433 
To enable himself to employ this rich fund of materials successfully 
in the investigation respecting the animals of the caves, he first devoted 
himself to a careful examination of the recent skeletons of bears, wish- 
ing to determine the number of their species, and to ascertain their 
respective differences. Thus he discovered that the bears of Europe 
were all referable to two species ; the differences of which were dis- 
coverable in their forms, and particularly in the shape of the bones of 
the head ; and that one, at least, of these species, was divided into 
several varieties, by the nature and colour of their hair. 
The grand characteristic of one of these species is, the rounded form 
of the whole of the top of the head. The forehead forms a part of the 
same curve which extends from the muzzle to the occiput ; and the 
sagittal ridge does not begin to show itself, but near to the occiput. 
To this species he refers the common brown bear of the Alps, Swit- 
zerland, Savoy, and the Pyrenees. To the variety inhabiting the 
Pyrenees, he considers that the golden bear belongs. To this species 
also belongs the Polish silver bear, and the terrestrial bear of Pallas. 
In the other species, the frontal part of the skull is flattened, and even 
concave, particularly across. The ridges which part off the temporal 
fosse are strongly marked, and form an acute angle behind, which is pro- 
longed intoa highly-raised sagittal crista, which joins the occipital ridge. 
To this second species he refers that which the naturalists have dis- 
dinguished as the black bear of Europe. He has only seen one of 
this species, which was of a considerable size, with coarse blackish 
brown hair, long and rather woolly 
The black bear of America forms, in M. Cuvier’s opinion, a third 
species. The skull, in this species, is shorter, in proportion to its 
thickness, and the zygomatic arches are less concave, and the small 
grinders more numerous, than in either of the preceding species. To 
this species belong several varieties. It appears that America produces 
also bears different from the common black. One is described of an 
enormous size, and with a grey skin. In the mountains of Gates, in 
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