Ser. XV. HIMALAYAN FOSSILS, Vol. IV. THE FAUNA OF THE SPITI ...

HIMALAYITES. 137
It is especially Qucnstedt as well as Oppel who have dewcnbed form* iroru
the lower and middle Malm—forms like Amm. anceps albus Quenst., Amm. bifurcatus
Quenst., Amm. bifurcatus pinguis Quenst., Amm. stephanoides Oppel— which
appear to belong to the form-cycle of Reineckia and which, if better known and
better appreciated, will probably establish the close connection between the Callovian
and Tithonian forms. It must, however, be left to future investigations to gather
sufficient material for the purpose of solving the problem of the natural affinities
of the genus Himalayites. ;
The genus Himalayites does not appear to be well represented in Europe.
The small number of species belonging to this genus described from that continent
constitute forms isolated to such an extent that it was impossible to sufficiently
estimate their importance.
Zittel described under the name of Ammonites cf. athleta a form from the Tithonian
of Stramberg which appears to belong with certainty to Himalayites. Later on
W. Kilian united this form with a species from Andalusia under the name of
Peltoceras Cartazxri. Himalayites Cartazari is exceedingly near Himalayites Stolicz-
kai n. sp. {Amm. _ hyphasis Stol., non Blanf.) and occurs not only at Fuente de
los Frailes in Andalusia, but according to Retowsky, also at Theodosia in the
Crimea and, on the authority of Kilian, in the south of France. In the
region including Southern France, Andalusia, and North Africa the genus Hima-
layites appears to be comparatively well developed; for in Andalusia there is
found, besides Amm. Cartazari, a second species which Kilian has described under
the name of Hoplites Malbosi (non Amm. Malbosi Pict.). Further, the forms
described by Pomel from Lamoriciere in Algeria as Amm. Breveti, Amm. Aulisuce
and Amm. kasdensis appear to belong to Himalayites. Finally we have to add
Amm. microcanthus Opp. Although this species is usually placed in the genus
Hoplites its essential characteristics are those of a Himalayites and not those of a
Hoplites. This is especially true of that species from Stramberg which Zittel has
figured in his monograph on the Cephalopods of the " Stramberger Schichten "
(pi. 17, fig. 3), and holds good also with respect to the form described and figured
by F. Roman (in " Recherches stratigr. et pal. sur le Bas Languedoc," Annoles
de I'Universite de Lyon, Paris, 1897, pi. I, fig. 10, p. 284). Himalayites micro-
canthus is widely distributed in the Tithonian of the Mediterranean Region. It
occurs not only at Stramberg and in the Bas Languedoc, but also in Andalusia,
the Tirol, the Veronesian, near Sisteron, at the Montagne de Lure, and at
Chomerac. Larger specimens of H. microcanthus exhibit, according to Zittel, a
development which differs not inconsiderably from that of the Himalayites of the
Spiti Shales. It may be surmised that H. microcanthus represents a particular,
independent mutational tendency of Ifimalayites, a tendency the significance of
which it is not at present possible to grasp completely. Some species from the
Tithonian of Argentina which Steuer has described under the generic name of
Reineckia appear to be lmke