Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1869-04-20
DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS.


portion Of the world has its character
istic indigenous animals, which have a
closer or more distant relation to the
animals Of the adjacent par, of the
earth's surface, aud had in every ease
been preceded by animals more or less
similar or dissimilar to them 10 former
periods of the worlds history. The
Professor, on entering upon q consider
alton of the present distribution Of AMI
mails, pointed out the fact that some
were confined within very eircumscrioed
limits of the earth's surface. Mr.. Gould
recorded u species of humming bird
(now e~x,inct) as having been found in u
particular crater Of the South American
Andes and II remarkable form OF arma-
diilo was found only in II very limited
region of South America. The common
red grouse is limited to. the British ISL
auds. On the other hand, there are
animals found aver n very wide range OF
surface, and alike on these islands snd
on the European continent, notwith-
standing the separation by water OF at
least twenty miles. On the other hand,
q strait separating two of the islands in
the Malay Archipelago, though not more
than ten miles wide, separated two al
most entirely distinct populations OF an
finals, which are MS unlike each otheras
those iuhabiting the British Islands and
South America, or the former aud u
tralia. But a wide separation by sea
gives no evidence Of dissimilariiy any
more than continuity Of land would OF
similarity between populations OF AMI
mails. There is a greater similarity be-
tween the fauna Of Great Britain and
Japan than between populations OF the
North of Africa and those animals in
habitiug the other or southern side OF
the Sahara desert.
If any one could be transported sue
cessively, first to New Zealand, then to
Australia, then to South America, aud
aftcrward to any other part of,he world,
he would find the condition of animallife
in each of those great provinces lar
more contracted and different than in
any other that could be classified. New
Zealand comprised not n single indigen-
Gus mammal Zone or two had been IN
troduccd), excepting those which had
flown or swan to the island neverthe-
less it had an animal population OF a
mos, remarkable character, Ms the
ap,eryx, a bird without wings, allied to
| the emu of Australia, but Of gigantic
| dimensions. There were peculiar rep
| tiles in New Zealand, but no snakes, no
frogs, no salamanders.
In the next division, Australia, when
discovered, not II single ape was found
of any description, or Any animal allied
to it though on the same parallel OF
latitude as South Africa, where these
animals abound. Bats and other flying
creatures were there, but none of those
known rs insectlvorous, and neither the
mole or the hedgehog, Notwithstanding
that it is n country H%boundiug 10 in
sects: not n single hare or rabbit
or animals allied to them, with
the exception of II peculiar rat |;
| and not a single hoofed quad
ruped, or any Of the carnivorous
order. 1t possessed gnawing creatures
or rodents and marsupials, those AMI
mails which come nearest to reptiles in
every particular of their organization,
and formed links, so to speak, between
the higher mammals and the reptiles.
Austro- columbia, comprising that por-
! ton of the continent from Cape Horn,
in the northern limits Of Mexico, con-
tains II much moro varied assemblage Of
animals than Australia. A very large
proportion of ordinary mammals, in
Guiding II great many monkeys, though
all totally different, in many respects,
from those Of the old world, are met
with one of the differences in the last
mentioned animals being the possession
of one tooth more than the monkeys OF
the old world, and another difference in
the form Of the face. There are numer-
Gus bats, but not q single specimen Of
the i]nsectiyorous mammal Of any de-.
scriptiou, with the exception of what is
seen in Cuba, although there is n mar
velous wealth of insect life.
No elephants, not q horse 10 all
those vast pompas plains was indige-
nous, though millions ARE now running
wild nor was there a single OK or
sheep, or any animal allied to them
with any degree Of closeness. There
were u few deer, u peculiar form OF
camel, and although there was no true
pig, there was II peccary:" The
sloth family was indigenous, in South
America and no where else, and the
eden,ated animals, having no teeth in
the front of their jaws, were also
\ found there almost exclusively. As
relates to birds, this extensive region,
including all South and Contra! Amer
lea, and Mexico, is one OF the most
wonderful in the world. All varieties
are found there. In reference to North
America Professor Huxley is in error
when he says that it has no m~arsupias
Tho forgot our opossum. 1t is the
region Of the iusectivorous tribe,
though it is by no means rich in insect
life. The grea. area of North Amer
lea, the Malay Archipelago, and the
whole of South Africa, contained all
the hoofed quadrupeds-the OK, buffalo,
sheep, antelope, giraffe, and a pro-
digious quantity Of carnivoroas. ami
mails, lions, tigers, hyeaas, dogs and
wolves. The %circumpolar area is won