. The ancient life-history of the earth; a comprehensive outline of the principles and leading facts of palæontological science. Paleontology. FAUNA OF THE POST-PLIOCENE. 353 exhibiting special patterns of sculpturing in each species. The tail was also defended by a similar armour, and the vertebrae were mostly fused together so as to form a cylindrical bony rod. In addition to the above-mentioned forms, a number of other Edentate animals have been discovered by the re- searches of M. Lund in the Post-Plio<:ene deposits of the Brazilian bone-caves. Amongst these are true Ant-eaters, Armadil
. The ancient life-history of the earth; a comprehensive outline of the principles and leading facts of palæontological science. Paleontology. FAUNA OF THE POST-PLIOCENE. 353 exhibiting special patterns of sculpturing in each species. The tail was also defended by a similar armour, and the vertebrae were mostly fused together so as to form a cylindrical bony rod. In addition to the above-mentioned forms, a number of other Edentate animals have been discovered by the re- searches of M. Lund in the Post-Plio<:ene deposits of the Brazilian bone-caves. Amongst these are true Ant-eaters, Armadillos, and Sloths, many of them of gigantic size, and all specifically or generically distinct from existing forms. Passing over the aquatic orders of the Swenians and Ce- taceans^ we come next to the great group of the Hoofed Quad- rupeds, the remains of which are very abundant in Post- Pliocene deposits both in Europe and North America. Amongst the Odd-toed Ungulates the most important are the Rhinoceroses, of which three species are known to have existed in Europe during the Post-Pliocene period. Two of these are the well-known Pliocene forms, the Rhinocej-os Etruscus and the R. viegar/wms, still surviving in diminished numbers; but the most famous is the Rhinoceros tichorhinus (fig. 263), or so-called " Woolly ; This sj^ecies. Fig. 263.—Skull of the Tichorhine Rhinoceros, the horns being wanting-. One-tenth of the natural size. Post-Pliocene deposits of Europe and Asia. is known not only by innumerable bones, but also by a car- cass, at the time of its discovery complete, which was found embedded in the frozen soil of Siberia towards the close of last century, and which was partly saved from destruction by the exertions of the naturalist Pallas. From this, we know that the Tichorhine Rhinoceros, like its associate the Mam- moth, was provided with a coating of hair, and therefore was enabled to endure a more severe climate than any existing z. Please no
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