270 FOSSIL REPTILES. 



ficiently soft to let the humours transpire. It is evident, how- 

 ever, that he was very ignorant of this species^ for he employs 

 this character of its organization to explain a very erroneous 

 supposition, that the animal in question had neither reins nor 

 bladder. M. Cuvier has examined numbers of this subgenus, 

 and found them conformed in these particulars, like all other 

 tortoises. 



From the remains found in the plaster-quarries of Paris, it 

 appears that at least one trionyx abounded at the period in 

 which the palaeotheria, anoplotheria, cheropotami, adapis, 

 sarigues, crocodiles, and all the singular animals which we have 

 already described, existed. But there was nothing in these 

 remains which could determine the characters of the species. 



In the plaster stones of Aix some remains were found of 

 trionyx, consisting of a carapace which had lost a great part 

 of its left side, and several of the rib ends of the other, and also 

 a left moiety nearly complete of the sternal portion of the 

 buckler, and a small fragment of the lower part of the right 

 moiety. The portion of carapace was twelve inches long, and 

 eight broad, and differed in its characters from those of all 

 known species. There was, however, some approximation to 

 the trionyx of Java, and of the Ganges, but not sufficient to 

 identify the fossil as belonging to either. The breast-piece 

 showed considerable analogy to those of the Egyptian and 

 Indian species, especially to the former, in the shape of its 

 middle piece, and the small extent of the mutual articulation of 

 its two hinder pieces. But the upper denticulations form a more 

 elongated groupe, and the lower piece has only its middle ver- 

 miculated. Its anterior and external contour is smooth, which 

 is the case only with the angles, in the Egyptian species. 



The Baron considers this trionyx to be of a species unknown 

 at the present day. 



On an estate of the Duke de Caze, in the department of 

 the Gironde, was found a stone analogous to the molasse of 

 Switzerland, which contained fossil remains of many genera; 



