The Malay archipelago : the land of the orang-utan ... - Wallace Online

IX.] NATURAL HISTORY OF THE INDO-MALAY ISLANDS. 109and India. Among these are tlie tiger, leopard, a tiger-cat,civet, and otter ;wliile out of the twenty genera of MalayanCarnivora, thirteen are represented in India by more or lessclosely allied species. As an example, the curious Malayanglutton (Helictis orientalis) is represented in Northern India bya closely allied species, Helictis nipalensis.Tlie hoofed animals are twenty-two in number, of whichabout seven extend into Burmali and India. All the deer are offeculiar species, except two, which range from ]\Ialacca intondia. Of tlie cattle, one Indian species reaches Malacca, whilethe Bos sondaicus of Java and Borneo is also found in SianiandBurmah. A goat-like animal is found in Sumatra whiclihas its representative in India ;while the two-horned rhinocerosof Sumatra and the single-horned species of Java, long supposedto be i^eculiar to these islands, are now both ascertained to existin Burma)), Pegu, and Moulmein. The elepliant of Sumatra,Borneo, and Malacca is now considered to be identical with thatof Ceylon and India.In all other groups of Mammalia the same general phenomenarecur. A few species are identical with those of India. A muchlarger number are closely allied or representative forms ; whilethere are always a small number of peculiar genera, consistingof animals unlike those found in any other part of the world.Thei-e are about fifty bats, of which less than one-fourtli areIndian species ; thirty-four Eodents (squirrels, rats, &c.), ofwhich six or eight only are Indian ; and ten Insectivora, withone exception peculiar to the Malay region. The squirrels arevery abundant and charactei-istic, only two species out oftwenty-five extending into Siam andBurmah. The Tupaias arecurious insect-eaters, which closely i-esemble squirrels, and arealmost confined to the Malay islands, as are the small feathertailedPtilocerus lowii of Borneo, and the curious long-snoutedand naked-tailed Gymnurus rafflesii.As the Malay peninsula is a part of the continent of Asia, tliequestion of the former union of the islands to the mainland willbe best elucidated by studying the species which are found inthe former district, and also in some of the islands. Now, if weentirely leave out of consideration the bats, which have thepower of flight, there are still forty-eight species of mammalscommon to the Malay peninsula and the three large islands.Among these are seven Quadrumana (apes, monkeys, andlemurs), animals which pass their whole existence in forests,which never swim, and which would be quite unable to traversea single mile of sea ; nineteen Carnivora, some of Avhich nodoubt might cross by swimming, but we cannot sujjpose so large anumber to have passed in this way across a strait which, exceptat one point, is from thirty to fifty miles wide ; and five hoofedanimals, including the Tapir, two species of rhinoceros, and anelephant. Besides these there are thirteen Ivodents and fourInsectivora, including a shrew-mouse and six squirrels, whose