BOKE-CAYES OE MALTA. 
431 
is not known to be found in situ either on the Spanish or 
African side of the strait; but neither of the two localities 
has been carefully examined by geologists. The presence 
of abundance of limpets and other marine shells in the upper 
parts of nearly all the fissures opened on Windmill Hill seems 
to indicate that they had been most probably used as food by 
the human inhabitants of the rock ; moreover, they are inti- 
mately associated with the exuviae of living quadrupeds. The 
Genista fissure was filled with red earth and stalactite, forming 
successive feats, and proceeded downwards for two hundred 
feet below the level of the Windmill Hill plateau. Here 
masses of the parent rock, detached evidently during the 
formation of the rent, had fallen down, and were jammed 
between the opposing sides, which were encrusted with masses 
of stalactite, and dripping. Among the debris were found 
bones and teeth of two extinct species of rhinoceros, a hare, 
two species of hogs, the red and fallow deer ; oxen, the larger 
sort allied if not identical with the almost extinct Aurochs ; 
and innumerable remains of one or more species of ibex, 
besides the African leopard, lynx, serval, brown hyena, and a 
bear ; also fragments of a large tortoise, &c. The remarkable 
features in the fauna of this extraordinary collection of organic 
remains are that, with the exception we shall presently notice, 
nearly all the bones lay detached, and were seemingly mixed 
up in the greatest confusion, just as might result from a num- 
ber of carcases of various animals decomposing on a slope, 
from whence they were washed pell-mell into the gaping rents 
below. Many bones were sun-cracked, showing that they had 
been exposed to the weather for a length of time before being 
conveyed into the fissure. It is apparent, therefore, that 
south-westren Europe was at one time the abode of three 
species of leopards and a hyena, the latter being at present 
unknown on the north side of the African equator, or even 
further north than Natal. The discovery of the elephant of 
Africa in Spain in a fossil state, combined with the other 
evidences just mentioned, surely affords strong proof that 
Europe and Africa were at one time joined together, either 
wholly along the entire Mediterranean area or at certain points. 
A complete carcase of an extinct rhinoceros was discovered 
by Captain Brome in an enormous yawning fissure close to 
the Genista rent, and about twenty-five feet below the level of 
the plateau. At the time this individual was deposited in the 
above situation, the fissure must have presented all the ap- 
pearances of a natural pitfall, into which an unwary animal 
might easily have fallen. Many recent quadrupeds were found 
associated with the extinct species ; but in general the former 
predominated in the upper parts near the surface, with the 
