CHAP. Ill 



ZOOLOGICAL REGIONS 



45 



of the crow-family, its beautiful gapers and pittas adorned 

 with the most delicate colours, its great variety of hornbills, 

 and its magnificent Phasianidie, comprising the peacocks, 

 argus-pheasants, fire-backed pheasants, and jungle-fowl. 

 Many of these are, it is true, absent from the peninsula 

 of Hindostan, but sufficient remain there to ally it with 

 the other parts of the region. 



Among the remarkable but less conspicuous forms of 

 mammalia which are peculiar to this region are, monkeys 

 of the genus Presbyter, extending to every part of it ; 

 lemurs of three peculiar genera — Nycticebus and Loris 

 (slow lemurs) and Tarsius (spectre lemurs) ; the flying 

 lemur (Galeopithecus), now classed as a peculiar family 

 of Insectivora and found only in the Malay Islands ; the 

 family of the Tupaias, or squirrel-shrews, curious little 

 arboreal Insectivora somewhat resembling squirrels ; no 

 less than twelve peculiar genera of the civet family, three 

 peculiar antelopes, five species of rhinoceros, and the round- 

 tailed flying squirrels forming the genus Pteromys. 



Of the peculiar groups of birds we can only mention a 

 few. The curious little tailor-birds of the genus Ortho- 

 tomus are found over the whole rei^ion and almost alone 

 serve to characterise it, as do the fine laughing-thrushes, 

 forming the genus Garrulax ; while the beautiful grass- 

 green fruit-thrushes (Phyllornis), and the brilliant little 

 minivets (Pericrocotus), are almost equally universal. 

 Woodpeckers are abundant, belonging to a dozen peculiar 

 genera ; while gaudy barbets and strange forms of cuckoos 

 and hornbills are also to be met with everywhere. Among 

 game birds, the only genus that is universally distributed, 

 and which may be said to characterise the region, is Gallus, 

 comprising the true jungle-fowl, one of which, Gallus ban- 

 kiva, is found from the Himalayas and Central India to 

 Malacca, Java, and even eastward to Timor, and is the 

 undoubted origin of almost all our domestic poultry. South- 

 ern India and Ceylon each possesses distinct species of 

 jungle-fowl, and a third very handsome green bird (Gallus 

 seneus inhabits Java.) 



Reptiles are as abundant as in Africa, but they present 

 no well-known groups which can be considered as specially 

 characteristic. Among insects we may notice the magni- 



