78 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



NOTICES OF NEW BOOKS. 



Wanderings in the Great Forests of Borneo ; Travels and Re- 

 searches of a Naturalist in Sarawak. By Odoardo Bbccari. 

 Translated by Dr. Enrico H. Giglioli. Bevised and 

 edited by F. H. H. Guillemard. A. Constable & Co. 



Italy has divided with England the roll-call of naturalists 

 who have visited the glorious islands of the Malayan Archi- 

 pelago ; in addition to the name of Dr. Beccari, those of 

 D'Albertis, Doria, Fea, and Modigliani are household words to 

 those who have studied Malayan zoology. Dr. Beccari is a little 

 late with his narrative, for his travels in Borneo were undertaken 

 in the years 1865-68, but the vivid impressions then derived are 

 not easily effaced, as the writer of this notice, who spent almost 

 the identical years in the Malayan Peninsula, can readily testify. 

 There is room for many more books by naturalist observers on 

 these tropical islands — their story is still far from being told ; 

 but the large zoological collections already received from them 

 has somewhat discounted the financial support which the ordi- 

 nary traveller requires ; while many explorers have neither 

 published their notes nor impressions, and in this respect we 

 feel how much was buried with the late accomplished William 

 Doherty. 



Of the Orang-utan, Simla satyrus, as we still venture to call 

 the species, Dr. Beccari has much to tell. " There are big Orangs 

 with a wide face and lateral cheek-expansions, and smaller 

 Orangs without such expansions ; some have short, others have 

 long hair, and thus at least two or three kinds may be dis- 

 tinguished." But our author takes the conservative view, and 

 has come to the conclusion that it is rare to meet with two 

 specimens of this animal perfectly alike, even when of the same 

 age and sex, and belonging to the same race, and holds that 

 only one species of Orang-utan exists — the Simla satyrus, of 

 which he distinguishes two main varieties, retaining for them 

 the native names of " Tjaping " and " Kassa." Reference is 

 also made to the frequently repeated story of shore-birds entering 



