iiliiiii|lililiii|!i|!|i!ii^ PROCEEDINGS Biological Society of Washington \ A^OLXJMK X 1896 WASHINGTON PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY 1896 COMMITTEE ON PUBLICATIONS C. HART iMERRIAM, Chairman T. S. PALMER F. H. KNOWLTON Juon & Detwf.tler, Printers Ui) CONTENTS Page Officers and committees for 1896 v Proceedings vii-xvi A Review of tlie Weasels of Eastern North America, by Outram Bangs 1-24 The Florida Deer, by Outram Bangs 25-28 Fourth List of Additions to the Flora of Washington, D. C, by Theo. Holm 29-43 On a Small Collection of Mammals from Lake Edward, Quebec, by Outram Bangs 45-52 Description of a New Species of Plover from the East Coast of Madagascar, by Charles W. Richmond 53-54 Revision of the Lemmings of the Genus Synapiomys, Avith De- scriptions of New Si:»ecies, by Dr. C. Hart Mei'riam 55 64 Preliminary Synopsis of the American Bears, by Dr. C. Hart Merriam 65-83 The Purple-Flowered, Stemless Violets of the Atlantic Coast, by Charles Louis Pollard 85-92 List of iMammals of the District of Columbia, by Vernon Bailey . 93-101 The Earliest Record of Arctic Plants, by Theo. Holm 103-107 The Central x\meriean Tlujroptera, by Gerrit S. Miller, Jr 109-112 Note on the Milk Dentition oi Desmodus, by Gerrit S. Miller, Jr. 1 J 3-114 A New Fir from Arizona, Abies arizoiiica, by Dr. C. Hart Mer- riam 115-118 The Cotton Mouse, Peromyscus gossypmus, by Outram Bangs 119-125 Juncus corifusus, a New Rush from the Rocky Mountain Region, by Frederick V. Coville 127-130 Ribes erythrocarpum, a New Currant from the Vicinity of Crater Lake, Oregon, by Frederick V. Coville 131-132 An Undescribed Shrew of the Genus Sorex, by Charles F. Batch- elder 133-134 Some New Mammals from Indian Territory and IMissouri, by Outram Bangs 135-138 The Skunks of the Genus Mepldtis of Eastern North America, b}' Outram Bangs 139-144 A Review of the Squirrels of Eastern North America, by Outram Bangs 145-167 Romerolagus nelsord, a New Genus and Species of Rabbit from Mexico, by Dr. C. Hart Merriam 169-174 (iii) LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PLATES I-III. Skulls of Weasels. IV- VI. Skulls of Bears. VII. Bat, Thyroptera discifera. VIII-X. Skulls of American Squirrels. TEXT FIGURES Figure 1. Enamel pattern of lower molars of Si/iuijjlomys and M'lctomys 2. Enamel pattern of molars oi Sijnapomys. 3. Skull of Synaptomijit helaletes. 4. Enamel pattern of molars of Midomys. 5. Skull of Midomys -wrangeli. 6. Lower carnassial and last premolar teeth in different Bears. 7. Skull of Kadiak Bear. 8. Teeth of Yakutat Bear. 9. Skull of Yakutat Bear. 10. Skull of Grizzly Bear. IL Skull of Sonora Grizzly. 12. Skull of Rocky jNIountain Grizzly. 13. Skull of Sonora Grizzly from the Co})permines. 14. Skull of Sonoi-a Grizzly from Nogales 15. Skull of California Grizzly. 16-17. Skull of Barren Ground Bear. 18. Teeth of Thyroptera discifera. 19. Head of Thyroptera discifera. 20. Foot and uropatagium of Thyroptera discifera. 21. Right foot of TJiyroptera discifera. 22. Maxillary teeth of Desmodvs rufus. 23. Mandibular teeth of Desmodus rufiis. 24. Bark of Abies arizonica. 25. Scales of cones of Abies arizonica. 26. Skull of Sorex macrurus. 27. Left side of upper jaw, showing teeth of Sorex macrurus. 28. Upper jaw, seen from below, of So7-ex rnacrurus. 29. Rostrum of Sciuropteras silus. 30. Rostrum of tSciuropterus volans. 31. Audital bulla of Sciur opt erus volans. 32. Audital bulla of -, Chariesw. Mag. Nat. Hist., II, p. 38, Jan., 1838. No description, but based on Ricliardson's long-tailed varietj- of erminea from Carlton House, Sask. (Rich., Fauna Boreali-Am., 1, p. 47, 1829). _ Putorius longicauda Rich., Zool. Beechev's Yoj'age, p. 10,* 1839. Baird, Mamm. N. Am., p. 1()9, lS."i7. Coues' Fur-bearing Animals, p. 136, 1877; and of most .subsequent authors. Tgpe loculUy. — Carlton House, Saskatchewan. The supposed tyjie, a specimen in winter pelage, is in the British Museum. Geographic distribution. — Northern plains from Saskatchewan and Al- berta, south at least to Nebraska and Kansas, west to the Rocky mountains, and east only to the western edge of the eastern forest belt in Minnesota. Apparently abundant throughout its entire range. Inhabits parts of the Canadian, Transition, and Upjter Sonoran Zones. General cliaracters. — Size very large ; tail very long, more than one-third of total length, with the black tip short, often scarcely more than the pencil ; claws long, sharp, and curved ; coat in sunnner pelage coarse and harsh. Color. — Summer pelage: Upper parts pale yellowish brown, varying individually from strong tawny to clay color, rather darker on top of head and sides of nose; under j^arts yellow (varying from buff yellow and maize yellow to pale ochraceous and saffron yellow) ; line of demarkation between colors of upper and under parts distinct and straight along the sides, color of under parts extending down in.side of legs and covering the whole fore feet and toes and inside half of upper surface of hind feet ; chin 8 Bangs — The Weasels of Eastern Nortli America. and nj)iHT li]is wiiitc; tail wiine color as upper parts, sometimes a little paler below than above, becoming suddenly black at tip, and ending in a long pencil of black hairs ; under fur a shade or two lighter than the long hairs. Winter pelage : Pure wliite all over, with no yellowish tinge ; end of tail jet black. The change to a white winter coat apparently takes place over the entire range of the species. Size. — Average of five adult males from AUjerta and Saskatchewan: total length, 445.5; tail vertebrae, 161; hind foot, 51.5. Average of five adult females from Alberta, Saskatchewan, and North Dakota : total length, 385; tail vertebrae, 139; hind foot, 43.5. Skull. — Short, broad, and massive, developing with age a strong sagittal crest ; general shape of brain case, viewed from above, triangular, owing to great width across mastoids and sharp constriction behind postorbital processes ; postorbital processes well developed and conspicuous ; audital bullae broad, deep, and short ; inflated squamosal much reduced and not nearly flush with under surface of audital bullae ; distance from audital bullae to jaostglenoid process very short; mandible large and heavy. The skull of P. longicauda resembles the skull of Putorius proper more than that of the smaller members of the subgenus Gale. The dentition is normal, l)ut rather heavy. Remarks. — Putoriics longicauda. is easily told from all other North American weasels. Its highly developed desert colora- tion, large size, and long, graceful tail make it one of our finest species. Specimens from Devil's lake. North Dakota, while refer- able to this species, are rather darker than true longicauda and are approaching its eastern subspecies spadix. P. longicauda and its allies seem to be less subject to the attacks of the parasite that lives in tbe frontal sinuses of all the weasels than the other members of the subgenus Gale. The sexual differ- ence in size is not so great in P. hmgicaudd as in most of the otber species. Putorius longicauda spadix snbsp. nov. Type from Fort Snelling, Minn., No. l^H, male, yg. ad., American Museum Nat. Hist., New York, col. by Dr. E. A. Mearns, U. S. A., June 25, 1889. Original number, 812. Geographic dhtribution. — The western edge of the eastern forest Ijelt in Minnesota (Fort Snelling and Elk river). The subsjiecies probably ranges north and south of this region. Further west, where the open, treeless plains are reached, it passes into true longicauda. General characters. — Similar to true longicauda, from which it differs in color only. Color. — Summer pelage: Upper parts Front's brown, not very different from the color of P. novehorncensia, but perhajis a little brighter — very dif- ferent from the yellowish and clay color of true longicauda. Under parts in the type white, with a faint greenish yellow tinge. In two topotypes The Weasels of Eastern North America. 9 (Nos. f = f ? and 3264, American Musenm Nat. Hist.) the belly is bufi' yellow, and in a skin from Elk river, Minn. (No. 31891, Dept. of Agric. coll.), it is strong buff yellow. All but the type, however, are immature, and the under parts of all are much lighter than in true longicauda of the same age. The line of demarkation, owing to the much darker upper and lighter under parts, is very much more distinct than in longicauda; it runs in an even line straight along the side. The color of the under parts covers the inside of the legs, under surface of the arms, and the whole of the hands and toes; upper lijis and chin, white; tail, same color as back, with a short, black end, and also a long pencil of black hairs ; under fur, same color as the long hairs. Winter pelage: Pure white, with no yel- lowish tinge ; end of tail jet black. The change to a winter white coat takes 2>lace over the entire range of the subspecies. Size. — Tj'pe, male, yg. ad. : Total length, 445; tail vertebr;«, 160; hind foot, 55. Average of five adult males from Fort Snelling and Elk river, Minn.: Total length, 467 ; tail vertebrfe, 171; hind foot, 54. An adult female topotype measures: total length, 375; tail vertebne, 123; hind foot, 42.5. Skull. — Same as in true longicauda. Remarks. — Putorius sjmdix is the dark-colored eastern race of longicauda. It seems to inhalnt only a small area along the western edge of the eastern forest belt. In color it very closely resembles P. nuveboracensis, from which it can easily be told by the white feet, longer tail with shorter black ti}), and the harsh pelage; and with as great certainty by the skull, which is the same in all its characters as that of true longicauda. Putorius brasiliensis frenatus (Licht.). Bridled Weasel. Mustela frcnatu Lichtenstein, Darstell. neuer o. wenig bekannt Saugth., pi. XLII and corresponding text, 1832. Putorius frenata Aud. and Bach., Quad. N. Am., II, p. 71, 1851 (in part; not plate LX). Putorius frenatus Baird, Mamm. N. Am., p. 173, 1857. Mex. Boundary Surv., part II, Kept, on INIammals, p. 19, 1859. Putorius {Gale) brasUiensis frenatus Coues, Fur-bearing Animals, p. 142, 1877 (part). Type from vicinity of the city of Mexico. Geograghic distribution. — Table-land of Mexico from city of jNIexico north- ward to southeastern Texas (north at least to San Antonio and prol)ably east along the coast to Louisiana). General characters. — Size, largest of all our weasels, tail forming nearly half of the total length and with a short, black tip ; hair rather short and coarse; conspicuous black and white markings on the head. Color. — Upper parts light brown, varying from russet to raw umljer, gradually darkening just back of the ears to black ; a large spot between 2— Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 189G 10 Bangs — The Weasels of Eastern North America. the e5'es and two larger bands extending from the throat up between the ear and the eye, white. These markings are very variable. Sometimes the bands are very broad and meet the white spot between the eyes, mak- ing a continuous white band around the head ; sometimes they are reduced to a few white scattering hairs between the eyes and narrow and broken bands of white in front of the ears. The rest of the head, the ears, nose, and whiskers are black; under parts uniform, strong orange buflf, some- times tinged with ocher yellow ; line of demarkation between colors of ujiper and under parts a little irregular and rather high up ; hands, toes, and inside of feet a shade or two lighter than tlie under parts, but not white ; chin and a very narrow border to ujiper lips white ; tail same color as upper parts, its black tip short; under fur same color as long hairs ; no seasonal change in color. Size. — Average measurements of five adult males from Brownsville, Texas: total length, 499; tail vertebne, 224; hind foot, 46. Average of three adult females from Brownsville, Texas: total length, 412.5; tail vertebrge. 172; hind foot, 36.5. aS^-uW. —Large and massive, but not differing in any essential characters from that of F. longicauda ; it is larger and even more constricted back of the postorbital processes, and has a tendency to become more rough- ened in old age by muscular impressions. This weasel, like all the ?o«f/ica wtZa group, is very free from the parasite that preys on the frontal bones ; dentition normal, but heav}\ Remurks. — The geographic distribution of this weasel is still iniperfectl}^ known. In all prol^ability the form has a much wider range than is actually showai by existing specimens. Probabl.y, like many JNIexican mammals, it extends east along the Gulf coast to the shores of Louisiana. Its ■western limit is not known. Putorius peninsulas Rhoads. Florida Weasel. PL I, fig. 5 ; II, tig. 5 ; III, fig. 5. Pttto'iu-s pe??insMZ.r Rhoads, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., \). 152, 1894. Chapman, Bull. Am. ]\Ius. Nat. Hist., p. :]45, 1894. Putorius ermhu'u Chapman, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., p. 345, 1894. Type locality. — Hudson's, Pasco Co., Florida. Geographic distribution. — The whole of peninsular Florida and probably north into Georgia and the lowlands of South Carolina; inhabits the tropical fauna of Florida and perhaps the Austroriparian zone also. General cltaracters. — Size medium ; tail short ; very much shorter than in any other member of the longicauda group (less than one-third the total length) and tipped with black for about one- third its length ; hair on the tail very short, making the tail look slender ; feet slender and sparsely haired ; the nails very conspicuous ; coat everywhere short, coarse, and very lustrous. Color. — Upper parts, hair bi-own, with a slight olivacious tinge in a fine specimen from Tarjion Springs (No. 2379, coll. S. N. Rhoads); burnt The Weasels of Eastern North America. 11 umber in a specimen from Osceola, Florida (No. 7929, coll. Am. ISfus. Nat. Ilisit.), other skins varying between these two extremes ; some white hair on the forehead and behind the eyes, varying in amount in different specimens, from large and well defined white markings in the type* to onl}' a few hairs in the Osceola skin ; a conspicuous patch of long white hair in front of opening of ear ; under parts pale yellow ( primrose yellow to pale buff yellow) ; line of demarkation between colors of upper and under parts high up and rather irregular. The color of the under parts covers under side of arms and whole of hands and extends down inside of legs, covering toes and inside half of upper surface of feet ; upper lips and chin and under side of head back as far as the jaw white ; tail same color as back, gradually shading to black at the tip, with a short black pencil ; no seasonal change in color. Size. — The size of the male of this weasel is a matter of doubt. An old adult breeding female from Tarpon Springs (No. 2379, coll. of S. N. Ehoads) measures: total length, 374; tail, 127; pencil, 20; hind foot, 44.5 (measured in flesh by W. S. Dickinson). f SknlL^Tho. skull of P. peninsulee is quite different in many particulars from that of any other weasel I have examined, but clearly jdaces the species in the longlcauda group. It is large and massive, developing a strong sagittal crest with age; brain case very large and deep (viewed from above triangular with the great construction back of postorbital process and breadth across the mastoids of all the longlcauda group); postorbital processes well developed ; inflated squamosal more reduced than in any of our species, not excepting longlcauda ; audital bulhe ex- tremely large, broad, and deep ; mandible short and very heavy. The dentition is much heavier throughout than in other species of about the same size, with the exception of the last up])er molar, which is smaller. For instance, the old adult skull from Tampa bay, although smaller than male skulls of 7i.oveboraeeiisis or longlcauda of the same age, shows all the teeth to be actually larger, except the last upper molar, which is smaller than in either of these species. Remarks. — Mr. Rhoads first described this remarkal)le weasel from a single unsexed skin, accompanied l)y the rostral portion of the skull and the whole lower jaw. He considered the speci- men an adult female. It probably is a female, as it is about the size of the Tarpon Springs specimen, but is far from adult, as shown by the fact that the sutures are still plainly visible and the teeth unworn. One of the characters he gives is the position of the lower incisors, which are so crowded as to throw the second *In the type these markings may be exaggerated by albinism, as it has a large, irregular white spot in the middle of the back and a white line on top of the head between the ears, a place where albinism in mammals usually shows itself. tThe measurements of the type taken from the dried skin, and there- fore unreliable, are : total length, 375 ; tail vertebne, 100 ; hind foot, 40. 12 Bangs — The Weasels of Eastern North America. incisor of each nuiu(lil)le l)eliin(l tlie other incisors, giving the appearance of a clouhle row of teetli. I'his condition is merely individual, and is not shown in other skulls oi penmsulue. It can be found in many examples of any species. In the American Mnseuni collection is a skin (No. ll\l), with, unfortu- nately, only a fragment of the skull left, from Yemassee, in the southeast corner of South Carolina, which I refer with some doubt to P. peninsulse. The specimen is labeled male. The skin is much shrunken and affords no actual measurement, except that of the hind foot, which is 41 millimeters, one millimeter more than in the type of P. peninsulue, also measured from the dry skin. The colors are al)0ut as in x^eninsulse, but the tuft of white hair in front of the ear is not present, and the yellow of the under parts, while covering tlie whole hand and inside of the arms, does not extend down the legs, but ends alx^ut the middle of the thighs, as in novebora- cmsis. The toes, however, are yellow. The fragment of skull has the teeth ; they are a trifle heavier than in the average males of novebora- censis, while the animal is evidently smaller and has a shorter tail. All the existing sjjecimens of peiun>^uLr are very nearly of a size. If both sexes are represented, peninsula; is remarkable for the slight difference in size between the male and the female. Male weasels always greatly out- number the females, and it would be strange if all the seven examples of peninsulce were females. This is a point of great interest, and can only be settled by properly sexed and measured male specimens, which 1 hope will turn up before long, as I believe that P. peninsula: is far from a rare animal in Florida. I heard of it several times at Micco, where it is ap- parently not uncommon, but was able to get only the skull referred to below.* I have been told by a reliable man, who used to live in south central Georgia, that a weasel is common there, and that he frequently caught them when trapping for other animals. Of course, he could n(jt tell the species, but I fancy it is peninsuhv. P. peninsula: is known at present by only a few rather fragmentary and one good sexed and measured sjiecimens, as follows : The type, No. 1515, coll. S. N. Rhoads, from Hudson's, Pasco county, Florida (a rather young, unsexed, and unmeasured skin, with a small pait of the skull j ; No. 61490, U. S. Nat. INIus., from Polk county, Floi-ida, winter 1893-1894, N. R. Wood, collector (good skin, w'ithout sex or skull); No. HH, coll. Dr. C. Hart Merriam, from Tampa bay, Florida (an old adult, a jaoor unsexed and un- measured skin, witii a rather more perfect skull than the type, only the occipital part being gone) ; No. 7927, Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., from Osceola, Florida (a good but unsexed and unmeasured skin, with no skull); No. .'W53, coll. E. A. and 0. Bangs, from Micco, Florida (a nearly perfect, * The great difficulty is in trapping successfully in Florida with any kind of baited trap. Where there are hogs this is })ractically impossijjle, and in other places turkey buzzards, opossums and raccoons make the trapjjer's life a burden. The Weasels of Eastern North America. 13 rather young skull) ; No. 2379, coll. of S. N. Rhoads (a fine adult breeding female, with the six mammpe plainly visible in the skin, taken November 11, 1895, at Tarpon Springs, Florida, by W. L. Dickinson, with a nearly perfect skull), and No. HH, Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., from Yemassee, in the lowlands of South Carolina. Putorius noveboracensis Emmons. New York Weasel. PL I, figs. 2, 2a; 11, figs. 2, 2a; III, figs. 3, 3a. Putorius noveboracensis DeKay, New York Survey, p. 18, 1840 {nomen nudum). Zoology of New York, Mauuualia, p. 36, 1842. Emmons, Rept. Quad. Mass., p. 4"), 1840. Baird, Mammals N. Am., p. 166, 1857. Samuels, Ann. Rept. Agric. ]Mass., p. 156, 1861-1862. Putorius cnnitiea Thompson, Nat. Hist. Vermont, p. 31, 1842. And. and Bach., Quad. N. Am., II, p. 56, plate LIX, 1851. Putorius a g His Aud. and l>ach., Quad. N. Am., Ill, jj. 184, plate CXL, 1854 (the female, not Mustela agilis of Tschudi). Putorius richardsoni Baird, IMamm. N. Am., p. 164, 1857 (probably the female). Samuels, Ann. Rept. Agric. Mass., p. 155, 1861-1862. Mustela erminea Yar. Americana Grav, P. Z. S., p. Ill, 18(55 (part); Cat. Carnivora, British :Mus., p. 89, 1869 (part). Mustela richardsoni Gray, P. Z. S., p. 112, 1865 (based on Baird); Cat. Carnivora, British Mus., p. 90, 1869 (based on Baird). Putorius ermineus Allen, Bull. Mass. Comp. Zool., 1, p. 167, 1869 (part) ; Proc. Post. Soc. Nat. Hist., XIII, p. 183, 1869. Putorius {Gale) erminea Cones, Fur-Bearing Animals, p. 109, 1877 (part), and of most subsequent authors. Type locality. ^StAte of Massachusetts. Geographic distribution. — Eastern United States from southern Maine, southern New Hampshire, and southern Vermont south to North Caro- lina (Raleigh, N. C. ) and probably farther; west at least to Indiana and Illinois (Denver, Ind., and Warsaw, III.). Inhabits the Carolinian and Transition zones of the east and just touches the lower part of the Cana- dian zone. Apparently very rare at the northern and southern extremes of its range and attaining its greatest abundance in lower Transition and upper Carolinian country. Genercd characters. — Size large ; tail long (inoi'e than one-third of the total length), with the black end from one-third to one-half the length of the tail ; feet slender and small ; pelage full and soft. Color. — Summer pelage : Upper parts rich, deep reddish brown, varying from Front's brown to Vandyke brown, generally rather darker along the middle of the back; under parts white to pale yellow (usually white in northern examples and yellow in southern) ; line of demarkation between colors of upper and under imrts very irregular and low down, often leav- ing only a narrow band of white along the middle of the belly. This white band frequently encloses spots of brown. The color of the under parts generally extends half way down the inside of the thighs and to the wrists, the whole of the feet and upper sides of arms and hands being brown. The upper lips are usually but not always brown (in some ex- amples they are broadly edged with white, as in richardsoni and cicognani). 14 Bavrjs — The Weasels of Eastern North America. The tail is the same color as the upper parts for about half its length, then begins gradually to darken, and is tipped with black ; under fur the same color as long hairs. Winter pelage: The winter pelage is white or brown, according to latitute ; it is white only in the northern part of the animal's range.* In the brown winter pelage the color is usually about the same as in summer, but the coat is, of course, mucli longer and fuller. I have seen a few winter skins that had not turned white, but were much lighter than the usual summer pelage. One of these (No. 2184, collection S. N. Rhoads, Chester county, Penn., December 16, 1S90) has the whole upper parts a beautiful pale drab which fades almost insensibly into the white of the under part. In the white winter pelage the animal is white all over, with generally a yellowish tinge on the posterior half of the upper parts and the whole of the under parts, and wdth a conspicuous black tip to the tail, usually covering about one-third of its length. Size. — A^verage of ten adult males from lower Ti-ansition zone : total length, 407 ; tail vertebrse, 1.39.5 ; hind foot, 47. Average of ten adult females from lower Transition zone: total length, 324.5; tail vertebrae, 108; hind foot, 34.5. SknlL — There is great sexual diffei'ence, in addition to that of size, in the skulls of P. noveboracensis, which seems peculiar to this species. The post- orbital processes are well developed in both sexes. Tlie male skull is large and develops a sagittal crest with age ; the general shape of the brain case, viewed from a1)ove, is less triangular tlian in tlie longicauda group, being not so sharply constricted back of the postorbital processes and rather narrower across the mastoids ; the audital bullfe are large and deep ; the inflated squamosal is much reduced, but usually not quite to the same extent as in the lonaicauda group. The female skull is small and does not develop a sagittal crest ; the general shape of the brain case, viewed from above, is nearly oblong, as in the ridiardsoni group ; the inflated squamosal is large and much inflated and nearly flush wdth the lower surface of the audital bulke ; the audital bulUe and inflated squamosal meet in a round- ing line (in the richardsdni grouj) this line is usually straight). The female skull can be told from that of any of the rlchardsoui group with great cer- tainty by its well developed postorbital processes. The dentition is much heavier in the male than in the female, the dif- ference being more marked than in other species. Remarks. — P. noveboracensis is very generally distributed over the Atlantic tier of States from North Carolina to New Hamp- shire. It is the only weasel found in the Carolinian zone, but * In northern New York and Vermont P. noveboracensis always assumes a wdiite winter coat. In northern Massachusetts it sometimes does. I have two specimens, caught in the same trap at Wayland, Mass., one January 11, 1875, in the white pelage and the other January 12, 1875, in the brown pelage. In central Connecticut it never changes, as shown by large series from Liberty Hill, Conn., taken all through the winter, from October to March. Tlie Weasels of Eastern North America. 15 begins to overlap the range of P. richnrdsoni clcofinani in Con- necticut and New York, and thence northward gradually gets rarer as cicognani becomes commoner, until in the Canadian zone we have cicognani alone. There is a slight variation in the color of the under parts, which, to a certain extent is geographical, for southern examples as a rule have the belly yellow and northern ones have it white, but the difference is not altogether constant, and does not warrant dividing novehoracensh into two races. It is unfortunate that DeKay cannot have the credit of naming this weasel, and still more so since Ave know that Emmons and DeKay were fast friends, and that Emmons meant to give him full credit of his discovery. The type locality of P. novebora- ceasis must, I think, be considered to be Massachusetts although Emmons in describing it mentions no locality in that >State, nor even the State itself, but says only : " It is common to the middle and northern States." Of course, Emmons was writing only of the mammals of Massachusetts, which fact may l^e assumed to tie the type locality down to that State. The male norehoracensis is more often seen than tlie female, and appears to be much commoner. In examining large series of weasels of any species one is always struck by the great prepon- derance of males, outnumbering the females about 5 to 1. There may be, however, some other cause to account for this, since the males are perhaps easier to trap or more active or courageous and therefore more often seen and killed ; hence an examination of skins alone may give a false idea of the relative numljcrs of the sexes. The sexual difference in size is very striking in P. novebora- censis. The male is a large and powerful weasel and does not hesitate to attack and kill animals the size of the cotton-tail rabbit and the domestic hen, while the female is such a little slender creature that it seems almost incredible that she can nurse and luring up a litter of males each of which soon grows to be much larger than herself. On June 5, 1894, some men at work on our place, at Wareham, Massachusetts, saw three weasels of this species cross a road and go into a stone wall. They imme- diately ran for a gun, and by imitating the squeaking of a mouse succeeded in attracting one, the adult female, out of the wall and shot her. I saw that she had been nursing, and placed some steel traps along the wall in positions where the other two would 16 Bangs — The Weasels of Eastern North America. go into them Avheii the}^ came liack that way, as they "were sure to do. The morning of June 9 I had them both. They were males, and altliough still retaining their milk teeth, each was very much larger than his mother. Putoiius richardsoni (Bonaparte). The American Ermine. PI. I, flg.s. 3, 3a ; II, figs. 3, 3rt ; III, figs. 6, 6rt, Mustela richardsoni Bonaparte, Charlesw., Mag. Nat. Hist., II, p. 38, Jan. 1838 (based on specimen from Fort Franklin, Great Bear lake, Eich., F. B. A., p. 47, 1829). Rich., Zool. Beechey's Voy., p. 10,* 1839 {not Patorius rirliardsoni Baird). Putorius [Gale) enninea* Coues, Fur-bearing Animals, p. 109, 1877 (in part). Ti/pe locality. — Fort Franklin, Great Bear lake. The supi^osed type, a specimen in winter pelage, is still in the British Museum. Geographic distribution. — Arctic America east at least to Fort Albany, on the west coast of James bay, and thence northwest to Alaska, where it reaches the Pacific coast. Whether richardsoni reaches the Atlantic coast or not is still a matter of doubt, but if it does it must be in the extreme *The name of the European ermine or stoat has appeared a good deal in our literature, but wholly without wan-ant. In 1869, in his Catalogue of the Mammals of Massachusetts, Dr. J. A. Allen attemi^ted to prove that all our weasels, excepting the bridled weasel and what he called P. iml- f/aris (probably a mixture of cicognani and rixosus) belonged to the Eu- ropean si^ecies, P. crminca. Doctor Allen never mentioned the crania of any of the weasels of which he treated and appears never to have con- sulted them, but went blindly ahead in an attempt to prove a precon- ceived theory — that all the carnivora of Europe, Asia, and North America were the same. One land bear, one wolf, one red fox, one mink, one ermine, and one weasel is what he allowed to the whole northern hemi- sphere. He was substantially followed by Dr. Coues, in his Fur-bearing Animals, in 1877, with the exception that Coues recognized P. longicauda as distinct. Since then the name P. erminea has been frequently used for American weasels of very diff'erent species. There is really no need for confusing the European ermine and various closely related species or subspecies with any of our weasels. The only North American species that resemble it are richardsoni and cicognani, but from either of these it can be recognized at once by much larger size and by the greater extent of black on the tail and the immensely long pencil. The skull can be told from any North American member of the subgenus Gale at a glance. The brain case is shallow behind, with narrow supra- occipital. The audital bullse are shallow and flat and the basioccipital broad. The skull can be distinguished by these peculiarities and its much greater size from any of our species with inflated squamosals. These are the only ones it need be comjiared with. The Weasels of Eastern North America. 