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Show 108 DR. BASHFORD DEAN ON THE [Feb. 20, 30. NOTOTRAGUS MELANOTIS Tliunb. Xototragus, nom. nov., Thos. & Schw. Abstr. P. Z. S. No. 27, p. 10, Feb. 27, 1906. o*. 1051. $.1059. Plettenberg Bay. W e are glad to express our agreement with Dr. Jentink * in considering that the Grysbok should be generically separated from the Steenboks on account of its possession of supplementary hoofs. In the skull also it may be distinguished by its larger antecrbital pits, which are shaped very much as in Ourebia, with a marked ridge above them, running across the lacrymals. But in using SundevaH's name of Calotragus for this animal, Dr. Jentink has not noticed that that author expressly selected his "species prima" (Calotragus tragulus = Raphicerus campesiris) as the type, so that in no case could the name be used for the Grysbok, to which we would therefore propose to apply the above-given generic term. With regard to the use of Raphicerus, we can only reiterate the opinion given in the ' Book of Antelopes,' that Blainville's figure of " Antilope aculicomis" on which the name hangs, is either the common Steenbok (as we suppose) or at least a species congeneric with it. 31. TRAGELAPHUS SYLVATICUS Sparrm. $. 1050. Knysna. 4. Notes on the Living Specimens of the Australian Lung-fish, Ceratodus forsteri, in the Zoological Society's Collection. By B A S H F O R D D E A N , Ph.D. f [Received November 6, 1905.] (Plate IX.J and text-figs. 53-55.) During a recent visit to London, September 1904, I was given the opportunity of examining specimens of Ceratodus in the aquarium of the Zoological Society's collections. A n d the following notes are presented, since they add several details to our rather scanty knowledge of the habits of this important and rare form. The following- is an abstract of the more important accounts of living Ceratodus:- Habits in general.-Never goes out of water (according to all recent authors), could not be "made to progress in only a few inches of water " (Ramsay, similarly Spencer). Passive, helpless out of water (Spencer, Semon, Illidge), and dies within one or two hours (Semon), or eight to ten hours (Spencer) : if kept moist, however, it will live for a long time (O'Connor), e.g. if wrapped in wet water-weed. In general hardy and now acclimated in a number of Australian rivers. Under usual conditions sluggish, " too lazy to get out of the way when about to be handled " * Notes Leyd. Mus. xxii. p. 33 (1900). t Communicated by R. I. POCOCK, F.Z.S. % Poi < J planation of the Plate, sue p. 178. |