THE AXNALS AND MAGAZINE OF NATCTRAL HISTORY. [FIFTH SERIES.] No. 92. AUGUST 1885. VIII. ^ — Remarks on the Geographical Distribution of the Lacertilia. Bj Gr. A. BOULENGER. In the present article I do not intend to give a detailed account of the geographical distribution of Lizards — a work which has to be postponed until the revision of all the genera and species is completed. But, general as these notes are, they will, I trust, be sufficient to establish an important fact, viz. the very great difference between the geographical distribu-tion of Lizards and that of other groups of reptiles, and especially of the Batrachians, of whose distribution I have lately* treated. The accounts hitherto given of the geographical distribu-tion of reptiles were founded upon material chiefly derived from the works of Dumeril and Bibron and of Gray. It has already been pointed out how artificial many of the syste-matic groups adopted by these authors are, and I have recently endeavoured to replace them by a more natural arrangement. No one will deny that a classification based on osteological as well as external cliaracters must lead to a better understanding of the affinities of animals — affinities which are so frequently concealed under superficial appeal--ances. * Cat. Batr. Grad. kc. p. 105. Ann. & Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 5. Vol xvi. 7
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