NOTES ON ZOOLOGICAL INSTITUTIONS. 343 



The Alligators {Alligator mississippiensis) of the Jardin des 

 Plantes are famous. Prof. Leon Vaillant, writing in July, 1897 

 (' Guide a la Menagerie des Pteptiles,' pages 2 and 3), mentions — 

 " plusieurs individus existent au Museum depuis 1852, ils 

 pouvaient a cette epoque mesurer 70 cent, a 80 cent, et peser de 

 3 kilg. a 4 kilg., aujourd'hui leur taille depasse 3 metres et leur 

 poids est de plus de 82 kilg. ; a I'etat de liberte la croissance 

 doit se faire sans doubte plus rapidement." 



It may be of interest to note here that a male Alligator 

 mississippiensis in the Giza Zoological Gardens, on September 

 20th, 1899, was in total length 2 ft. 6^ in. ('77 metres), died 

 on March 28th, 1911, and was then found to measure in total 

 length 8 ft. 9 in. (2-66 metres) and to weigh 309 lb. (140 kilos.). 



Early in 1910 the Menagerie went through a most trying 

 time ; the Paris correspondent of the London ' Daily Telegraph,' 

 January 29th, 1910, wrote of the Jardin des Plantes : — " Now 

 in the direst plight, the heating apparatus being submerged, and 

 there are no means of warming the houses of the Monkeys and 

 Pteptiles, which are encompassed by water. A platform has 

 been erected for the Giraffe, but the Elephants and Hippopotami 

 are still wallowing in icy slush. The Gardens are meanwhile 

 closed to the public." 



(ii) Jardin d' Accliniatation. 



I visited the Jardin Zoologique d'Acclimatation in the Bois 

 de Boulogne on October 27th, 28th, and 29th, 1908. As on 

 former visits in 1896, 1899, and 1907, I found that the chief 

 feature of the menagerie was the large series of domesticated or 

 semi-domesticated animals. 



But the collection is not limited to these ; among the 

 mammals that I saw in 1908 may be mentioned : — Sixty-two 

 Monkeys, representing eleven species, including three small 

 Mandrils, and two very fine grey- cloaked Sacred Baboons {Papio 

 hamadryas) ; ten Lemurs of seven species and subspecies, two 

 or three Sea-Lions, two Seals, two Kinkajous {Potos fiavns), 

 Porcupines of three genera, two Indian Elephants, two American 

 Tapirs, two Chapman's Zebras, one Grant's Zebra, at least 

 twenty-nine Antelopes representing six species, two very fine 

 male Spanish Wild Goats, " Capra agrimia,'' one Reindeer, a 



