Note 11 — Chapter I · AMPHIBIA, OR BATRACHIANS.

In the British Museum Catalogue (1850) these Amphibians are styled Batrachia Gradientia, and are distributed under three families, comprising fifty-two recognised species. The class Amphibia is divided by Dr. Gray into five orders—viz. Batrachia, Pseudosauria, Pseudophidia, Pseudichthyes, and Meantia. Of these the first, or the Batrachia, are divided into the sub-orders Salientia and Gradientia, the latter consisting of three families, Salamandridæ, Molgidæ, and Plethodontidæ. The second order, Pseudosauria, comprises the families Protonopsidæ (which contains the Sieboldtia maxima) and Amphiumidæ. The third order, Pseudophidia, consists of only one family, Cæciliidæ. The fourth order, Pseudichthyes, also contains one family only, the Lepidosirenidæ. The fifth order, Meantia, comprises the two families Proteidæ and Sirenidæ. Twenty-four ascertained species are distributed amongst the last four of these orders; but the limits of this work do not permit of a more detailed notice of these various groups of Batrachia Gradientia. More recently, Dr. Günther, in his work on the reptiles of the Indian region, has pointed out certain structural characters connected with the generative system which show that the Pseudophidia do not properly belong to the Batrachia; nor is their place in the system as yet quite satisfactorily determined. They seem rather to be a very humble form of reptile; while the Pseudichthyes should rather be subordinated to the class Pisces: though, as we have seen, there are naturalists who would refer all of the Batrachia to the fish class, certain forms amongst them rising to a parallelism of development with Reptilia, but still not constituting true reptiles. The mode of reproduction especially is in favour of this view. Both Pseudophidia and Pseudichthyes are intertropical or subtropical animals, whereas the rest of the Batrachia Gradientia belong almost exclusively to the northern temperate zone; any exceptional case occurring probably in very elevated regions. Of sixty-six ascertained species, forty-nine are American, and there are five from Japan, inclusive of the Sieboldtia maxima. But more species have been discovered since the catalogue cited has been drawn up, and of course there must be many yet to be discovered. Five species are referred to the Pseudophidia, and three only to the Pseudichthyes.—Ed.