74 
THE EACES OE THE aALAPAGOS. 
for twelve or fifteen years. It is 5^ inches long (to occipital condyle), and agrees in 
every respect with those from North Albemarle ; and as the skulls of all these Albe- 
marle Tortoises are perfectly identical with that of the specimen received from Prof. 
Huxley, which externally differs from the North- Albemarle form by the deep striation 
of the scutes, we may reasonably infer that this T. vicina is actually the race of the 
southern part of the island. 
The form of the carapace (Plate XXXI, fig. A) reminds us of that of T. elephantopus ; 
but it is still more depressed, the greater part of the two middle costal plates parti- 
cipating in the formation of the plane surface of the back. The first dorsal scute is 
but very slightly declivous towards the front ; and the edge of the shell along the three 
anterior marginals is reverted and scalloped : thus the fore part of the shell has in a 
slight degree the form of a saddle ; but it is much less compressed than in T. ephippium 
or ahingdonii. The strise of the plates are very distinct, but shallow, and distant from 
one another (broad), occupying the greater part of the surface of each plate. The 
striated portions of the plates are not of the same intense black as the smooth ones, 
but more or less tinged with brown. The shape of the sternum difiers from that of 
the preceding species, its gular portion being singularly constricted and having the 
lateral margins excised. The gular plates are truncated in front. The opposite end of 
the sternum is dilated, the caudal plates being expanded like wings ; their hind margins 
meet at an obtuse angle. All the plates of the sternum, with the exception of the 
pectorals and abdominals, are striated, like the dorsal plates. The surface of the sternum 
is deeply concave. 
There is in the British Museum a young stuffed example, with a carapace 12^ inches 
long (without particular indication of its origin), which I am inclined to refer to this 
species. It has the same depressed shell as the adult, with a similar striation of the 
plates, and with the anterior margins distinctly reverted ; but the sternum is not con- 
stricted anteriorly, nor are the caudals expanded like wings. At present we have not 
the means of judging whether this difference could be accounted for by age or sex; 
however, as the skull of this young individual agrees singularl}- well with that of the 
adult, there is good reason for believing it to be a second example of the same species. 
The measurements of the two specimens are as follows : — 
Length of carapace. Width of carapace. Depth of Steruum. Caudal plate. 
In str. line. Over curve. In str. line. Over curve, carapace. Length. Width. Length. Width. 
Spec. in. in. in. in. in. in. in. in. in. 
Ad. cJ . . . 33 411 25 42 16 251 24 41 
Young... 121 ]4i 9 141 51 loi 8I li £1 
The sicull is so similar to that of T. micropliyes that it may be noticed in connexion 
with that species. 
Cervical vertebrae. — On comparing the neck-vertebrae of T. vicina with those of T. 
elephantopus, we find them generally to be somewhat less slender^ and with the crests 