17 north. ■'^ Apparently alnindant over the whole of this vast region and probably shades into cicognaai in the transcontinental forest belt at the south of its range. General characters. — Largest of the short-tailed American weasels. Tail short (a little more tlian one-fourth of the total length), tip black, pencil long and bushy ; feet, large and broad ; coat, very long, full, and soft. Color. — Summer pelage : Upper parts pale yellowish brown, ranging from nearly raw sienna to nearly raw umber and intermediate shades, only a little darker than the uj^per parts of P. longicaudit, under parts varying from primrose yellow to maize yellow ; line of demarkation be- tween colors of upper and under parts high up, straight and unbroken. Color of under parts covers under side of arms and hands, inside of legs and toes ; upper lips and chin white ; tail above, same color as back ; below, same color as belly (usually all the way down to the black tip). This yellow under side of the tail is peculiar to this species, so far as I know, and is shown by every specimen except one that I have examined. This one is an adult breeding female (No. i'.Ud, U. S. Nat. Mus.) from Fort Albany, James bay. It has the under side of the tail not yellow, but yet lighter than the upper side. This specimen is the most southerly and easterly example of ricliardsoni that I have seen and is probably shading toward cicogjiaul. The under fur is the same color as the long hairs. Winter pelage : Pure white all over, often tinged with yellow on the tail, hind quarters, and belly ; end of tail, for a little more than jiencil, jet black ; coat extremely long and full ; feet very heavily furred. The change to a white winter coat takes place over the entire range of the species. Size. — The type, evidently a male, although no sex was given, meas- ured: head and body, 11 inches (280 mm.); tail, 4 inches (102 mm.). The only other specimens measured in the flesh are two in the United States National Museum. One of these (No. 5696, from Fort Simpson December 20, 1860, male, Bernard R. Ross) measured : head and body, 10.30 inches (261.5 mm.); tail, 4.25 inches (107.5 nnn.); hind foot, 1.70 (43 mm.). The other (No. 2065, " Barren Grounds," June 28, 1864, male, McFarlane) measured: "extreme length," 13 inches (330 mm.). Skull. — Skull smooth and light, without ])ronounced sagittal crest, al- though in very old examples there is a slight sagittal development; gen- eral shape of brain case, viewed from above, oblong, owing to great breadth across interorbital region and relatively short distance across mastoids; postorbital processes short, blunt, and not well developed ; audital bulipe long and deep and meeting the inflated squamosal in almost a straight line ; inflated squamosal large, nuich inflated, and almost flush with auditaj *0n page 149 of Appendix No. IV, vol. II of Ross' Voyage, 8vo, 1819, is a description of a weasel killed at the west side of Baffin's bay. The description is quite minute, and the measurements given are: "From the tip of the nose to the insertion of the tail, eight inches and a half [:= 218 mm.] ; to the tip of the tail, eleven inches and a lialf [= 292 mm.]." The breast and belly are said to be yellow. The sex is not given. 3— Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 1896 18 Bangs — Jlie Weasels of Eastern North America. bullpe ; dii^tance from andital bulhc to post-glenoid process much greater than in the large weasels of the longicauda and norehoracensis groups. The skulls of the weasels of this group differ more widely from those of Putorius proper than do skulls of the longicauda group or of the male nove- boracensis. Remarks. — When Professor Baird wrote his ' Mammals of North America ' he had never seen a specimen of richardsoni, the animal he called r;>/iarrfsoni being the small examples o? nocehn- rncensis, probalily females. Since that time the National ]Miiseum has accumulated a large series of this interesting weasel, but most of the skins are in poor condition, unmeasured, unsexed, and ac- companied only by fragmentar}^ skulls, which are inside the skins. Still there are a few skulls in good condition accompanying tlie skins taken in Alaska by the indefatigalde Nelson ; measure- ments of these are given in the tallies. A large proportion of the known skins came from points in Alaska, but there are many from stations that completely surround the type locality from Fort Albany to Franklin bay. The principal localities are Fort Albany, Fort Simpson, Fort Resolution, Fort McPherson, Big Island, Fort Rae, Fort Good Hope, Hudson bay. Fort Anderson, Anderson river, Peel's river, Yukon river, Franklin ba}^. Plover bay, Fort Yukon, moutli of Porcupine river, Norton sound, St. Michaels, and Point Barrow. They were collected for the most part by E.W. Nelson, B. R. Ross, R. McFarlane, George McTavish, J. Reid, R. Kennicott, L. Clarke, Jr., J. Lockhart, C. L. McKay, and Lieut. P. L. Ray. Putorius richardsoni cicognani (Bonaparte). The small brown Weasel. PI. I, tigs. 4, 4rt; II, tigs. 4, 4rt; III, tigs. 2, 2a. Mustela [Putorius) vulgaris Rich., Fauna Boreali-Am. Quad., p. 4o, 1829. Mustda cicognani Bonaparte, Fauna Italica, fasc. XXII, 1838, Charlesw. Mag., II, p. 37, Jan., 1838. Putorius cicognani Rich., Zool. Beechey's Voyage, p. 10,* 1839. Baird, Mamm. N. Am., p. 161, 1857. Samuels, Rept. Agrie. Mass., p. 154, plate I, fig. G, 1861-1862. Gilpin, Trans. Nova Scotia Inst., II, p. 13, 1866 (read March, 1866). Putorius richardsoni Gilpin, Trans. Nova Scotia Inst., p. 15, 1866 (read March, 1866). Putorius vulgaris Emmons, Rept. Quad. Mass., p. 44, 1840. Thompson, Nat. Hist. Vermont, p. 30, 1S42. Allen, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., XIII, p. 183, 1869; Bull. ?»rus. Comp. ZoiJl., I, p. 167, 1870. Merriani, INIanimals Adirondacks, p. 54, 1882. Mustela fusca And. and Bach., Journal Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., VIII, pt. II, p. 288, 1842. DeKay, Zool. New York, I, p. 35, 1842. The Weasels of EoMern North America. 19 Putorms fnsrus And. and Bach., Qnad. N. Am., Ill, p. 1S4, pi. 140, 185.3. 3fuMela pusilln DeKay, Zool. New York, I, p. :',4, plate XIV, fig. I, 1842. Putoriu.'^ rulgnrls var. Amerlcaua Gray, P. Z. S., p. 113, 1S65; Cat. Car- nivora British Mns., p. 91, 1869. Puturius (Gale) ermlnea Cones, Fnr-Bearing Animals, p. 109, 1877 (in part). Ti/pe lomllt !/.—Tiastern United States. Geographic didrihntion. — Northeastern North America from Long Island and Connecticnt north to Labrador and Newfoundland, west at least to Minnesota (Fort Snelling and Elk river), and probably following the transcontinental forest belt nearly, if not quite, across the continent ; in- habits the whole of the Hudsonian, Canadian, and Transition zones. P. rlch(ir(hui)'i cicognani is the characteristic weasel of northeastern North America and the only one occupying a large area in the Canadian and Hudsonian zones. It extends south to the southern limit of the Transition zone, but no farther. It l)egins to overlap the range of P. nove- boracensls in the lower Canadian zone, and thence southward gradually becomes rarer as noveboracensis becomes commoner, until it disaijpears altogether in the valley of the lower Hudson. I have never seen a speci- men from any point farther south. All through Connecticut, jNIassachu- setts, New York, New Hampshire, and Vermont both species occur together. General characters. — Size small; tail short, a little more than one-fourth of the total length tipped with black ; feet large and broad. Color. — Summer pelage : Upper parts rich, dark brown, varying from Front's brown to almost seal brown, examples in fresh pelage sometimes having the peculiar purplish tone of seal brown ; ear often boi'dered by a narrow white margin (not a lingering of the white coat, as I have often seen it in the young that had never changed to the white winter dress), which in worn midsummer specimens usually disappears. Southern specimens are rather darker, as a rule, than northern ones. Under parts usually ijure silvery white in the more southern examples, but sometimes tinged witli greenish yellow in specimens from Newfoundland and Labi'a- dor. The line of demarkation between colors of upper and under jiarts is high up, straight, unbroken, and very distinct, owing to the great con- trast in color. Occasionally a specimen can be found with one or more irregular spots of brown on the chest and belly. The color of the under parts covers the under sides of the arms and hands and the inside of the legs and the toes. Ujjper lips always white ; tail same color as back, both above and below, with a short black tij), which, including the pencil, occupies about one-third of the tail ; under fur about the same color as the long hair. Winter pelage : Pure white all over, with usually a strong yellowish tinge on the hindquarters, tail, and belly ; end of tail for a little more than the pencil, jet black ; coat long and full ; feet heavily furred. The change to a white winter pelage takes place over the entire range of the subspecies. In Connecticut P. richardsoni cicognani always turns white in winter, while P. noveboracensis never does. It is rather curious that in changing back to the brown summer coat in spring (the change taking ])lace in March or April, according to locality) 20 Bangs — Tlie Weasels of Eastern North America. the white hairs persist longer in a well defined spot between the eyes and in front of the ears than elsewhere on the head. In the bridled weasel this spot between the eyes is a constant character, and in P. peninsulx the white patch in front of the ears is a constant character ; and still these weasels have no white winter coat. Size. — Average of ten adult males from the lower Canadian and Transi- tion zones : total length, 285 ; tail vertel)r£e, 77.5 ; hind foot, ?>7. Average of three adult females from the lower Canadian and Transition zones : total length, 254; tail vertebrae, 69; hind foot, 30.5. P. cicogiiani varies somewhat in size all through its range, but apart from this individual variation there is a gradual increase from south to north, and specimens from Newfoundland and Labrador and also those from Lake Edward and Godbout, Quebec, are nearly equal in size to richarcUoiil. A specimen from Codroy, Newfoundland (No. 3751, male, old adult, coll. E. A. and 0. Bangs), measures: total length, 339; tail vertebrae, 97 ; hind foot, 48. Skull. — Skull smooth and light, not developing sagittal crest with age. It differs very little from the skull of richarclsoni, but perhaps is a little narrower and deeper, with the inflated squamosal a trifle more inflated and larger, and usually quite flush with the audital bulla, from which it is separated by an almost straight line ; mandible and teeth rather lighter. Two skulls from Codroy, Newfoundland (Nos. 1164 and 1177, coll. E. A. and O. Bangs), present a very remarkable character that I have never seen in any other skulls of Gale. Each has an extra molar on each side of the upper jaw, placed behind the regular last upper molar. These teeth are small and round, but well shaped and symmetrical on the two sides. Remarks. — Bonaparte first described this little weasel under the name Mustela cicognani {Fauna Italica, fasc. xxii, 1888), giv- ing a very brief and imperfect account of it, and no definite type locality ; but his description indicates this animal and can api)ly to no other. Furthermore, the following statement, made by him the same year in Charlesworth's Magazine of Natural His- tory, leaves no doubt as to the animal he had. He said : " During my stay in the United States I only saw a small species of 3Ias- tela, very common throughout the Union, which all the natu- ralists at that time considered as the M. vuk/aris. I at once perceived that it was not that European animal, and that it ap- proached more to the 717, erminea. From that remark of mine the name was changed, as, for example, in Dr. Godman's Natural History. I have since, in my Iconography of the Italian Fauna, speaking of the new ilf. boccamela, taken an opportunity of revis- ing the group Mustela, and of distinguising the American under the name of M. cicognanii, as it is intermediate between the two European species." P. cicognani, before Bonaparte separated it, Avas, as he states, generally confused with the European P. vul- The Weasels of Eastern North America. 21 garis (= P. nivalis). Richardson's P. vulgaris from Carlton House, Saskatchewan (Fauna Boreali-Americana, I, p. 46). is clearly this species. It was an adult female and the measurements given were taken before skinning. Richardson himself positively states this on page 10* of the Zoology of Beechey's Voyage.''^ Professor Baird, in 1857, gave a clear and accurate description of P. cicngnani (Mammals of North America, 161-102), 1:)ut un- fortunately he was not followed by subsequent authors. Although the extremes of richarchoni and cicognani are very different-looking weasels, the evidence seems to prove that they are only races of one species. The larger light-colored weasels from Newfoundland and Labrador may safely be considered as intermediate, though rather nearer cicognani, while the Fort Albany specimen, referred to under richardsoni, is an interme- diate, rather nearer to richardsoni. Putorius rixosus sj). nov. Least Weasel. PL I, iig. 6; II, fig. 6; III, fig. 4. Putorius pusillus Baird, INIanim. N. Am., p. l.'iO, 1857 (not DeKay). Putorius vulgaris Coues, Fur-Bearing Animals, p. 102, 1879 (in part). Type from Osier, Saskatchewan, No. G42, female, young adult, coll. E. A. and 0. Bangs, coll. by W. C. Colt, July 15, 1893. " Original No., 79. Geogrupliic distributiou. — Arctic and boreal America from Alaska south at least to Saskatchewan and jNIoose Factory. General characters. — Size very small ; tail verj^ short, without black ; pencil short. Color. — Summer pelage : Upper j^arts rich reddish brown, from burnt umber to Vandyke brown ; under parts pure white in every example but the type. The type has the under parts a soiled white or pale drabbish, that I attribute rather to staining than to coloring matter in the hair itself, as many of the hairs when taken singly are white ; line of demar- kation between colors of uj^per and under parts high up and even ; color of under parts covering under side of arms and hands and inside of legs and toes ; upper lips white ; tail to very end same color as back ; under fur same color as the long hairs. Winter pelage : Entirely pure white all over, including end of tail. The change to a white winter pelage prob- ably takes place over the entire range of the species. Size. — Type (female yg. ad.): Head and body, 150; tail, 31 (taken in flesh by collector, W. C. Colt). * In many worn midsummer specimens of P. cicognani the black tip to the tail fades to a blackish brown, and is then not in very marked con- trast to the rest of the tail. Specimens in this condition may have strengthened the opinion, so generally held by early writers, that the animal was identical with the European P. nivalis. 22 Bangs — The Weasels of Eastern North America. Skull. — Skull very small and light, with the same oblong Ijrain case and large inflated squamosal as in all the i-iclianhoiu group, from which it differs in exceedingly small size only. Remarks. — This rare and little known weasel was first de- scribed by Baird in 1857. But Baird referred it to 3Iu stela pusilla of DeKay, with the remark, " It is barely possible that the speci- men here described may be different from the New York species as given by Dr. DeKay." De Kay's M.pusilla was the M. cicognani of Bonaparte, as shown by his description and measurements and by its geographical distribution. P. rixosus is at present very imperfectly represented in collec- tions. There are a few skins in the United States National Museum from points in Arctic America, from Fort Albany to Alaska. JNIost of these skins are in poor condition and have what is left of the skull inside the skin. They are also unsexed. Tbere are two very good skins from Moose Factory, Ontario, made by C. Drexler (No. 5532. Museum Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, Mass., and No. 4281, United States National Museum. The latter is labeled male, but I think it is really a female). Two of the Alaska examples are in winter pelage and are pure white all over, including the end of the tail. One from the upper Yukon (No. 13904, collected 1)}^ E. W. Nelson) is appar- ently a male. All the others are apparentl}^ females. Even this male, although unmeasured, is, so far as can be judged, smaller than full-grown females of the European P. niralis. In summer pelage P. rixosus can be distinguished from the European P. nivalis by its darker color, and at all seasons 1)}' its very much smaller size. Dr. Coues, in lais ' Fur-Bearing Animals,' speaks of larger examples with longer tails, tlie ends of wliich are dusky, and refers such specimens to this species (which he called P. vulgaris). In this he was in error, as was Professor Baird in considering No. 2319 from Steilacoom, Washington, to be this animal. I have seen many such, and in every case close examination has proved them to be the young of either P. richardsoivi or P. cicog- vani, with the milk dentition plainly visil)le. The short, closely haired tails of young weasels of this group, with the end not dis- tinctly l)lack, owing to the hairs of the tail not being full grown, gives them a superficial resemblance to P. rixosus. But in all such cases the teeth at once tell the story. Two specimens in the National Museum, No. 5686, from Big Island, and No. 5691, from Fort Rae,are very good examples in point. P. rixosus is, I believe, the smallest known carnivorous animal. The Weasels of Eastern North America. 23 Table of Average Cranial Measurements of Futorlus. Name. Local it V. P. lonqicnuda P. I. spadi.e P frenatus P peninsulce P. noveboracensis P. richardsoni P. r. cicognani .... P. rixosus (type) P. ermiiieus P. nivalis Albertn,, Sask., and N. Dak Alberta, Mont., and N. Dak ... Fort Snelling and Elk river, Minn. Brownsville, Texas Tarjion Springs, Fla Liberty Hill, Conn St. Michaels and Yukon, Alaska. Codroy, Newfotindland Biieksport, Maine Ossipee, N. H Liberty Hill, Conn Codroy, Newfoundland Mt. Fore.st, Ontario Osier, Sask England S bis 2 •3 3 5 _ ^ 0) o J2 9 !rj P. s:^5 "ci o of, s^ o Oj M^ - :f: bC a s ? O Sr-^ H >i s a S, ibo •3 z — o 3 O G O "a. > ^ c ? ■|_| ^ =5 M c!"" o >> Oi (u tta swamp near the railroad track. The author. 1187. Panicum scoparium Lam. Great Falls. F. L. Scril)ner. 1187(f. Panicum sphaerocarpon Ell. Bunker Hill ; North Brookland. The author. Takoma. T. H. Kear- ney, Jr. * 1188(1. Panicum ramulosum Michx. Sphagnum swamp near Takoma. F. L. Scribner and T. H. Kearney, Jr. * Botanical Gazette, vol. ix, 1884, x>- 165. Additions to the Flora of WasJiington. 43 1188/^ Panicuin nitiduin Lam. Norlh Brookland ; Bunker Hill. The author. * 1188c. Panicum lanuginosum Kll. Brookland ; Garrett Bark. The author. *1188(?. Panicum pubescens Lam. Brookland. The author. 1197. Tiipsacum dactyloides L. Near Silver Hill. The author. 1198 Eiianthus alopecuroides Ell. Takoma. F. L. Scribner. Field between Jackson Cit}- and Arlington, Ya. G. H. Hicks. 1219. Woodvyardia angustifolia Smith. Very abundant-in the woods near Surattsville. The author. 1229. Aspidium cristatum Swtz. Numerous fruit-bearing specimens were observed near Chevy Chase. G. H. Hicks. 1236. Cystopteris fragilis Bernli. Flats under Chain Brid<:e. The author. 1240. Lygodium palmatum Swtz. Near Arundel, Md. M. B. Waite. 1245. Botrychium ternatum Swtz., var. dissecta Milde. Near Chevj' Chase circle. G. H. Hicks. Along Bates road near Terra Cotta swamp. The author. 1247. Ophioglossum vulgatum L. In the woods near Garrett Park. M. B. Waite. 1252. Selaginella rupestris Spring. Rediscovered near (ireat Falls by ]\L B. Waite. 1253. Selaginella apus Spring. Swamp near Silver Hill. The author. Vol. X, pp. 45-52 March 9, 1896 PROCEEDINGS X OF THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON. ON A SMALL COLLECTION OF MAMMALS FROM LAKE EDWARD, QUEBEC. BY OUTRAM BANGS. Early in September, LS95, ray brother, E. A. Ban«;s, and I made a short collecting trip to Quebec. Our original plan was to spend all our time at Roberval, on I;ake St. John, the most northern locality reached b}^ railroad in eastern North America. But Lake St. John proved a great disappointment. The town of Roberval lies in a dreary valley, that seems wholly destitute of mammalian life. The forest has l)een cleared away and the barren fields and desolate scrub are wholly unfit to supply the needs of even the smaller mammals. Had we been fitted for camping out we could undoubtedly have found a rich field up one of the many rivers that pour their waters from every direc- tion into this great basin ; but we were not. After wasting two days in a vain endeavor to find any place within walking dis- tance of Roberval suited to our work, we turned our backs on Lake St. John and went down the railroad about sixty-five miles to Lake Edward. The town of Lake Edward is on the northern end of the lake of the -ame name, and lies in the heart of a rich Hudsonian forest. The lake is about twenty-three miles long and termi- nates in the Jeannotte river. A great part of the shores of both lake and river are still clothed in primeval forests, Init the busy saw-mill at Lake Edward, with its daily consumjition of five hundred logs, is fast eating up this old growth and leaving be- hind only white birch and small second-growth spruce and fir. 7— Biol. Soc. Wash., Voi,. X, 1896 (45) 40 BaiKjH — Mammals from Lake Edward, Quebec. Tliis forest contains very few species of trees, of which the white birch is the commonest, with spruce and fir in about equal lumi- bers next, and now and then a solitary white i)ine. The moun- tain ash and the spiked maple are very common, but hardly attain to the dignity of trees. In many places where the forest has been burnt a dense growth of raspberry bushes and dwarf cherry immediately springs up, and it is many years before the trees again take possession of the laud. The monotony of the forest is here and there broken by little alder swamps along the many brooks, or by open sphagnum barrens with their clumps o{ Lcdinn. latifoliuvi and Kalmia gJnuca. In this northern latitude the fallen trees lie on the ground for a long time without decay- ing, and the accumulation of centuries covered by a luxuriant growth of moss makes walking through the forest a matter of the greatest difhculty. There are no roads anywhere, all the logging l)eing done Ijy water, but the abundance of lakes con- nected by rivers or brooks makes the country very accessible by canoe. Trapping in the northern forest in the tangled mass of fallen trees and granite boulders covered by a deep growth of moss is a ver}^ difi'erent thing from trapping in open country. In the open southern woods, with but little rubbish on the ground, one takes as much in traps that have been set a week or ten days in one spot as one does the first day, and when the supply is used up, it is then little use to move the trap, as all the small mam- mals from near about have already found it. It is not so in the northern forest, where distance means much more and the small mammals are very local and do not travel far. The first day or two will exhanst the supply in one spot, but a move of only a feAV yards will again yield specimens in about the same number. We were disappointed in not getting Phenacomijs, but it is possible that the animal does occur here locally. There were a few mammals we knew to occur in the imme- diate vicinity of Lake Edward that we were unal)le to get, and perhaps it is as well to mention these. Flying squirrels and chii)n)unks were said by the Indians and French Canadians to occur, but we saw none. Moose and caribou were both quite plentiful. I found a fresh caribou track one morning where the animal had come out of the forest and walked along the railroad for about a mile. The red fox was abundant, and we found many signs. The section man on the railroad told me foxes were sometimes killed Mamiiiah from Lake Edward, Qiwbec. 47 by the train, and that he liad picked them up on several occasions when going over the road on his hand-car in the morning. The trappers get otter every winter, and the black bear is fairly com- mon. The wolverine is still sometimes met with and occasion- ally this expert trap robber proves a great nuisance to the trapper in the winter by finding his line of deadfalls, following it up, de- molishing every one, and eating the bait and any animal that may have been caught. Sciurus hudsonicus Erxl. Red Squirrel. 5 specimens. Red squirrels were extremely abundant and a great nuisance, as they pereisted in getting into our mouse traps, and as tlie traps were usually not strong enough to kill them outright they carried away a great many. A few that were caught around the neck in the Schuyler mouse traps were killed. We also caught a great number in steel traps baited with salt jiork or meat. Castor canadensis Kuhl. American Beaver. 3 specimens. Beaver are still quite comnaon in all this region, but are relentlessly pursued by the Indians and are decreasing very fast. The nearest beaver to Lake Edward were on the .Teannotte river. We were too busy to go after them ourselves and so hired two Indians and sent them down the Jeannotte. In Ave days they returned with a whole family of beaver— an old male and female and three young. Unfortunately they had utterl}' ruined the old female and one of the young by shooting them in the heads witli their rifles. The old male was a very flue, large beaver and according to the Indians was five years old. The specimen measured : total length, 1,130; tail, 410; hind foot, 176. The same two Indians, in the winter of 1894-1895, killed sixty beaver and told me they expected to get about forty this winter. In addition to the Indians, there are many other trappers working this country every season with great thoroughness, and the beaver stand but a poor chance. Synaptomys fatuus sp. nov. Northern Lemming Mouse. 9 specimens. Ti/pf No. 3857, coll. of E. A. and O. Bangs ; female adult, from Lake Edward, Quebec, September 28, 1895. Total length, 125; tail, Ki; hind foot, 19. E. A. and O. Bangs, collectors. General characters. — Slightly smaller and darker than >S'. cooperi, with smaller and lighter skull and much narrower and shorter incisors. Coat very long and full. ' Color. — Upper parts sepia brown, thickly interspersed with black- tipped hairs ; under parts slate gray, with in places a slight brownish tinge; feet drab; tail nearly unicolor, slightly paler below, darker at the tip, and sparsely haired. Skull. — The skull, as compared with that of aS cooperi, is rather smaller and narrower, with less spread to the zygomata and more slender rostrum. Teeth. — The molar teeth are substantially the same as in .S'. cooperi, but the incisors are vei'v much narrower and shorter. 48 Bangs — Mammdh fro)ii Lake Edward, (Quebec. Mcasiirciiu'tits of nine Spechiwns of 8. faiuas. No. 1 — Sex and age. Date. Total length. Tail. Hind foot. 3857 3855 3854 3858 3859 3856 3861 3860 3862 9 ad c? yg- ad. . . d" ad 9 yg. ad. . . 9 yg. ad. . . 9 yg- ad. . . d'yg c?yg d'yg Sept. 25, 1895 Sept. 27, 1895 Sept. 24, 1895 Sept. 27, 1895 Sept. 24, 1895 Sept. 27, 1895 Sept. 19, 1895 Sept. 17, 1895 Sept. 25, 1895 125 114 123 114 113 114 110 111 93 16 11 (l)ol)tail) 20 15 19 15 17.5 16 15 19 18 18.5 17.5 19 17 18 18 17 This strange little animal was common abont Lake Edward and inliab- ited every variety of country— the sphagnum bogs, the deep spruce forest, and the banks of little streams. It lived everywhere in the deep moss. It was hard to trap and seemed not to care for any kind of bait, but blun- dered into the traps that happened to be in its way. We caught thirteen examples of S. fafims, four of which were so badly eaten by shrews or mice as to be worthless. Microtus fontigenus * sp. nov. Forest Meadow Mouse. 