OCR Text |
Show 124 MR. J. T. LAST ON THE BONES OP MPYORNIS. [Feb. 6, From what is already known, the iEpyornis may be considered as having had a range over the whole, or nearly the whole, of the southern half of Madagascar. This is proved by the fact that its remains have been found at Sira-be, a place situated in about lat. 19° 50' S. Twice I have known its bones to have been found near Morondava, a small town on the W . coast in about lat. 20° 20' S. A n egg was also found at Mananjara on the east coast in about lat. 21° 10' S. These discoveries are sufficient to prove that the bird occupied more or less the whole of the southern half of Madagascar. I do not believe that the whole of this large tract of country was equally overrun by these birds, but rather that their numbers were much greater in the south and south-western parts than in the more northerly and eastern parts. This is shown, I think, by the fact that, excepting an egg found at Mananjara, few or no remains have been found in south-east Madagascar, but that nearly all the remains that have been brought to light up to the present have been discovered in the south and south-western parts. That the birds were more plentiful in the south and south-west parts of the island may be inferred from the abundance of broken eggshells which are to be found on the rocky sides of the range of hills on the S.W. coast, whereas I do not remember having heard or read that there were such broken egg-shells on the S.E. coast. All the unbroken eggs have, almost without exception, been found on the south or S. W . coast. About two years ago I heard of a specimen which was picked up floating about on the Morondava Eiver, near its mouth; but this is the only instance, so far as I know, of one being found north of St. Augustin's Bay. Begarding m y own operations in searching after fossils, I think it will be better if, in the first place, I describe m y work in the Manansua district of the Antinosi country, in south central Madagascar, about long. 45° E. and lat. 23° S. It was only after two or three unsuccessful attempts to enter the country that I was at last able to do so, through the friendship of Befanatriki, one of the Antinosi kings, who being about to return to his own country permitted m e to accompany him. The journey occupied us eight days. On arrival at the king's chief town I was given a house to use till I could make myself one more suitable. This building-work occupied m e some time, and in going about with men to collect material I came across several places which appeared to m e likely to be fossiliferous. On making inquiries of the natives, 1 was told that there were many bones, large and small, in the peaty flats where they make their rice gardens, but they did not know to what animal the bones had belonged. After negotiating with the king for awhile, be allowed m e to dig about on one of the uncultivated bogs alongside the Ifunsi Eiver. The soil met with was black and clayey above, then we came to a layer of whitish marly soil, followed by a friable kind of light grey limestone, resting on fine-grained red sandstone. The fossils found were chiefly bones of Crocodiles, Hippopotami, broken tortoise- |