lOih November, 1880. 



Mr. Robert L. Patterson, Vice President, in the Chair. 



A Paper was read by Thos. Workman, Esq., on 



THE HISTORY OF ISLANDS, AS TOLD BY THE 

 ANIMALS FOUND ON THEM. 



Having in a few words shown that, previous to the publication 

 of Mr. Darwin's work on the " Origin of Species," the ideas 

 held as to what constituted a species were very different from 

 what naturalists now hold, the lecturer went on to describe the 

 situation and peculiar fauna of the Azores, Madeiran, Canary, 

 and Cape Verd Islands. He showed that there were very con- 

 clusive grounds for believing that the animals found on these 

 islands were of Palaeartic (or Europeo-Asiatic) origin ; — though 

 many of them are specifically different from their allies in Europe, 

 yet that difference has been brought about by their peculiar posi- 

 tion and long-continued isolation. To show that there has been 

 no land connection between these islands and the mainland from 

 the most remote period, Mr. Workman pointed out that there 

 are no terrestrial mammals, toads, or frogs found on them ; and, 

 though there are enormous numbers of different species of 

 apterous (or wingless) beetles found in South Europe and North 

 Africa, yet these islands possess only a few species, and these 

 exceptions go to prove the rule. For instance, the genus 

 Meloe has three species found in these islands, but as in its 

 larval form it is parasitic on bees, its presence is easily accounted 

 for. Also, many species that are winged in Europe are wing- 



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