8 specimens. Ti/pe No. 3837, coll. of E. A. and O. Bangs, female adult from Lake Edward, Quebec, September 28, 1895. Total length, 151; tail. 41.25; hind foot, 21. E. A. and 0. Bangs, collectors. General characters. — Size small ; colors dark, with no rufous sliades; rostrum very slender; audital bullre very large and round. Color. — Upper parts dark sepia brown, with a slight admixture of black- tipi^ed hairs ; under parts olive gray to smoke gray ; tail si)arsely haired and bicolor, black above, gray beneath. Skull. — Tlie skull is small, with very slender rostrum, and differs from that of any ^^in■nill■'^ I am familiar with in having very large and round audital bnlhc, about as in the genus Evotomys. The basioccipital is nar- row and (loos not have a distinct median keel. Teeth.— IhG pattern of enamel folding of the molar teeth is substantially as in M. pennsylvanicu^. Size.— No. 3837, female adult (type) : total length, 151 ; tail, 41.5; hind foot,'21. No. 3840, male adult : total length, 150 ; tail vertebra?, 45 ; hind foot, 21. This Microtus was not common. We found it usually along the banks of the little spring brooks in the deep forest and in small sphagnum bogs, where it lived under old logs or in holes in the moss, after the manner of an Evotomys. Nowhere did it make runways like those of M. ]>ennsyh'unkns, * Fontigena = born beside springs or fountain heads ; a poetical term applied to the Muses, and therefore appearing in literature only in the feminine. Mammals Jru Hi Lahc Edward, Quebec. 49 and it appeared to be confined to the forest. I hunted in vain the marshy- spots and alder swamps and the cleared tields, places M. pennsylvanicus would have delighted in, ])at found no trace of any Microtus there, and trapping in such localities yielded nothing but shrews. We caught only eight exanii)les of M. fontigenus. Microtus chrotorrhinus (Miller). Rufous-nosed ^leadow Mouse. 9 specimens. This beautiful little inhal)itant of the deep spruce forest was not com- mon. I consider it one of the rarest of our small mammals. It is easy to catch, and a day or two of traj^ping in any place is usually sutticient to capture all that are there. M. chroforrhinus is apparently wholly diurnal. On account of the depi'edations of shrews I visited our tra]js regularly twice a day — once at daylight in the morning and again just before dark. I never found a chrolorrhinus on any morning visit. Although these specimens were taken nearly three hundred miles north of the type locality (Mt Washington, New Hampshire), they are in every way tyi)ical and show no approach to jl/. xanthorjii.athus. Fiber zibethicus (L.) IMuskrat. 9 specimens. Exceedingly abundant on all the marshy^ sliores of the lakes and rivers. We set a line of sixteen traps one afternoon and on visiting them next morning found fourteen muskrats. One traji I set on a floating log that lay across a little brook where it emptied into Lake Edward and c-aught a muskrat in it everj' night during our stay. Evotomys gapperi (Vig. ). Red-backed Mouse. 36 specimens. The commonest small mammal at Lake Edward. The red-backed mouse of this region is the small, dark-colored form of the spruce belt, true gup2)eri. Evotomys fuscodoi sails Allen. Dusky-backed mouse. 4 specimens. Apparently this little known Evotomi/ft was rare, four examples being all we caught. These were taken in two localities al)Out three miles apart and two in each place. In both places they were caught among loose boulders on side hills covered by moss and overgrown by spruce, fir, and white birch. Peromyscus canadensis abietorum subsp. nov. Hudsonian AVhite- footed Mouse. 4 specimens. Type No. 2205, coll. of E. A. and O. Bangs, female adult, from James river. Nova Scotia. Coll. l)y 0. H. Goldthwaite, August 8, 1894. Total length, 200; tail, 103; hind foot, 20 (measured in flesh by collector). General characters. — Similar to Peromyscus canadensis (Miller), from which it differs in being a uniform dark gray above in both young and adult, never showing the russet and yellowish shades of old examples of P. canadensis. 50 Bangs — Mammals from Lake Edward, Qncltec. Color. — 01(1 adult: ui)per parts dark smoke gray, sliglitly darkci' along the middle of the back, causing an indistinct median band ; under parts white, the hairs plumbeous at their base; feet and hands white; tail bi- colored, ])lack above, white below, hairy, and longer than the head and body ; jjencil long. The size, proportions, and skull are the same as in true canadenKii^. This wliite-footed mouse is the Northern representative of P. canudensis, which it resembles very closely in everything but color. When a large series of each is laid out side by side the difierence in color is very strik- ing, the uniform gray of the adults of abietornm being in marked contrast to the russet and yellow shades of the adults of cunadeiii^iif. P. (dnetonna has a wide range in the spruce and fir forests of the north. It was not common at Lake Edward, and, as all we caught were immature, I have taken for the type a fine old adult from James river, Nova Scotia, from whence I have a good series, collected by Mr. C. H. Goldthwaite in the summer of 1894. Zapus insignis Miller. Woodland Jumping Mouse. 1 specimen. Either Zapus insignis was very rare at Lake Edward or they had already hibernated, the weather being quite cold, with a heavy frost nearly every night during our stay. This species is very easy to catch and we set many traps in its favorite haunts along the little brooks in the forest. The only one caught was exceedingly fat. Lepus americanus Erxl. American Hare. 4 specimens. Very alnuidant. ^Ye caught a number in steel traps baited with salt pork. These traps were set after the Indian fashion, a semicircle of slabs cut from the spruces being set up and the top covered over with spruce boughs. The bait was put inside and the trap in the opening. One morn- ing I shot a hare asleep on top of a board fence three feet high, beside the railroad in the settlement. How he could have jumped onto this fence and balanced himself there is a nij'stery. Vespertilio subulatus Say. Bat. 1 specimen. Two bats of this species flew into the liouse on ditierent evenings. Blarina brevicauda (Say). Short-tailed Shrew, o specimens. Common everywhere. Sorex (Microsorex) hoyi Baird. Hoy's Shrew. 1 specimen. Apparently rare. Sorex (Neosorex) albibarbis (Cope). Water Shrew. 1 specimen. Apparently rare. Soiex personatus Geoff. St. Hilaire. Connnon Shrew. 18 specimens. Extremely alnunlunt and inhal)iting every variety of country. Mammals from Lake Edward, Quebec. 51 Condylura cristata (L.) Star-nosed Mole. 1 specimen. No work of this mole was seen an3'where. The one taken was caught in a cyclone trap set under an old log. Probably the animal lives below the deep layer of moss with which everything is covered, and therefore gives no sign of its presence. Mephitis mephitica (Shaw). Hudsonian Skunk. 5 specimens. Skunks were common about the settlement. We trapped four and took another skull from an animal that had been killed some months pre- viously. These skunks are highly interesting, being extreme examples of the Northern short-tailed form to which I have restricted Shaw's name ■mephitica."^ They measure as follows : No. 3801 3803 3804 3802 Sex and age. C^ old ad d^ad.... d^ad.... 9 old ad, Total length. 585 ()17 592 565 Tail. 11 ind foot. 193 75 202 79 202 76 159 75 The skulls of all lack the median palatal spine usually seen in the skulls of Southern skunks. Putoiius (Lutreola) vison (Schreber). Little Black Mink. 6 speci- mens. ]VIink were abundant in spite of the fact that great numbers are trapped every winter. All we took are very small and dark-colored and are ex- treme examples of the Ijcautiful northern form, true visoii. Putorius (Gale) richardsoni cicognani [Bp.) Small Brown Weasel. 3 specimens. We cauglit four of these little weasels, but one was partly eaten and ruined by some animal. All were caught in traps set for marten and baited with salt pork. Mustela americana Turton. Marten or Sable. 1 specimen. AVe set many traps for this elusive pirate of the forest, but succeeded in catching only one, a very dark-colored old female. It is of interest that the tra^jpers here never get the fisher {M. pennanii) and say that it does not occur at all in this whole region. *Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., vol. XXVI. Author's edition, July 31, 1895, p. 5. 52 Bangs — Mammals from Lake Edward, Quebec. •■BtUoS/Cz JO 100.1 ;\5 8|zzimi JO mpBa.rg •eiqipttnai JO j|T3(i aiSuis- JO qt^uai jsajuajQ •!|OSA[l! uo sa!.t8s.»3[oui jaddn JO q^Suaq luniiSBtu uarau.ioj jo dt[ 8Aoqi! iuniuB.iDjo jqStaii }sdt«a.t£) ■a}B|«d 8Aoq« luniuB.iojoaiiSiatcJsajisaao ■qjpna.iq iu}!q.io.ia)iii CO ff-: M n ^ CO o •q^pija.iq pto)Si3j\[ ■q'jpua.iq oi!))!iuo3jCz ffq o o = ■# ■i[}8na[ pjsBu-oiidioDo 26.0 O "C -I- ^ ■n OJ o5 ^ : o3 •[9saajj JO ij'jSuai ai3[is«g o §5 22.0 21.4 20.2 CM 00 C> - !-3 o C cS 73 -J3 T3 T3 : s ^ '"^rn- * " =* "^ >» r- -^ lO — 00 M M N ?; CO cd TT — a CO CO ?^ CO CO Vol. X, pp. 53-54 March 14, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON DESCRIPTION OF A NP]\V 8PECIES OF PLOVER Vium THE EAST COAST OF MADAGASCAR. BY CHARLES \V. KICH.MOND. The appareiitl}^ new species of })lover here described is repre- sented in the United States National Museum series by Hve specimens, Three of these were in a collection of birds lately received from Dr. W. L. Aljbott ; the other two were obtained by exchange some years ago from the Paris Museum. .Sigialitis thoracica sp. no\^ Type No. 151,174, IT. S. National ?i[u:^eum, 9 adult, Loholoka, east coast of Madagascar, June:), 1895. Dr. \V. L. Abbott, collector. Crown, back, scapulars, tertials, and wing-coverts hair brown, the feathers edged with pale or deep buff, those of the greater wing-coverts edged and tipped with white ; primaries, secondaries, rump, median upper tail-coverts, and middle rectrices dark clove brown ; shafts of primaries (including the third) with white on terminal half; primary coverts brownish black, tipped with white; lateral upper tail-coverts white; inner primaries narrowly bordered on inner web and tipped with white ; base of outer webs white ; secondaries tipped with white, which become broader toward the innermost. Foi-eliead, lores, cheeks, throat, axillars, under wing-coverts, sides of body, and flanks white ; a line from upper mandible to lower anterior border of e5'e, continued posteriorly through ami including ear-coverts black, connecting with a narrower black band extending across lower border of nape, and with a broad black pectoral band, the latter more extensive on sides of chest; an interocular crescent-shaped black band borders the white forehead and separates it from a white line over eyes, ear-coverts, and passing across nape as a con- spicuous ruchal band (leaving the black crown patch entirely surrounded by a white band and the latter isolated from other white markings) ; a white band below the black pectciral band passes abruptly into cinnamon buff on the abdomen and under tail-coverts, that of the abdomen extends up on sides of body to the black band across breast, intercejiting the white. Three outer tail feathers white, with more or less dusky markings, 8— Biol. SoC. Wash,, Vol. X, ISiiti (53) 54 BicJimond — A New kSpecies of Plover from Madagascar. especially on the two inner ones; next inner pair (4th) dusky, with white tips; 5th pair hair brown, becoming black subterminally, with a deep buff tip. Bill, leo;s, and feet black in dried skin. Wing, 4.00; tail, 1.72; tarsus, l."20; culmen (exposed), .69 inches. In another female (No. 1-51,169) the wing measures 4.20 inches; the other measurements of the five specimens are very much the same. This species seems to be most nearly related to .J'j/l((Iitls vnriu (Vieillot) of Africa, and also found in Madagascar, but differs from it mainly in the presence of the black pectoral band and the absence of a wholly black shaft in the third primary ; the white line posterior to the black crescent between eyes is more pronounced and the lesser wing-coverts and primary coverts are not decidedly blackish. There is also a slight difference in size, particularly noticeable in the l)ills. The two specimens received from the Paris iSluseum are sexed as males, and are precisely similar to those collected by Dr. Abbott. They were collected by M. Lantz, in 1882, on the southeast coast of INIadagascar. In addition to this information the labels l:)ear the names ' C}ia radri us toiellus,' and, in a later handwriting, ' pecuariu-i' [= varia]. From an examination of the specimens in the National ^Museum and a careful comparison of descriptions, it appears that no described plumages of either J^Ajialitls lenella or .E. varia possess black pectoral bands. I was rather loth to consider the species unnamed after examining the two specimens from the Paris Museum, as the bird must be well known to the French authors, particularly Milne-Edwards and Grandidier, whose great work on ^Madagascar birds I have had no opportunity to consult. Thinking there might be some reference to tlie black pectoral band in the account oi .E. varin in this work, I wrote to Mr. Witmer Stone, of the Philadelphia Academy, who has access to it, and he has very kindly fur- nished me with the following extract* under C'li/(radriu.'< pfCHdrins Temm. (as they i)refer to write it) : " Ce Pluvier africain se trouve aussi a INIadagascar, sur les cotes de Test comme sur celles de I'ouest. II est en dessus d'un brun roussutre clair avec une couronne blanche autour de latete qu'un diademe noiratre separe du front, qui est egalement blanc ainsi que les joues ; la gorge, la poitrine, que traverse, chez les adultes, une large bande noire, et les sous-caudales, sont blanches ; le ventre est roussiitre. Cette bande noire qui traverse la poitrine chez les adultes n'a pas encore ete signalee chez les individus Africains." It is very i-emarkable that the black pectoral band should be present in adults from Madagascar and absent in those from Africa, where the species is said to be common in many ])laces and breeds and from whence it was originally described. The two species, varid and thoracica, are apparently found together on the east coast of Madagascar, where Dr. Abbott collected a specimen of each at Loholoka on June 3. It was j^robably this association of the species that led the authors of the above-mentioned work to consider them adult and young (jf one species. * Hist. Phys. Nat. et Polit. de Madagascar, XII, Ois. tome I, pp. 511-512. Vol. X. PP. 55-64 March 19, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON REVIH[ON OF THE LEMMINGS OF TPIE GENUS SYNAP- TOMVS, WrrH descriptions of new SPECIES. BY DR. C. HART MERRIAM. The genus Syiinptomys has an interesting liistorv. It was de- scril)e(I by Professor Baird about forty years ago from a si^eci- men received from William Coo[)er, of Hoboken, New -Jersey, for wliom the s|)ecies was named Si/)iaptomi/s cnoperi} Tlie locality at which it was collected is unknown. For many years the species continued to elude the notice of naturalists, and it was not until 1874 that additional information was })ublished con- cerning it. In this year Coues recorded specimens from Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota, and Kansas. He also mentioned specimens from Oregon [= Washington] and Alaska; but these, as will be shown later, do not belong to the present si)ecies.''' In 1881 Dr. F. W. Langdon recorded its occurrence " in num- bers " at Brookville, Indiana, and described the locality at which it had l)een found by E. R. Quick.* In 1885 Edgar R. Quick and Amos W. Butler descril)ed its habits as observed at Brookville, Indiana."' In December, 1892, I published a notice of the occurrence of the species on Roan Mountain, North Carolina, and of the dis- covery of its remains in ' pellets' of the long-eared owl found in Virginia, near Washington, D. C, b}^ Dr. A. K. Fisher, and of others taken from the stomachs of hawks and owds killed at Sandy Spring, Maryland, and Alfred Center, New York." At the close of this paper I suggested that manniial collectors would " do well to keep a sharp lookout for this species in the cooler parts of Pennsylvania and New Jersey." In January, 1893, S. N. Rhoads recorded the species from May ^ The numeral references in the present paper refer to titles in the I>ib- liography at the end of the article. 9-Bioi.. Soc. Wash., Vui,. X, 1896 (55) 56 Merriam — The Lemming f<. oj the Genus Su'naptoniys. Landing, New Jersey, but uufortuuately gave it a new name. t'^ijDnptoiiii/s sfonei.-^' In the same 3'ear (189o) J. B. tSteere re- eorded it from Ann Arbor, Michigan.- In April, 1894, Oiitram Bangs recorded specimens from Ware- ham and Plymouth, ^Massachusetts, and showed that ^'. stonei is the same as S. cooperl Baird.^ In December, 1894, J. A. Allen recorded the northward exten- sion of Si/iitq)toiiii/s to Andover and Gulquac Lake, New Bruns- wick.''^ Early in Januar^^ 1895, S. N. Rhoads published a record of the capture of a specimen of S. cooperi on Big Bushkill creek, Monroe county, Pennsylvania.'^ This completes, so far as I am aware, the published records of the type species. Although remains of the species had been found both in ' pel- lets ' and stomachs of hawks and owls from the vicinity of Wash- ington, D. C, and although the species had been persistently trapped for by a number of experienced mammal collectors, still no s|)ecimen ' in the flesh ' was actually obtained until Fel)ruary of the i)resent year (1896), when Vernon Bailey captured several in a s})hagnum bog at Hyattsville, jNTaryland, only seven miles from Washington. ]\Ir. Bailey has also secured a number at Elk River, Minnesota, and I have a specimen from Knoxville, Iowa. During recent explorations in the great Dismal Swamj? in southern Virginia. Dr. A. K. Fisher secured specimens of a new Syaaptomijs, which is here described under the name S. helaletes. Specimens collected at Neosho, Kansas, man}^ years ago by the late Captain B. F. Goss, and labeled S. e/ossii by Baird, are here described as a subspecies under that name. A few months ago Napoleon A. Comeau, of Godbout, on the north shore of the St. Lawrence, near the Gulf, sent me a speci- men of Sijnaptomys which differs materiall}^ from S. cooperi This animal has just been described by Outram Bangs under the name »S'. fdtuax, from specimens collected by him at Lake Edward, Quebec.'* Dr. Allen's New Brunswick specimens, which he has kindly loaned me for examination, also belong to this northern form. It is not improbable that all of the four forms here recog- nized will be found to intergrade. In 1894 F. W, True described a new lemming mouse collected by Lucien ^L Turner at Fort Chimo, Ungava, and named it Mic- * In the same paper Mr. Rhoads stated that the species " had pi-eviously been detected by the U. S. Department of At^riculture in the rejects of a burn owl living in the tower of the Smithsonian Institution" (Am. Nat., Jan., 1893, 53). This statement was nnauthorized and incorrect. Tlw Lemminf/s of the Genus SyjiaptoiDi/s. 57 tomys innuitus.^'' The characters that separate it troni Si/naploviys pro})er seem of subi>;eneric rather than generic weight, and in tlie present paper Mictomy^i is treated as a subgenus of Syunptotiuj^. In 1S74,''' and again in 1877,'' Coues referred to Synaptovrys cooperi, a s})ecimen from Skagit valley. Washington, collected in 1859 by C. B. Kennerly, and one from Nulato, Alaska, collected in 18B7 by William II. Dall. These specimens are still in the U. S. National Museum, and through the courtesy of Mr. True I have l)een enabled to compare them with his type of Mictomys innultus, which they closely resemble. Botli belong to the suIj- genus Mi.ctomys, but differ suiliciently from innultus and from each otlier to warrant separation. They are here described under the names truei and dalli. In September, 1895, Clark P. Streator collected, at ^^'rangel, Alaska, still another member of the same group, which is here named unrmyeli. Sainiiuiry. — The material now available shows that the genus Sy IK (p to mi /s, instead of being monotypic, as until recently sup- posed, comprises 2 well marked subgeneric groups — Symiptnmys proper and 7l//c'to/;?.7/.s ; that Synaptomys proper inhal)its eastern Canada and the northeastern United States from Minnesota to New Brunswick and New England, and contains 4 fairl}^ Avell defined forms ; that Micfoiiiys has a transcontinental distribution from Labrador to Alaska, and contains at least 4 species. Synaptomys, like the other genera of lemmings, is a distinctly boreal group. Of the two sul)genera, Mictomys is decidedlv the more boreal, being strictly confined, in the east at least, to the Hudsonian zone. The sul)genus Synaptomys pushes southward to the northern edge of the Austrori}>arian zone, ))ut after it leaves the Boreal zone it occurs only, so far as known, in cool s\vam])s. Genus SYNAPTOMYS liaird. Subgenus Siinnpfoimji^ Baird, 1857. Ini'eriui- molars with well defined closed enamel loops on outer side ; upper incisors very broad and heavy, with enamel face deep orange throughout; posterior end of palate without median azygos ridge or projection. Subgenus Mictomys True, 1894. Inferior molars with no closed enamel loops on outer side ; upper incisors relatively narrow and weak, with en- amel face pale yellow and ])art on outer side of sulcus nearly white ; posterior end of palate with a strongly marked median azygos Fi*^- i.— Enamel pattern of lower molars, ridge and projection. i. Synaptomys 2. M,clomys. 58 Merrimn — The Lonmiugs of the Genus Synaptomys. Sub<,renuH SYNAPTOMYS Baird. Synaptomys cooperi Baird. Siinaptomyi^ cooperi Baird, ]\Iammal.s N. Am., pp. 550-558, 1857. Cones, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Pliila., p. 194, 1874; INIonog. N. Am. Kudcntia, pp. 235-23(), 1877. Quirk and Butler, Am. Naturalist, XIX, 11.3-115, Feb., 1885. Merriam, Proc. Biol. Soe. AVasli., A' II, 175-177, Dec, 1892. Bangs, Proe. Biol. Soc. Wash., IX, 99-104, April, 1894. Synaptomys stonei Ehoads, Am. Naturalist, XXVII, pp. 53-54, Jan. 11, 1893. lype locality unknown ; probably northern New Jersey or southern New York. Geograplilc distiibution. — Boreal and parts of Transition zones from INIin- nesota eastward to eastern Massachusetts and south to Iowa, Indiana, and Maryland, and in the mountains to North Carolina and Teniiessee. South of the Boreal zone it appears to be confined to cold sphagnum swamps, which give it a boreal atmosphere. General characters. — Similar in size and general appearance to Microtus pennsylvavic'us, but tail very much shorter. Contrasted with Synaptomys helaletes the feet are smaller and the rostrum, mandible, and upper incisors are much narrower and less massive. Color. — Uj^per parts grizzled gray and yellowish brown abundantly mixed with l)lack-tipped hairs ; under parts soiled whitish, the plumbeous under fur showing through ; tail bicolor ; brownish above, whitish below. In the adult the color of the back varies from pale yellowish lu'own to almost rusty, always ' grizzled ' by a bountiful admixture of lilack-tipped hairs. In the young the color is at first very dark, almost blackish slate ; it then becomes grayish brown and approaches sepia before taking on the yellowish brown of the adult. Cranial and dental characters. — Contrasted with »S'. helaletes from Dismal Swamp, the skull and teeth of S. cooperi are smaller and weaker, the zA'gomata more bowed outward, the rostrum and mandible very much narrower, the nasals nar- rower posteriorly, and the brain case sliorter. Fig. 2.- Enamel pattern of Measurements. — Average of 4 specimens from upper and lower molars ^^u Arbor, Michigan: total length, 118; tail in smafiio.o's cooperi. ^^^^^y^^^^ 17.5 . hind foot, 18. Average of 2 from Roan Alountain, North Carolina: Total length, 121 ; tail vertebne, 20; hind foot, 19.5. Synaptomys fatuus Bangs. Synaptomys fdtuiix Bangs, Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., X, 47-48, March 7, 1896. Type locality. — Lake Edward, (Quebec. Geographic distrilnition. — Hudsonian zone from T^ake Edward, Quebec (and probably much farther west), to Victoria county, New Brunswick, and Godbout, Quebec. Limits of range unknown. General characters. — Similar to S. cooperi, but slightly smaller; skull de. cidedly smaller, with much narrower ui)j)er incisors. TJie Lcmwilngfi of the Genus Syjtaptomijs. 59 Color. — Upper piirts t^rizzlwl yellowish brown, abundantly mixed with black-tipped hairs ; under parts varying from slate gray to whitish, washed with hwff on the belly; tail nearly eoneolor, only slightly paler below than above. Cranial and dental cJiaradrrs. — Skull similar to that of *S'. cooperi, but smaller and weaker ; rostrum narrower ; basisphenoid broader posteriorly. Upper incisors very nuicli narrower than in cooperi. Measurements. — Average of 2 adults from type locality (measured in flesh by O. Bangs): total length, 124; tail vertebrae, 18; hind foot, 18.7. Measurements of an alcoholic specimen ( 9 ) from Godbout, Quebec : total length, 106; tail vertebrpe, 19; hind foot, 18. Synaptomys helaletes sp. nov. Type from Dismal Swamp, Virginia, No. 75172, $ adult, U. S. National Museum, Department of Agriculture collection. Collected October 14, 1895, by Dr. A. K. Fisher. Original number 1818. General characters. — Similar to S. cooperi, but with larger head and feet, longer tail, much broader rostrum and mandi))le, and larger and more massive skull and teeth. C'o/o/-.— Upper parts grizzled gray and yellowish brown, abundantly mixed with black-tipped hairs; under jiarts plumbeous, washed with white; tail bicolor, brown- ish above, whitish below; toes usually partly white. Cranial and dental cliur- acters. — Contrasted with S. cooperi, the skull and teeth are larger, heavier, and more massive ; the zygomata less strongly bowed outward ; the na- sals broader posteriorly, and the brain case longer. The rostrum, upper in- cisors, and under jaw are remarkable for breadth and massiveness. Measurements. — Type specimen: total length, 125; tail vertebrte, 22; hind foot, 20. Average of four adults from type locality : total lengtli, 118.5; tail vertebra?, 21; hind foot, 20.2. General remarks. — Synaptomys helaletes, while of essentialh- the same size as S. cooperi, has very much larger fore and hind feet and a longer tail. The difference in the breadth and massiveness of the rostrum, mandible, and ui)per incisors is so great that skulls of the two require no compari- son. Still, specimens recently collected by Vernon Bailey in a sphagnum swamp near Washington, D. C, are somewhat intermediate and indicate that intergradation mav exist. Fig. s.-i^i^uU o{ .Synaptomys ke/a/eies $ (type) X 1^. GO Mcrriam — The LeniDiinr/s of tlic Genus Sjjnajiloinijs. Synaptomys helaletes gossii fjal)S[). iiov. Arricold {Si/vaptoriu/s) gdssii Buird MS., Cones, IMond.ir. X. Am. K(x1entia, 13. 235, 1S77 {nonien nudum). Type localitij. — Neosho Falls, Kansas, No. (JUlo, J" old, U. S. National Museum. Collected by B. F. Goss, 18G(). General characters. — Similar to S- hel'ilete-'^, but color probably redder; rostrum longer ; audital bnlhe smaller. Color. — Not positively known ; probably more reddish brown than in cooperl or helaletes. The mounted specimen in the National ^Museum has been skinned out of alcohol, and the skins originally collected by Captain Goss cannot be found. Cranial and dental characters. — Skull as a whole similar to that of S. hela- letes, but even larger, with rostrum and nasals longer ; zygomata more bowed outward in the middle ; orbital fossse larger ; audital budae smaller ; postpalatal pits deeper, defining a distinct median ridge between them, which ridge projects slightly into the postpalatal notch. Viewed from below, the rostrum and incisive foramina are conspicuously longer. Owing to the small size of the audital bulla', the sides of the basioccipital are less deeply excavated, and the vacuity on each side of the basisphenoid is much larger than in helaletes; the incisors are very broad and heavy, as in helaletes, and the molars nearly as large (the upper series measuring 7 mm.). 3feasHrements. — Average of 6 specimens from type locality : total length, 120; tail vei'tebne, 20.5; hind foot, 19.* Subgenus :\IICTOMYS True. A new and exceedingly interesting leniniing-vole from Ungava, Labrador, was described by Mr. F. W. True, in 1894, under the name Midomys innuitus. On comparing the type specimen of this species and specimens of the two related species liere de- scribed, with Synaptomys cooperi, it ap})ears that the most im- portant character separating Mictomys from Synaptomys is the absence of closed triangles or enamel loops on tlie outer side of the lower molars (Fig. 1). In addition, the upper incisors in Midomys are more slender and much paler in color, and the part exterior to the sulcus is nearly white, while in Synaptomys the whole enamel face is deep orange. The chief cranial differences are in the post-palatal region. In Midom.ys there is a distinct median az^'gos ridge not present in Synaptomys,^ where the *Hind foot from alcoholics; the other measurements taken in flesh by Captain Goss and converted from Cones' table, N. Am. Rodentia, p. 23(), 1877. t Kxcept in .S'. c/ns-s// in which the jiost-indatal pits are so deep that the median part of the palate between them is left as a nearly vertical pro- jection comparable to, but much shorter than, that of Mictontijs. The Lemmings of tJie Genus Synciptomys. 