316 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



NOTES ON THE ZOOLOGICAL COLLECTIONS OF 

 AMSTERDAM, ROTTERDAM, AND ANTWERP. 



By Graham Renshaw. 



Having recently had the opportunity of visiting these magnificent 

 collections, perhaps the following notes which I have made may be of 

 interest to readers of ' The Zoologist.' 



The entrance to the Amsterdam Gardens, the property of the Society 

 " Natura Artis Magistra," is in the Kerk Laan. The visitor, on entering, 

 is provided with a guide-plan of the Gardens, and photographs of the 

 various animals, including the rare Mountain Zebra {Equus zebra), may 

 also be purchased. The series of animals in the Monkey-house included a 

 full-grown Chimpanzee (Anthropopithecus niger), the largest I have ever 

 seen, in the best of health and spirits, protected from draughts by glass. 

 In the same house was an Echidna {Echidna aculeata) buried under a heap 

 of straw. The keeper obligingly removed the straw for me, but all efforts 

 to move the Echidna, even by leverage with a stout pole, were quite 

 ineffectual. The Lion-house was roomy and well lighted, but presented 

 no special features. The small Cats '-house contained two Geoffroy's Cats 

 (Felis guigna), and a pair of the now rare Tasmanian Devil (Sarcophilus 

 ursinus). The series of Bears included an interesting albino of the Hima- 

 layan Black Bear ( Ursus torquatus), kept in the same cage with a normal 

 specimen. Amongst the Ungulates, the most interesting animal was a 

 European Bison {Bos bonassus), placed in a pen adjoining that of the 

 American Bisons (B. americanus), so that the two species could be readily 

 compared. The Anoa {Bos depressicornis), which unites the Oxen to the 

 Antelopes, was also represented. The Antelopes included a fine Water- 

 buck (Cobus ellipdprymnus), and a brindled Gnu {Connochcetes taurina). 

 The coat of the Gnu was of a beautiful and distinct blue-grey colour. 

 A specimen of the Mountain Zebra {Equus zebra) was placed next to the 

 Burchell's Zebra {E. burchelli) ; the Burchell's Zebra belonged to the 

 typical form with very thick dark stripes on the body and none whatever 

 on the legs. By the kind help of the keepers I was enabled to photograph 

 the animal as it stood in its yard. In the same building with the Zebras 

 was an extensive ornithological museum. 



There were several aviaries in the Gardens, and the Bird Gallery was 



