Some of the genera of
these--such as _Carcharodon_ (fig. 241), _Oxyrhina_ (fig. 240),
_Lamna_, and _Galeocerdo_--are very widely distributed, ranging
through both the Old and New Worlds; and some of the species
attain gigantic dimensions.
Amongst the _Amphibians_ we meet with distinctly modern types,
such as Frogs (_Rana_) and Newts or Salamanders. The most celebrated
of the latter is the famous _Andrias Scheuchzeri_ (fig. 242),
discovered in the year 1725 in the fresh-water Miocene deposits
of OEningen, in Switzerland. The skeleton indicates an animal
nearly five feet in length; and it was originally described by
Scheuchzer, a Swiss physician, in a dissertation published in 1731,
as the remains of one of the human beings who were in existence
at the time of the Noachian Deluge. Hence he applied to it the
name of _Homo diluvii testis_. In reality, however, as shown by
Cuvier, we have here the skeleton of a huge Newt, very closely
allied to the Giant Salamander (_Menopoma maxima_) of Java.
[Illustration: Fig. 240.--Tooth of _Oxyrhina xiphodon_. Miocene.]
[Illustration: Fig. 241.--Tooth of _Carcharodon productus_. Miocene.]
The remains of _Reptiles_ are far from uncommon in the Miocene
rocks, consisting principally of Chelonians and Crocodilians.
The Land-tortoises (_Testudinidoe_) make their first appearance
during this period.
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