61 palate breaks down to the interi)terygoid notch. This rid,i»;e separates the ])Ost-iia]atal ])its and itrojeets liackward into the poSL-i)alatal noteli. In MictomiiS the supraorbital ridges unite in a single median ridge; in Si/iKiploiiiijx they are norrnallv sep- arated by a sulcus. The differences in enamel pattern of the molar teeth in the four species of Mictomys now known are shown in the accom- })anying illustration (Fig. 4). The teeth are large and broad in J/, innidtiis and (hdll ; smaller and much narrower in (r/v/y^r/c/i and truei. The reentrant angles on the outer side of the lower molars are deepest in irael i.d'); shallowest in wrangell (I/). Fig. 4. — Knaniel pattern of molar teeth in type specimens of Mictomvs. X 5- a. ft, c\ d, upper series ; a', b', c', d', lower series. (I. Mictomys innuitus. Ft. Chimo, Ungava. b. Mictomys turangeli, Wrangel, Alaska. c. Mictomys dalli, Nulato, Alaska. d. Mictomys truci , Skagit Vallej', Washington. Synaptomys (Mictomys) innuitus True. Midomi/.'iimHiHiis True, Froc U. S. Nat. IMus., XVII, 243, April 20, 1894. Tt/pe locality. — Fort Chimo, Ungava, Labrador. General characters. — Size and general appearance similar to Si/iKiptdnu/s cooperi; ear slightly longer than in Siputpt<))ui/s ; tail shortest of the four known species of Mictomys. Color (of alcoliolic). — " Upper surfaces graj'ish brown, as in Synaptomys ; under surfaces gray ; face pale brown ; li[)s, end of nose, and chin white ; feet pale brown; tail bicolored, pale brown above, white below." From continued immersion in alcohol the color of the upper parts has now changed to reddish brown. Cranial and dental characters. — Skull as a whole very broad and flat; brain case strongly depressed ; zygomata broadly spreading and standing out squarely from rostrum ; audital bulhe stronglj^ inflated anteriorly, the anterior border strongly convex forward. Contrasted with M. wrangell, 62 Merriam — The Lemmings of tJie Genus Synaptomys. the posterior loop of the last upper molar is longer transversely, and the reentrant angles of the middle and last lower molars are deeper. Mcamrcmeiitfi of tj/pi' specimen (alcoholic, measured by C. H. M.).— Total length, 115; tail vertebne, 17; hind foot, 17.5. Synaptoniys (Mictomys) dalli sp. nov. Ti/pe locality. — Nulato, Alaska, No. 10957, (^ adult [skeleton from alco- hol], U. S. National Museum. Collected February, 1867, by Wm. H. Dall. General c/iorw/fr.s.— Similar to M. ivrangeli, but differing in cranial char- acters. Color. — Unknown. Cranial and dental characten^. — Skull similar to that of ivrangeli, but differ- ing in the following particulars: nasals emarginate instead of truncate jiosteriorly ; interparietal much narrower anteroposteriorly and acute at both ends ; brain case broader ; interorbital constriction broader ; zygo- matic expansion slightly larger ; aadital Imllie muck larger and more fully inflated, with corresponding reduction in breadth of basioccipital and basisphenoid ; mandible conspicuoush/ larger, liroailer, and Jwarier, particu- larly as seen from below ; upper and lower molars conspicuously larger; middle and last lower molars with reentrant angle on outer side decidedly deeper than in wrangeli, and thus resembling truei ; posterior loop of last upper molar as in ivrangeli. Measurements (estimated from skeleton).— Total length, 115; tail verte- brte, 22; hind foot, 19. General remarki<. — In looking at the skull of M. dtlll from above and comparing it with the type of M. ivrangeli, the only conspicuous differ- ences are the greater breadth of the brain case and interorbital constric- tion. Looked at from below, the large size of the audital bullae and molar teeth is striking. On comparing tlie under jaws, one is also impressed by the disproportionally large size of the mandible and molars of d(dii. I have named the species in honor of Dr. William H. Dall, who collected it at Nulato, Alaska, nearly thirty years ago. Synaptomys (Mictomys) truei sp. nov. Tgpe from Skagit Valley, Washington, No. iViVi, yg- ad., U. S. Na- tional Museum. Collected August 6, 1(S59, by Dr. C. B. Kennerly (prob- ably in mountains bordering Skagit valley). Genered, characters. — Size and general appearance as in S. wrangeli, but ears slightly longer and color of upper parts more reddish brown. Last lower molar with a deep reentrant angle on outer side. Color. — Upper parts dull umber brown fading gradually to plunil)eous of under parts ; belly hairs tipped with whitish. Tail bicolor, dark above, whitish below. The type and only known specimen is in the molt and in very poor condition ; hence the colors may not be as in the living animal. Cranial and dentid characters. — The skull of tiie type is nearly destroyed) leaving only the teeth in the i)r()ken jaws. Tlie molar loops, l)oth above and below, are much fuller and more1)luntly rounded than in innuitns and The Leimiiiii(/x of the (n'nu.s iSi/napfoiiiijs. 63 ii'i-KiH/i/i, and the reLMitnint angle on the outer side of the last lower molar is much deeper and nearly forms a closed loop on the outer side of that tooth. The upper incisor is narrower and the sulcus shallower than in the other known species. Measaremeiilti (from dry skin). — Total length, a!)ont 112; tail vertebra-, 22; hind foot, IS. (Tciinrd remarks. — ■Midoiiu/x trncl diflei's markedly from the two othi'r species now known in the fidlness of the molar looi)S and the depth of the reentrant angle on the outer side of the last lower molar. I have named the species in honor of j\Ir. F. W. True, curator of mammals in the U. 8. National Museum. Synaptoniys (Mictoniys) -wiangeli .sj). no v. Tijpi' from Wrangel, Alaska, No. 74720, r^ ad., U. S. National ^luseum, Department of Agriculture collection. Collected Septendjer (5, LSOri, by Clark P. Streator. Original number 4S71. Generid rluiracters. — Similar to *S'. iniiniliis, but larger ; tiulaud hind foot longer ; skull nari'ower. Culor. — LJi)per parts grizzled grayish brown, with a yellowish cast; under parts plumbeous, tippid with whitish ; tail bicolor, brownish above, whitish below, darker at tij). Cranialaml (liiifal cJiaraders. — The skull of Mlct(jini/s imoujiH, contrasted with that of M. iunultus, is nar- rower and higher; the zygomata narrower and less spreading ante- iiS. cooperi (pj). 556-558). 2. 1874. Coues, Elliott. — Synopsis of ?,Iuridie. i>. 99-104, April 14, 1894. S. stonei stated to be the same as tS. cooperi. 10. 1S94. True, F. W. — Diagnoses of new North American INIammals. nys futaas (pp. 47-48). Vol. X, pp. 65-83, pls. IV-VI April 13, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON PRELIMINARY SYNOPSIS OF THE AMERICAN BEARS. BY DR. C. HART MERRIAM. Heretofore it has been customary to class the North American bears in three ^Toups — Blacks, Grizzlies, and the Polar bear. The study of a series of more than 200 skulls, including about 35 skulls of the huge bears of the Alaska coast region, shows this classification to be inadequate and adds four strongly marked s})ecies to our fauna. The new species are: (1) the gigantic fish-eating bear of Kadiak Island and the Alaska Peninsula, Ursus middendorffi, nob. ; (2) the large brown bear of Yakutat Bay and the coastal slope of the St. Elias Alps, Ursus dalli nob. ; (3) the large brown bear of Sitka and the neighboring islands (and perhaps the adjacent mainland also), Ursus sitkensis nob. ; and (4) the Florida Black bear, Ursus florldnnus nob. In view of the remarkal)le characters presented by these new forms it becomes necessary to rearrange our bears. They may be classed in five well marked superspecific groups or types, as follows : 1. The Polar bear type, genus Tlialarctos Gray. 2. The Black bear type, subgenus Euarctos Gray. 3. The Grizzly bear type, Ursus horribllis and its allies, sub- genus Danis Gray. 4. The Sitka bear type, Ursus sitkensis nob. and U. dalli nob. 5. The Kadiak or Alaska Peninsula bear, Ursus middendorffi nob. The five groups are unequally related : the Polar bear belongs to an independent genus ; the Black bears are more different from the others, taken collectively, than the latter are from one 11— Biol. Soc. Wash., Voi,. X, 1896 (65) 60 Mevfiam — Preliininar)j Sijnopsis of American Bears. another, and seem to 1)6 the only ones whose distinctive char- acters are of sufficient weight to entitle them to subgeneric recognition. 1. The Polar or Ice bear, Thalardos maritimus (Linn.), inhabits the Arctic shores and islands of both continents and has not been subdivided. 2. The Black bears may be separated into at least 4 species having more or less circumscribed geographic ranges : (a) the common Black bear, Ursus americanus Pallas; (6) the Louisiana bear, Ursus lateolus Griffith ; (c) the Florida bear, Ursus floridanus nob.; and (^d) the St. Elias bear, Ursus emmonsi Dall. Some of these may he found to intergrade, and Ursus americanus may be still further split into subspecies. Ursu.8 emmonsi, recentl}^ de- scribed 1)}' Dr. Dall as a ' variety ' of americanus,^ I have not seen. From the description it appears to be a distinct species. 3. The Grizzly bears (including the Barren Ground bear) may be separated into -i more or less well-marked forms, as follows: (a) the true Grizzly, Ursus horribiUs Ord, from the northern Rocky Mountains; (/>) the Sonoran Grizzl}^, ' var. horri;eus^ Baird, ^jrob- ably only a subspecies ; (c) the Norton Sound, Alaska, Grizzl\% probably another subspecies ; (d.) the very distinct Barren Ground bear, Ursus richardsoni Mayne Reid. \\lietlier or not the large CJrizzly from southern California deserves subspecific separation from the Sonoran animal {horrifeus) has not been determined. 4. The Sitka bear, Ursus sitkensis nob., and the allied Yakutat bear, Ursus dalli nob., are the representatives of a ver}' distinct type. They resemble the Grizzlies in the flatness of their skulls, but are much larger, are different in color, have more curved fore- claws, and the Sitka bear has a different t\'pe of sectorial tooth. The Yakutat bear is much larger than the Sitka bear and has very different teeth. It may represent an independent section. 5. The Kadiak and Alaska Peninsula bear, Ursus middendorffi nob., is the largest of living bears and differs markedly'' from all other American species. It closely resembles the Great Brown bear of Kamschatka, Ursus heringiana Middendorff,t which it only slightly exceeds in size. The extraordinary elevation and narrowness of the foreiiead suffice to distinguish this bear from all other known species (PI IV, fig. 2). The number of full species of North American bears here recog- * Science, NS.,vol. II, No. 30, p. 87, July 26, 1895. t Ursus beringiana Middendorff, 1851 = Ursus piscator Pucheran, 1855. Both are from Kamschatka. Preliminarij Si/)iopsis of American Bears. 6*7 nized is ten : 4 of the Black Bear ,^roup ; 2 of the Grizzly groii}) ; 3 of the hi"' Brown bears of Alaska, and the Polar hear. In addition to the splendid series of skulls of l)ig bears in our National' Collection and those in m^^ ])rivate collection, I have been fortunate in having a number of others loaned me for study. For these I am indeljted to the courtesy of Mr. Archibald Rogers, of Hyde Park, N. Y., Mr. W. Hallett Phillii)s, of Washington, D. C, and IVfr. John Fannin, Curator of the Provincial Museum at Victoria, British Colund^ia. I wish further to express my ap- preciation of the efforts of Mr. Charles H. Townsend and Mr. J. Stanley-Brown, and also of Mr. Rudolph Neumann, of the Alaska Commercial Company, in securing skulls of big bears from vari- ous points in Alaska. The present paper, which is intended merely as a preliminary announcement of results, to be followed later l)y a more com- prehensive treatise on our bears, is based almost wholly on a study of skulls and teeth. INIuch additional material is desired, particularly from northern British Columbia and the coast region of Alaska south of the Alaska peninsula. The external characters — color, length and curvature of claws, length of tail and ears, proportions of feet, and so on — are doubt- less of great importance and probably afford many excellent land- marks in difl'erentiating the several species, but unfortunately no series of skins is available for comparison. No museum in the world contains such a series, and any person who will aid in collecting and preserving the necessary material will advance the science of mammalogy. It is known in a general way that the Grizzlies have longer and straighter claws than the big Brown bears of Alaska, and that the animals differ materially in color, but the nature and extent of these differences are unknown. The Bears present a surprisingly wide range of individual variation in cranial and dental characters, and the sexes difler greatly in size, the males being much the larger and possessing heavier teeth. The material at my command comprises upwards of 200 skulls, covering all known and several previously unrec- ognized North American species, and has the rare advantage of containing large series from single localities, one such series con- sisting of no less than 95 skulls. These series show that, in ad- dition to sexual variation and the changes in form and size resulting from difference in age, there is a large range of indi- vidual variation in the size, shape, and proportions of the cranium and teeth. Thev show also that this variation, great as it is, has 08 Mcrrlam — Preliiiiiaarij Synopfils of American Bears. definite limits beyond which it does not pass, and that excellent and constant characters exist by which the several species and subspecies may be recognized. Sexual difference in size is most conspicuous in the Grizzlies, though it is marked in the Black bears also. In the latter the disproportion is greater in the teeth than in the skull ; in the female the molar teeth are much smaller, narrower, and less massive than in the male. Individual variation in the teeth is the rule, and the amount of this variation is surprising, affecting the number and relations of the accessory cusps, and also the form and proportions of the fourth upper and lower premolars, and the great posterior ' heel' of the last upper molar. As is well known, the bears normally have 12 teeth, the dental lormula bemg 7— , c— -, P'^^^-> h 1 4 -1= 1^ = 42. Tbe first three premolars above and l)elow, howe^'er, are small and nearly functionless, and several of them usually fall out before the animal attains maturity, so that adult skulls rarely contain more than 36 or 38 teeth. In the Grizzlies, Barren Ground, Yakutat, and Kadiak bears the first ^ lower molar (rn ,) has one or more cusps or tubercles on the inner side between tlie middle and posterior cusps (fig. 6,'^), no trace of which exists in the Black bears (fig. 6,'). These intermediary cusps are absent Fig. 6.-Lowercarnassiai tooth (wi) also iu the Sitka bear (fig. 6,1) In and last premolar. |.j-^g Grizzlics and their allies the pos- z. B\ac^^hear{Ursusamer^canus). ^^j.^^^. (, (inner and OUtcr) are 2. Sitka bear ( Utsus sitkensis). ^ ^. Qr\zz\yh&&r{u,-stis hoiribiiis^. nearly oiDpositc ; in the Blacks they are more oblique. Examination of the molar teeth in several hundred bear skulls shows beyond question not only that the last upper molar de- creases in size markedly (and probably rapidly) after the wear- ing down of the crown has passed a certain plane, but also that the length of tlie molariform series as a whole in both jaws shortens materially. No ga])S are left between the teetli, the wear being compensated 1)}^ a movement from behind forward which keeps the crowns continually in contact. Prelhiiinari/ Sijnopsis of American Bears. G9 Key to the Big Bears op America. Molars small and weak ; pin * with inner cusp obso- lete or small ; m - without decided heel genus Thalarctos. Color, white Thalarctos marUbnus. INIolars large and powerful ; pm * with inner cusp strongly developed ; m ' with enormous heel genus Ursus. Size huge. Size largest (skull reaching 440 mm. in greatest length); frontal region enormous!}' elevated above and behind orbits Ursus mlddendorffi. Size somewhat smaller (skull less than 425 in great- est length) ; frontal region nearly flat. pm * very large and quadrituberculate ; pm ^ large and high without heel ; m j without clear interspace on inner side Ursus dalli. pm * normal ; pm 4 moderate, normally with cusp on cinguhim in front of main cusp ; m 1 with clear intersiiace on inner side .... Ur.v(s siikensis. Size medium or relatively small. Temporal impressions turning in abruptly from postorbital jirocesses, nearly at right angle to cranial axis ; skull short Ursus richardsoni. Temporal impressions not turning in abruptly from postorbital processes; skull longer. Frontal elevated and usually convex between postorbital processes Ursus hurribilis. Frontal flattened and concave between post- orliital processes Ursus horrissus. Ursus mlddendorffi sp. nov. Kadiak Bear. PI. IV, figs. 2, 3 ; pi. V, fig. 2 ; pi. VI, fig. 2. Type from Kadiak Island, Alaska, No. 54793, S" ad., U. S. Nat. Mus., Dept. Agric. coll. Collected July 3, 1893, by B. J. Bretherton. (Original No. 176.) Cfmracters. — Size huge; largest of living bears, though only slightly larger than Ursus beringiana MiddendorfF, from Kamschatka ; frontal re- gion in male enormously elevated, highly arched, and relatively narrow ; zygomata bowed outward to an extraordinary degree; postzygomatic part of skull very short. The bear of Kadiak Island needs comparison with only a single spe- cies— Ursus beringiana, of Kamschatka. It requires no comparison with the American Grizzlies ( I'rsus liorribiUs Ord) or with the Barren Ground bear ( Ursus richardsoni Mayne Reid). Contrasted with the Kam- schatka bear the forehead of the male is very much higher, more swollen above and l)ehind the postorbital processes, narrower, and more rounded ; 70 Mcrriam — Preliminary Si/nopsis of American Bears. Fig. 7. - Kadiak Bear. Ursiis niiddendorffi. the zygomatic arches are more strongly bowed outward and their pos- terior roots stand out at nearly a right angle to the cranial axis; the interpterygoid fossa is longer ; the ascending ai-ms of the premaxilke are shorter; the jugal is more extended anteriorly, reaching up in front of the lachrymal foramen [in brrliigiana it falls consid- eral)ly short of this fora- men]. The audital bulla3 differ strongly in young skulls of the two species, though they come to re- semble one another more in okl age. In the young of the Kadiak animal they are very much heavier, more convex inferiorly, and broader at the outer or meatus end. In the adult female the skull is relatively more elongated than in the male, and the frontal region is less elevated. The first upper and last lower molars (particularly the latter) are de- cidedly smaller in the Kadiak animal, while the middle lower molar is nearly the same size in both species. The lower carnassial has strong intermediary cusps or tubercles, as in the Grizzlies. Measurements of skull of type. — Greatest length of ci'anium (front of pre- maxillary to end of occipital crest), 440; greatest basal length (gnathion to occipital condyles), 392 ; basal length (gnathion to basion), 377 ; basilar length of Hensel, 370; zygomatic breadth, 277; occipito-sphenoid lengtli (basion to suture between basi- and presphenoid ), 1 05 ; postpalatal length, 107; basion to plane of front of last upper molar, 238 ; interorbital breadth, 98; distance between postorbital processes, 132.5; occipi to-nasal length, 358 ; height of brain case above pterygoid, 160 ; height of brain case above basisphenoid, 123. Remarks. — Compared with Ursus beringiana.^ skulls of adult U. viiddendorffi can be distinguished at a glance b}^ the difference in the breadtli of the frontal and the degree of elevation of the supraorbital region. Skulls of any age may be distinguished by the peculiarit}' of the anterior end of the jugal, whicli in the Kadiak animal reaches upward to articulate with the lachrymal, *Ur8m arclos var. heringiana'Middendnrif, ITntersuchungen an iSch.ideln des gemeinen Landbiiren, p. 74, 1851. Preliminary Sjjnopsis of American Bears. 71 and also by the smaller size of the first upper and last lower molars. The difference in the posterior ending of the ascending arm of the premaxilla also furnishes a good average character. In the Kadiak bear the premaxillee rarely reach more than half way up the vertical height of the orbit, while in the Kamschatka animal they usually reach consideraljly more than half way. The shape of the zygomatic arch as seen from the side differs in the two. In the Kadiak bear it is more highly arched and broader, especially posteriorly. The difference is more marked in the young than in adults. The claws of the fore feet of Ursiis middcndorffi are long and rather strongly decurved on the distal third. Those of the Grizzly {Ursus horrihilis) are still longer and much straighter. The longest claw of an old male middcndorffi killed at Kadiak Island, June 18, 1894, and measured for me by Mr. B. J. Brether- ton, measured over the convexity of the claw 96 mm., while the distance in a straight line from base to tip on the under side was only 74 mm. I have named this bear in honor of the celeljrated Russian naturalist, Dr. A. Th. von Middendorff, in recognition of his early struggles with the large bears of the shores of Bering Sea. INIid- dendorff named the big bear of Kamschatka Ursus hcrirKjinva;^ and stated tliat he was particularly struck witli a skull from Kadiak which was distinguished l)y its su})erior size. It seems fit that the great Kadiak Ijear, proving distinct from the Kam- schatka animal, should perpetuate Middendorff 's name. I have examined 16 skulls of this bear. Ursus dalli sp. nov. Yakutat Bear. PI. V, fig. 1 ; pi. VI, lig. 5. Tijpe fi-oiii Yakutat Bay, Alaska, No. 7504S, r^ old, IJ. S. Nat. Museum, Dept. Agriculture coll. Collected Sept. 8, lSt)5, by the chief of the Yaku- tat Indians. (Procured through Albin Johnson. Original No. 2.) Characters. — Size huge, only slightly less ihan the Kadiak bear; skull long and massive; frontals rather flat and only slightly elevated above orbits ; postorbital processes strongly developed and decurved in old age ; paroccipital processes very large and heavy, but relatively short. Molari- form teeth large and heavy ; pm * extraordinarily large and high, nearly as broad as long, quadrituberculate (an accessory cusp on inner side in front of postero-internal cusp) ; m ^ much as in the Grizzlies, the inter- *Ur.ms arctos var. beringkma Middendorff, Untersuchungen an Schiideln des gemeinen Landbiiren, p. 74, 1851. 72 Merriam — Preliminary Si/nojjsis of American Bears. space between anterior and posterior parts of tootli on inner side filled by one or more cusplets ; ni ^ large and broad, with heel elongate and broadly ronnded posteriorly in male ; shorter and more obliquely truncated in \ :> Fig. 8.— Teeth of Yakutat Bear {Ursus dalli), natural size. a. I^ast upper premolar. b. First upper molar. j^_^ c. I^ast lower premolar. d. First lower molar. female ; pm ^ large and high, without distinct heel, the main cusp occu- pying nearly the whole crown of the tooth ; a strongly developed peg-like accessory cus]) usually present on inner side of main cusp a little behind the middle. Meamremeiits of skull of type. — Greatest length of cranium (front of pre- maxillary to end of occipital crest), 42-4 ; greatest basal length (gnathion to occipital condyles), 400 ; basal length (gnathion to basion), ;^66 ; basilar length of Hensel, 360 ; zygomatic breadth, 269 ; occipito-sphenoid length (basion to suture between basi- and presphenoid), 107 ; postpalatal length, 172 ; basion to plane of front of last upper molar, 242 ; interorbital breadth, 92 ; distance between postorbital processes, 134 ; occipito-nasal length, 360; height of brain case above pterygoid, 148; height of brain- case above basisphenoid, 117. Fig. 9. — Yakutat Bear (i'lsus dalli). Remarks. — The Yakutat bear is almost as large as tlie fireat bear of Kadiak and the Alaska peninsula. In fact the total length of the skull from the occipital condyles to front of in- Preliminary Synopsis of American Bears. 73 cisors and the length of the top of the sknll (oceipito-nasal length) are both slightly greater in Ursus dalli. Adult skulls may be distinguished at a glance by the general form, the frontal region of dalli being flattened, while that of middendorjfj is highly arched, and young skulls by the dental characters above men- tioned. I have examined five skulls from Yakutat bay. It gives me pleasure to name this splendid bear in honor of Dr. Wm. H. Dall, whose name must ever be associated with the natural history of Alaska. Ursus sitkensis sp. nov. Sitka Bear, n. IV, Fig. 1 ; pi. V, fig. 3. Type from coast near Sitka, Alaska, No. 6543, Merriam coll. Collected by an Indian ; purchased at Sitka and i>resented to me by Mr. J. Stanley- Brown. Characters. — Size large, but smaller than Ursus daUi ; claws long; skull long and heavy, similar to that of dalli, but less massive ; frontals flat ; postorbital processes well developed, but shorter and less decurved than in dalli; paroccipital processes much longer and more slender than in dalli; incisors, canines, and last premolai- large; molars relatively small ; pm * normal (trituberculate) and very much longer than broad ; m j with an open interspace on inner side between anterior and posterior cusps (fig. 6 ^), much as in subgenus Euarctos, thus dififerhig widely from all other big bears of America ; m '^ decidedly smaller than in dalli ; pm ^ with nor- mally a distinct and rather large cusp on cingulum in front and slightly on inner side of main cusp. Measnremrnts of skull of type. — Greatest length of cranium (front of pi-e- maxillary to end of occipital crest), 39.1; greatest basal length (gnathion to occipital condyles), 345; basal length (gnathion to basion), 329; basilar length of Hensel, 322; zygomatic breadth, 243 ; occipito-sphenoid length (basion to suture between basi- and presphenoid), 73; postpalatal length, 129 ; basion to plane of front of last upper molar, 211 ; interorbital breadth, 85 ; distance between postorbital processes, 123 ; occipito-nasal length, 340 ; height of brain case above pterygoids, 140 ; height of brain case above basisphenoid, 105. , Remarks. — The Sitka bear resembles the Yakutat bear in gen- eral appearance, but is decidedly smaller and differs widely in dental characters. It lacks the excessive development of the last upper premolar which characterizes Ursus dcdli, and the first lower molar is unique among the large bears, lacking the tu- bercles that are present in all the others between the anterior and posterior parts of the tooth. In this respect the tooth ap- proaches, though it does not really resemble, that of the Black bears. 12— Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 1896 74 Merriam — Preliminary Synopsis of American Bears. A skull purchased from an Indian at Sitka in 1889 by Mr. Charles H. Townsend differs from the other Sitka skulls. It is larger and longer and has decidedly smaller molar teeth. The exact locality where this bear was killed is uncertain, but Mr. Townsend was told that it came from the mainland a little north of Sitka. I have examined 7 skulls of the Sitka bear. Ursus horribilis Ord. Grizzly Bear. PL IV, fig. 4; pi. V, fig. 4; pi. VI, fig. 1. Ursus hornbilis Ord, Guthrie's Geography, 2d Am. edition, vol. II, pp. 291, 299-300, 1815. [Rhoads' reprint, 1894.] Based on the Grizzly bear of Lewis and Clarke. Tifpe locality. — Montana. Geogvaphlc distribution. — Northern Rocky IMountains from Wyoming and northern Utah northward; also whole of interior British Columbia and thence northwestward in the interior to Norton Sound, Alaska. Characters. — Size large (larger than Ursus richardsoni, but smaller than any of the Alaska bears) ; fore claws nearly straight, larger than in any other species, and whitish ; hairs elon- gated over the shoul- ders, giving almost the eflfect of a ' hump ' ; skull and teeth large and massive; frontal region elevated above orbits and highest be- hind postorbital pro- cesses ; temporal im- pressions strongly curved, usually meet- ing over hinder end of frontals, and not elevated anteriorly to form ridges. Looked at from in front the frontals are normally elevated and convex between the post- orbital processes, hiding the sagittal crest (fig. 12), while in the California and Sonora Grizzlies this part of the skull is flattened and depressed, and the temporal ridges and beginning of the sagittal crest may be seen (figs. 11 and 15). Remarks. — The Norton Sound, Alaska, Grizzly, compared with true Ursus horribilis from the Rocky Mountains, differs slightl}^ in cranial and dental characters and will probably merit sub- specific separation as Ursus horribilis alascensis. It is somewhat larger, the frontal region is furrowed antero-posteriorly between the orbits, the palate averages longer, and the blade of the coro- noid process of the mandible is narrower; the first lower molar is broader posteriori}- and is much more abruptly and deeply Fig. 10. — Grizzly Bear {{'rsi/s lion ihilis). From Wj-oining. Preliminary Synopsis of American Bears. 75 narrowed on the outer side immediately in front of tlie posterior cusp. Except in a single skull (an old male from the Shaktolik Riv'er, No. 76470), the combined length of the basioccipital and basisphenoid along the median line is decidedly less than half the length of the palate. In the Rocky Mountain Grizzly the occipito-sphenoid length is decidedly greater than half the length of the palate. Ursus horribilis horriaeus Baird. Sonora Grizzly. PL IV, fig. 5 ; pi. V, fig. 6 ; pi. VI, fig. 4. C/rsH.s horribilis var. horriaeus Baird, Rept. Mexican Boundary Survey, II, Mammals, pp. 24-29, 1859. Type locality. — Coppermines, southwestern New Mexico. Geographic distribution. — Southern Rocky Mountains and outlying peaks and ranges in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona (and probably south- ern Utab), northern IVIexico, and southern California. The type locality is the old Coppermines, near the Rio Mimbres, in Grant Co., New Mex. Fig. II. — Sonora Grizzly from the Copper- mines, New Mexico. Baird's type. Fig. 12 -Rocky Mountain Grizzly from Wvomincf. Characters.— Size large; skull and teeth large and massive; frontal region not elevated above or behind orbits, highest at, and flattened and concave between, postorbital processes; temporal impressions straight or nearly straight, meeting considerably anterior to hinder end of frontals, and elevated anteriorly to form well-defined ridges or crests (PI. 6, fig. 4). Remarks. — Professor Baird in his original description of hor- riaeus had three specimens — an adult skin and skull from Nogales, Sonora, and both adult and young skulls from the Cop- permines, New Mexico. The adult from tlie latter locality (No. 990) is here chosen as the type because it is the one used by Baird in his comparisons, and the only one of which he gave a 76 Merriiim, — Prellinlnary Synojisls of American Bears. table of measurements. The Nogales skull is higher with refer- ence to its length and differs in other particulars, as shown in the accompanying illustrations (figs. 13 and 14). Fig. 13. — Baird's type of horriirus from the Copper- mines, New Mexico. Fig. 14. -Baird's Nogales specimen. The huge Grizzly of southern California, wliieh unfortunately is rapidly approaching extinction, differs in some respects from the t3'i)ical Sonora Grizzh' and may be entitled to stand as sul)species cal'i- fornicus. It is larger, the skull averages longer, and the teeth are of greater size. I have not been able to compare skins of the two forms, but Prof. Baird states that there are color differences ; that the So- nora animal lacks the stripes of the California bear, and that the ears Fig. i5.