a 

 large group, embracing at least twenty-five distinct forms, 

 which are comprised under the three genera of Dinotherium, 

 Mastodon, and Elephas. These genera, regarded in a 

 systematic view, are of very unequal value numerically ; the 

 first being very limited in the number of ascertained species, 

 but defined by well-marked generic distinctions ; while the 

 last two represent a large number of specific forms, which, 

 although their opposite extremes are widely separated, yet 

 are connected together through so complete and natural a 

 series of intermediate specific links, that it has proved 

 difficult to devise good generic characters to distinguish 

 them. Putting aside all other considerations of structure and 

 form, the diagnostic marks will be regarded on the present 

 occasion solely as they are furnished by the teeth and jaws. 



Dinotherium. — The adult dentition of Dinotherium 1 is cha- 

 racterized by two vertically succeeding premolars and three 

 true molars, five teeth in all, with transverse crenulated 

 ridges closely resembling those of the Tapir; and by two 



1 Kaup, Akten der Urwelt (1811), pp. 22-40. 



