2. PTEROPUS. 45 Var. a.
Pteropus degener, Peters, MB. Akad. Berl. 1876, p. 318. Under the above name Dr. Peters has described the skin of an old male received by the Berlin Museum from the Aru Islands, which differs from all known specimens of Pt. melanopogon and its varieties by the shortness of the ears. The face is clothed with short whitish hairs ; crown of the head, neck, throat, breast, and abdomen bright reddish yellow, at the base pale yellow; the whole back is naked, on the rump a few greyish hairs alone appear; the woolly hair on the ventral surface of the antebrachial and wing-membranes reddish yellow.
Total length about 15"; head 3/8, ear 0-87 x 0"-6, forearm 7"'-75, tibia 3!"-4, caleaneum 1!'-05, foot 2!-4, skull 3!-6. This specimen appears to me to agree so closely with Pteropus melanopogon in size, in the general colour of the fur, and in the nakedness of the back that I really doubt whether it should be considered a variety, even, on account of the comparative shortness of the ears, which, on the whole, according to the measurements given, are scarcely one fifth of an inch shorter than in typical specimens of Pt. melanopogon. The shortness of the ears may well be due, in such an old individual, to a peculiar ulcerative process which often attacks the margins of the ear-conch, causing gradual absorption. Var. p.
Pteropus melanopogon, var. aruensis et keyensis, Schlegel, Peters, MB. Akad. Berl. 1867, p. 330.
Ears as in the type of Pt. melanopogon; fur two inches wide across the middle of the back; interfemoral membrane quite concealed in the centre ; legs and forearms nearly naked ; head pale yellowish brown, withafew intermixed dark-coloured hairs; neck bright reddish brown above, dark brown on the sides and beneath; back silvery yellowish grey ; breast and abdomen yellowish buff, paler posteriorly. Female specimens are darker, bright reddish beneath, or reddish brown intermixed with buff, and bright bay on the upper surface of the neck; back brownish silvery grey.
From an inspection of the specimens named by Dr. Peters in the Leyden Musem, the writer has satisfied himself that the skins from the Key Islands are examples of the brighter-coloured males of this variety.
These specimens, as well as those in the British Museum collection, have the back well covered, as described above, and the wings appear to arise half an inch apart ; whereas in the typical examples of Pt. melanopogon the wing-membrane appears to arise much closer to the spine, and the back is quite naked and the fur reduced to a mere line along the spine. These might seem to be quite sufficient differences in structure to lead us to consider this form a distinct species ; but the fur of the back evidently disappears with age, and it is impossible in dried specimens to judge of the position of origin
46 PLEROPODID.E.
of the wings with much certainty, owing to the stretching undergone by the skin in the drying process. The value of these characters can only be determined by a large series of specimens preserved in alcohol, which no museum as yet possesses.
(For measurements see Table, p. 47.)
a. 9 ad. sk. Aru Islands. A. R. Wallace, Esq. [C.]. Var. y.
Pteropus melanopogon, var. neohibernicus, Peters, MB. Akad. Berl. 1876, p. 317.
I have not seen the specimens described under this name by Dr. Peters, who remarks that they agree so closely in the form of the ears, in the proportional measurements of parts, in the development of the volar membranes, in the fur, and in the form of the skull with the typical examples of Pt. melanopogon from Celebes and Amboina that it is impossible to separate them from that species. They differ, however, in the colour of the fur, of which the following description is given :— In the male the face and forehead is dark reddish brown, nape of the neck reddish, neck paler, back darker, breast and abdomen lighter reddish brown. Hair covering the antebrachial and wingmembranes along the sides of the body beneath reddish. In the female the face is paler, more yellowish red, also the nape of the neck, breast, and abdomen; neck and back still more yellowish, palest posteriorly.
Ear 1-1, forearm 5", The above measurements show that these specimens are much smaller than typical examples of Pt. melanopogon, and they aro therefore probably immature.
