GENERIC DISTINCTIONS OF PROBOSCIDEA. 



huge inferior recurved incisors, implanted in an enormously 

 thickened and deflected beak or prolongation of the sym- 

 physis of the lower jaw (Plate II. fig. 1). Most of the 

 molar teeth present the normal Tapir-like crown character 

 of two ridges ; but, when the milk and permanent dentition 

 are taken together, Dinotherium differs from all the non- 

 elephantoid Pachydermata in the circumstance that the last 

 milk molar and antepenultimate true molar (being con- 

 tiguous teeth in the order of horizontal succession) present a 

 more complex development of three ridges, or, a ' ternary- 

 ridged crown formula ' (to use a term which will be found of 

 importance in the sequel). Two species only of Dinotherium 

 have, I believe, hitherto been met with — the one in Europe, 

 and the other in India. 1 The European species, D. giganteum, 

 occurs in the Older Miocene formations, such as Eppelsheim, 

 the Faluns of Touraine, and the Molasse and lacustrine 

 strata of the Sub- Pyrenees ; it has nowhere been met with in 

 Britain. 



Mastodon and Elephas. — Up to the date of the last 4to 

 edition of the ' Ossemens Fossiles,' published during the 

 author's life, in 1825, the species of Mastodon and Elephas 

 then known were sufficiently well distinguished by the cha- 

 racters indicated by Cuvier, 2 the founder of the former genus ; 

 namely, that the molar teeth of Mastodon consisted of a com- 

 paratively simple crown, divided into mammillse or tubercles, 

 arranged in transverse ridges, more or less numerous, and 

 more or less prominent, with corresponding empty valleys or 

 hollows between them ; while those of Elephas were more 

 complex, consisting of numerous thin transverse plates, having 

 their intervals filled up with cement. The subsequent 



1 As in the case of the Mastodon of 

 North America, numerous nominal species 

 have been founded by different authors 

 (Kaup, Von Meyer, Eichwald, &c.) upon 

 what would appear to have been merely 

 varieties of the same species, depending 

 on race, sex, &c, as evinced by the 

 comparative size of the teeth. Dr. Kaup 

 now entertains doubts of there being any 

 other European species than B. gigan- 

 teum (Akten der Urwelt, p. 49). The 

 difference of size between the teeth of 

 B. giganteum and B. Cuvieri is not 

 greater than is known to occur between 

 homologous teeth from different indi- 

 viduals of Mastodon (Tetraloph.) longi- 

 rostris, dug out of the same deposit at 

 Eppelsheim. The nominal species, D. 

 Kcenigii of Kaup, is founded on a single 

 small tooth, and therefore doubtful. I 

 have lately seen well-marked specimens 

 of fossil teeth of a species of Dinotherium 



from Attock in the Punjab, at no great 

 distance from the Sewalik hills, and 

 judging from the associated Mammalia, 

 out of beds of the same age with them. 

 The materials are not sufficient to es- 

 tablish whether the species is identical 

 with B. Indicum of Perim Island, or 

 distinct. In dimensions the teeth corres- 

 pond with medium-sized specimens of 

 I), giganteum. They were discovered by 

 Lieut. Garnett, of the Bengal Engineers, 

 and are now in the possession of Prof. 

 Oldham, Superintendent of the Geologi- 

 cal Survey of India, who has obligingly 

 communicated them to me. — July 1857, 

 H. F. (See vol. i. p. 414. A specimen 

 of the third lower premolar of this 

 species, from the ' Red Marl' at Noorpoor, 

 found in Dr. Falconer's collection, is 

 labelled in his hand-writing, 'Dinothe- 

 rium Pentapotamicum, Falc' — En.) 

 2 ' Oss. Fossiles,' torn. i. p. 205. 



