O. G. Dely szerk.: Vertebrata Hungarica 18. (Budapest, 1978)
Kádár, Z.: Some zoogeographical aspects of the NW African vertebrate fauna in historical times: archeological and cultural historical methods in the research 79-84. o.
Classical authors also gave evidence of the diffusion of the vertebrates enumerated above (Fig. 1). Among the authors, it is Plinius Maior (A.D. 79), who mentioned them several times in his work ("Naturalis história"). Plinius based his information on the work "Peri Libyés syngrammata" by Iuba II, the scholar king of Numidia. From the rich data of Plinius, this time we can refer to those only, which specify relatively precisely the locality of the particular species. Speaking of the African elephant, he mentioned that they were to be found "ultra Syricas Solitudines et in Mauretania" (N.H. VIII. §. 32 ed. MAY HOFF, 1906-1909) furthermore, in the steppe near the town Sala (today Wed Bu Raggar: N. H. V. §. ), as well as in the vicinity of the river Ger in Mauretania. Plinius wrote also about the bear of Numidia (N.H. VIII. §. 131), which in all probability must be the Ursus arctos crowtheri (SCHINZ). Referring to other classical authors, he gave interesting data on the struggle, which the army of the Roman leader Regulus had with a python (in the period of the Punic wars) (N.H. VIII. §. 37). No Roman representation on the hunting of this species of pythons, which according to GOSSEN-STEIER (1923) must have been the assale (Python sebae GM), but on a mosaic with a hunting scene, found recently near Carthago - which was exposed also in Budapest (SZABO, 1973, cfr. SALAMONSON-E NNAIFER , 1973 "Mosaiques", a python struggling with an African elephant, is represented. Plinius gave also remarkable data on the drought-resistance (xerophily) of the orys: "Orygem perpetuo sitentia Africae générant ex natura loci potu carentem et mirabili modo ad remedia sitentium: namque Gaetuli (ancestors of the today's Tuaregs, Z.K.) latrones eo durant auxilio, repartis aperto corpora corum saluberrimi liquoria vesicis" (N.H. VIII. §. 131). The map displaying the occurrence of big game represented on the above-mentioned monuments and the classical authors attest that though the fauna of the Atlas area still shows a mixture of faunal elements typically circumMediterranean (i.e. of European character), and those of Ethiopian features, the number of Ethiopian (Afrotropical: UDVARDY, 1975) faunal elements of a savannah character must have been, according to our investigations, relatively much larger in the Roman imperial period, even as late as the 3rd and 4th century, than in our days. These data, selected at random, indicate that in historical times (most likely after the 7th century A.D. ) the southern faunal elements had a much more significant role in the Mediterranean area than in our times. Since an areal regression of the vertebrates on a wide scale must have taken place. References 1. ESPERANDIEU, E. (1957): De l'art animalier dans l'Afrique. - Alger: 1-20. 2. FÉVRIER, P.A. (1971): Art de l'Algérie Antique. - Paris: Pl. LXXX. 3. GOSSEN-STEIER (1923): Schlangen (In: PAULYS Real-Encyklopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft). - Stuttgart: II. R. , II.: 535-536. 4. HALTENORTH, TH-TRENSE, W. (1956): Das Grosswild der Erde und seine Trophäen. - Bonn, München, Wien: 187-286.