-California Grizzly from Monterey. ^^-^^\ l.^[\ j^yg both short and essentiallv of the same length, while in the California bear the Preliminary Synopsis of American Bears. 77 ears are twice as long as the tail. The average basilar length of six skulls from Monterey and old Fort Tejon, California, is 336 mm., while the average of two adult males from New Mexico is only 310. The average of four adult male horribilis from the northern Rocky Mountains is 316 mm. But the numbers here averaged are too small to afford reliable results. Ursus richardsoni INIayne Reid. Barren Ground Bear. PI. IV, flg. 6 ; pi. V, fig. 5 ; pi. VI, fig. 3. Urstis ridiardsonii Mayne Reid, Bruin : The Grand Bear Hunt. London, 1860. Am. ed., pp. 260-2()l. 18(U. Type locality — Great Slave Lake, Arctic America. Geographic dislribution. — Harren grounds between Hudson Bay and the Mackenzie River. Characters. — Size smallest of the American big bears; skull short; zygomata broadly spreading; temporal ridges conspicuous and turning abruptly inward from postorbital processes (fig. 17); teeth large and broad. Adult skulls of the Barren Ground bear may be known from all other species by the form of the frontal shield, which is truncated pos- teriorly l)y the temporal crests (figs. 10 and 17). The temporal crests, beginning on the posterior edge of the largeh- developed ]iostorbital processes, run toward the median line, forming Fig. i6. Fig. i7- Barren Ground Be^r [Ursus richardsoni), .showing high sagittal crest and abruptly spreading temporal ridges. nearly a right angle with the cranial axis, as shown in the accompanying illustrations. The postorbital processes are long and peg-like and flat- tened on top. The sagittal crest is correspondingly elongated, reaching forward beyond the middle of the frontals and measuring more than half as much as the upper surface of the skull. The muzzle is short and 78 Merrlam — Prellminav]/ Synoiysls of American Bears. slightly upturned, givin. f Aiton, Hort. Kew., 3, 288, 1789. ICoult. Bot. Gaz., 1. c. Violets of the Atlantic Coast. 89 applying to it the original specific name villosa, to which he ap- pends the abbreviation " n. var." It is certainly one of the mar- vels of systematic botan}- that a plant described by Walter in 1788 as Viola villosa should be able to reappear, first as V. cucul- lata var. cordata in 1867, and then as V. palmata var. villosa, " n. var." in 1895 ! Tbe species has an early blooming period, and may be found on dry hillsides, usually in rich soil, alwa3^s distinguishable on account of its leaves, which are round-cordate, almost orbicular in outline, and lie closely impressed on the ground ; they are variegated with purple veins beneath, and exhibit a delicate, silvery pul)escence. The flowers are rather small, reddish-purple in hue, and the plant sends up l)ut few leaves and flowers from a simple rootstock. Viola sagittata, another of Alton's species, has received uni- versal acceptance, but it has also been made to include some forms for which we can find no warrant in the original descrip- tion. The leaves are there referred to as " unequally and re- motely serrate, incised-sinuate below the middle, subpubescent, cordate-sagittate, oblong." * This seems sufficiently clear for all practical purposes, and yet in one of our Ijotanical text-books. V. sagittata is described as follows : " Smoothish or hairy ; leaves on short and margined, or the later often on long and naked petioles, varying from oblong-heart-shaped to halberd-shajied, arrow-shaped, oblong-lanceolate or ovate, denticulate, sometimes cut-toothed near the base." Such a description is not merely faulty but false. The author of the species states distinctly that the leaves are " incised-sinuate below the middle;" yet when a student learns that they are "sometimes cut-toothed near the base," as stated above, he is apt to mistake ty})e for variation, gaining, accordingly, an incor- rect conception of the species ; and this is precisely what has ha})|)ened in the case of V. sagittata. The plant which Alton had in mind is far less common than is generally supposed. It has rather ol)tuse sagittate or hastate glabrous leaves, which although at first borne on ])etioles scarcely exceeding the scapes, soon become greatly elongated, the petiole attaining a length of twice or thrice that of the blade, the base of which is always sharply dentate or deeply incised. Even at the early vernal stage the smooth leaf with its peculiar base serves to differentiate *A literal translation. See Alton, 1. c. 00 Po Hard— 1 7o Id^ of the At laid ic Coast. the plant from V. ovata Niitt., with which it is always confounded. Both species have the first three or four leaves oval and entire or merely crenate, but before flowering, V. ovata puts forth its characteristic strongly pubescent or even villous foliage, the regu- larly shaped, almost entire, ovate-elliptical leaves never becom- ing so elongated as to exceed either flowering or fruiting scape. Viola ovata Nuttall is I'', ciliata of Muhlenberg's Catalogue,* well described and differentiated afterward by Darlington and other writers and retained by Torrey and Gray as a variety of sagittata. The plant which I last year described as another va- riety of sa(jittata, under the name of Hicksu,f is much closer to ovata tlian to tlie true sagittata as now understood, and I take this opportunity of indicating its transfer, retaining it under the varietal name. Dr. Robinson, in the Synoptical Flora above quoted, J remarks in connection witli this form that the recurved fruiting peduncles and distinctly mottled seeds "are not infre- quently associated with quite different foliage." However this may be, specimens have been sent to Prof. C. F. Wheeler, of Michigan, and to Dr. T. J. W. Burgess, of Canada, both of whom have admitted it to be distinct from Avhat they are accustomed to regard as typical sagittata. We have it in the National Her- Ijarium from Pennsylvania and from Sussex county. New Jer- sey, in addition to the original localit}^ near Pierce's Mill, in the District of Columbia. Pursh's Viola dentata, here reinstated, is a plant to which my attention was called by Dr. Britton some time ago as a species Tof marked validity. The leaves in this plant are glabrous and somewhat flaccid, deltoid-cordate, or even panduriform in out- line, irregularly crenate, and in general so unlike those of the ordinary violets with which it is associated tliat it has been con- sidered a hybrid. Le Conte [)ointed out tliese characters, under his name of eiiiargiiiata, sixteen years after Pursh's original pub- lication. The plant is mainly of southern range. A t\q)ical specimen of it, collected by Dr. John K. Small in northern Geor- gia in 1S05, is to be found in tlie herl)arium of Columbia Uni- versity. In the National Herbarium the species is represented by a ])lant found in the District of Columbia 1\y Dr. Yasey. It will l)e observed that eight species of tlie eastern acaulescent * Muhl. Cat., 26, 1818, without synonymy or description. tConlt. Bot. Gaz., 20 : 32G, 1895. 1 1, 1 : 197, foot-note. Violets of the Atlantic Coast. 91 puv})le-flowere(l violets are here maintained as distinct. Pursli and .Schweinitz, two of the earliest authorities in this century, recognized each ten species, Nuttall accepted six, Le Conte thir- teen, and Torrey and Gray six. In the first edition of the INIan- ual, Gra}^ admits hut four species, in the second five, and in the fifth and sixth editions three only. In the most recently pub- lished work, the Synoptical Flora, above referred to, there are included three species and four varieties. It seems obvious that the most logical course of procedure for a conservative botanist is the reduction of all possible forms to the Linn^an species 2:)almata, for the differences between pahaata and sagitiata, the validity of both of which is everywhere admitted, are scarcely more than those l^etween any others of this group selected for comparison. Synopsis of Species. -^ Leaves all pedately divided ; rootstock short and al)nii)tly perjiendicular I', pedata. Leaves broadly lobed or undivided ; rootstock ascendinu- or horizontal. Pleads glabrous or tvitit, verji sliglit pubescence : Leaves somewhat pinnately 7-lobed T'. septemloba. Leaves deltoid-cordate or panduriform V. dentata. Leaves hastate or sa,ti;ittate, basally incised. . . T'. sagiitain. Leaves cordate-cucullate V. obliijua. Pl/ails pubescent or rnions : Leaves pahnately lobed b. pedmaln. Leaves ovate or oval T'. ovata. Leaves cordate-orlncular T". villosa. Viola pedata L., Sp. PI. 933, 1753. f Not of subsequent authors. r. pedata bicolor Pursh, tide Raf. in D. C, Prodr. 1 : 291, 1824. Viola pedata inornata Greene, Pitt. 3 : 35, 1896. V. pedata of autliors, not of L. * In this connection it should be stated that V. pedatificla Don, which is closely related to V. ]>ed(da, is omitted as not belonging strictly to our coast. tProf. E. L. Greene has proved that the type of the Linnpean pedcd.a must have been a i)lant of the bicolor variety rather than the mono- colored form which we are accustomed to regard as pedata. This is con- clusively shown by an examination of the plate of Plukenet to which Linnaeus refers. 92 Pollard — Violets of the Atlantic Coast. Viola palmata L., Sp. Tl. 933, 1753. Viola he(n-oplnjUaMn\\\., Cat. 25, 1813. Viola pahnata var. d. heterophi/Ua Ell., Bot. S. C. and Ga., 1 : 300, 1817. Viola triloba Schwein., Am. Jourii. Sci., 5 : 57, 1822, in part. Viola cacullata var. palmata A. Gray, Man. Ed., 5:78, 1867. Viola septemloba Le Conte, Ann. N. Y. Lye, 2: 141, 1828. Viola obliqua Hill, Hort. Kevv., 316, t. 12, 1769. Not Pursli, 1812. Viola cucullata Ait., Hort. Kew., 3 : 288, 1789, in i^art. Viola asarifolia Pursh, Fl. Am., Sept. Suppl., 732, 1812, in part. Viola papilionacea Pursh, Fl. Am., Sept., 1 : 173, 1812, in part. Viola affiais Le Conte, Ann. N. Y. Lye, 2 : 138, 1828, in part. Viola congener Le Conte, Ann. N. Y. Lye, 2: 140, 1828, in part. Viola palmata var. cucullata A. Gray, Coult. Bot. Gaz., 11 : 254, 1886. Viola palmata var. obliqua A. S. Hitclic, Trans. St. Louis Acad., 5:487,1891. Viola villosa Walt., Fl. Car., 219, 1788. Viola fiororia Willd., Hort. Berol, 1 : 72, 1809. Viola villosa var. b. cordifolia Nutt., Gen. 148, 1818, in part. Viola cucullata var. cordata A. Gray, Man. Ed., 5 : 78, 1867. Viola palmata villosa Rohinson, Syn. Fl. N. Am., I, 1 : 196, 1895. Viola dentata Pursh, Fl. Am., Sept., 1 : 172, 1812. Viola sag Utata var. b. emarginata Nutt., Gen. 148, 1818. Viola emarginata Le Conte, Ann. N. Y. Lye, 2 : 142, 1828. Viola sagittata Ait., Hort. Kew., 3: 287, 1789. Viola ovata Nutt., Gen. 148, 1818. Viola primuUfolia'P\w^\\,'E\. Am., Sept., 1: 173, 1812, not V. pvimu- Isefolia L., 1753. Viola ciliata Muhl., Cat. 26, 1813, without description or synonj'my. Viola sagittata var. b. ovata T. and G., Fl. N. Am., 1 : 138, 1838. Viola ovata Hicksii Pollard. Viola sagittata Hicksii Pollard, Coult. Bot. Gaz., 20:326, 1895. Vol. y, pp. 93-101 May 28, 1896 PPxOCEEDINGS OF THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON LT8T OF MAMMALS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. BY VERNON BAILEY. Useful lists of the plants and l;)irds of the District of Columbia have long since l)een published, but no list of the mammals of the District has as 3"et ajipeared. Some species are known to have become locally extinct, and it is probable that others, of which we have no record, have vanished since the settlement of the country. The present list, imperfect as it is, may serve as a nucleus around which to gather additional data, and may prove useful as a guide in determining the changes thai are constantly taking place in the relative abundance of species. Corrections and additional notes, with as exact data as possible, are re- quested. To limit the list to species occurring within the present bound- ary of the District would throw out some that a few years ago were common where the city of Washington now stands ; but by following the botanists and ornithologists in the use of a circu- lar area with a radius of 20 miles and the Capitol as a center, all of the local species may be included. Probably this circle could be narrowed to half its diameter without leaving out a species. In preparing this list my own observations have been supple- mented by field-notes kindly placed at my disposal by several mammalogists who have done more or less field-work in the vicinity of AVashington, mainly during the past 10 years, fcach note is referred in the text to its proper authority ; but I wish to express my thanks to Mr. Morris M. Green, Dr. C. Hart Mer- riam, Dr. A. K. Fisher, and Mr. E. A. Preble for assistance. During the years 1888 and 1889 Mr. Green collected 18 species 15 — Rior.. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 1890 (93) 94 Bailey — Mammals of the District of Colamhia. of mammals within a mile or two of the cit3^ I do not know of a larger list of species taken in the District by one person. As m}^ own acquaintance with the 1)ats of the District has been limited to early spring and late fall, most of the notes on this group are borrowed. Through the kindness of Mr. F. W. True I am able to include 2 species of bats from National Mu- seum specimens collected in the prescribed area. In regard to the larger mammals known to have once inhal)- ited the region, but at present locally extinct, much valuable data is available ; but for the present pa})er a brief list of extinct species will suffice. The following 7 si)ecies have disappeared from the region since the coming of white men : Ursus ameri- ' canus, Canis nuhilis, Fells concolor, Castor canadensis, Cervus can- adensis, Bison bison, Mas rattus. The last-named species was introduced and then disappeared before its rival, Mas decumanns. The following 38 species are known to occur at the present time within 20 miles from the Capitol and most of them within the District limits : Didelphis virginianus. Opossums are common in the woods around Washington, where their tracks may be seen on the banks of every creek and pond. The stupid animals even wander into the city. In the spring of 189.4 I found one sleeping on the bi-anch of a tree near Connecticut Avenue, on the hill east of Rock Creek. Sciuiopterus volans. Flying Squirrels have been found in the woods on all sides of the city. Though strictly nocturnal and rarely seen, ex- cept when driven from their nests in hollow trees or caught in traps set over night on logs or stumps in the woods, they are not rare. In 1888 and 1889 Mr. Green found several pairs living in woodpecker holes in the trees along Rock Creek and others in the woods near the Soldiers' Home and along the Eastern Branch. Mr. Preble found them rather common at Mt. Vernon, where he secured 8 specimens one day by pounding on hoi low trees and shooting the squirrels as they ran ont of the holes. One was caught in a trap I had set for wood rats near the west end of Chain Bridge. But for the numerous cats that run wild in the woods, and to wliich flying squirrels fall an easy prey, these soft- furred, big-eyed, gentle little heauties would be much more common. Sciiiius hudsonicus. Red Squirrels are frequently seen among the trees in the Zoological Park, Avhere they show their appreciation of the protection there offered by becoming unusually tame and unsuspicious. They cross Rock Creek and follow the trees to the top of the hill above High Bridge. In Woodley Park they are less frequently seen ; in fact, the only one I saw there during the past winter had been shot and then shaken by a dog and left lying in the path with his bright winter coat torn and soiled. On the west side of the Potomac red squirrels live along the steep, wooded bluffs, but are so shy that lately while running a line Mammals of the District of Columbia. 95 of traps among the rocks I did not see a live one. A few low chr-r-r-r-s were heard, chestnut shells were found on logs and rocks, and one unfor- tunate squirrel got his neck in a trap I had set under the rocks for a Neotoma. Mr. Preble tells me they are common at Marshall Hall, and I have several times heard them in the swamj^s near Hj^attsville. Sciurus carplinensis. Gray Squirrels range up to the edge of the city wherever there is timber, and sometimes wander into the city parks. ]\Ir. Preble saw one in the Smitlisonian grounds in 1S94. I have seen them back of Mt. Pleasant and on the east side of Rock Creek, just above Con- necticut Avenue bridge. They are not uncommon tlirougliout the exten- sive forest area of the Zoological, Rock Creek, and Woodley parks. In the grounds of tlie Soldiers' Home they are abundant and unusually tame. They are common at Mt. Vernon and Marshall Hall and along the Vir- ginia side of the Potomac above Georgetown, but except in the parks where protected from hunters they are exceedingly shy and rarely seen! The extensive areas of native forest, with old hollow walnut, butternut, hickory, chestnut, beech, and oak trees, offer a paradise of safe retreats and abundant food for squii'rels, and as long as the.se forest areas remain, so will the furry-coats. Sciurus cinereus. Fox Squirrels are not common in the immediate vicinitj' of Washington, but many are shipped to Center Market from points in Virginia 30 or 40 miles west of the city, and in Dr. Merriani's collection are several specimens from Laurel, Md. Tamias striatus. Chipmunks are scai'ce in the immediate vicinity of the city, probably owing to the cats, dogs, and boys. I have seen a few in the Zoological Park and the Soldiers' Home grounds, and lately caught one and heard others on the west side of the Potomac, above Chain Bridge. Mr. Preble has found them rather conunon at Mt. Vernon. Dr. Fisher reports them from Munson Hill and Arlington, Va. ; Sligo, Piney Branch, Silver Springs, and Sandy Springs, Md. Arctomys monax. Woodchucks are still common on both sides of the Pi>tomac River above Chain Bridge and on High Island and the little island just above, to which Dr. Merriam has given the appropriate name ' Woodt'huck Island.' Six or seven years ago Dr. Fisher found them a couple of miles lower down on the cliffs on the west side of the river be- low Chain Bridge and on the flats on the east side between the river and canal. I have lately taken several on High Island and on the west side of the river opposite. Most of the burrows are located among rocks on the islands and on the steep slopes and cliffs of the river hills. On High Island there are several old breeding dens, regular strongholds, between and under the rocks. Woodchucks are said to be more common fiirther up the river, and I was told of a place where one lives near the east end of Chain Bridge. Mas musculus. House Mice are numerous throughout the city and about buildings in the surrounding country. Some have taken up their residence in the woods and fields and along old fences and stone walls. 96 BaUey — Mammals of the District of Columbia. I have freqneiith' caught them along Rock Creek in traps set for white- footed mice, and Mr. Preble has caught a number on the Potomac flats below the city. That they are common outside of buildings is further proved by the presence of their skulls in owl i^ellets. In 075 pellets of barn owls taken in the Smithsonian tower Dr. Fisher found 452 skulls of 3Ius musculus.* Mus decumanus. The common Brown Rats are numerous in the city and in the scattered buildings of the surrounding country. They show less inclination to take to the woods than do the house mice, 3f. musmlus. I have not found them at any considerable distance from buildings, but in the previously mentioned 675 pellets of barn owls taken from the Smitlivsonian tower were 134 skulls of this species.* Peromyscus leucopus. The White-footed Mice are common through- out the woods in every part of the District. They are abundant along Rock Creek near the Massachusetts Avenue and Connecticut Avenue bridges, and on the west side of the Potomac and east side of Anacostia River. I caught one in a trap at a hole in a stone w^all near Rock Creek, and the next night caught a house mouse at the same hole. I have also taken them at the same holes where Blarina brevicauda, Microtus i^eamylvaniciis, and M. pinetonim were caught on the preceding or following nights, and many of my specimens have been eaten in the traps by blarinas that visited the traps before me. Neotoma pennsylvanica. Wood Rats are fairly common among the rocks on the west side of the Potomac River a mile above Chain Bridge, and it is jirobable that they occur all along the river cliffs up to the Blue Ridge. No doubt they extend down to the end of the rocky bluff" oppo- site Georgetown, or did before extensive quarrying disturbed their homes. They are rock-dwellers, and will probably not be found near the District away from the river cliffs. None have been taken on the east side of the Potomac. Fiber zibsthicus. Muskrats are common in all suitable localities near Washington. They are especially numerous along Rock Creek, where they have increased rapidly since receiving the protection of the Zoologi- cal Park. In favorite places the creek banks are perforated with their burrows, plants cut for food are strewn along the shores, and the animals may be seen swimming about in broad daylight. It will be interesting to see how far this increase will go and by what circumstances it will be limited. On the big marsh extending along both sides of Anacostia River nuiskrat houses are common, and a few may be seen in the ponds and marshes on the west side of the Potomac. Tracks and burrows are com- mon along Beaver Dam Branch, on the east side of Anacostia River, and still more common along the arm of the Potomac that flows around the east side of High Island. Large numbers of skins are brought to market by negro trappers from lower down the river. * Science, N. S., Ill, p. G23, April 24, 189(5. Mammals of the District of Columbia. 97 Microtus pennsylvanicus. Meadow ]\Iice are probably the most abundant mammals of the District. They press into the edge of the city on all sides and even into the parks and grassy vacant lots. Several have been caught in the Department of Agriculture grounds. Mr. Preble has caught a large number on the Potomac flats, and I have myself taken fully 100 close to the edges of the city. They are numerous along the Rock Creek flats from Massachusetts Avenue bridge up through the Zoological Park and fairly swarm along tlie Potomac and Anacostia marshes. They also range to the tops of the highest hills wherever a heavy growth of grass furnishes a good supply of food and sufficient cover for their runways. A few are found in the woods, especially along the edges of creeks, but open country, marshes, and grassy bottom lands are their favorite haunts. Microtus pinetorum. Pine Mice are common, but less so and less frequently taken than the meadow mice, which often occupy the same ground. The generalization may be made {hnt it will not always hold) that the meadow mice live in the fields, meadows, and oi)en country, while the pine mice live in the woods and brush. The pine mice are frequentl}^ caught in old fields and on open bottom land, but are foimd in greatest abundance in brushy bottoms along creek flats. The narrow flats along Rock Creek in the lower part of the Zoological Park are thickly marked with their ridges and the little round holes that lead into the burrows. Most of the traps that I set on this flat for moles caught only pine mice, a large number of which were also caught in traps set along the little creek in Woodley Park. A few were caught along Piney Bi-anch and Broad Branch, and one near Fort Marcy, on the west side of the Potomac. Mr. Green caught them on the flats between the canal and Potomac, about a mile above Georgetown, and on a wooded knoll a quarter of a mile below the west end of Long Bridge. Synaptomys cooperi. Cooper's Lemming-mouse. In 1888 Dr. Fisher examined some pellets of long-eared owls from Munson Hill, Yii-ginia, and among 176 small mammal skulls in these pellets were 3 skulls of Synaptomys. Another skull was found in the stomach of a red-tailed hawk killed at Sandy Springs, Maryland, March 24, 1890.* It was, of course, impossible to know the exact localities where the hawks and owls pro- cured these rare specimens. In February, 1896, I caught 4 Synaptomys in a sphagnum swamp near Hyattsville, 5 miles northeast of the Capitol, where their nests and runways are common in the damp, cool spliag- num. No doubt more careful trapj^ing would have resulted in a greater number of specimens. As the animals have been so long suspected and so thoroughly trapped for in various places about the District, it is rea- sonable to infer that they are restricted to these cold swamps. Zapus hudsonius. Jumping Mice have been taken on the west side of the Potomac close to the city. Morris M. Green caught several at a point a quarter of a mile below the west end of Long Bridge and about *A. K. Fisher: Hawks and Owls of the United States. Bulletin 3, Div. of Ornithology and Mammalogy, 1893, pp. 59 and 141. 98 Ballc.ij — MammaJa of the District of Columbia. 50 yards from the river. He writes me that they were found in brush heaps and beds of weeds and were caught in his hands in the -daytime. Dr. Merriam caught one in 1886 at a point a short distance up the river from tlie west end of Aqueduct Bi-idge. Mr. Miller saw one near Forest Glen,Md., on May 10, 1890. Lepus sylvaticus. The Cotton-tail Rabbit is the principal game mam- mal of the District and vicinity, and, in spite of the abundance of huntere and dogs, they are still fairly common. I have frequently seen them on both sides of Rock Creek near the Connecticut Avenue bridge and in the Rock Creek Park near Broad Branch. Every fresh snow shows a lot of rabl)it tracks among the spruces in the Department of Agriculture grounds, and the ral)bits are frequently seen running from bush to bush. They are common in the tall grass and among the brush on the river hills along the west side of the Potomac, where the rough country and rocks offer the best of protection. Part of the immense number of these ral)bits exhibited for sale in the markets during fall and winter months are shipped in from beyond the 20-mile circle, but many are taken within a few miles of Washington. A negro hunter is frequently met coming in from the country with an old shotgun and a back-load of rabbits ; but when questioned he usually avoids telling where his game was procured. Last February I watched a negro trapper from Westmoreland county, Virginia, selling his stock of furs to a dealer in Center Market, and among other skins 130 rabbits were sold at 1 cent each. Felis domesticus. I am sorry to have to include the House Cat as an introduced species, but it seems thoroughly naturalized and of too great importance to be omitted. Its tracks are common in dusty wood paths and on every fresh snow in the wildest parts of the surrounding country. Lynx rufus. Wildcats still inhabit the Blue Ridge Mountains, and it would be strange if they did not sometimes follow down the river clifls on the west side of the Potomac to near the city. There is much wild country within a few miles of Washington where they could find plenty of small game and be fairly safe from enemies. Dr. Fisher caught one in October, 1895, at Lake Drumniond, Virginia, where he reports them as very common. Vulpes pennsylvanicus. The Red Fox is now fiiirly common in the country around Washington, though a century ago it was not known here- Dr. Fisher gives me the following interesting note : " Through the kind- ness of H. H. Miller we learn that the red fox first appeared in Mont- gomery County, Maryland, between the years 1798 and 1802. He obtained the facts from Mr; George E. Brooke, a gentleman of 80 years of age, who, like his father and grandfather, was an enthusiastic fox-hunter." D. B. Warden, in writing of the District of Columbia in 1816, says : "The gray and red fox frequent this region, and sometimes carry off pigs, lambs, and poultry." * Urocyon cinereoargenteus. Gray Fox. This species is still found in the vicinity of Washington, though not in abundance. * Chorographical and Statistical Description of the District of Columbia, p. 159, Paris, 1816. Mammals of the District of Columbia. 91) Procyon lotor. The Raccoon is not rare, even in the immediate vicinity of Washington. I have seen their tracks along Rock Creek in the lower end of the Zoological Park, on the bank of the Potomac near High Island, and along Beaver Dam Branch on the east side of Anacostia River. Skins are l)ronght into the market by negro trappers from across the Potomac. Mephitis mephitica. Skunk. In 1894 a skunk was found under a house in the middle of Georgetown. It was treated with carbon bisul- phide, and its skin is now in the Departaientof Agriculture collection in the National Museum. They are fairly common along the Potomac River above Georgetown, where their tracks may be found in the dusty road along the canal almost every morning, and I have found both tracks and holes on the west side of the Potomac, above Chain Bridge. Tracks are less frequently seen in other localities near the cit}^ and occasionally an unmistakable skunkj^ odor blows into town. Lutra hudsonica. Otters are scarce, but proliably less so than is generally supposed. Dr. Coues mentions one brought into the National Museum in the flesh in 1874.