supplies. We accordingly sailed from Singapore on the 5th February,
1882, and steered for the Seychelle Islands, touching on the
way at Colombo.
On the 4th of March we reached Bird Island, the most northerly
of the Seychelle group ; and as we remained at anchor there until
the following morning, wo had an opportunity, among other things,
for exploring the island and accomplishing some drcdging-work in
the shallow water about the ship. On the next day we steamed
over to Mahé, the chief island of the group. After some days spent
here in provisioning and coaling the ship, during which time our
boats did some useful dredging in the channel between Mahé and
St. Anne’s Islands, we steamed over to the Amirante group, the most
northerly of which is only about a day’s run from Mahé. We had
orders to make a survey of the Amirautés, and, as far as time would
permit, of the other coral islands which extend thence in an irregular
chain southwaixl towards Madagascar.
The Amirante group consists altogether of twenty-one low coral
islets, resting, with the exception of He des Roches (which is separated
by a deep channel), on an extensive coral bank, which is 89
miles in length, with an average breadth of 19 miles, and whose
long axis lies in a N.N.E. and S.8.W. direction. I t is included between
the limits of 4° 50J' and 6° 12^' S. lat., and 53° 45' and
52° 5 0 |' E. long., and is thus about 700 miles distant from the
nearest part of the East-African coast. Some of the islets and
sand-cays of which it is composed, and which are included in the
above enumeration, are so arranged in clusters th at for all practical
purposes the group may be regarded as consisting of nine islets,
which have been named African, Eagle, Darros, Des Roches, Poivre,
Etoile, Marie Louise, Des Neufs, and Boudeuse Islands.
From the Amirautés we moved over to Alphonse Island, which
occupies an isolated position 60 miles S.W. by S. of the southern
extremity of the Amirante Bank ; and thence proceeded to Providence
Island, which is about 240 miles from the Amirautés in
a 8.AV. by S. direction, and about 2u0 miles from Cape Amber, in
Madagascar. After a short stay at each of these islands, we steamed
over to the Glorioso group, which consists of three islands, also of
coral formation, and situated about 120 miles W. by N. of the
northern extremity of Madagascar. Every effort was made to
investigate the fauna and flora of these islands as far as time and
other circumstances would permit, so th at sufficient materials were
accumulated to connect their natural history with th a t of Seychelles
to the northward and Madagascar to the southward.
With our departure from the Glorioso Islands the surveying operations
of the ‘ Alert ’ were brought to a close. On the 12th of May
we reached Mozambique, whence, after a stay of a few days, we
proceeded on our homeward voyage, stopping en route at AlgoaBay,
Simon’s Bay, Cape of Good Hope, St. Helena, and Fayal (in the
Azores), and arrived in Plymouth Sound on the 3rd of September,
1882, after an absence of nearly four years.
PART I.
THE COLLECTIONS FROM ME LANE S IA.
MAMMA L IA .
BY
OLDFIELD THOMAS.
The Mammalia collected by Dr. Coppinger are too few in number
and of too common occurrence to he deserving of special notice; but
a very interesting series of Melanesian skulls was obtained by him
from various islands in the Pacific, and of these the most important
measurements are given in the following notes.
1. Skull of Torres-Straits Islander. (Plates I. & I I . fig. A.)
Male. Adult.
■ Native chief of Nagheer Island, Torres Straits.” -R . W. C.
Length^ 174; gl. occ.^ 181. Breadth^ 144. HeighC 136.
Maximum frontal breadth® 115; minimum frontal breadth®
99. Horizontal circumferences—preaiiricular^ 237, total® 514.
Transverse arcs—frontaP 286, bregmatic*® 303, parietal** 323,
occipital*^ 273. Longitudinal arcs—frontal*® 121, parietal*'*
129, occipital*® 113. Foramen magnum—length*® 35, width"
29. Basinasal length*® 105. Basialveolar length*® 112. Bizygomatic
breadth^® 136. Height of—face®* 98, malar®® 25,
alveolus®® 22. Auriculo-orbital length®^ 72. Nasal height®'
50, width®® 24. Maxilla—length®^ 65, width®® 67.
Mandible—bicondylar width®® 126, bigoniac width®® 99, symphy-
sial height®* 33, molar height®® 29, coronoid height®® 63, gouio-
symphysial length (1. side)®^ 81. Ramus—height®® 71, anteroposterior
breadth®® 35. Bigoniac arc®^ 194.
Indices—latitudinal®® 82-8, altitudinal®® 78-2, frontaP® 68'7,
gnathic"** 106'7, nasaP® 48‘0.
1 9—12 18 19 27 23 33 38 39 taken according to Flower, Joiirn. Anthrop. Inst, x
p. 172(1881), and Oat. Coll. Surg. i. p. xvii (1879).
1—3 IS—17 20—20 29-32 31—37 do—42^ Broca, Instruct, Orániol. (Paris, 1875).