ZOOGEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS 221 



Rodents are represented by five peculiar genera belong- 

 ing to the mouse section ; carnivores by some seven 

 members of the civet family, of which the largest is 

 the cat-hke animal called Cryptoprocta; All the genera 

 of camivora are peculiar to the island. The absence of 

 the true cats of the genus Fehs, elsewhere so widely 

 distributed, is a remarkable feature. 



The above include all the non-flying mammals of 

 Madagascar, and it will be noted that they form 

 a striking contrast with those of Africa. The charac- 

 teristic African birds, e.g. the plantain-eaters and 

 colies, are similarly absent, while the reptiles are very 

 remarkable in that some show afiSnity with those of 

 South America rather than with those of Africa. The 

 chameleons present some interesting features. These 

 Kzards occur in Africa and in India, but are more 

 abundant in the island of Madagascar than anywhere 

 else, thus showing a curious paralleKsm with the lemurs. 



Turning now to the Notogaeic Realm we may begin 

 with the Neotropical region, which is both highly 

 pecuHar and very rich in species. Here are no anthro- 

 poid apes, no dog-faced (Catarrhine) monkeys, and no 

 lemurs, but on the other hand a pecuHar family of 

 broad-nosed (Platyrrhine) monkeys, and another of 

 small, also broad-nosed, furry forms called marmosets, 

 both families differing in a number of respects from all 

 the Old World forms. The bats are very peculiar. Here 

 only (with a slight extension into North America) do 

 we find the vampire bats, while the fruit-bats of the 

 Old World are completely absent, as well as another 

 family caUed the horse-shoe bats (Rhinolophidae). 

 Insectivores are practically absent, though in the West 

 Indian Islands there occur two shrews of the genus 

 Solenodon, beMeved to be related to the Centetidae of 



