60 MR. A.. M IT It RAY ON THE GEOGRAPHICAL RELATIONS OF 



for the absence of Adesmias, but will not account for the presence 

 of Brenthidae, unless the Brenthid element were previously in the 

 fauna ; and so where, in a different country having special condi- 

 tions, wholly new things are met with, the inference is that we 

 have come into a new geographical region. Applying this to 

 India and Africa, we can trace the concurrent existence some- 

 where or other of so many of the same genera in each, although 

 certain elements preponderate in the one more than in the other, 

 that it seems to me impossible to doubt that their origin is the 

 same — that is to say, that before they were separated from each 

 other the general type from which they ha ye sprung was the 

 same in both. 



In my book ' On the Geographical Distribution of Mammals ' I 

 contrasted the genera which were present in Africa with those 

 which were present in India ; and the one list was almost a copy 

 of the other. I did the same with the genera which were not 

 found in Africa and those which were absent from India ; and here 

 again the lists were almost identical. Similar lists of the genera 

 of Coleoptera present in, or absent from, the two countries give 

 similar results. There is not space to make such an enumeration 

 here ; but I may remind the Entomologist of such characteristic 

 genera common to both, and confined to both, as Anthia, Ateuchus, 

 Heliocopris, Goliathus, Heterorhina, Glycyphana, Popilia, Platy- 

 notus, Notocorax, Ceroplesis, Sagra, &c. In many instances, too, 

 where the genus is not confined to India and Africa, I think we 

 may discern something in common between those species which 

 come from these two regions. Thu3 in Gicindela, for example, a 

 very common bond of union is the possession of white sutural 

 lines or patches. In Chlcenius the species with a narrow con- 

 stricted thorax are mainly confined to these regions. The Platy- 

 corynus form of Eumolpus occurs in them, and in them only ; so 

 does the flat palmate expanded form of Hispa ; and many more 

 will occur to any one who searches for them. 



The forms which are absent are scarcely less instructive than 

 those which are present. There are, no doubt, many present in 

 the one and absent from the other, whose presence or absence must 

 be referred to dying out or first appearance after the separation 

 of the two lands ; but there are others which have a different sig- 

 nificance. For instance, all the Staphylinidae are very scarce in 

 Africa. Through the kindness of my missionary friends I have 

 received thousands upon thousands of Coleoptera from Old Cala- 



