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Show 130 DR. C. I. FORSYTH MAJOR ON THE [Feb. 19, d'autres termes, qu'il n'y a pas d'os planum, ce qui continue dans les carnassiers et les autres mammiferes, [a un tres petit nombre d'exceptions pros ; mais il existe encore dans les autres lemuriens] " l. The addition in brackets is from the pen of F. Cuvier, one of the editors of the second edition of the ' Lecons '2. Kbstlin refers to the planum of Lemurs in the following sentence:-" Der Uebergang zu den Halbaffen geschieht (daher) . . . viel deutlicher von den Affen der alten, als von deuen der neuen Welt, und es gehiirt lneher vor alien Stenops, hei welchem das Os planum in einem liinglichen Ausschnitt des Stirnbeins liegt, und nur am untern Rande von diesem frei ist; ein ahnliches, niedres Os planum scheint Galago zu besitzen; dagegen fehlt es entschieden bei Lemur, Lichaaotus, Cheiromys und w ohl auch bei tarsius . Schroder van der Kolk and A^rolik, referring to Nycticebus tardigradus and N. javanicus, repeat almost textually Cuvier's words : - " L'ethmoi'de tout entier est enveloppe par le frontal et par le palatin, en sorte qu'il n'en parait rien dans l'orbite ou, par consequent, il n'y a pas d'os planum "4. Flower says of the os planum of Monkeys :-" The os planum of the ethmoturbinals always forms part of the inner wall of the orbit, having the same relations as in M a n " \ And with regard to the Lemurs:-"In the Common Lemur . . . ihe os planum of the ethmoturbinal does not enter into the inner wall of the orbit, but is shut out from it by the maxilla, as in most inferior Mammals .... Some of the Lemurina have much shorter faces than the common species, though still possessing all the essential characters of the group " G. W e therefore see that the writers generally deny the presence of an os planum to the Lemurs, of which the genus Lemur is considered to be the prototype, and it has been taken for granted that the conditions found in this genus are those of the whole group. Kostlin is the only writer who gives some positive and on the whole fairly correct information on this point. As a matter of fact, all the species of non-Malagasy genera, viz., Tarsius (text-fig. 35, p. 138), Ni/cticebus (text-fig. 41, p. 140), Loris (text-figs. 40, 42, p. 140), Perodicticus (text-figs. 31-33, 1 G. Cuvier, Lecons d'Anat. Comp. 2C ed. t. ii. p. 319 (1837). ? It is difficult to understand what is meant here by " les autres lemuriens." Tarsius is out of the question, it. being expressly stated that in the only specimen available all the sutures were obliterated. By " les loris'' both Nycticebus and Loris are designated. Chiromys is placed among the Eodents. The only other Lemurs mentioned in the work are the " Indri" and Avahis, in both of which the os planum i9 united with the palatal at a very early date. 3 O. Kostlin, ' Der Bau des kniichernen Kopfes in den vier Klassen der Wirbelthiere,' p. 9-i (1844). 4 T. L. C. Schroeder van der Kolk et W . Vrolik, " Recherches d'Auatomie comparee sur le genre Stenops d'llliger," in Bijdragen tot de Dierkunde. uitgegeven door het Grenootschap Natura Artis Magistra, i. 2, p. 39 (1851). 5 W H. Flower, ' A n Introduction to the Osteologv of the Mammalia,' 3rd ed.' p. 161 (1885). 6 Op. cit. p. 166. |