* A man living near High Island tells me that an otter has been on the island during the past winter, and that one was caught near Great Falls. I cannot vouch for the truth of these re- ports, but see no reason to doubt them. The rapids of the Potomac and the rocky shores, with numerous drift-heaps and overhanging ))anks, offer the favorite environment for otter. Lutreola vlson. Mink are common along the Potomac, along Rock Creek, Anacostia River, Beaver Dam Branch, and probably on every small stream in the District. I have seen their tracks in all of the places mentioned, and the freshly killed animals have been brought to the De- partment of Agriculture from several points near Washington. One was brought in last February from College Station, Maryland, 8 miles north- east of the city. Putorius noveboracensis. Weasels, while not plentiful, are by no means rare. Tracks are occasionally seen on the banks of streams. The National Museum contains a number of skins labeled Washington, and in the Department of Agriculture collection are two skins of weasels caught near the city. One of these I caught in April, 1896, a short dis- tance above the west end of Chain Bridge. The spot was close to the old District line, but I could not tell on which side. Mr. C. W. Richmond t3lls me that a small weasel was caught a few years ago near the Central High School. Sorex personatus. This tiny Long-tailed Shrew is one of the rarest mammals of the region. It has not yet been taken within the District of Columbia, though no doubt it occurs in very limited numbers in some of the swamps. In the mammal collection of Dr. ]Merriam there is a much- damaged specimen, picked u}i in a jiath near Sandy Si)rings, Maryland, some years ago. During February of the present year (1896) I succeeded in catching three of these shrews in a sphagnum swamp near Hyattsville, * Fur-bearing Animals, p. 311, 1877. 100 Bailey — Mammah of the District of Columbia. 0 miles northeast of the Capitol, but even in this semi-boreal swamp they seem to be scarce and are difficult to secure. Thorough and unsuccessful trapping for them in various localities about Washington proves to my own satisfaction that they do not inhabit the uplands. Blarina brevicauda. Next to the meadow mouse, the Short-tailed Shrews are probably the most abundant mammals in the District of Co- lumbia. They may be found anywhere in woods and brush and old fields and along creek banks and ditches. Under the cover of fallen leaves and grass and in burrows and covered runways they work their way safely into the very edges of the cit3\ I have taken at least a hundred from traps set for more desirable species along the east side of Rock Creek near the Connecticut Avenue bridge and on the west side near the Massachu- setts Avenue bridge, besides others along Piney Branch, Broad Branch, above Georgetown on the west side of the Potomac, and on the east side of Anacostia River near the mouth of Beaver Dam Branch and near Bladensburg. Other mammal collectors have had the same experience of catching more of these shrews than were wanted. Blarina parva. The Little Short-tailed Shrew is common at Sandy Springs, Maryland, from which point Dr. Merriam has a large series of specimens, but there is not to my knowledge any I'ecord of spec! miens that have been taken nearer Washington. My own traps have not been set in the right kind of localities for this shrew, and probably for the same reason other trappers have not caught it. No doubt it will yet be found common within the limits of the District. Dr. Fisher took 21 skulls from pellets of barn owls found in the Smithsonian tower. Scalops aquaticus. Moles are common about Washington, 'and some- times their ridges are seen on unpaved ground in the city. The only visible sign of their presence is a little ridge pushed up along the surface of the ground and often extended in an interminable network. The.se ridges, however, are not always a sure sign of the presence of moles, for the pine mouse either makes similar ridges or occupies those abandoned by the moles, but enough moles have been caught in the near vicinity of the city to establisli the fact that they are common. Morris M. Green caught them along Rock Creek and the Potomac ; E. A. Preble caught one at Arlington ; G. S. Miller, Jr., secured one at Forest Glen, Md., and Dr. Mearns tells me that half a dozen specimens have been brought to him at Fort Myer, Va. Condylura cristata. Star-nosed INIoles are either very rare or else their peculiar underground mode of life keeps them well out of the hands of collectors. The only record for the District of which I am aware is that of a family of five young found by Morris M. Green in a nest under an old log on the flats between the canal and river about a mile above Georgetown. As the animal has a general boreal range, it might be ex- pected to occur in the vicinity of cold swamps. I have no doubt that thorough trapping may prove them to be common in certain localities. Vesperugo georgiaiius. Morris M. Green, Dr. Fisher, and Dr. Mer- riam agree that this is the commonest bat in and around Washington. Mammals of the District of Columbia. 101 In June and July of 1888 Mr. Green shot a large number of bats of this species in Rock Creek valley on the present site of the Zoo. In Dr. Mer- riam's collection are 16 specimens, taken May 14, 1887, under the roof of a barn near the Soldiers' Home, and also a nursing female, shot July 3, 1888. Vesperugo fuscus. Brown Bat. This is the common large bat seen on summer evenings flying about the streets of Washington. It fre- quently enters houses through open windows. Specimens have been secured as early as ]March 8 and as late as December 2o. Vespertilio lucifugus. This is one of the common bats of the city. Mr. Green and Mi\ Richmond have captured large numbers of them in the crevices between the timbers under Long Bridge. In Dr. Merriam's collection are 10 adults and 15 young taken June 16, 1889, and a nursing female taken July 3, 1888. Three specimens in the Xational Museum were collected in May, June, and August. Vespertilio subulatus. Mr. Gerrit S. Miller, Jr., killed one of these bats at Forest Glen, Maryland, only 8 miles from Washington, May 10, 1896, and found another dead on ^lay 26, 1896. In the National Museum there is one specimen collected at Alexandria, Va., in August, 1875, by P. L. Jou}'. These dates may indicate that the bat is a summer resident, but if the species were not rare more specimens would cei'tainly have found their way into collections. Atalapha borealis. Dr. Fisher considers this next to Vesperugo geor- glanus, the commonest bat in the city. Mr. Green reports it as common in the country and in the city streets, and says he has seen it flying about in November. I have examined Washington specimens collected in May, June, September, and November. In the collection of Dr. ]\Ierriam there is a female taken June 22, 1889, with two young clinging to her. Atalapha cinerea. Hoary Bat. A single skin in the National Museum collected at Laurel, Maryland, brings the species within the 20-mile circle. This specimen was taken October 2, 1892, and was probably a migrant. Other records from Baltimore, ^Maryland, New Jersey, South Carolina, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania bring the range of the species on all sides of Washington. Lasionycteris noctivagans. Dr. Fisher shot one of these bats No- vember 12, 1885, between Arlington and Rosslyn, Va. In the National Museum collection are two skins, one labeled Washington, D. C, January, 1893, the other Smith Island, Va., September 3, 1893. These dates indi- cate that the species is a migrant or winter visitor. 16— Biol. Soc. Wash., Voi,. X, 189G Vol. X, pp. 103-107 June 15, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTtONL THE EARLIEST RECORD OF ARCTIC PLANTS. BY THEO. HOLM. Through the courtesy of Dr. P^dw. L. Greene my attention has been called to the fact that our knowledge of the Arctic flora is not of recent date. The invaluable botanical library which Dr. Greene has accumulated, and which is now located in the Catholic University in Washington, D. C, contains a vast number of old books, which are truly a great boon to the working botanist. It was in this library that Dr. Greene showed me a short chapter in Ray's Historia Plantarum,* wherein is enumerated and de- scribed some plants collected in Spitzbergen more than two hun- dred years ago. The chapter referred to is headed " P]anta3 Spitzbergenses a Frederico Martens Hamburgensi in itinerario suo observata3 de- lineatfe et descriptaj." When I examined the names '^Aloefolia florum capitulis rotimdis,^^ etc., and the accompanying descriptions, which latter might just as well have represented almost any plant outside the Arctic, I felt discouraged. The title of the chajjter, however, gave the clue — /. e., the original record by Martens, who was said to have not only described these plants, but even to have figured them. This is the work which Ray mentions in a letter to Dr. Hans Sloane,t where he expresses his great admiration of the careful observations made by Martens. Martens' own account appeared * John Ray, vol. Ill, London, 1704, p. 226, Appendix, t Correspondence of John Ray, edited by Edwin Lankef'ter, London, 1848, p. 474. 17— Hioi,. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, ISDG (103) 104 Holm — The Earlied Record of Arctic Plants. in his fiimous little book " Spitzbergisclie odev Groenlandische Reisebeschreibung gethan im Jahr 1G71."* Martens was the sur- geon of the ship " Jonas ini Wallfisch," which got as far north as the 81st degree of latitude. From here he visited the north- western part of Spitzbergen, from whence he brought home several specimens of animals and plants. Many of the observations in Martens' book show that he was possessed of unusual energy and skill as a scientific traveler. His voyage was made during a period when Spitz1)ergen was annually visited by a large number of whalers from various countries in Europe. So great was the traffic that from 1670 to 1710 not less than 2,289 ships visited this island, killing the vast numljer of nearly ten thousand whales. I have not been able to find any record of the Arctic flora prior to the period named, so that Martens is believed to have been the first writer on the Arctic flora. His descriptions of Arctic plants are given in the third part of his book (page 41) " Von den Pflanzen so ich in S})itzl)ergen gefunden." The descriptions are accompanied by four plates, illustrating in all fourteen species. Although the diagnoses are somewhat puzzling, they certainly are much more accurate than those given by the learned English botanist, and his drawings, as a supplement, will enable the reader to identify the phanero- gams and one of the two algfe. The first plant which Martens describes is " Kraut mit Aloe- bliittern " (Table G, Fig. a), which Ray named " Aloefolia florum capitulis rotundisy This plant, judging from the illustration, is undoubtedly Saxifragn stellaris L., forma comosa Poir. The state- ment that the flowers form small, flesh-colored heads (" nudo oculo vix discernendi ") would seem to indicate that this plant is the Arctic forma comosa, the flowers of which are transformed into small bulblets. Besides this, the basal leaves of the draw- ing agree better with this than with S. nivalis L. " Eingekerbtes Kleinhauswurtz " (Table F, Fig. a) is well drawn and represents Saxifraga nivalis L. The '' Hauswurz "of the Germans is now the popular name for Sempervivum tectorum, so that the identification is not so far wrong. Ray has described this plant under the name '\Sedum minus dentatum, capitulis squamosis.'''' The flowers are described in this species as having five petals, so that Martens would surely have seen the single * Friderich Martens, Hamburg, 1675. The Earliest Record of Arctic Plants. 105 flowers of the foregoing species, if there had been any, instead of simply speaking about their forming small heads, a fact which seems to favor the supposition that he meant the bulblets, as I have mentioned above. Four species of " Hanen-Fiissen " (" Crowfoot ") are also fully described and accurately figured. One of these, however, is Saxifraga rividaris L. (Table H, Fig. C). The others are: Ra- nunculus hyperboreus Rottb. (Table H, Fig. c), R. pygmasusW ahlbg . (Taljle G, Fig. e), and R. sulphureus Soland (Table I, Fig. d). The Saxifraga he describes as having white petals, and the figure given is a good illustration of this species. Ray has named these "Ranunculi Spitzbergenses.'^ " Loffel-Kraut " is a species of Cochlearia, and this name is still the poi)ular one for the plant. It was undoubtedly C. fenestrata R. Br., which is so far the onl}^ knowai species from Spitzljergen. Ray, it appears, accepted Martens' identification, but, although he did not find any difference between this and C. Britanica, he nevertheless called it C. Spitzbergensis. The " Kraut als Mauerpfeffer " (Table F, Fig. c) is Saxifraga oppositifnlia L. ''Mauerpfeffer" is now the German name for some Sedum, to which the plant shows great resemblance. The flowers are described as i)urple, which agrees well with this species o^ Saxifraga. Ray called it ^'Sedam minimum vermiculatum p urpureum Spitzbergense. ' ' " Natter-wurtz " (Table I, Fig. a) agrees well with Polygonum viviparum L., according to the description and illustration. This plant is very closely related to Polygonum bistorta, which is the proper " Natterwurz " of the Germans. Ray came to the same conclusion as Martens and named it ^^Bistortct minor Spitzber- gensis.'''' " Kraut als Maiise-Oehrlein " (Table G, Fig. d) is exceedingly Avell illustrated and described and represents Cerastium cdpinum L., of which the German name is at present "Alpen-Hornkraut." " Mauseoehrchen " is now used for Hieracium Pilosella L., while " Miiusoehrlein," according to Loeselius,* is the name for some species of Gnaphcdiam and Myosotis. Myosotis is, so far as the name itself is concerned, the only plant to which this name " Afouse- ear " could be applied, as it was by Dioscorides, from the Greek //.i)?, a mouse, and "u?, wrw?, an ear. The leaves of Cerastium alpinum very closely resemble those of a Myosotis, so that it can * Johannes Lteselius : Flora Prassica, Regensburg, 1703. lOG Holm — llie Earliest Record of Arctic Plants. easily be seen how the mistake occurred. "Auricuhe muris affinis herba Spiizbergensis " is the name given by Ray to this plant, but his diagnosis, "Sui>remo cauliculo Flos innascitur albus," is the only featv;re which is characteristic of tliis Cerasttum. Martens has, indeed, pointed out the characteristics in a much clearer way. " Kraut als Singriin "' (Table G, Fig. b) represents Salix polcms Wahlbg. If it were not that the illustration is so good, it would hardly have been possible to identify this j)lant. "Singriin" is now the name for Vincn. The stem is described as knotted and woody and the leaves as occurring in pairs. The flowers were not seen, and Martens is therefore not certain that the plant belongs to Pyrola minima. It is called "Vinca pervincx siynilis herba Spiizbergensis " by Ray. The leaves of this willow are very small and coriaceous, brilliant green. They occur in about two alternately on each branch, and to a certain extent resemble those of some species of Pyrola. " Erdbeer-Kraut " (Table H, Fig. 6) is Potentilla fragiformis Willd. The description is very good, and the statement that the leaves only had three leaflets shows that we have this species before us and not P. maculata Pourr., the leaves of which are quinate. The same statement is also given by Ray, " foliis tri- partitis divisis . . . ," who has called it ^^Fragarix affinis Spiizbergensis.^'' Two Algse are enumerated under the name " Klippen-Kraii- tern," of which the figure b in Plate F represents Fucus vesicu- losus. The vesicles are described very accurately, and Martens states tiiat he did not observe whether these contained any seeds. His sailors informed him, however, that the small sea snails (Pterojioda), upon which the Avhales leed, originate from the seeds of this Alga. Martens does not seem to have shared this opinion, however, and says that he is inclined to believe that these snails have, like others, originated from eggs! The large Alga (Fig. c in Plate I) is undoubtedly a species of Laminaria. Several other plants were observed, Init were not collected. Only two of these have been descril)ed, but tliese have not been figured. One of these, " (/cr weisse Ma/m,^^ is exkleni] y Dri/as octopetala L. " Mahn " is undoubtedly a misprint for " Mohn," the common popp}'- (Papaver dubium ov Rhneas). Since tbe onl}' poppy that grows on Spitsbergen, P. nudicaide L., has yellow Tlie Earliest Record of Arctic Plants. 107 flowers, it is not likely that Martens meant this plant, but rather the common white Dryas, which is not so very unlike a ])op])y. The other plant is " der rothe Sauerampffer," which prohably was Oxyria digyna Cam^id., now called " Saiicrling " by the Germans. If tlie list of plants collected by Martens be compared with the most recent publication on the flora of Spitzbergen,* it will be seen that all the species named in the list have actually been rediscovered by later expeditions. As to the locality where they were collected, it apjiears that the}^ were found in the neighbor- hood of Smeerenberg, on the northwestern shore of Spitzbergen, designated by Martens as '' Harlinger Kocherey." * Nathorst, A. G., Nya Bidragtill Kiinnedomen om Spetsbergens Kiirl- vuxter, Stockholm, 1883, Kgl. Sv. Vet. Akad. Hdlgr., vol. 20, No. 6, 88 pp. PROC. BIOL. SOC. WASH., X. 1896 s Vol. X, pp. 109-112, PL. VII July 22, 1896 PROCEEDINGS OF THK BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON THE CENTRAL AMERICAN THYROPTERA. BY GERRIT S. MILLER, Jr. Three specimens of Thyroptera, collected by G. E. Mitchell on the Escondido River at a point about fifty miles from Bluefields, Nicaragua, and now in the collection of the United States De- partment of Agriculture, are clearly referable to the species de- scribed by Lichtenstein and Peters in 1855 as Hyonycteris dis- cifera.^ This bat was recognized as a distinct species by Tomes in a paper pu1)lished in the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London for 1856 (p. 179), but Dobson, in 1878,t placed the name Hyonycteris discifera, together with Hyonycteris albiventer ToniesX and Thyroptera bicolor Cantraine § among the synonyms of the Brazilian Thyroptera tricolor Spix. While no si)ecimens of the three nominal and probably valid South American species || are availal)lo for comparison with the Nicaraguan bat, there can be no doubt that the latter differs widely from any ofthe.se. It may be redescribed as follows : Thyroptera discifera (Lichtenstein and Peters). Hyonycteris discifera Lichtenstein and Peters, Monatsber. K. Preuss. Akad. Wiss., Berlin (1854), p. 335, 1855. Tomes, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 185G, p. 179. * Monatsber. K. Preuss. Akademie Wiss., Berlin (1854), p. 335, 1855. t Catalogue of the Chiroptera in the British Museum., p. 245, 1878. X Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1856, p. 179. ^. Bull. Acad. Roy. Sci. Bruxelles, YII, !>. 489, 1845. II The type localities of these are : Thyroptera tricolor, Bi'azil ; T. bicolor, Surinam ; T. albiventer, Napo River, near Quito, Ecuador. 18— Bioi,. Soc. Wash., Voh. X, 1896 (109) HO Miller — The Central American TJnjroptera. Thyroptera tricolor Dobson, Catalogue of the Chiroptera in the British Museum, p. 345, 1878 (in synonymy only ; the description refers strictly to South American specimens). Type locality. — Puerto Caballos, Honduras. GeograpJdc distribution. — Central America from Puerto Caballos, Hon- duras, south to Bluefields, Nicaragua. General characters. — Size small ; length about 45 mm.; tail, 26 ; forearm, 81. Calcar slender, distinct, slightly longer than free border of interfemoral membrane, terminating in an ill-defined lobule ; the posterior edge with a well- formed keel supported by one strong cartilaginous process. Terminal 2 mm. of tail free. Fi-ee border of uropatagium with a few scattered hairs. Ears short, funnel-shaped, acutely pointed, when laid forward reaching barely to tip of nose. Wings from middle of claws. Third and fourth toes closely ap^jroximated and firmly bound together. -2 1-1 3-3 b 1-1 o-o The teeth (Fig. 1) are small and weak for the size of the Fig. I.— Teeth of Thy top t, ciferci ; a, upper ; by lower I'rt dis- X 5). Teeth. — Dental formula as usual in the genus : 3-3 TO — - = 38. skull. Upper incisoi's bifid,* in pairs, the outer tooth half as large as the inner and separated from the canine by a space about as wide as the crown of the larger incisor. Premolars all in the tooth row, not separated by spaces from each other or from the adjoining molar and canine, first slightly smaller than second, third slightly more than half as large as first molar. Crown of first molar broadest, crown of second longest. Lower incisors trifid, the crown of the outer as broad as tliat of the first and half of the second. First lower jn-e- inolar smaller than second, but larger than canine. Middle lower molar largest. Ears. — The ears are short, acutely pointed, funnel-shaped, and directed forward. The tips do not reach tip of nose when the ears are laid forward. The anterior border is strongly con- vex from base to small concavity just below very narrowly rounded off tip. Posterior border concave immediately below tip, then convex to basal notch. The basal notch is strongly developed and isolates a very large lobe which joins side of head below line of lips (Fig. 2). Ti-agus short and broad, the tip thickened and bent abruptly forward ; a large thickened basal lobe directed forward and outward, and a minute process directed backward just above posterior base. * Dobson states that in Thyroptera tricolor the outer incisor is unicuspi- date. 2. — Head of Thyroptera disci/era (X 3)- The Central American Thyroptera. Ill t^~^' -.^ Fig. 3.— Foot and uropatagiura of Thyroptera discifera (X 2). Membranes. — The membranes are thin and semitransparent, broad and ample. Wings attached at middle of \ claws, sparsely hairy from sides of body -^^^ to line connecting elbow and knee. The ^^ j free edge has also a narrow hairy border. /J^- ^ Antebrachial membrane hairy near base f 5? and along humerus and fleshy part of ' ^^ forearm, Avhich in turn are covered with J^ hair. Uroi^atagium sparsely haired throughout on dorsal surface, otherwise naked, except at extreme base and along veins on ventral surface. Feet. — The feet are small, weak, and so turned outward as to be nearly in line with calcar (Fig. 3). Toes with two phalanges, of which the second is very small and serves merely to support the long claw. All the fingers are bound together by membrane to about the middle of the claws, while the third and fourth digits are firmly united, so that the two claws, although really separate, form what is apparently one strong nail, shorter and more abruj^tly curved than the others (Fig. 4). Calcar strong, distinct, longer than free border of uropatagium, termi- nating in a small lobule and bear- ing a well-formed keel, supported by one strong cartilaginous pro- cess. Sucking disk circular, the margin next the phalanges distinct, that toward the keel not sharply marked oft' from sole. Far and color. — In distribution, the fur is peculiar in its extension on the wings and dorsal surface of the interfemoral membrane. Color dull yellowish brown throughout, scarcely paler ventralh', the hairs without darker bases. Ears and membranes dusky brownish. Measurements. — No. 51538, $ ad., Es,condido River, Nicaragua; total length, 66 mm. ; head and body, 37.6 ; tail, 26 ; free tip of tail, 2 ; femur, 13 ; tibia, 13.4; foot, 4 ; forearm, 31 ; third finger — metacarp., 29.8 ; first ph., 14; second ph., 7.8; fourthfinger — metacarp., 28.6; first ph., 10; second ph., 4.6; fifth finger — metacarp., 26; first ph., 8; second ph., 5.6; ear, 11.6; width of ear, 12; tragus, 4 ; diameter of disk on thumb, 3 ; diam- eter of disk on foot, 2. No. 51539, $ ad., same locality and date; total length, 65; head and body, 38; tail, 26; free tip of tail, 1.8; femur, 14; tibia, 14.8; foot, 4.8 ; forearm, 31.6; third finger — metacarp., 29; first ph., 13.4; second ph., 8.4; fourth finger — metacarp., 29; first ph., 9; second ph., 5.4; fifth finger— metacarp., 25.6; first ph., 7.4; second ph., 6; ear, 12; width of ear, 12; tragus, 3.6; diameter of disk on thumb, 3.4; diameter of disk on foot, 2. Fig. 4. — Right foot of Thyroptera disci/era greatly enlarged to show syndactylism of third and fourth digits. •112 Miller — TJie Central American Tlnjrojitera. General remarks. — Of the three South- American species of Thy- roptcra, two {T. hicolor and T. albi venter) are described as sharply bicolor, brownish alcove and white beneath, while the third (T. tricolor) is said by Dobson to be reddish brown on the back and pale yellowish white on the abdomen, and also to have dental characters not found in the Nicaraguan animal. In Tliyroptera tricolor and T. hicolor the free part of the tail equals one-fourth or one-third of its whole length. In T. discifera, on the other hand, only the terminal joint and part of the penultimate joint project beyond the edge of the interfenioral membrane. T. alhi- venter is said to have the terminal joint only of the tail free, but the type specimen of this species was so mutilated that no de- pendence can be placed on this character. In size the four forms apparently agree very closel}^ — at least it is impossible to find any important differences in the measurements given in the original descriptions. The characters of Thyroptera discifera and of the South Ameri- can sj^ecies as described may be thus contrasted : Both upper incisors bifid discifera Only the inner upper incisor bifid tricolor Sliarply bicolor, or color of back distinctly dif- ferent from that of belly albiventer, bicolor, tricolor Essentially unicolor discifera One-fourth to one-third of tail free from inter-femoral femoral membrane tricolor, bicolor Only tip of tail free . . .albiventer (?) discifera The syndactylism of the third and fourth digits of the foot may prove to be peculiar to Thyroptera discifera. It is mentioned by Lichtenstein and Peters in the original description of the species, but none of the authors who have described South American specimens make any allusion to such a condition, al- though in most cases they have mentioned the form of the feet and claws with considerable detail. Another character of Thyroptera discifera not mentioned in descriptions of the South American species, but probably com- mon to all, is the large and conspicuous clitoris (see pi. VII). In the adult female this measures 1.6 mm. in length and is about half as long as the penis of a nearly full grown male. The vulva opens longitudinally w'ith the anterior commissure encroaching on the basal third of the clitoris. Vol. X, pp. 113-114 July 22, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON ^ NOTE ON THE MILK DENTITION OF DESMODUS. BY GERRIT S. MILLER, Jr. Some immature specimens of Dcsmodas rdfns, taken l)y Mr. E. W. Nelson, at Etzatlan, Ja- lisco, Mexico, in June, 1892, and now in the collection of the United States Department of Agriculture, retain the greater part of the milk dentition, though it is jDrobable that none are young enough to present a complete set of deciduous mo- lars. The extraordinary special- ization of the teeth of this bat correlated with the animal's strictly sanguivorous habits make any facts relating to the early development of the teeth of special interest. In the adult (Fig. 1, e, and 2, c) the dental formula is i 15^,' 1-1 2-2 c ^5 j>»i TTio' = 20. The milk dentition, so far as it can be de- 2-2 termined, is as follows: di -^^ ^"^ iTl' '^^'"'' 9I9 ^= 18' i-\ di2 Maxillary teeth of Desmodiis The largest of the deciduous teeth are the upper incisors i (Fig. 1 di 1 and d.\ 2). These cut ''"/"•^. showing milk dentition and gradual ' ' 1 • 1 change in form of permanent teeth from the gums some tnne betore the very youngia) toaduit (^) (xs). 19— Bidt,. Sor. Wash., Vol,. X, 189G (113) 114 Miller — Note on tJie Milk Dentition of Desniodas. permanent incisors (Fig. 1, i), and even after the appearance of tlie ti})s of tlie latter remain for a considerable period tne most cons|)icuoas teeth in either jaw. Their strongly recurved tips are probably of great service to the 3'oung when clinging to the nipple of the female during flight. At first the anterior decidu- ous incisor lies on tlie outer side of the permanent incisor, while the posterior deciduous incisor occupies the space between the permanent incisor and canine (Fig. 1, a). As the permanent incisor increases in size, it graduall}^ extends backward until both milk incisors a[)pear closely appressed to its outer face. In this condition (Fig. 1, c) the teeth re- main until the animal acquires a large size, while the second milk incisor often persists in nearly full- grown individuals (Fig. 1, d). The deciduous canine (Fig. 1, a. dc) lies imbedded in the gum on the outer side of the ^irominence caused by tlie growing permanent canine. It is shed at an early age, and never l)ecomes in any way functional. A deciduous molar (Fig. 1, h, dm) was found occup3'ing a position near FIG 2.-Maudibuiar teeth of /;...