35 



interest. These great reptiles differed much more widely from 

 living forms than the mammals described by Cnvier, and the 

 period in which they lived soon became known as the " age of 

 Reptiles." The subsequent researches of these authors added 

 largely to the existing knowledge of various extinct forms, 

 and their writings did much to arouse public interest in the 

 subject. 



Richard Owen, a pupil of Cuvier, followed, and brought to 

 bear upon the subject an extensive knowledge of comparative 

 anatomy, and a wide acquaintance with existing forms. His 

 contributions have enriched almost every department of palae- 

 ontology, and of extinct vertebrates especially, he has been, 

 since Cuvier, the chief historian. The fossil reptiles of 

 England, he has systematically described, as well as those of 

 South Africa. The extinct Struthious birds of New Zealand, 

 he has made known to science, and accurately described in 

 extended memoirs. His researches on the fossil mammals of 

 Great Britain, the extinct Edentates of South America, and 

 the ancient Marsupials of Australia, each forms an important 

 chapter in the history of our science. 



The personal researches of Falconer and Cautley in the 

 Sewalik Hills of India brought to light a marvelous vertebrate 

 fauna of Pliocene age. The remains thus secured were made 

 known in their great work, "Fauna Antiqua Sivalensis" 

 published at London in 1845. The important contributions of 

 Egerton to our knowledge of fossil fishes, and Jardine's "well 

 known work, "Ichnology of Annandale," also belong to this 

 period. 



The study of vertebrate fossils in Germany was pros- 

 ecuted with much success during the present period. Blumen- 

 bach, the ethnologist, in several publications between 1S03 

 and 1814, recorded valuable observations on this subject. 

 In 1812, Sommerring gave an excellent figure of a pterodac- 

 tyle, which he named and described. Goldfuss' researches on 

 the fossil vertebrates from the Caves of Germany, published in 

 1820-23, made known the more important facts of that inter- 



