Dr. Cantor on the Flora and Fauna of Chusan, 



275 



were plentiful in Mr. Cunningham's time, are at present en- 

 tirely unknown. Over-population cannot admit of the co-ex- 

 istence of the larger domesticated animals : thus, the few bul- 

 locks which were found on our first occupation were solely- 

 used for agricultural purposes ; but there were neither buffa- 

 loes nor sheep, which latter (a broad-tailed kind) are said to 

 be plentiful all over China. The food of the people is chiefly 

 vegetable, and fish may be said to form the principal animal 

 food. Among the Mammalia there is at least one Indian spe- 

 cies, for several skins of the scaly ant-eater which I examined 

 at Chusan, and were said to have been procured on the island, 

 belonged to Manis pentadactyla, Linn. " This/' Mr. Ogilby 

 observes in his interesting memoir on the Mammalogy of the 

 Himalayas, " the only species of the family known to inhabit 

 the continent of Asia, is found in the lower and less elevated 

 parts of the central regions ; but all the Edentata are essen- 

 tially inhabitants of the warmer parts of the earth, more espe- 

 cially of tropical America, and we cannot therefore expect to 

 find their forms reproduced in the Himalayas." 



Scantity of forms is a striking feature in the ornithology of 

 Chusan, and it can scarcely be doubted that the absence of 

 forests is one of the principal causes. During my stay on the 

 island, I never saw nor heard of others having observed a bird 

 of prey. As before mentioned, the Chinese exist upon vege- 

 table food ; and when, which is very seldom the case, carrion 

 is exposed, it is soon discovered by the numerous half-re- 

 claimed dogs. The great care which the Chinese bestow upon 

 the burial of the remains of their dead may also be here no- 

 ticed. Nearly all of the birds which will be enumerated below 

 are very numerous, and among them there are some common 

 Europaean forms, such as the magpie, tree-sparrow (both also 

 occur in Japan), blackbird, and some which are equally com- 

 mon in Bengal, such as the little kingfisher, the drongo or 

 king crow, both of which were observed by Col. Sykes in the 

 Dukhun ; where also the common swallow of Chusan, which 

 leaves in August, Hirundo erythropygia, Sykes, ei appeared in 

 millions in two successive years in the month of March in the 

 parade ground at Poona ; they rested a day or two only, and 

 were never seen in the same numbers." — Catalogue of Birds 

 in the Dukhun, Proceed. Zool. Soc. 1832, Pt. II. p. 83. 



Of Chelonian Reptiles but two forms were found, one of 

 which, Trionyoc tuberculatus, approaches closely to T. java- 

 nicus. None of the large Saurians occur, nor Monitors ; but 

 both the little Hemidactylus, which is very numerous, and 

 the Tiliqua are nearly allied to species inhabiting Bengal and 

 other parts of India. It has generally been believed, that 