«<,- ^j^^ posterior outcr bordcr of the (IHS i-u/its, snowing part of milk den- ^ titiou (a) and gradual change in form fii'st permanent Upper premolar in toaduit (c) ( / 5). two specimeus. This tooth lacks the recurved tip and must be wholly functionless. In the lower jaw (Fig. 2) the deciduous teeth are smaller and less conspicuous than those in the upper jaw. They are also shed at a much earlier period. On opening the mouth of one specimen (No. 52180) I found two deciduous molars lying loose on the gum over the permanent premolars. The exact position of these milk teeth could not be determined, and I failed to detect any trace of them in other individuals. The deciduous mandi])ular canine closel}' resembles its counterpart in the upper jaw, both in size, position, and history. Its tip is, however, less strongly hooked (Fig. 2, dc). The deciduous lower incisors (Fig. 2, dl) are very small and loosely attached to the gum through which they scarcely ]iierce before they are shed. In form they are totally diflFerent from the corresponding upper teeth. Their ti})s are somewhat widened and faintly notched, thus suggesting the form presented by the permanent lower incisors of many bats. Vol. X, pp. 115-118 November 3, 1896 PROCEEDINGS /f^^-^^ OF THE /. ^ ' BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON A NEW FIR FROM ARIZONA, ABIES ARIZONICA. BY C. HART MERRIAM. In the summer of 1889, when making a biological survey of the San Francisco Mountain region in Arizona, I discovered a new fir with whitish corky bark. The scales of the cones were shed before the end of September, and no perfect cones were brought back. In my report on the ' Forest Trees of the San Francisco Mountain Region ' I described this ' white cork-bark fir ' under the head of Abies subalpina Engelm. [= Abies lasiocarpa Hooker], with the following explanation : " I believe this tree to be distinct from true A. subalpinn,hut in the absence of material for direct comparison I am unwilling to separate it." My original account of the species is as follows : " This beautiful fir, unique in the color and character of its bark, is one of the most con- spicuous trees on San Francisco Mountain between the altitudes of 2,725 and 2,900 meters (8,950 to 9,500 feet). On the north side of a large butte, just south of Walker Lake crater, it de- scends to 2,600 meters (8,500 feet). The bark is a fine elastic cork of uniform texture, and free from hard particles. It aver- ages about 6 millimeters in thickness and is very durable, fre- quently remaining intact while the wood rots away. Large pieces of it, still retaining their elasticit3% may be stripped from dead trees and from logs upon the ground. It is sculptured by irregu- larly interrupted longitudinal depressions or grooves, and is ornamented by fine, parallel, wavy lines. Its color varies from creamy white to gray, and the surface has a velvety texture. The leaves are short, and the scales of the large cones are deciduous while still on the tree. In fact, it was almost impossible to secure a perfect cone as early as the latter part of September. * * * 20— Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 1896 (115) 116 Merriam — A New Fir from Arizona. " On Kendrick Peak it grows from the south rim of the crater (altitude about 2,800 meters, or 9,200 feet) to the summit (a Httle above 3,050 meters, or 10,000 feet)."=*= Early in July of the present year (1896) I again visited San Francisco Mountain and, in company with Dr. B. E. Fernow, had the satisfaction of ob- taining ujDper and lower branches, fresh cones, and bark of the new tree, which may be defined as follows : Abies arizonica sp. nov. Type from west slope of San Francisco Mountain, Arizona. Altitude, about 3,000 meters (approxi- mately 10, 000 feet). Col- lected July 2, 1896. No. 270,604. U. S. National Herbarium. Range. — Hudsonian Zone of San Francisco and Kendrick Mountains, Arizona; not reaching timber line. Characters. — Size of tree, medium or rather small, averaging about 15 meters in height and rarely 300 millimeters in diameter at base ; bark a highly elastic tine-grained cork, whitish or grayish in color, usually creamy white, with irregularly sinuous grayish ridges „ --,,,.. •,, ,-N (Fig. 24) ; leaves of cone- PiG. 24.— BariLOt Abtes arisontca (natural size). v e yi bearing branches thick, subtriangular in transverse section, and sharp-pointed at apex (about 20 millimeters in length) ; leaves of lower branches much longer, flatter. * North American Fauna, No. 3, pp. 120-121, September, 1890. A New Fir from Arizo7ia. 117 blunt, and notched at apex (about 25-30 millimeters in length) ; cones dark purple, slender, medium, or rather small, those of type specimen (not full grown) measuring about 50 x 20 millimeters ; scales much broader than long, strongly convex laterally (Fig. 25, c), purple on both sides ; bract (without awn) reaching to or past middle of scale; body of bract much broader than long. Remarks. — The only tree with which the white cork-hark fir needs comparison is the subalpine fir (Abies lasiocnrpa Hooker = A. snhalpina Engehn.), from which it differs in leaves, bark, and cones. In Abies lasiocarpa the leaves of the lower branches aver- age much shorter than in A. arizonica; the bark is hard instead of elastic-corky, and is variable in color, usually dark grayish brown blotched with whitish ; the cones are larger, and the scales and bracts differ widely in shape and proportions. In A. lasiocarpa (Fig. 25, a and b) the scales are longer than broad, the body of the bract is less than one-third the length of the body of the scale, and the seed wings are about twice as long as broad ; in A. arizonica (Fig. 25, c) the scales are much broader than long, the body of the bract is more than half the length of the scale, and the seed wings are about as broad as long. The form of the scale and relative size of the bract ^jrobably change somewhat with age, but in the ac- com})anying figures the immature scale of Abies arizonica (Fig. 25, c) is contrasted with a still younger scale of A. lasiocarpa (6), as well as with the mature scale of the latter (a). The young cone of A. lasiocarjxi, from which the scale figured (b) is taken, is decidedly smaller than the cone of J. arizonica, from which figure c is taken, while the adult cone of A. lasiocarpa is more than twice as large. Both of the specimens figured of A. lasiocarpa came from Mount Hood, at the north end of the Cascade Range in Oregon, which is prob- ably near the type locality of the species. I am indebted to Mr. F. V. Coville for the opportunity of figuring the young cone Fig. 25.— Scales of cones (natural size). a. Abies lasiocarpa, mature. b. Abies lasiocarpa, young. c. Abies arizonica, young. a, b, c. Upper side, showing seed wings. a', b', c'. Under side, showing bracts. 118 Merriam — A Neiu Fir from Arizona. of lasiocarpa. Abies arizonica is a much smaller tree than A. lasiocarpa. Both are highly boreal species, belonging to the Hudsonian Zone, though A. arizonica fails to reach the upper or timber-line belt of this zone. Abies lasiocarpa ranges from southern Alaska and British Columbia southward, over the Rocky Mountains into Utah and Colorado, and over the Cascade Range to southern Oregon. Abies arizonica, on the other hand, is restricted, so far as known, to San Francisco Mountain and neighboring peaks on the summit of the plateau in northern Arizona. Vol. X, pp. 119-125 November 5, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON, h THE COTTON MOUSE, PEROMYSCUS GOSSYPINUS. BY OUTRAM BANGS. The present revision of the subspecies of Permnyscus gossypinus is based on the study of several hundred specimens in the col- lection of E. A. and 0. Bangs and the type and five topotypes of Peromyscus cjossyphius viisdssippiensis kindly lent me by Mr. Samuel N. Rhoads. LeConte, in 1853, bestowed the name Hesperomys gossypinus upon the large dark-colored, white-footed mouse of Georgia. Two years later the same author named what he supposed to be another species from the same general region, calling it Hesper- omys cognatus. This last name has troubled subsequent mam- malogists not a little, until Mr. Rhoads, in his ' Mammals of Tennessee,'* in 1896, relegated it to its proper place, and it became a synonym of P. gossypinus, based on the young in the pelage assumed after the plumbeous first coat has disappeared. There is, however, a name earlier than LeConte's H. gossypinus that must be considered. It is Hesperomys pollonotus of Wag- ner, described in 1843. t This animal is said to have come *Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1896, p. 189. t Archly fiir Naturgeschichte von Wiegmanii, 1843, 2ter. Bd., pp. 51-52. "Aus eben diesem Staate [Georgia] herriihrend liess mir'Prof. Schinz zwei Miiuse zuv Ansicht zukommen, unter denen die eine mit M. Lecontii iibereinstiinmt. Der aiidern, die mir unbeschrieben scheint, habe ich den Namen Mus jMllonoius beigelegt : M. supra flavido-plumbeus .subtus pedibusque albidus ; auriculis niediocribus, dent. prim, integris, caiida pilosa abbreviata. Korper 2^^ ¥^^, Schwanz V^ "1"' , Ohren ^'" , Hinter- fiiss T" . Wie schon ervviihnt, werden beide nicht zu Mus gehoren, doch ist mir ihr Gebiss unbekannt." 21-Bioi.. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 18i dark gray (purplish gray in fresh pelage) above, without a marked darker dorsal band, and white below. Peromyscus gossypinus (LeConte). 1831. Hypluihms'] gossipinus LeConte, M'^Mnrtrie's Cuvier's Animal Kingdom,' I, 1831, app., p. 434 (nomen nudum). 1853. Ilespcroviys gossyjnmis LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1853, p. 411. 1855. Hesperomys cocjnntnn LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1855, p. 442. 1874.' Ilesperomya ( Vespcrimus) Jcucopus gossypinus Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci'. Phila., 1874, p. 179. 1877. Hesperomys leucopus gossypinus Coues, Monog. N. American JMu- rid'ai, p. 76. The Cotton Mouse, Pcromyscus Gossi/pinus. 123 189-4. Sitoniys wgaceplialus Rhoads, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. I'hila., 1894, p. 254. 189G. Fcruini/scus gofisyphius Rhoads, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1890, ■p. 189. Type localitij. — The LeConte plantation a few miles above Riceboro, Liberty County, Georgia. Geographic distribution. — From northern Florida north along the coast at least to Bertie County, N. C. ; west through the non-mountainous parts of Georgia to Alabama and perhaps Mississippi. Subspecific characters. — A large heavily built mouse; hind foot large; tail shorter than head and body, bicolored ; ears dusky, nearly naked, of moderate size ; general color of upper parts dark brown, with broad darker dorsal band ; under parts gray ; feet and hands grayish white. Color. — Adult: Upper parts dark brown, varying from Prouts brown to sei)ia, darkening along middle of back into a broad dorsal band, which ranges from clove brown to black ; a black orbital ring. Under parts smoke gray, the hairs plumbeous at base ; feet grayish white ; ears dusky ; tail bicolored, dusky above, grayish white below. Nursing young : Black- ish slate above, slate gray below ; tail and feet as in adult. Young m second pelage: General color of upper parts duller, more hair brown, often with a sooty cast ; otherwise like adult, dorsal stripe well marked.* Size. — Average measurementsof twelve adult specimens from St. Marys Ga. : total length, 177.66; tail vertebne, 70.25; hind foot, 22.35. Max- imum size (of largest old adult in above average) : total length, 197 ; tail vertebrse, 82.5 ; hind foot, 22. Specimens examined, 37, from the following localities : Georgia: St. Marys, 35. North Carolina : Bertie County, 2. Peromyscus gossypinus mississippiensis Rhoads. 1896. Peromyscus gossypinus mississippiensis Rhoads, Pi-oc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1896, p. 189. Type locality. — Samlmrg, Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee. Geographic distribution. — The Mississippi bottoms in Tennessee ; limits of range unknown. Subspecific characters. — Size about that of typical gossypinus ; tail a little longer; hind foot larger; colors paler and more yellowish; dorsal band less well defined, without black orbital ring. Color. — Adult: Upper parts varying from cinnamon brown to russet, darkening on middle of back into an ill-defined dorsal band about mummy brown ; no dark orbital ring ; under parts grayish white, the haii-s plumbeous at base ; ears dusky ; tail bicolored, dusky above, white below ; feet grayish white. *The young in this pelage are much smaller than the adults, but as they frequently breed they have the apjiearance of full-grown animals, and gave rise to LeConte' s species Ilesperomys cognatus. 124 Bangs — The Cotton Mouse, Peromyscns Goss^jpinus. Size. — Average measurements of six adult specimens from type locality : total length, 183; tail vertebrae, 79.5; hind foot, 24.45. Maximum size (of largest old adult in above average) : total length, 196; tail vertebrte, 84; hind foot, 25. Specunens exarinncd, 6, all from the tyi)e locality. Peromyscus gossypinus palmarius subsp. nov. Ti/pe from Oak Lodge, on east ]ieninsula opposite Micco, Brevard County, Florida. No. 3224, $ old adult, collection of E. A. and 0. Bangs. Collected by O. Bangs February 23, 1895. Total length, 183 ; tail verte- bne, 74; hind foot, 21. Geograpldc distribution. — Peninsular Florida, north at least to Brevard County on the east and Citrus County on the west. Subspecific characters. — About the size of typical P. gossypinus ; hind foot shorter ; colors much paler and more yellowish ; no decided darker dorsal band ; a black orbital ring. Color. — Adult: Upper parts varying, according to freshness of pelage, from bright russet to wood brown, usually a few darker hairs scattered al(Mig middle of back, but not enough to form a dorsal band ; a black orbital i-ing; under parts grayish white, the hairs plumbeous at base; ears dusky ; tail bicolored, dusky above, white below ; feet grayish white. Size. — Average measurements of twenty adult specimens from type locality: total length, 181; tail vertebrje, 71.88; hind foot, 21.55. Maxi- mum size (of largest old adult in above average) : total length, 206 ; tail vertebrae, 83 ; hind foot, 22. Remarks. — Peromyscus gossypinus palmarius often shows a pectoral spot of yellowish brown, sometimes of large size. It is often difficult to tell the young in the second pelage of palmarius from the young of typical gossypinus, but as a rule they are lighter in color, more grayish, less sooty, and have the dorsal stripe much less well defined. Specimens examined, 166, from the following localities in Florida : Oak Lodge, east peninsula opposite Micco, Brevard County, 111 ; Micco, 3 ; Flamingo, 19 ; Miami, 2 ; Jupiter Inlet, 3 ; Crystal River, 4 ; Citronelle, 3 ; Blitches Ferry, Citrus County, 21. Peromyscus gossypinus nigriculus subsp. nov. Type from Burbridge, Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. No. 2731, 9 adult, collection of E. A. and O. Bangs. Collected by F. L. Small January 30, 1895. Total length, 174; tail vertebrai, 79; hind foot, 24. Geograpliic distribution. — Bayou region of the coast of Louisiana. Subspecific clmracters. — Size smallest of the gossypinus series ; hind foot about as in typical gossypinus ; tail proportionally longer ; colors very dark ; a broad dorsal band nearly black ; ears and ujiper surface of tail lilack ; a black orbital ring. Color. — Adidt: upj^er ])arts vai'ying from vaiidyke brown to sepia, often with a sooty cast ; darkening along middle of back into a broad dorsal The Cotton Mouse, Peromyscus Gossijpinus. 125 band of nearly black ; a black orbital ring ; under parts grajdsh white ; the hairs plumbeous at base; ears black; tail bicolored, black above, grayish white below ; feet and hands grayish white. Size. — Average measurements of three adult si^ecimens from the type locality: total length, 168.33; tail vertebrae, 76.66; hind foot, 23.66. Average measurements of twenty adult specimens from Gibson, Tei're Bonne Parish, Louisiana: total length, 169.85 ; tail vertebra), 77.85 ; hind foot, 22. Maximum size (of largest old adult in above average) : total length, 184 ; tail vertebi'te, 86 ; hind foot, 22. Remarks. — The young of Peromyscus gossypinus nigriculus are very dark colored, both in the nursing and the second pelage, and can usually be separated, both by their dark color and their smaller size, from the young of corresponding age of gossypinus or of j^a-hnarius. This form appears to be confined to the heavy swamps of the bayou region, and probably does not occur forthcr from the coast than the limits of these swamps. Although Mr. Small trapped persistently in several localities in the prairie and pine regions of central Louisiana, he failed to get a single specimen of any Peromyscus in such places and conclutied that none occur north of the bayous. Specimens examined, 89, from the following localities in Louisiana : Bur- bridge, Plaquemines Parish, 5 ; Gibson, Terra Bonne Parish, 56; Pow- hatan Plantation (near Gibson), 28. Vol. X, pp. 127-130 November 14, 1896 PROCEEDINGS ^rv\-i\C, BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGltojL JUNCUS CONFUSUS, A NEW RUSH FROM THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION. BY FREDERICK Y. COVILLE. In a collection of Juncaceae from Idaho, recently received for identification from Mr. A. A. Heller, were two specimens of an undescribed Juncus, which had long been confounded, even by Engelmann himself, with Juncus tenuis congestus Engelm. A de- scription of the species, which was already well represented in the National Herbarium by specimens from other collectors, is given herewith. Juncus confusus Coville, sp. nov. Plant perennial, densely tufted, 15 to 60 cm. hiirh, erect; stem 0.5 to 1.5 mm. thick at base, narrower above, striate, nearly terete ; leaves all basal, the sheaths with well developed auricles, the blades erect, one- third to one-half or more the height of the stem, flat, usually involute in drying, narrow, 0.5 to 1 mm. in breadth; inflorescence congested into a turbinate cluster 2 cm. or less in height, much exceeded by its lowest bract ; perianth 3 to 4 mm. long, its parts equal, ovate-lanceolate, acute, with green or at maturity stramineous midrib and a brown stripe on either side; stamens 6, about one-half as long as the perianth, the anthers shorter than their filaments; capsule oblong, equaling the perianth, re- tuse, completely 3-celled; seed light brown, obovoid or oblong, .45 to .6 mm. in length, with oblique white apiculations connected l)j' a usually evident white raphe, finely reticulated in about 16 longitudinal rows, the areolae smooth and 2 to 4 times bi'oader than Ljug. Type specimen in the U. S. National Herbarium, collected September 6, 1890, in an irrigated meadow, North Park, Colorado, by C. S. Crandall. 22— Biol. Soc. Wash., Vor,. X, 189G (127) 128 Coville — Jiincius Confusus, a Neiv Rush. Other specimens beside the t3'pe have been examined as fol- lows : Colorado: Grand Lake, George Vasey, 1868, No. 576. Wyoming: Sherman, altitude 8,000 feet, G. W. Letterman, July 28, 1884. Big Horn Mountains, B. C. Buffum, August 6, 1892. Claries Fork Valley, J. N. Rose, September 3, 1893, No. 530. Steamboat Point, Yellowstone Lake, Robert Adams, August 19, 1871. Montana: Spanish Creek, P. A. Rydberg, July 11, 1896, No. 3058. In a meadow, Spanish Basin, altitude 1,800 meters, P. A. Ryd- berg, July 17, 1896, No. 3116. In a wet meadow, Blackhawk, P. A. Rydl)erg, August 5, 1896, No. 3282. Idaho : In the vicinity of Forest and about Lake Waha, Nez Perces County, Mr. and Mrs. A. A. Heller, June 25, 1896, No. 3319, and July 16, 1896, No. 3446. Washington : Near Spangle, Spokane County, W. N. Suksdorf, June 30, 1884, No. 1042. Juncus confusus is one of seven closely related species, all of which with the exception of /. tenuis occur only in America and with the additional exception of /. dichotomus only in North America. Juncus tenuis was formerly a very rare plant in Eu- rope, but is now becoming widely disseminated there and in nearly all parts of the world, apparently by introduction from America. The following synopsis will be useful in distinguish- ing the species of the group : Synopsis of Juncus tenuis and its Allies. Leaf blade flat, but sometimes involute in drying. Anthers much longer than their filaments /. geonytanus Coville. A densely tufted plant, with long leaves, reaching the unusually large inflorescence ; brown-striped perianth 4 to 6 mm. long ; and narrowly oblong-lanceolate completely 3-celled capsule. This species is known only from Georgia, where it occurs on Stone INIountain and adjacent knobs of similar geological structure. For full description see Bull. Torr. Club, 22 : 44. 1895. Anthers not exceeding their filaments. Perianth 2.5 to 4 mm. long, usually with some reddish or brownish coloration, equaling the completely 3-celled capsule; apex of the capsule distinctly tri(j[uetrous, truncate or refuse. Jundus Co7}fusus, a Neiv Rush. 129 Inflorescence somewhat congested, much exceeded by its lowest involucral bract /. confusus Coville. A plant of the Rocky Mountain region from Colorado northward to Montana, Idaho, and Washington. Inflorescence not congested, the flowers secund on the some- what incurved brandies, seldom exceeded bj' the lowest involucral bract /. secundus Beauv. A species of common occurrence in the coastal plain from New Jersey to North Carolina and occasional in Illinois and Missouri. Perianth 3.5 to 5.5 mm. long, green or stramineous, without brown stripes along either side of the midrib (except in the variety) ; capsule obovate, broadly rounded, though sometimes retuse, incompletely 3-celled J. tennis Willd. Occurring almost throughout North Amei'ica, especially as a weed along roadsides and paths, and now migrating to all parts of the world. Along the Pacific coast from middle California to Vancouver Island occurs a robust variety with congested inflorescence much exceeded, as is usually the case also in the type form of the species, by the lowest in- volucral bract; the perianth 4 to 5.5 mm. in length, about one-half longer than the capsule ; its parts with a reddish brown stripe along either side of the midrib. This plant is here named Junctus tenuis occidentalis (,/. tenuis con- gestus Engelm. Trans. St. Louis Acad. 2 : 450. 1866. Not /. congestas Thuill. 1799). Leaf blade terete, channeled along the upper side. Seed not caudate. Perianth 3.5 to 5 mm. long, not exceeded by the capsule. /. dichotomus Ell. A species common to North and South America, occurring abundantly in the United States along the coast from Texas to New Jersey, and more rarely as far northward as Maine. The plant is often confounded with /. tenais when not crit- ically examined, but in addition to its leaf character it may be distinguished also by its darker green color and its fewer-ribbed (about 14 instead of 20 to 24) seeds. Perianth 2.5 to 3 mm. long, conspicuously exceeded by the cap- sule /. greenei Oakes & Tuckerm. Occurring near the coast from New Jersey northward to New Brunswick ; in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota; and in the Canadian province of Ontario. The inflorescence is usually short, much exceeded by the loM-est involucral bract, and the exposed portions of the completely 3-celled ovoid-lanceolate capsule are commonly brownish. The seeds are commonly but erroneously described as caudate. 130 Covillc — Jandas Confusus, a New RusJi. Seed distinctly caudate J. vaseyi Engelin. Occurring from Michigan, Illinois, and Iowa northward to the plains of middle Canada; at Orono, Maine; in the Black Hills of South Dakota ; and, on the authority of a label in the Canby Herbarium, in Middle Park, Colorado. /. vaseyi differs from the last, in addition to its important seed and perianth characters, in its inflorescence usually exceeding the lowest involucral bract, and the green, or, at maturity, stramineous capsule being little or not at all contracted toward the apex. Vol. X, pp. 131-132 November 14, 1896 PROCEEDINGS OF THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON RIBES ERYTHROCARPUM, A NEW CURRANT FROM THE VICINITY OF CRATER LAKE, OREGON. BY FREDERICK V. COVILLE. Crater Lake is a remarkable body of tbe purest water, nearly circular in form, about ten kilometers (6 miles) in diameter and 600 meters (2,000 feet) in depth, without a visible outlet, occupy- ing the bowl of an extinct volcano in the southern ])art of the Cascade Mountains of Oregon, situated about latitude 43° and longitude 122°. The surface of the w'ater has an altitude of 1,902 meters (6,239 feet) and the surrounding cliffs rise 300 to 450 meters (1,000 to 1,500 feet) higher, some of the neighboring peaks reaching 2,400 and 2,700 meters (8,000 and 9,000 feet). The mountain slopes are densely forested, except where the trees have been burned off by sheep herders, and no settlements occur nearer than the plains below. It was the writer's good fortune to visit the place in August of the present year, at the time of the excursion of the Mazamas to that point. The Mazamas are an organization of mountain climbers, which originated in Port- land, Oregon, and are doing a great deal to popularize the natural sciences, to make known the wonderful scenery of the Northwest coast, and especially to create and maintain a public sentiment toward the preservation of the magnificent forests of that region. Nothing seems to have been published on the botany of this part of the Cascades, and indeed no botanist appears heretofore to have made a collection of the plants of the Crater Lake region. The collection made 1>y the writer and Mr. John B. Leiberg from August loth to 20th of the present 3'ear is therefore of unusual 23-Bior,. Soc. Wash., Voi,. X, 1896 (131) 132 Coville — Ribes EnjtJirocarpuni, a New Carrant. interest. Onl}^ a partial exaiuinatif^n of the specimens has l)een made thus far, and a full report must l)e deferred, hut an inter- estino- species, apparently undescrihed, is here presented to the })ul»Hc. Ribes erythiocarpum Coville & Leiberg, sp. iiov. Shnilj trailing upon the ground, devoid of prickles, the stems rooting and giving rise to ascending branches commonly 10 to 20 cm. in height, the herbage and inflorescence clothed with short glandular hairs; leaves angulate-orbicular in outline, rugose, commonly 2 to 3.5 cm. in diameter, on petioles nearly as long, 3 to 5-lobed, the sinuses extending one-half or two-tliirds tlie way to the base, tlie lobes coarsely crenate and the crena- tures unevenly but finely dentate-serrate; racemes erect, commonly 10 to 20-flowered, tlie bracts lierbaceous, lanceolate to obovate, commonly 2 to 4 mm. long, persistent ; flowers erect, contiguous, when expanded 6 to 8 mm. in diameter, on pedicels equaling the bracts ; ovary beset with short glandular hairs ; calyx not produced into a tube, the spreading lobes oblong, obtuse or broadly acute, yellow, minutely dotted with red, there- fore appearing salmon-colored, sparingly and minutely pubescent without, glabrous within ; petals broadly sixxtulate, glabrous, one-third to one-half the length of the calyx lobes and similar in color; filaments glabrous; style glabrous, 2-parted ; fruiting racemes erect or sometimes declined by the weight of the berries ; fruit on erect pedicels, scarlet, subpyriform to spherical, commonly 8 to 10 mm. in length, provided with sliort glandular hairs, th(i flesh white or translucent, insipid. Type sjiecimen in the United States National Herbarium, collected August 12, 1S9(), at an altitude of about 1,675 meters, in the canyon of Pole Bridge Creek, about 10 kilometers south of Crater Lake, Cascade INIoun- tains, Oregon, by Frederick V. Coville and John B. Leiberg. The plant appears from the structure of its flowers to he most nearly related to the Ribes hixiflorum of Pursh and the Ribes howellii of Greene {R. acerifoHum Howell), from hoth of which it is at once distinguishahle hy its creeping hahit and its glandular pubescence, in the latter of these characters and in its general appearance closely resembling Pursh's Ribes viscosissimum. Its herbage, however, possesses the rank odor of Ribes prostratum and R. hudsonianum, quite distinct from the citronella-like smell o^ viscosissimum. That species, too, has blue fruit and an elon- gated calyx tube. Ribes erythrocarpum grows in abundance about Crater Lake, in the forests of Tsugd pattoniawi, to an alti- tude of at least 2,400 meters. Vol. X, pp. 133-134 December 8, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON. AN UNDESCRIBED SHREW OF THE GENUS SOITE^ ^ y BY CHARLES F. BATCHELDER. On September 9, 1895, at Beede's, Essex count}^ New York, I obtained a Sbrew unlike any species known to me. It was caught in one of several ' c3'clone ' traps, baited with rolled oat- meal, that were set among some large, angular rocks at the head of a wooded talus of loose rock. Just al)Ove, shading the spot and keeping it moist and cool, rise the low cliffs from whose frag- ments the talus has been formed. Nearly a year later, on August 1, 1896, 1 caught a second speci- men of this Shrew on Movnit ^larcy, the highest of the Adiron- dack Mountains. It, too, was caught with oatmeal in a ' cj' clone ' trap. It was taken in a crevice between some rocks, on the bare, open summit of the mountain, about 5300 feet above sea-level. The locality where the first one was captured is about eight miles distant, in an air line, and lies at an elevation of only 1300 feet above the sea. I have compared this Shrew with other species of the genus Sorex (the material for comparison I owe in some cases to the unfailing kindness of Dr. C. Hart Merriam), and find it so dif- ferent from them all that I am led to descri])e it as follows : Sorex macrurus sp. nov. Type from Beede's [sometimes called Keene Heights], in the township of Keene, Essex county, New York ; taken September 9, 1895. The type is a young adult male, No. 1384, collection of C. F. Batchelder. General characters. — Size large ; tail long; body stout. 24— Biol. Soc. Wash., Voi,. X, 1896 (133) 134 BatcJielder — An Undescribed Shrew. Fig 25 — SiiuH of Soiestr /Hacrui-iiS(f Type (X 2). Colors (of type, noted in the flesh). — Upper parts between ' slate-color ' ^ and ' blackish slate' ; ^ under parts dark 'smoke gray'^ or brownish 'mouse-gray';^ tail, above, browner than back ; edge of Wps and under side of tail, brownish flesh color ; upper side of both hind and fore feet between ' fawn-color ' * and ' ecru drab."