OHAr. XI,] 
THE ETHIOPIAN REGION. 
2G5 
Here, too, we find some interesting relations with the Oriental 
region on the one side, and the Neotropical on the other. The 
snakes of the family Homalopsidse have a wide range, in America, 
Europe, and all over the Oriental region, hut are confined to 
West Africa in the Ethiopian region. Dryiophis (Dryiophidae) 
and Dipsadoboa (Dipsadidae) on the other hand, are genera of 
tropical America which occur also in West Africa. The family 
of lizards, Acontiadae, are found in West and South Africa, 
Ceylon, and the Moluccas. The family of toads, Engystomidae, 
in West and South Africa and the whole Oriental region ; while 
the Phryniscidae inhabit tropical Africa and Java. 
Insects . — We have here a large number of peculiar genera. 
There are 10 of butterflies, Lachnoptera , Amphidema , and Catuna, 
belonging to the Nymplialidae, while four others are Lyccenidae. 
The genus Euxanthe is common to West Africa and Madagascar. 
Of Coleoptera there are 53 peculiar genera ; 20 are Carabidae, 
2 Lucanidae, 12 Cetoniidae, 3 Prionidae, 16 Cerambycidae, and 
34 Lamiidae. Besides these there are 4 or 5 genera confined to 
West Africa and Madagascar. 
Land Shells . — West Africa is very rich in land shells, but it 
does not appear to possess any well-marked genera, although 
several of the smaller groups or sub-genera are confined to it. 
Helicidae of the genera Nanina, Btdimmus and Achatina are 
abundant and characteristic. 
Islands of the West African Sub-region . — The islands in the 
Gulf of Guinea are, Fernando Po, very near the main land, with 
Prince’s Island and St. Thomas, considerably further away to the 
south-west. Fernando Po was once thought to be a remarkable 
instance of an island possessing a very peculiar fauna, although 
close to the main land and not divided from it by a deep sea. 
This, however, was due to our having obtained considerable 
collections from Fernando Po, while the opposite coast was 
almost unknown. One after another the species supposed to be 
peculiar have been found on the continent, till it becomes prob- 
able, that, as in the case of other islands similarly situated, it 
contains no peculiar species whatever. The presence of nume- 
rous mammalia, among which are baboons, lemurs, Hyrax , and 
