12. VESPERTILIO. 327 



Wings from the metatarsi close to the base of the toes ; feet 

 rather large ; toes scarcely more than half the length of the feet ; 

 calcaneum feeble, termination indistinct ; tail as long as the head 

 and body ; the last rudimentary caudal vertebra and half the ante- 

 penultimate vertebra free. 



Above dark brown, the extremities of the hairs on the shoulders 

 and back shining yellowish; beneath similar, with ashy ex- 

 tremities. 



On the upper surface the fur of the body extends upon the mem- 

 branes along the sides of the body only, and upon the base of the 

 interfemoral between the thighs ; beneath, it extends thinly upon 

 the wings nearly as far as a line drawn from the elbow to the knee, 

 and the interfemoral is covered with long hair about the root of the 

 tail, and half the remainder with very short fine hairs. 



The upper canine and third premolar are separated by a narrow 

 interval, and in the adult anixaal the Jlrst and second small premolars 

 are quite internal to the tooth-row ; the third premolar is large and 

 exceeds the molars considerably in vertical extent ; the lower pre- 

 molars are also small, but they stand in the tooth-row ; the third 

 premolar nearly equals the canine in vertical extent. 



Length (of an adult ? preserved in spirits), head and body l"-7, 

 tail l"-8, head 0"-7, ear 0"-6, tragus 0"-3, forearm l"-75, thumb 

 0"-28, third finger 2"-7, fifth finger 2"-l, tibia 0"-7, foot 0"-35. 



This species is distinguished especially by its peculiarly thick, not 

 broad muzzle, by the great length of the forearm in comparison to 

 the length of the body, and (in fully adult specimens) by the 

 narrow space between the canine and third premolar and consequent 

 displacement inwards of both the first and second minute upper 

 premolars. 



ffab. Ecuador ; Central America (Guatemala) ; Brazil (banks of 

 the Mucuri River). 



The above description has been taken from a specimen which 

 agrees in all respects with the type of this species, and also with 

 the types of V. leucogaster, Wied, in the Leyden Miiseum. The ex- 

 tremity of the tail is described by the Prince of Neuwied as but half 

 a line free ; but in the types it varies from this length to one and a 

 half lines, the last caudal vertebra and half the antepenultimate 

 vertebra being free in one specimen. In the specimens preserved in 

 alcohol in the British Museum, which I have identified with this 

 species, the length of the free portion of the tail varies considerably. 

 The extremely small size and internal position of the second upper 

 premolar (in adult specimens) no doubt caused the Prince of Neu- 

 weid to overlook it. 



a. 2 ad., al. Ecuador. Mr. Fraser's Coll. 



b. (S juv., al. Ecuador. Mr. Eraser's Coll. 

 c-A. cJ & 2 sks., in al. CuidadVieja, Guatemala. O. Salvin, Esq. [C.]. 

 ». ad, sk. N. America (?). Mr. Drumond [P.]. 



J. JPad., al. Tehuantepec. Mr. Boucard [C.]. 



(Smaller, and with trtigiis more incurved.) 