The collection possesses a specimen of a nearly adult male of this species, which was obtained in Duke of York Island, near the coast of New Ireland, whence came the types of Dr. Peters’s variety described above. This specimen is very much larger, nearly as large as full-grown specimens of Pt. melanopogon from Ceram, but agrees so closely in other respects with the New-Ireland forms, that I have no hesitation in placing it under the same namo. It differs, however, in having slightly shorter ears, and an index finger exceeding in its proportional length not only that of every other specimen of this species as yet known (see measurements below), but also those of every species of the genus. This may, however, be an individual peculiarity, and I hesitate, in the absence of other specimens, to ascribe any value to it. The fur is dark reddish brown, with a slightly greyish tinge, on the face, between the eyes, and under the jaws; head, neck, shoulders, and the whole under surface of the body bright reddish brown, with a yellowish tinge, the hairs paler and more yellowish towards the base; on the back dark brown, intermixed with bright sulphur-yellow, which replaces the brown across the loins; interfemoral membrane with longer, dark brown, almost black hairs.
2. PTEROPUS. 47 The wings arise close together from the sides of the back, and the fur along the back is scarcely more than an inch in width at its widest part.
The canine and second upper premolar are separated by a narrow space, also in the lower jaw, where the first premolar nearly fills up the space between.
In the following Table the measurements of the above-described specimen are placed in the first column; in the second those of Pt. melanopogon from Bouru Island; in the third those of Pt. melanopogon, var. aruensis; while in the fourth the few measurements of Pt. degener given by Dr. Peters are exhibited :— r. if, TIT. IV.
Eengthvof head scccseccascassmmssemnaeesteneesness 37 a one 37 i. GANS acai eeiexeteneidetine nnestisitsasere 1:0 10 1-0 0:87 ie TOPOABING 2ciccucceccnvanscssaurcnvorseuvs 70 775 73 AE 4 Second finger’ ssisvssccasecen aeaess 56 5d 5:45 a % third finger, metacarp. ............ 475 5 51 Fi as Ist: ph.) giassaweaiaes 3°65 38 36 ie re 2nd phe sc s.cncueawes 56 63 55 . fifth finger, metacarp................ 49 5:25 5:2 - PA Vat pecs ue saees sears 24 2°5 2°25 5 i Qnd pli.’ iceisneinae ante 21 2-4 20 5 a HADI -wsceesiecdecnusesaesaseneusercsssens 3:3 3:3 Pe 34 3 CAlCAN ONIN saceccnccantncecobieanunennes Tel ea on 1 LOOE: ariciaseigwansesdanetosioresesictones 2-4 ss 24 24. Pteropus chrysoproctus.
Pteropus chrysoproctus, Temminck, Monogr. Mammal. ii. p. 67 (1835-41); Peters, MB. Akad. Berl. 1867, p. 331. Pteropus argentatus, Gray, Voy. ‘Sulphur,’ Mammalia, p. 80 (1844). Ears longer than the muzzle; general shape as in Pt. medius, rather broader in the upper third and more abruptly narrowed and subacutely pointed. Wings close together at origin from the sides of the back, scarcely half an inch apart. Interfemoral membrane short, but its free margin in the centre is not concealed by the fur. The whole body, except half the back, is covered with bright reddish-yellow fur, which is darker under the chin and on the chest and abdomen; anterior half of the back reddish brown. In the type of Pt. argentatus, Gray (a not full-grown male), the back is darker brown, with a few intermixed yellowish hairs. Although the wings are so close together at their origin, the fur covering the middle of the back is nearly two inches in width and. rather long.
Teeth as in Pt. medius, which this species also closely resembles in the form of the skull.
Length (of the type specimen), head and body about 9", ear 1-2, eye from tip of nostril 0'-8, forearm 6/-5, thumb 3!'"1 ; third finger— metacarp. 4-5, 1st ph. 3!-6, 2nd ph. 5-4; fifth finger—metacarp. 4-8, Ist ph. 2'-1, 2nd ph. 2"; tibia 2"-9, foot 1"-8.
48 PTEROPODIDZ.
Hab. Amboina, Ceram, Goram, Pulo Pandjamb (Peters). a. f imm., al. Moluccas. Sir E. Belcher [C. ]}. (Ty e of Pteropus argentatus, Gray.
b. g ad. sk. atabello Island. A. R. Wallace, Esq. [C.]. 25. Pteropus pteronotus.
Eunycteris phaiops, Gray (in part), Catal. Monkeys and Fruit-eating Bats, p. 118 (1870).
Muzzle long and narrow; ears longer than the muzzle, abruptly narrowed and attenuated in upper third. Interfemoral membrane nearly one inch deep in the centre, where it forms an acute angle. Wings arising close together, scarcely a quarter of an inch apart at the spine, but the fur extends outwards upon them for more than half an inch each side.
