THE GIBBONS. 
151 
lies, and are the rarest of all the Sumatra Gibbons. Their agility is al- 
most that of a bird, and perceiving the approach of danger at an immense 
distance, they immediately take flight. Climbing rapidly to the tops of 
the trees, the Varied Gibbon seizes the most flexible branch, and balanc- 
ing itself two or three times before making its spring, clears a distance of 
fourteen or fifteen yards, several times in succession, without showing 
any signs of fatigue. Wlten in confinement, though still active, it 
exhibits no signs of this extraordinary muscular power. Its abilities are 
not very considerable, yet it seems susceptible of some slight education, 
is inquisitive, familiar, sometimes gay, ‘but always greedy. Its forehead is 
very low, and its larynx destitute of any membraneous sac. 
3. HYLOBATES LEUCISCUS.-ASH-GREY GIBBON. 
Syn. hv. Gibbon cenorS. — Cuv. Reg. Anim. I. 90. 
I’miEOL's LEUCiscus. — Gcoff. Ann. Mus. XIX. — Desm. Mara. 
SiMiA LEticiscA. — Fiscli. Syn. Mara. 
Hvlobates LEUCiscos. — Kuhl, Beitr. 0 — F. Cuv. Diet, des Sc. Nat. 
XXXVI. 289 Oeofi: Cours, Le> 7. 
Die aschoraoe Gibbon. — V oigt, Thierr. I. 77. 
White Gibbon. — S haw, Gen. Zool. I. 12. 
The Wow-wow.' — Il.im. Smith, Syn Jard. Syn. 
Icon. Le Moloch. — Audeb. Sing. 
StMiA LEUCISCA. — Schreb. Saiigth. pi. .3, B. 
specific characters. 
Hair soft and woolly, of a uniform ash-grey; the face black, or dark 
grey ; the circle round the face clear grey. 
Callosities very large. 
Inhabits the Molucca and Sonda Islands. 
This species lives among the reeds, and climbs the highest stems 
of the bamboo, balancing itself on them by means of its long arms. 
This is also called Wouwou by the natives. 
Tile black face of the Ash-Grey Gibbon contrasts forcibly with the co- 
lour of the hair on the rest of the body. Its height is rather more than 
three feet. The habits of this Gibbon are little known, our knowledge 
of it resting merely upon two specimens in the Paris Museum, and a few 
observations made by Camper upon the living animal. 
<1. HYLOBATES RAFFLESII.— RAFFLES’ GIBBON. 
Nya. Le Gibbon Ounko, Hylob.vtes Rafflel — GeolT. Cours. Leg. 7. 
Si.NDA Hafflesii. — Fisch. Syn. Mam. Suppl. 
PiTHECUS Lar. — Geoff. Ann. Mus. XIX. 
Slmia Lar Ungka-etam. — Raffles in the Linn. Trans. XIII. 242. 
Slmia Concolor. — Fisch. Syn. Mam. 
Hylobates Rafflel — Isid. Geoff, in Bclang. Voy. 
Slmia Hoolock. — Harlan in the Transactions of the American Philo- 
sophical Society. 
The Hoolock ( II. Hoolock). — Jard. Syn. 
Icon. Ounko, male ct fem Geoff, et F. Cuv. Hist. Mam. 
Slmia concolor. — Harlan, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. Philad. V. pi. 9. 
specific characters. 
THE MALE. 
Hair black, changing to brown according to the angle at which the 
liglit is reflected, eyebrows white, and cheeks grey. 
Callosities small. 
THE FEMALE. 
Hair of the eyebrows clear grej', and cheeks black, elsewhere resem- 
*^liug the male. 
Inhabits Sumatra, and the territory of Assam in British India. 
This animal, called Ungka-etam by the Malays, is smaller than the 
I^ariod Gibbon, which it resembles in most other respects, excepting co- 
^our. It is confounded with the White-Handed Gibbon by the Baron 
Cuvier, as well as by its first dcscriber, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles.* 
It has been stated that the females of this species have the fingers 
'uiited as in the Syndactylous Siamang ; such, however, is not the case, 
as We are assured bv M. Isidore Geoffroy-St- Hilaire. 
To this S[)ecies we must assign the Simfa concolor and Simla Hoolock 
af Dr Harlan, which some Naturalists would consider as distinct species.* 
Dr Burrough thus describes the habits of the latter animal. The 
Hoolocks, lie observes, “ walk erect, and, when placed upon a floor, or 
in an open field, balance themselves very prettily, by raising their arms 
over their head, and slightly bending their arm at the wrist and elbow, 
and then run tolerably fast, rocking from side to side ; and if urged to 
greater speed, they let fall their bauds to the ground, assist themselves 
forward, rather jumping than running, still keeping the body, how- 
ever, nearly erect. If they succeed in making their way to a grove of 
trees, they then swing with such astonishing rapidity from branch to 
branch, and from tree to tree, that they are soon lost in the jungle or 
forest.” To these particulars he adds among others, that the principal 
food of the animal was the banana, that it was fond of spiders and flies, 
but disliked flesh ; that its temper was mild, and its cry loud and shrill, 
consisting of wlioo-whoo-whoo, repeated for five or ten minutes without 
intermission. 
