OCR Text |
Show 76 MAMMALIA. the.i r orgam. za t'w n, urht'ch produce analogous differences in n • • • their habits, and to such an extent as makes It Impossible to arrange their genera on one line, and compels us to form the~ . 1 f: 'l'es whi. ch are variously connected by multiIll to severa ami I , plied relations. FAMILY I. CIIEIROPTERA. This family still retains some affinity with th~ Quadrumana by the pendulous penis, ~n~ by .th: mammre which ar~ pl~ced on the breast. Their distmgmshmg character consists m a fold of the skin, which, commencing at the sides of the .neck, extends between their four feet and toes, supports them m the a·i r, a nd even enables such of them to fly as h. ave. the.ir. hands sufficiently developed for that purpose. Th~s disposition re-quired strong clavicles and la~ge sca~ulre to g~ve th: necessary solidity to the shoulder, but It was Incom~at~b~e With the rotation of the fore-arm, which would have diminished the force of the stroke requisite for flight. T~1ey have all four great canini, but the number of their incisors varies. They have long been divided into two genera, founded upon the extent of their organs of flight. The first of these, however, requires several subdivisions. V ESPERTILIO, Lin. The arms, fore-arms and fingers of the Bats are excessively length· ened, forming, with the membrane that occupies their intervals, true wings, possessing even a greater extent of surface than ~h.ose of Birds-they consequently fly very high, and with great rap1d1ty. The thickness of their pectoral muscles is proportioned to the motions they have to execute, and there is a ridge in the middle of the sternum like that of Birds, to which they are attached. The thumb is short and armed with a claw, by which they are enabled to creep and to suspend themselves. Their hind feet are weak and are divided into five toes, almost always of equal length, armed with trenchant and pointed nails. They have no crecum. Their eyes are exces· sively 3ma11, but their ears are frequently very large, and together with the wings form a vast membranous surface, which is almost CARNARIA. 77 naked, and so extremely sensible that it is probable they guide themselves through all the sinuosities of their labirynths, even after their eyes have been plucked out, solely by the diversity of the impressions of the air. They are nocturnal, and in our climate pass the winter in a state of stupor. During the day they suspend themselves in obscure places. They gene1·ally produce two young ones at a birth, which cling to their mammre, and whose size is considerable in proportion to tl1at of the mother. This genus is very numerous, and offers many subdivisions. We must begin by separating from it the PTERoPus, Briss. Trenchant incisors in each jaw, and grinders with flat crowns;( 1) the food, consequently, consists chiefly of fruit, of which it destroys considerable quantities ; it also successfully pursues birds and small quadrupeds. It is the largest Bat known, and the flesh is eaten. It inhabits the East Indies. The membrane is deeply notched between the legs; it has no tail, or nearly none; the index finger, which is but half the length of the medius has a third phalanx, and a little nail which is wanting in. the other Bats ; each of the following fingers, however, has but two phalanges. The muzzle is simple, the nostrils are widely separated, the ears are of a middling size, but without a tragus, and the tongue is bristled with points that curve backwards; the stomach is an elongated sac, unequally inflated. They have never been found out of the south of Asia or the Indian Archipelago. a. Without tails, and four incisors in eachjaw.(2) P. edulis, Geoff. (The Black Roussette.) Blackish brown, deepest beneath, wings nearly four feet from tip to tip. From the Moluccas and the straits of Sunda, where they are found in great numbers during the day suspended to the trees. To preserve fruit from their attacks, it is necessary to cover it with nets. Their cry resembles that of the goose. They are taken by holding to them a bag fastened to the end of a rod ; the flesh h esteemed a delicacy by the natives, but Europeans dislike it on account of its musky scent.(S) (1) The grinders have two longitudinal and parallel projections separated by a groove, which wear away by attrition. (2) Linnceus confounded them under his Vespertiliovampirus. b {3)~he Pter. Edwardsii of Geoff., Edw. 103, fawn-coloured, with a dark brown ack, ts the young of this species. |