Colour of the fur like that of Pt. edulis; head reddish yellow, under surface of the muzzle and throat dark reddish glistening brown; back of the neck and shoulders bright yellow, brightest on the shoulders; back reddish brown; rump dark brown, with a few shining yellowish hairs.
Fur generally short, much longer on the neck than anywhere else, on the back occupying a space scarcely two inches wide; the ‘ humerus and forearm have a few very short hairs; the interfemoral membrane is partially covered above, its posterior half naked ; tibize naked above and beneath, the thighs covered almost as far as the knees on both surfaces.
Teeth as in Pt. edulis, except that the upper incisors are more slender and the minute first upper premolar is persistent; the lower middle incisors are separated by an interval.
The following Table exhibits the relative measurements of this species (No. I.) and of two specimens of Pt. chrysoproctus—the type specimen (a dried skin), preserved in the Leyden Museum (No. IL.), and the type of Pt. argentatus, Gray, preserved in alcohol (No. IIL.). I. II. II.
Length, head and body, about ..............:0.ceee eee 9-0 85 7:5* . Wea dy Seton ssinceg acces den cencseveananceecsenns 3:0 ae 24 A; OAT be caelunawaiceaacer er ne Ueitecalaioe ak eo ae 15 12 12 £ eye from tip of nostril...............06c0eseee 1:2 0-8 0:8 5 POTEALIN ys sacce esas. di eee es ews saneeseneccouseeeuns 72 6:5 52 i thumbs schusavev coves vadlss tecwainesvacnarcasene 3-0 31 2-4 $5 SECON ANGOR so. cietesecsescaasevass aataandeees 5-2 wee 39 a third finger, metacarp. ...............06.088 45 45 34 i 53 Ast phic cceosne. i ccaids nae 35 3-6 25 i QnA Phy secancnesorestarecesaas 51 54 3:9 er fifth finger, Motaarps sis.cecesccrsetersecseds 4:75 48 36 ; i Tet phos scan acccusectocvusaaesases 2:3 21 1:55 i 7 Qnidl phicvevies vectaacours tv dewniesto' 2:3 2:0 1:55 ; CUDA) pccas doececwsatucucuawscieuseretnehs tenets 35 29 2:3 35 CAlCANGUIN 552.35 ce deena vac eeaaeoSsuneosnvetoonae 13 as 0°75 i LO Ob edie sic ue dantann essa race iaktanaeea bene 24 1:8 18 * Not full-grown.
2. PTEROPUS. 49 Comparison of the above measurements shows that while this species exceeds Pt. chrysoproctus very considerably in the length of the muzzle, ears, forearms, tibiee, and feet, the latter has the bones of the middle finger longer. This could not be the case if Pt. pteronotus represented only the more adult form of Pt. chrysoproctus, for, in all Bats, while the ears and feet attain their full size when the animal is still young, the bones of the wings are the last parts of the body to reach their full length.
This species, therefore, differs from Pt. chrysoproctus, to which it is most nearly allied, in the greater length of the parts referred to above, in the different colour of the fur, in the narrower and much longer muzzle, in the presence of the small first upper premolar in adult individuals, and in the remarkable development of the interfemoral membrane behind, which is equalled only by Pt. edulis from the same locality.
a. 9 ad, al. Java. J. Bowring, Esq. [P.].
26. Pteropus edulis.
Pteropus edulis, Geoffroy, Ann. du Mus. xv. p.90 (1810); Temminck, Monogr. Mammal. i. p. 172, ii. p. 58; Peters, MB. Akad. Berl. 1867, p. 324; Dobson, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Beng. 1873, p. 197, pl. xiv. fig. 1 (ear); Monogr. Asiat. Chiropt. p. 2U (1876). Pteropus javanicus, Desmarest, Mammatlogie, p. 109 (1820). Pteropus funereus, Temminck, 1. c. ii. p. 63 (1835-41). Ears much longer than the muzzle, naked, acutely pointed; the length of the ear-conch nearly double its greatest width, the upper third of the outer margin concave beneath the tip. Wings from the sides of the hairy back, quite 2 inches apart at their lines of attachment; interfemoral membrane about an inch deep in the middle, not concealed by the fur.
