KUNGL. SV. VET. AKADEMIENS HANDLINGAE. BAND 48. N:0 5. 29 



can be distinguished from their near allies living in the Congo forest and further 

 West, they must be regarded as members of the same fauna, and it is therefore of 

 great interest to have stated their occurrence as far as to the northeastern slopes of 

 Kenia. Their ancestors have arrived in Africa from the northeast, but if they them- 

 selves have developed and remained in their present habitat while the other members 

 of the same invasion were pressed further westward, or if they secondarily have 

 arrived there again from the West cannot be decided before the geological develop- 

 ment and age of the former volcano Kenia has become definitely known. 



Not less than nine of these forest animals enumerated in this list have also 

 been found in the Central Lake district of the Western forest region, and a tenth, 

 Mungos sanguineus orestes, is said by its describer to be most nearly related to a 

 subspecies M. s. proteus living on Ruwenzori. The two long-tailed forest rats, Epi- 

 mys jacksoni and E. dennice, have decidedly western affinities as they are most closely 

 related to the West African E. alleni and to E. carillus from northern Angola thus 

 both members of the fauna of the Western forest region. In a similar way Leggada 

 triton is allied with the Western L. mUsculoides. 



The remainder of the lot is at least in their quality as subspecies East African 

 s. str. Although this proves that the majority of these forest animals have become 

 differentiated to subspecies, or even species in East Africa s. str., it does not follow 

 that they all are exclusively of East African origin. Some of them have relatives in 

 other parts of Africa as well. The genera to which these endemic forms belong have 

 mostly a wide distribution. Some of them range all over the Ethiopian region. Lophiomys 

 extends from East Africa s. str. chiefly northeastwards, and Nesotragus southwards 

 but the latter is also related to the genera Hylarnus and Neotragus of West Africa. 

 Coldbus, Heliosciurus, Gricetomys and Lophuromys are represented as well to the east 

 as to the west of the Kenia district, but do not reach to South Africa. The occur- 

 rence of their members is thus chiefly bound to the tropical forests of Africa. In 

 any case, whether the members of these latter genera are regarded as western or not, 

 the fauna of Kenia shows a decided affinity with the fauna of the Western forest- 

 region. 



Kenia and Kilimanjaro present certain analogies in many respects. Both of 

 them are old extinguished volcanoes which rise from the hot plains at their feet to 

 such a height that their tops are capped with perpetual snow, while their slopes are 

 covered with the luxuriant growth of the tropical forest. It is thus only natural 

 that their faunas shall offer several analogies as well. The number of identical 

 species is not so great. They have been isolated too long for that, but in such cases 

 when the species are not identical there are others present as substitutes and fill the 

 place that otherwise would have been empty. The following list is meant to give 

 a review of this even if additions might be made. 



