OCR Text |
Show 304 DISCUSSION ON THE FAUNA O F [May 5, along the Zambesi, its tributary the Shire, and on the western shore of Lake Nyassa. 6. In the same volume of ' The Ibis ' (p. 301) I gave an account of an excellent collection of rapacious birds made by the late Dr. Dickinson, principally at Chibisa on the Shire near the upper limit of navigation, where he died in 1863. It contained examples of 22 species. 7. Dr. Giinther's Report on the Reptiles and Fishes collected by Sir J. Kirk in the Zambesi and Nyassa Region, published in our 'Proceedings' for 1864 (p. 303). This paper gives a list of 30 Reptiles, 11 Batrachians, and 30 Fishes, of which examples were obtained by Sir John Kirk. The paper is prefaced by some valuable remarks by the collector. A new genus of Cyprinoids from Lake Nyassa is characterized as Pelotrophus. 8. Dr. H. Dohm's List of the Land and Freshwater Shells of the Zambesi and Lake Nyassa collected by Sir John Kirk, published in the Society's 'Proceedings' for 1865 (p. 231). Twenty-four species are noticed in this list by Dr. Dohrn, of which 7 are described as new. 9. The collection submitted by Sir John Kirk to Dr. Dohrn did not include the TJnionidce. The specimens of this group were sent to Mr. Isaac Lea of Philadelphia, a well-known specialist on this group of Mollusks. Lea referred Sir John Kirk's specimens to six species, all of which he described as new in a paper read before the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia in April 1864 \ 10. In Dr. Giinther's "Contribution tothe Knowledge of Snakes of Tropical Africa," published in the ' Annals and Magazine of Natural History' for 1888 (ser. 6, vol. i. p. 322), several species are described from the Nyassa district, but the names of the collectors are not recorded. The paper concludes with a list of 46 species of Snakes known to inhabit the Central Lake district of Tropical Africa. 11. Mr. Edgar Smith's paper on the Shells of Lake Nyassa, published in our ' Proceedings' for 1887 (p. 712). This was based principally upon specimens collected by Mr. F. A. Simons. 12. Mr. R. Crawshay's valuable notes on the Antelopes of Nyassa-land, which was read at our meeting on the 2nd of December last2. Mr. Crawshay's list of the Antelopes of Nyassa-land contains 12 species, but others no doubt, particularly among the smaller forms, remain to be added to it. This is positively the only information yet published on the Mammals of the Nyassa Basin. These are the principal publications relating to the fauna of Nyassa-land that I am acquainted with. There are no doubt many others which will be mentioned by the various naturalists who will kindly contribute towards our information on this subject on the present occasion. As I said before, Nyassa-land, so far as we at 1 See Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad. 1864, p. 108. 2 See P. Z. S. 1890, p. 648. |