684 PRIMATES 
second of the hind foot) with flat nails, and corresponding form of 
ungual phalanges. 
Subfamily Indrisinee.—The dentition of the adult consists of 
thirty teeth, usually expressed by the formula 7 3, ¢4, p 2, m3; 
but, as indicated above, they may be i 2,¢ 4,» 3, m3. In the 
milk-dentition there are twenty-two teeth, the true molars of course 
not being represented, but there are two additional teeth in the 
fore part of the lower jaw which have no successors in the permanent 
series. Hind limbs greatly developed, but the tarsus normal. 
Hallux of large size, and very opposable. The other toes united 
at their base by a fold of skin, which extends as far as the end of 
the first phalanx. Mamme two, pectoral. Czecum very large, and 
colon extremely long and spirally coiled. 
The animals of this group are, as their organisation indicates, 
essentially arboreal, and feed exclusively on fruit, leaves, buds, and 
flowers. They are restricted geographically to the island of 
Madagascar. Among them are the largest members of the sub- 
order. A detailed and beautifully illustrated account of their 
characters, external and internal, and distribution and_ habits, 
is given in the Histoire Naturelle de Madagascar, by A. Grandidier 
and Alphonse Milne-Edwards (1875). The species are not numerous 
and are distributed into three genera. 
Indvis.\— Upper incisors subequal in size. Upper canine larger 
than the first premolar. Muzzle moderately long. Ears exserted. 
Carpus without an os centrale. Tail rudimentary. Vertebre : 
C7,D12,L9,8 4,09. 
_ The only well-established species is the Indris (J. brevicaudata, 
Fig. 325), discovered by Sonnerat in 1780. It is the largest of 
the Lemurs, the length of the head and body being about 2 feet, 
and the tail 2 inches, It is very variable in colour, for although 
usually nearly black, marked with whitish spots principally in the 
lumbar region and forearm, individuals have been found quite 
white. It inhabits exclusively the forests of a part of the east 
coast of Madagascar, living in small troops of four or five in number, 
and resembling in most of its habits the animals of the next genus. 
Propithecus.-—Second upper incisor much smaller than the first. 
Upper canine larger than the first premolar. Muzzle rather short. 
Ears short, concealed by the fur. An os centrale in the carpus. 
Tail long. Vertebre: C 7, D 12, L 8, S 3, © 28. 
The species are all subject to great variations in colour, which 
has led to much difficulty in discriminating them, and to much 
confusion of synonymy. Grandidier and Milne-Edwards recognise 
three as certainly distinct —P. diadema, P. verreauaii, and P. | 
coronatus (Fig. 326). Some of these are to be found in almost 
1 Geoffroy, Mag. Encyclop. 2d ann. vol. i. p. 46 (1796), ‘Indri.” 
* Bennett, Prov. Zool. Soc. 1832, p. 20. 
