of them, Ptilonopus gularis and Turacaena menadensis, have their
nearest allies in Timor. Two others, Carpophaga forsteni and Phlaegenas
tristigmata, most resemble Philippine island species; and Carpophaga
radiata belongs to a New Guinea group. Lastly, in the Gallinaceous
tribe, the curious helmeted Maleo (Megacephalon rubripes) is quite
isolated, having its nearest (but still distant) allies in the
Brush-turkeys of Australia and New Guinea.
Judging, therefore, by the opinions of the eminent naturalists who have
described and classified its birds, we find that many of the species
have no near allies whatsoever in the countries which surround Celebes,
but are either quite isolated, or indicate relations with such distant
regions as New Guinea, Australia, India, or Africa. Other cases of
similar remote affinities between the productions of distant countries
no doubt exist, but in no spot upon the globe that I am yet acquainted
with, do so many of them occur together, or do they form so decided a
feature in the natural history of the country.
The Mammalia of Celebes are very few in number, consisting of fourteen
terrestrial species and seven bats. Of the former no less than eleven
are peculiar, including two which there is reason to believe may have
been recently carried into other islands by man. Three species which
have a tolerably wide range in the Archipelago, are: (1) The curious
Lemur, Tarsius spectrum, which is found in all the islands as far
westward as Malacca; (2) the common Malay Civet, Viverra tangalunga,
which has a still wider range; and (3) a Deer, which seems to be the
same as the Rusa hippelaphus of Java, and was probably introduced by man
at an early period.
The more characteristic species are as follow:
Cynopithecus nigrescens, a curious baboon-like monkey if not a true
baboon, which abounds all over Celebes, and is found nowhere else but
in the one small island of Batchian, into which it has probably been
introduced accidentally. An allied species is found in the Philippines,
but in no other island of the Archipelago is there anything resembling
them. These creatures are about the size of a spaniel, of a jet-black
colour, and have the projecting dog-like muzzle and overhanging brows
of the baboons. They have large red callosities and a short fleshy tail,
scarcely an inch long and hardly visible. They go in large bands, living
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