5. HYLOBATES SYNDACTYLU.S.— SYNDACTYLOUS GIBBON. 
Sijn. Le Siamang. — C uv. Reg. Anim. I. 90. 
PiTHECUS svNDACTYLUs. — Desm. Mam. Suppl. 531. 
Slmia syndactyla. — Raffles in the Linn. Trans. XIII — Fisch. Syn. 
Mam. 
Hylobates syndaCTYLUS Isid. Geoff, in Belang. Voy. 
The Siamang Ham. Smith, Syn. — Jard. Syn. — Stark, Elem.+ 
Icon. Siamang F. Cuv. ct Geoff. Hist. Mam. 
Simia syndactyla — Horsf. Zool. Jav.s 
specific characters. 
THE male. 
The Hinder Hands with the first and second phalanges of the index 
and middle fingers united by the integuments. 
1 HE Throat with a large naked space beneath. 
Callosities small. 
The Hair generally black, reddish upon the eyebrows and chin. 
THE FEMALE. 
■ The Hinder Hands with the first phalanx only of the index and middle 
fingers united i otherwise resembling the male. 
Inhabits Sumatra. 
We must now notice the Syndactylous Gibbon, as being the most 
remarkable species of this genus, from its having the first and se- 
cond fingers of the hinder hands united together by a narrow mem- 
brane reaching the entire length of the first phalanx [in the females, 
and to the end of the second phalanx in the males]. The animals 
of this species live together in numerous troops, which are conduct- 
ed by brave and vigilant leaders, making the forests resound with 
their deafening cries at the rising and setting of the sun. The 
larynx is supplied with a membraneous sac. 
These animals are very common in the forests of Sumatra. They are 
slow in their motions, dull and stupid; they climb without security, and 
leap without agility, so that, on surprising tliem, they are easily captured, 
yet they can hear a noise at the distance of a mile from the object, when 
they immediately take fright and abscond. If found upon the ground 
apart from trees, they are sure to be taken. At first they attempt to 
flee, but their body being too liigh and heavy for their short and meagre 
thighs, inclines forward, and their arms performing the office of stilts, 
they advance forward by jerks like a lame old man, whom fear has com- 
pelled to make a great effort. However numerous the troop, a wounded 
Syndactylous Gibbon is deserted by his companions, except it be a young 
one, when the mother, who carries, or stands near her progeny, falls 
with it, and raising a hideous yell, throws herself with open mouth and 
extended arms upon the assailant. The care which the mothers bestow 
on their young is very remarkable, and M. Duvaucel, by means of proper 
precautions, has seen them carefully washing their progeny in the river, 
regardless of the cries of the young ones. This species often falls an 
easy prey to the Tiger, through the paralyzing influence of fear. 
In respect to their intelligence, the Syndactylous Gibbons stand nearly 
the lowest of the Monkey tribe. They are almost equally insensible to 
kind or unkind treatment. Hatred, as well as gratitude, are alike strangers 
to these animated machines. Mostly in a crouching posture, tolled up 
' This practice of adopting the barbarous and vernacular names of animals as specific, is certain to plunp the science mto (Jibbon.''* 
wva IS applied by the Malays indiscriminately to the Varied and Ash-groy Gibbons, and the appellation OiinAo, both to Raffles and t , . ; 
tended' • distinctions, and all such terms as Ounko, Wowwow, Siamang, Hoolock, should be suppressed, wherever use iiaeiy 
, Cscri^iTO cLloguo of a Zoological Collection, made on account of the Hon. East India Company, in the Island of Sumatra and its vicinity, by Sir Thomas S. Raffles, 
in the Transactions of the Linnaian Society, vol. XUl. London, 1818-22. fi j „ ■ „ be stated with equal correctness of the Gibbon of Raffles, 
® After an attentive examination of the characters assigned to these animals, wc can find notlnng which cannot be statea w 4 
excepting the aUeged absence of callosities, which has probably arisen from want of care in the stuffing of the specimens. 
* Stark, Elem. — Elements of Natural History, by John Stai’lc. Edinburgh, 1828. tt c 1 1 t iRoa 
Horsf. Zool, Jav. — Zoological Researches in Java and the neighbouring Islands, by Dr Thomas Hors t . » - 