Back of the head, neck, and shoulders clothed with moderately long and dense erect fur; from the shoulders backwards the fur is short, closely appressed, and directed backwards, occupying a space (in full-grown specimens) nearly 4 inches in width across the middle of the back. The extremities are nearly naked; a narrow line of very short fur passes outwards upon the wing-membrane behind the humerus for about half its length, and a few short hairs cover a narrow portion of the wing-membrane along the posterior margin of the forearm. The thighs, and the interfemoral membrane as-far as a line corresponding to the position of the semicircular band on its inferior surface, are thinly covered, the posterior free margin of the membrane is quite naked. On the under surface the wing-membrane is covered with thinly spread rather long fur, which extends outwards as far as a line drawn from the knee to a point about 1 inch posterior to the elbow, thence behind the forearm for two thirds its length; the thighs are partially covered, the legs and the interfemoral membrane are quite naked. Colour of the fur variable, brighter in males than in females, generally dark reddish brown on the face and under surface; head E
50 PTEROPODID.&, and nape of neck more or less bright bay ; back black, with several greyish shining hairs. The colour of the fur of the head, nape of neck, and shoulders varies from reddish brown to bright reddish yellow, in some female specimens even dark reddish brown, as in the type of Pt. pluto, Temminck, where the fur of the head and body generally is deep black.
A specimen of an apparently adult female (with much-worn teeth), from the Andaman Islands, given to the writer by Mr. Francis Day (with forearm only 6'-5 long), has the fur very short throughout, and the wings, interfemoral membrane, and extremities almost devoid of hair; the head, under surface of the lower jaw, and throat very dark reddish brown, with some intermixed greyish or shining hairs; the back of the head, nape of neck, and shoulders reddish yellow, the breast and abdomen reddish brown; upper and lower incisors slender, cylindrical.
Skull with very prominent sagittal and occipital crests in old individuals, in which, also, the ligamentous tissue connecting the extremity of the long postorbital process with the corresponding process from the zygomatic arch often becomes cartilaginous, so that the orbit appears on a superficial examination to be completely surrounded by bone; upper incisors close together, nearly equal in size; lower incisors occupying the space between the canines, the central pair not separated, scarcely more than half the size of the outer incisors; first upper premolar very small, deciduous; the second premolar widely separated from the canine; premolars and molars, in both jaws, much longer than broad, without basal projections, their inner cusps feebly developed, quite disappearing in full-grown individuals; last upper molar larger than the first lower premolar, which stands in the centre of the space between the canine and second premolar, and which, again, is larger than the last lower molar.
(For measurements see Table, p. 55.)
Hab. Indo-Malayan Subregion, extending also into some of the islands of the northern part of the Austro-Malayan Subregion. (Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Philippine Islands (Samar Island), Banda, Ternate, Timor.)
This is the largest known species of the genus, and therefore the largest known species of the order; the forearm of full-grown individuals exceeds that of the next largest species (Pt. melanopogon, Pt. jubatus, and Pt. medius) by at least 1 inch; the fully extended wings measure quite 5 feet across. Skulls of immature animals of Pt. edulis, with undeveloped sagittal crest, are larger than those of old individuals of Pt. medius, which they closely resemble in other respects. Young specimens of this species may generally be easily distinguished by the much greater depth of the interfemoral membrane in the centre than in any other species with similarly long and pointed ears.
a. @ ad. sk, Java.
b-e, g & 2 juv.,al. Isles of Kallam, Straitsof Secretary of State for Malacca. India [P.].
2. PTEROPUS. 51 Ff. Q juv., al. Dinagut Island, Philippines. My. Everett [C.]. g- & imm,, al. M. Lidth de Jeude.
4. 3 imm, sk. St. G. Mivart, Esq. [P.].
2. skull. Dr. T. Oldham [P.].
Jj» skull.
k,l. skulls. Zool. Soc. Coll.
m,n. skulls. M. Lidth de Jeude.
27. Pteropus medius.
Pteropus edwardsii, Geoffroy (in part), Ann. du Mus. xv. p. 92 (1810). Pteropus medius, Temminck, Monogr. Mammal. i. p. 176 (1827) ; Peters, MB. Akad, Berl. 1867, p. 325; Dobson, Journ. Asiat. Soe. Beng. 1873, p. 196, pl. xiv. fig. 1 (ear); Monogr. Asiat. Chiropt. p. 18 (1876).
Fesepue leucocephalus, Hodgson, Journ. Asiat. Soc. Beng. 1836, p. 699, Pteropus assamensis, M‘ Clelland, P. Z. S. 1839, p. 148. Pteropus edwardsi, Jerdon (non Geoffr.), Mammals of India, p. 18 (1867); Hutton, Peters, P. Z. S. 1872, p. 691.
