CENTRAL AMERICA.
Birds of beautiful plumage, and vegetation of singular and fantastic forms, mark the separating region of Central America. The cactus tribe of plants, the yuccas, and the great aloe or rather agave give a peculiar and striking aspect to this region. Yet of the larger forms of animal life there is little to display. Before long we may show the strange sea-cow, or manatee, as coming within the bounds of this province, and a glance at the West Indian marine case will serve at once to indicate the richness and beauty of the fauna of seas and shores. The number and curious variety of its sponges, the elegance and rich painting of its shell-fish, the odd shapes of its fishes, and the presence of striking forms of reef-building corals, all, however, different from those of the Indian seas, cannot fail to impress its peculiarities on the thoughtful visitor.
Along the southern verge of this province is the country of that most exquisite of water-lilies, the great Victoria: on secluded lakes, among luxuriant forests, and in the reaches of the mighty rivers that flow tranquilly among them, this beautiful plant flourishes indigenous.
TEMPERATE NORTH AMERICA.
Between the Central and the Arctic Provinces are the wooded regions of North America, where the vegetation of Canada passes into that of the United States, and is bounded on the western side by Oregonian fauna. A wide range has to be illustrated in a small space, and we are obliged to bring together in close proximity the countries of the pines and the palmettos. The Canadian porcupine, Wapiti deer, elk, beaver, raccoon, Virginian opossum, and Virginian deer stand here as representatives for the States and neighbouring countries. Shrew moles (Scalops aquaticus), starnoses (Condylura cristata), musk-rats, bony pikes and limuli would be effective additions, and highly characteristic. The fauna and flora of the United States, though in great part peculiar, are in many of their members curiously representative of the vegetable and animal life in the corresponding portion of the Old World; in not a few instances form replaces form. At the same time, the differences are not to be overlooked, and in the presence of the opossum, of some of the fishes and certain invertebrate animals, we seem to have indications of claims to a superior antiquity on the part of the so-called New, over the boasted Old World.
BARREN GROUNDS.
The Barren grounds that skirt the polar regions of North America, and which include the country to the east of the Rocky Mountains, and north of the great lakes, constitute a region of low hills with rounded summits, and more or less precipitous sides, separated by narrow valleys. They are bare of trees, except near the margins of larger rivers; a few stunted willows, dwarf birches and larches, are occasionally met with, but the greater part of the surface is covered with lichens only. The brown bear, the glutton, the ermine, the Canadian otter, the wolf, the zibet, the arctic hare, the reindeer, and the musk-ox, are characteristic quadrupeds. Between this district and the northern shores of Lake Superior is a belt of wooded land, where the elk, squirrel, beaver, &c., occur. On the prairie lands that belong to the next section are the great bison or American buffalo, peculiar deer, and the grisly bear. Towards the west, and along the Rocky Mountains are found the American goat (only on the highest ridges), and the pretty prong-horned antelope. The distribution of most of these large animals is determined by the vegetation, and that in a great measure by the disposition of the water-sheds.
ARCTIC REGIONS.
To realise our conceptions, we ought, before quitting the Geographical Garden from the north, to find ourselves surrounded by masses of ice and snow. Let us picture in our minds long lines of hoary coasts, the dark rock occasionally breaking through its frosty covering, the deep green waves tossing masses of ice, and bearing up towering and fantastic icebergs, whose cleft and cavernous sides are beautiful with intense blue shadows. Great whales sport among the waters, their black masses, here and there, breaking the monotony of colours. Myriads of glancing jellyfishes, iridescent beroes, and pearly molluscs, give animation to the transparent waters. Flocks of sea-birds fly in every direction, watching the fishes that supply them with abundant food; seals rest on the icy platform, and nearer the land the great white bear, beautiful as strong, prowls along the verge of the shore. A scene such as this cannot be realised ever at Sydenham, but we can indicate some few of its characteristic elements. The imagination of intelligent visitors must supply the rest.
The Arctic Province is represented only in one geographical Court, that of the Western or New World. The one indication must serve for all the regions that border the icy seas. Indeed there is no forcing in this arrangement, for the entire Arctic fauna is characterised by prevailing monotony. Myriads of individuals of the prevailing species, mostly dull in hue, or at least deficient in brilliant colouring, whether they belong to the earth, the air, or the sea, compensate for the paucity of different kinds. White and grey, in the air; dull browns in the sea, are the prevailing tints. Some bright flowers during the summer season, break the modest rule by their gaiety. Throughout the icy seas, from Greenland round by Spitzbergen to Behring’s Straits, and along the labyrinthine coast of Asiatic America to Greenland again, the same marine animals are diffused. This is the region of the salmon genus, all the species of which radiate, as it were, around the Arctic province.