| Europe | -- | W. Siberia, Persia.
13. Rabbit | Europe | N. Africa | --

We thus see that out of thirteen of our commonest quadrupeds only one is
confined to Europe, while seven are found also in Northern Africa, and
eleven range into Siberia, most of them stretching quite across Asia to the
valley of the Amoor on the extreme eastern side of that continent. Two of
the above-named British species, the fox and weasel, are also inhabitants
of the New World, being as common in the northern parts of North America as
they are with us; but with these exceptions the entire range of our
commoner species is given, and they clearly show that all Northern Asia and
Northern Africa must be added to Europe in order to form the region which
they collectively inhabit. If now we go into Central Europe and take, for
example, the quadrupeds of Germany, we shall find that these too, although
much more numerous, are confined to the same limits, except that some of
the {34} more arctic kinds, as already stated, extend into the colder
regions of North America.

_Range of East Asian and North African Mammals._--Let us now pass to the
other side of the great northern continent, and examine the list of the
quadrupeds of Amoorland, in the same latitude as Germany. We find that
there are forty-four terrestrial species (omitting the bats, the seals, and
other marine animals), and of these no less than twenty-six are identical
with European species, and twelve or thirteen more are closely allied
representatives, leaving only five or six which are peculiarly Asiatic. We
can hardly have a more convincing proof of the essential oneness of the
mammalia of Europe and Northern Asia.

In Northern Africa we do not find so many European species (though even
here they are very numerous) because a considerable number of West Asiatic
and desert forms occur. Having, however, shown that Europe and Western Asia
have almost identical animals, we may treat all these as really European,
and we shall then be able to compare the quadrupeds of North Africa with
those of Europe and West Asia. Taking those of Algeria as the best known,
we find that there are thirty-three species identical with those of Europe
and West Asia, while twenty-four more, though distinct, are closely allied,
belonging to the same genera; thus making a total of fifty-seven of
European type. On the other hand, we have seven species which are either
identical with species of tro