Pteropus kelaartii, Gray, Catal. Monkeys and Fruit-eating Bats, p. 104 (1870).
Very similar to the preceding species in the general form, but distinguished by its conspicuously smaller size, proportionately longer and broader ears, by the distribution and colour of the fur, by the position of attachment of the wing-membrane, which arises from the sides of the body comparatively closer to the spine, and by the less development of the interfemoral membrane in the centre. The fur of the body is longer than in Pt. edulis, especially on the back and on the interfemoral membrane, and extends further along the posterior extremities ; but on the wing-membrane beneath, between the anterior and posterior extremities, it is much shorter than in that species.
Face and throat reddish brown; crown of the head brighter reddish brown; nape of neck and shoulders varying from bright reddish yellow to pale buff; back dark reddish brown (colour of cocoanut-fibre), becoming lighter towards the rump; under surface of neck, and the greater part of the breast and abdomen, varying from bright bay to pale reddish yellow; sides of the body beneath the wings and round the pubis dark reddish brown; on each side of the neck a circular tuft of rigid unctuous hairs, of a reddishyellow colour, covering glands, as in Pt. edulis. Teeth as in Pt. edulis; the skulls, also, of the two species are scarcely distinguishable except by size, those of immature specimens of Pt. edulis with bifid sagittal crest are considerably larger than skulls of old individuals of this species. .
In one of the types of Pt. lewcocephalus, Hodgson, from Nipal, there is an abnormal additional upper molar immediately behind the third molar, about the size of one of the outer lower incisors, the antepenultimate molar (the last molar in all other specimens) being similar to the corresponding tooth in other examples of Pt, medius, E2
52 PTEROPODID ZH, The other specimens of Pt. leucocephalus do not differ in any other respect from this one, and all agree in structure and in the general colour of the fur (though the head, neck, and under surface are paler than usual) with other examples of Pt. medius. Specimens from Ceylon appear somewhat larger than those from the peninsula of India; and the greater width of the intercanine space, in an old individual from that locality, led Dr. Gray to make it the type of Pt. kelaartii?, which does not differ from specimens of Pt. medius from that continent in any respect except size, the intercanine space being wider in proportion to its greater size. (For measurements see Table, p. 55.)
Hab. Peninsula of India, Ceylon, Arracan, Burma. The westward limit of this species in the peninsula of India corresponds closely to the course of the river Indus*, whence it extends eastwardly throughout every part of the peninsula south of the Punjab and the Himalaya; its eastward limit appears to be Burmah, south or east of which country it has not hitherto been found, its place being taken in the Malay Peninsula and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands by P#. edulis, to which it is very closely allied. Pt. medius is the only species of the genus as yet known to inhabit the peninsula of India. Specimens from Kachh, Madras, and Bengal exhibit on comparison no appreciable difference. Wherever fruit is abundant these Bats (the “ Flying Foxes” of Europeans resident in India) are to be found; and when food becomes scarce in the neighbourhood of their accustomed haunts they often travel great distances to obtain it, returning invariably to their sleepingplaces about sunrise. Thus Captain Hutton mentions that they make nightly visits to the fruit-gardens of the Dehra Doon below Mussooreoe in the Himalayas from the middle of August to the end of September, performing a journey of from 25 to 30 miles at the least. a. 3 ad. sk, Pachora, Bombay.
b. f ad., al. Nipal. B. H. Hodgson, Esq. [P.}. c-e. ¢ ad. sks. Nipal. B. H. Hodgson, Esq. tp'y f. ad. sk. Assam, g-j. 9 ad. sks, India.
k,l. @ ad. sks, P India.
m. fo ad. sk. India.
n. @ ad. sk. Ceylon. Captain J. Stevens [P.]. (Type of Pteropus kelaarti, Gray.)
o. @ ad. sk. Ceylon. Zool. Soc, Coll.
Pp, gy Q ad. sks. No history.
7. & skeleton.
s. imm. skeleton.
tv. skulls of c-e.
w-2. skulls. Bengal, General Hardwicke [P.].
a’. skull. Nipal. B. H. Hodgson, Esq. fe’) b'. skull of 6. (with additional posterior upper molars). * Dr. Bowman, H.M.’s Indian Army, informs the writer that he saw a colony of this species m the second range of hills in Kelat, beyond the mouth of the Indus, and that they extend as far north as the first pass, about sixty miles.