^ Tlie specimen from Mt. Marcy {(^, ad. Aug. 1, 1896, No. 1386, coll. C. F. B.) diflers in color from the type only in having a slightly more plumbeous tint, a diflerence due, apparently, merely to its pelage having been exposed to several weeks less wear. Cranial and dental characters. — Skull long and slender; brain-case low, narrow, and little inflated ; rostrum long, narrow, and low ; palate rather narrow. Posterior border of infraorbital foramen ly- ing over a point consider- ably behind the interspace between the first and sec- ond molars. Unicuspidate teeth slender; the first and second about equal in size ; the third and fourth small- er, and subequal — if any- thing, the third slightly shorter than the fourth. Molariform teeth dee])ly excavated posteriorly. Measurements (of ty})e, taken in the flesh). — Total Fig. 28.— Same tooth row, seen from below, length, 130 mm.; tail vertebra?, 60 mm. ; hind foot, 15 mm. ; fore foot, 8 mm. ; height of ear, 10 mm. The Mount ]Marcy sjiecimen measured : total length, 139 mm. ; tail vertebrae, 61 mm. ; hind foot, 15 mm. ; ear, 10 mm. The extreme tip of its tail appears to have been lost by some accident. This Shrew differs so widely from all others with which I am ac- quainted that comparisons with any other species are quite unnecessary. In color and size it bears a slight superficial resemblance to Sorex fumeus and to S. trombridgii, but it is at once distinguishable from them by its long tail, even without reference to its cranial and dental characters, in which it is totally unlike these species. In the general shape of the skull there is a suggestion of Sorex personutus, but in this respect macrurus is even more remote from such species as trou-bridgii or fumeus than is jjersonatus itself. ^Ridgway: A nomenclature of colors for naturalists, etc., 1SS6, plate II, Figs. 4-3. ^Ibid.,Fig. 12. ^Ibid., Fig. 11. ■'Ibid., pi. Ill, Figs. 22-21. Fig. 27. -Left side of upper jaw showing teeth. Type (X 6). Vol. X, pp. 135-138 December 28, 1896 PROCEEDINGS OF- THr. BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON jijj '^ SOME NEW MAMMALS FROM INDIAN TERRITORY AND MISSOURI. BY OUTRAM BANGS. In the summer of 1896 Mr. Thaddeiis Surber undertook a col- lecting trip to Indian Territory in the interests of the Bangs collection. After spending a short time in Missouri he went to Stilwell, in the Cherokee Nation, at the northwest part of the Boston Mountains. The country was suffering from an un- precedented drought and all mammals were extremely hard to find. Mr. Surber was also handicapped by the unfriendliness of the Indians, who absolutely refused to help him in any way. He had collected but a few. days wdien he was taken ill with an extremely malignant form of malaria, which compelled him to abandon the work. The Boston Mountains about Stilwell rise to a height of 2,500 feet (estimated), and are closed in by ranges of low lying hills, some 250 or 300 feet higher than the intervening narrow valleys of ricli land. Beyond the hills west of Stilwell stretches a barren prairie that is said to have been formerly forest-covered. On the sides of the mountains are found black walnut, white oak, red oak, black jack, etc., but no pines. The mountains all top off" in cliff's from five to fifty feet high, composed of sandstone or bastard limestone, in which there are many caves. The material collected at Stilwell, while small in number of specimens, is of great interest. Besides tlie new forms here de- scribed, Mr. Surber got only three species of mammals — tlie raccoon, Procijoii lotor ; the southern gray squirrel, Sciurus caro- Imensis, and the plains wood rat, Neotoina baileijl. 25-Hioi,. Soc. Wash.. Vol. X, 1896 (135) 13G Bangs — New i\J(i,iiimals from Indian Territory. My thanks are due to General Nelson A. Miles, who with great kindness secured for me the necessary permit allowing j\Ir. Surber to collect in Indian Territory. I am also indebted to Dr. J. A. Allen for presenting me with specimens of Lepus sylvaticus bach- mani, Peromyscus attwateri, and Scalops texanics for comparison with the Indian Territory forms. Lepus sylvaticus alacer subsp. nov. 2]ipi' from Stilwell, Indian Ter., No. 5480, 9 young adult, collection of E. A. and O. Banjos. Collected by Tliaddeus Surber August 14, 189(5. Original No. 65. Two specimens from Stilwell, Indian Ter. ; 2 from Stotesbury, Yernon Co., Mo. General diaraders. — About the size of Lejms sijlcalicus hacJimuui, but differ- ing from tliat form in being much darker and richer in color and in hav- ing much smaller audital bullae. Color. — Type in summer pelage: upper parts rich reddish brown (about hazel), many of the hairs with black tips ; nuchal patch and ujiper surface of legs and arms cinnamon rufous; sides and rump paler, shading towards wood brown ; band on under side of neck wood brown ; rest of under parts, including chin and throat, white. A specimen from Stotes- bury, Mo., in winter pelage (No. 1677, February 27, 1894) : upper parts cinnamon rufous on back, wood brown on sides, very thickly mixed with l)lack-tip})ed hairs, giving a dark and rich effect; ears wood brown broadly edged with black ; no black mark between ears. Cnuiktl churaders. — Skull small, about the size of that of L. sylvaticus bachmani, differing from other members of the sylvaticus series in having extremely small audital bullai. Size of type skull: basilar length, 536; occipitonasal length, 67.2; zygomatic breadth, 34; greatest length of single half of mandible, 51.6. ^■J2^__Type : total length, 370 ; tail vertebra?, 50 ; hind foot, 95 ; ear, 73. Average measurements of two adult specimens from Stote-sbury, Vernon Co., Mo.: total length, 398; tail vertebree, 30.5; hind foot, 79.35; ear, 82.6. General remarks. — AVhen I was at work on the cotton-tails of eastern North America in 1894 I had the two specimens referred to above, col- lected at Stotesbury, Mo., in the winter of 1894, by Mr. Surber, and on account of their small size, peculiar coloration, and small audital bullae was unable to refer them to any known subspecies. They clearly belong to the same form as the Indian Territory specimens, which appears to be unnamed. The two examples taken at Stilwell were both shot in the low. rich valleys, and Mr. Surber did not find the animal on the moun- tains. This form probably has an extensive range throughout the region where the wooded eastern country meets the great plains. Lepus sylvaticus alacer probably merges into L. sylvaticus bachmani of Texas, but its smaller audital buike and dark color at once distinguish it from the gray baclnnani. New Mammals from Indian lerrlfory. 137 Peiomyscus bellus sp. nov. Tt^pe from Stilwell, I. T. No. 5-483, ? adult, collection of E. A. and O. Bangs. Collected by Thaddeus Surber August 15, 1896. Original No. 67. Two specimens from Stilwell, I. T. General characters.— Compared with P. atlwaterl (apparently its nearest geographical ally) P. bellus dift'ers in being much darker and browner; in having a larger hind foot, a pectoral band of fawn color, and a fawn- colored nose patch (white in aUwateri). It belongs to the group of so- called brush mice. Color. — Upper parts broccoli-brown much mixed with black along back, becoming fawn color on lower sides ; patch at root of whiskers fawn color ; ears large, nearly naked, dusky; tail large and long, bicolored, black above, white below, well haired and with a decided pencil ; feet and hands white; under parts white, the hairs plumbeous at base ; a band of fawn color extending across under side of neck in front of arms. Cranial c/tarart^ns.— Skull of the same general appearance as that of P. attwuteri, but larger and w'ith deeper, broader brain case. Size of the type skull: basilar length, 24.2; occipitonasal length, 28; zygomatic breadth, 14; greatest length of single half of mandible, 15. Size. — Type: total length, 1!)0; tail vertebne, 90; hind foot, 24; ear, 17. Average measurements of two adult specimens from Stilwell, I. T.: total length, 192.5; tail vertebra, 93.5; hind foot, 24; ear, 16. General remarks. — The two examples of this brush mouse were taken on one of the rocky hillsides at Stilwell. P. bellits difiers from P. athvateri very materially, but P. aitwateri seems very close, perhaps too close, to P. 7rmieyl, as I must confess I can hardly distinguish skins of the two species. Tamias striatus venustus subsp. nov. Type from Stilwell, I. T. No. 5478, r^ old adult, collection of E. A. and 0. Bangs. Collected by Thaddeus Surber August 13, 1896. Original No. 63. Two specimens from Stilwell, I. T.; 1 from Noel, Mo. General characters. — Size and proportions about as in T. strlains fjriseiis ; colors very bright, especially on rump ; all the Ijlack donsal and lateral Imnds much shortened; hair, especially on rump, hispid, but this char- acter may be seasonal. CoZo?'.— Rump and upper surface of legs deej), rich, lustrous chestnut rufous, this color extending up back and sides, narrowly bordering the black bands; sides yellowish gray; back (between the black bands) and upper neck and shoulders dark gray ; ears and face much suffused with chestnut rufous; facial markings not conspicuous; hairs of up2)er surface of tail yellowish at base, then black and slightly tipped with white ; under i)arts yellowish white, somewhat washed on belly and under side of legs with cinnamon rufous; under side of tail cinnamon rufous. Cranial characters. — The skull is large, about as in T. .striatus grisetis. Size of type skull: basilar length, 38.6; occipitonasal length, 43.6; zygo- matic breadth, 24.4 ; greatest length of single half of mandible, 26.2. 138 Bangs — New Mammah from Indian Territory. Size.— The type: total length, 260; tail vertebne, 100; hind foot, 37. Size of No. 5605, (^ adult from Noel, Mo. : total length, 255 ; tail vertebrfe, 105; hind foot, 36.5. General remarks. — The two specimens of this fine chipmunk that Mr. Surber got at Stihvell were shot at the edge of an old field well up on a hillside. The specimen from Noel, Mo., was taken in a similar place. llimias stridius venustus is by far the handsomest of the striatus series and is easily distinguished from any of the other subspecies. Its large size and big hind foot place it nearest to grlsens, but its bright, rich coloration will at once separate it from that form. With the pale yellow h/steri of the northeast it needs no comparison, and from the small, dull, dark- colored true striatus of the southeast it can always be told by its larger size, bigger hind foot, longer tail, and much brighter coloration. Scalops texanus aereus subsp. nov. 7'v/pc from Stihvell, I. T. No. 5475, 9 old adult, collection of E. A. and O. Bangs. Collected by Thaddeus Surber, August 13, 1896. One specimen from Stihvell, I. T. General cJiaraviers.—'^^ize larger than typical S. ie.vanus ; hind foot larger ; colors darker, without orange markings about nose and chest ; skull slightly different. Color. — Rich coppery chestnut all over, without golden or orange suf- fusions ; slightly duller below than above, and grayer on chin and throat. Cranial characters. — The skull of 8. icrauus eereus as compared with that of true texanus is larger and of a slightly different sliape. The skull of texanus has a short rostrum and is much bulged between the orbits. The skull of eercus has a longer rostrum and does not present the bulged ap- pearance between the orbits. Size of type skull: basilar length, 28.4; occipitonasal length, 33.4; zygomatic breadth, 15.2; greatest length of single half of mandible, 21.8. Size. — The type: total length, 154; tail vertebraj, 24; hind foot, 19. General remarks. — Mr. Surber caught the type specimen of Scalops Ie.vanus ' iereus while it was engaged in tunneling on a black-jack ridge at Stihvell. Dr. J. A. Allen* gives the following measurements for Scalops te.vanus from Rockport, Texas: Average of twelve adult males, total length, 141 ; tail vertebrae, 25 ; hind foot, 17.8 ; and of eight adult females, total length, 137; tail vertebrse, 23 ; hind foot, 16.5. The largest male measured : total length, 147; tail vertebree, 27; hind foot, 19; and the largest female: total lengtli, 146; tail vertebrae, 25.5 ; hind foot, 18. Although Dr. Allen gives no cranial characters for the species, the two skulls of texrmus that I have examined can be easily told from either the skulls of typical Scalops aqnatlcus or S. aquS. texanus xreus. JEreus, however, does not ap- proach argentatus in any way, its affinities lying wholly with texanus. *Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., vol. vi, 1894, p. 186. Vol. X, pp. 139-144 December 28, 1896 PROCEEDINGS BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON Lj i THE SKUNKS OF THE GENUS MEPHITIS OF EASTERN NORTH AMERICA. BY OUTRAM BANGS. In 1895* I described a new skunk from Florida as a sub- species of the northern Mephitis mephilica (Shaw), and at the same time reviewed, in ratlier an informal way, tlie eastern mem- bers of the genus Mephitis. Since then I have learned more about the distribution of the eastern skunks and have seen many additional specimens, so that some of my former views have changed. I now consider the Florida elonc/ata entitled to specific rank, and still another form from the Mississippi Valley entitled to recognition. The latter form, which I shall call Mephitis me- phitica scrutator, is common in the pine and prairie region of central Louisiana, and extends northward up the Mississippi Valley and eastward through the Alleghany Mountains, grad- ually shading into true mephitica. Specimens from the central region from Virginia to Maine are ty[)ical of neither form. M. mephitica ti/pica occurs only in high Canadian and Hudsonian regions. M. elongata is abundant, though locally distributed, over the greater part of |)eninsular Florida and extends up the Atlantic coast at least to southern South Carolina or northern Georgia, where it gradually ceases, and no skunk is found through- out eastern North Carolina, f thus leaving e/ou^a^a and mephitica, * Notes on North Aiiiericau Mammals, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., vol. xxvi, author's edition, Jul}^ 31, 1895. t Mes-srs. H. H. and C S. Brhnley, in fourteen years of constant col- lecting about Raleigh, N. C. , have never seen a skunk there, and have only known one to be reported as having been killed. I have made many inquiries of farmers throughout eastern North Carolina and have always got the same answer, that there are no skunks there. Of course, elongata or mephitica might be expected to occur occasionally as stragglers. 3ii— Bioi,. Soc. Wash., Vor,. X. 1890 (1.39) 140 Bangs — Skunks of Eastern North America. separated by a wide area in the east. Just what forms the western limit of the range of M. elongata I am unable to say, l)ut probably it is the heavy swamps of the lower Mississippi. MEPHITIS MEPHITICA (Shaw). 1792. Viverrnmephiticn^\\ii.\\, Museum Leverianum, 1792, p. 172. 1857. Mephith nvphltica Baini, Manun. N. Am., 1857, p. 195. Geographic distribution. — W'hole of eastern North America from Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia to Louisiana, except Florida and the coast belt from thence to Virginia. Its range may overlap that of }f. elongala in the lower Mississippi Valley, and undoubtedly does overlap the range of M. hudsoiiica* in the upper Mississippi Valley. Description. — Size small to medium; tail short to medium, tapering to a jiencil ; color pattern variable, but usually black all over except frontal stripe, nuchal patch, two strips e.vtending from nuchal patch to and down sides of tail, tip of tail and some scattered hairs in black part of tail, all of which are white. Fully adult males vary in size according to locality : total length, 595- 682; tail vertebrae, 171-241 ; hind foot. 64-83. M. mephitica is distinguished from M. Icudsonica by smaller size, shorter tail, tapering to a pencil, and smaller and less elongated skull. It is sepa- rated from M. elongata by heavier build, much shorter tail, and propor- tionally shorter and broader liind fcjot. This species may be divided into two well-marked sub.species. Mephitis mephitica mephitica and J/, mephitica scrutator. Mephitis mephitica mephitica (Shaw). 1792. Virerrn meptiiiica Shaw, ]\Iuseum Leverianum, 1792, [). 172. 1895. Mephitis niepltitica Bangs, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. XXVI. Autlior's edition, July ol, 1895. (Name restricted to the Hud- sonian form.) Type localit)/. — North America. Oeograpldc di.'itribution. — Boreal eastern North America ; Nova Scotia, Quebec, and Ontario south to about the northern limits of the United States. Western limit of range unknown. General characters. — Size large ; tail short, tapering off to a pencil ; feet very broad and long; heel usually covered with hair, rest of sole naked ; * .1/ep/u7is /utdsomcffl (Richardson) extends eastward to Minnesota and probably to western Ontario. It is a very big skunk, fully adult males measuring : total length, 690 ; tail vertebrje, 255 ; hind foot, 83, and lai'ger. The skull is large and long and the dentition heavy. The palate ends in an even curve, without median spine. The color pattern varies but little. The tail is long, very heavily haired, and has a blunt brush-like end. around wliicli the long hairs of the sides of the tail fiill. Skunks of Eastern North America. 141 markings very constant, varyini; only in a triHing difterence of length and width of the two lateral wliite stripes. Color. — A narrow frontal stripe, nuchal patch, and two lateral bands extending from nuchal patch to and down sides of tail, white; tip of tail often white ; many white or half white hairs mixed in tail ; rest of head, body, tail, arms, and legs, black. Varies in a slight degree only. Occa- sionally the white stripes reach only to the middle of sides of back ; the stripes vary in width but little. Cfanial characters. — Skull large and massive, the palate ending in an even curve, without median spine. Size of an old adult male skull (No. 3805, Bangs collection from Lake Edward, Quebec) : basilar length, 71.6; occipitonasal length, lA.C) ; zygomatic breadth, 52 ; mastoid breadth, 43.8 ; greatest length of single half of mandible, 52.8. Size of an old adult female skull (No. 3802, Bangs coll. from Lake l<"dward, Quebec) : basilar length, 65.2 ; occipitonasal length, 67.2 ; zygomatic breadth, 47.6 ; mastoid breadth, 40.8; greatest length of single half of mandible, 60. Slze. — 0\A adult cJ> (No. 2022, Bangs oil. from Digby, Nova Scotia): total length, 682; tail vertebrae, 171; hind foot, 83. Old adult $ (No. 3802, Bangs coll. from Lake Edward, Quebec): total length, 565; tail vertebrae, 159; hind foot, 75. Oeneral remarks. — The constancy of the niarkings of iLcpldth inephitica typicn and the absence of the median spine of the palate are both char- acters it possesses in common with the big-tailed western species of the huthonica group, from which it diflers, hoM'ever, in its shorter tail, taper- ing to a pencil, and its smaller size. Its range is very restricted. In its extreme form it occurs only in a narrow belt, including the upper edge of the Canadian and lower edge of the Hudsonian zones. Its exact northern limit is unknown to me, but the evidence seems to indicate that it does not reach very far north. A long line of intermediates extends south- ward from northern Maine until the other extreme, M. m. scrutator, is reached in the lower Mississippi Valley. Mephitis mephitica scrutator subsp. nov. Type from Cartville, Acadia Parish, Louisiana. No. 2889, J^ old adult, collection of E. A. and O. Bangs. Collected by F. L. Small ]May 25, 1895. Original No. 1842. Geogrdpldc distrUmtlo}!.. —Vine and prairie regions of central Louisiana, extending up the INIississippi Valley to Indiana and eastward across the Alleghanies to Virginia, and thence northward, gradually becoming less typical, until it mei'ges into true mephitica. General characters. Size small; tail medium (actually longer than in inephitica typica), tapering off to a pencil ; feet verv small ; markings very variable. Color. —Color and markings as in true mephitica, but much more vari- al)le. The two lateral white stripes are often so wide as to meet on tlie back for nearly their whole length, forming the predominating color of the upper parts. In other specimens the lateral stripes are reduced to 142 Bangs — Sbmh of Eastern Xorth America. two small points of white projecting backward from the nnchal patch, the rest of the upper jjarts, except the frontal stripe and nuchal patch, being black. Crankd characters. — Skull nnich smaller and lighter than that of M. me- phitica tijpicu ; jialate ending in a median spine, not always large, but even when much reduced giving a very different outline to end of palate from that of mephitica typica. Size of the type skull (an old adult (^) : basilar length, 60; occipitonasal length, 63.2; zygomatic breadth, 44; mastoid breadth, 35 ; greatest length of single half of mandible, 45.6. An old adult 9 (No. 2886, Bangs collection from Point aux Loups Springs, Acadia Parish, La.): basilar length, 57.4; occipitonasal length, 62.2; zygomatic breadth, 38.8; mastoid breadth, 35; greatest length of single half of mandible, 43. Size. — Old adult (j^ type : total length, 580; tail vertebrae, 208; hind foot, 64. Old adult $ (No. 2886, Bangs coll., from Point aux Loups Springs, Acadia Parish, La.) : total length, 594; tail vertebrte, 233; hind foot, 67. General rein^irL-<. — Among the intei-grades between this form and vie- phitica ti/pica that occur through the New England and INIiddle States, but especially northward, examples can be found both with and without the median spine at the end of the palate. No specimen that I have ever seen of Mephitis mephitica typica, however, has shown any approach to such a spine, not even tlie very young examples, while it is present, in a varying degree, in every skull of .scrutator examined. MEPHrns ELONGATA Bangs. 1895. Mephitis mephitica elonqatd Hangs. Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist. , Vol. XXVI. Author's edition, July 31, 1895, p. 3. Type local'dij. — Micco, Brevard Co., Florida. Geographic distrihalion. — Peninsular Florida, nortii along the coast to southern South Carolina; western limit of range unknown. Rare in the northern part of its range ; locally distributed everywhere. General characters. — Size large, but of lighter build than 3L mephitica ; tail very long, tapering to a pencil ; feet very long and slender; color and markings very variable. Color. — Color and markings as in }[ephitis mephitica scrutator and subject to the same range of individual variation. One .specimen is all black ex- cept tiie tip of the tail and the nuchal patch, even the usual white frontal stripe being entirely wanting. Another has most of the tail and the whole back, except a narrow median line on the rump, white. Cranial characters. — Skull large, alxjut the size of that of ^fephitis me- phitica typica, always with a large median spine at end of palate. Size of an old adult ^T i^knll (No. 3052, Bangs coll., topotype) : basilar length, 66.4 ; occipitonasal length, 71 ; zygomatic breadth, 49.2; mastoid bi'eadth, 40; greatest length of single half of mandible, 50.8. An old adult 9 skull (No. 2484, Bangs coll., from Blitches Ferry, Citrus Co., Skunks of Easfern North America. 143 Fla.) : basilar length, 59.0 ; occipitonasal length, 62.2 ; zygomatic breadth, 45.4 ; mastoid breadth, 35. S ; greatest length of single half of mandible, 46.4. ,SV2f.— Old adult J' (topotype, No. 3052, Bangs coll.) : total length, 719 ; tail vertebrte, 321 ; hind foot, 76. An old adult $ (No. 2483, Bangs coll.i from Blitches Ferry, Citrus Co., Fla.): total length, 673; tail vertebrae, 330 ; hind foot, 70. General remarks. — Mephitis elongata is ver\' different from ^[. ntephiticu, and its characters are constant throughout its range. Since I can find no indication of intergradation and the ranges of the two forms are sepa- rated, at least in the east, by a strip of neutral ground, where no skunk occurs, M. elongata seems entitled to rank as a full species. i Measurements on next page.) 144 Bangs — Skunks of Eastern North America, ladividual Measurements of a Series of Eastern Skunks {genus Mephitis). .■ bil . 433; Bachman, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1838, p. 89; Aud. and Bach., Quad. N. Am., I, 1849, p. 145, pi. XVII; Baird, ]\Iamm. N. Am., 1857, p. 248. 1877. Sciurus niger var. cinereus Allen, Monog. N. Am. Sciurida^, 1877, p. 718. 1792. Sciurus ruJplnus Schreber, Siiugth., IV, 1792, p. 772. (Brought from Baltimore bj^ Schoej^f ; name preoccupied by »S'. vulpinus Gmelin ^= *S'. niger Linn.). Not Sciurus cinereus Linn. Type from White Sulphur Springs, W. Va. No. 5215, collection of E. A. and O. Bangs, 9 ol^l adult. Collected by Thaddeus Surber, January 29, 1896; total length, 582; tail, 282; hind foot, 75. Geographic distribution. — From northern Virginia north, formerly to central New York and casually southern New England ; west through AVest Virginia and Pennsylvania, probably extending some distance south in the Alleghany Mountains and higher land of Virginia and North Caro- lina. Now rare and local throughout its range. Habitat. — The more heavily wooded and unsettled parts throughout its range, apparently fast becoming extirpated. f *Town not on modern maps; name appears on labels of specimens in Museum of Comparative Zoology. tThe Northern fox squirrel is one of the animals that cannot withstand persecution and the clearing and settlement of the country. It is already becoming very hard to get specimens of this subspecies. Dr. B. H. Warren, Zoologist of the State of Pennsylvania, writes me that the northern fox squirrel is practically extinct in Pennsylvania except in the counties of Dauphin and Cumberland. I can get no information of any having been taken lately in New Jersey and fear it has met the same fate in that State. There seem to be a few left in the vicinity of the city of Washington. Mr. Vernon Bailey, in his ' List of the Mammals of the District of Colum- The Squirrels of Eastern North America. 151 General characters. — Size somewhat larger than S. hidoricianns ti/])icits. General color usually less ferruginous, often yellowish gray ; belly usually white and only under side of tail ferruginous ; soles of feet naked in sum- mer, partially covered with hair in winter; character of pelage the same as in true ladovicianus. Color.— Ears never white ; nose sometimes white ; usual color of upper parts a mixed black and rusty, the hairs banded with black and pale ferruginous ; under parts pale ferruginous to rustj^ white ; under surface of tail ferruginous, the hairs with often a black subajjical band. Ears ferruginous and in winter well tufted. Some specimens are much lighter in color, being yellowish gray above, with the black banding of the hairs reduced to a mininmm ; the belly white, and the under surface of the tail pale ferruginous. Some others have a good deal of black on the heatl, belly, and legs, but I have never seen a wholly black individual. Cranial cJiaraclers. — Skull rather larger than that of Sciarus ladovicianus ; otherwise similar. Ratio of occipitonasal length to nasal length, 32.3. Size of an average adult skull (the type) : basilar length, 61 ; occipito- nasal length, 68.8; zygomatic breadth, 40; greatest height of cranium above palate, 22.2 ; greatest length of single half of mandible, 42.2. Size. — Average measui-ements of three adult specimens from White Sul- phur Springs, \V. Va. : total length, 587.7; tail vertebrte, 271.8; hind foot, 73.3. General remarks. — It seems strange that among the multitude of names given our squirrels, and especially the fox squirrels, there should be none to apply to the present subspecies. Linnseus' name Sclurus cinereus has passed current for a long time for this animal, but cannot possibly apply to it. Linn?eus based his name on three authorities, namely : Ray's Quadrupeds, p. 215, "Sclurus vlrglnianus cinereus major." Catesby's Natural History, II, p. 74, t. 74, " The Gray Fox Squirrel, Sclurus cinereus." Kalm, 2, p. 409. Ray says of his Sclurus virginianus cinereus major that it is the size of the common rabbit (of Europe) and of the same color, and that it inhabits Virginia. This brief description can appl}^, on account of the very large size claimed for the species, to none other tlian the large southern fox squirrel, Sclurus nlger Linn. Catesby's gray fox squirrel has been supposed by subsequent authors^ Baird excepted, to be the northern fox squirrel, but such a view seems to me wholly untenable and in direct contradiction to the evidence. bia,' records several specimens from Laurel, Md., in Dr. Merriam's col- lection, and states that many are ship[jed to Center Market from points in Virginia thirty or forty miles west of the city. The subspecies is, however, rare in most parts of northern Virginia. Lieut. Wirt Robinson has told me that in ten years' shooting in Buckingliam County', Va., he got only two fox squirrels out of hundreds of squirrels killed. A few re- main in the AUeghanies of West Virginia, where Mr. Thaddeus Siirber got me three fine specimens in the last two years at White Sulphur Springs. 152 Bangs — The Squirrels of Eastern North America. Catesby worked for the greater part of liis stay in this country in a region in whicli the northern fox squirrel is unknown and in which the southern fox squirrel is abundant. Catesby spent one year on the coast, tl;en went up the Savannah River to Fort Moore, about half way from the source of the river to the sea. It is true he made several expeditions into the mountains, and possibly may have seen the northern fox squirrel on some of these trips,* but if he did, he makes no mention of any such animal. He distinctly places his gray fox squirrel as an inhabitant of the coast region (a region wholly tenanted by the southern fox squirrel) by his remark that it, with the black fox squirrel, does great harm to the maize and pulse plantations of Virginia and Carolina (under descriptions of the two fox squirrels), he having previously stated that the inhabited portion of the country extended only sixty miles back from the coast (p. VIII, preface). Catesby's figure and description of the gray fox squirrel leave much to be desired, but one point upon which he was very careful in all his accounts of birds, mammals, and reptiles was size, and he distinctly states the gray and black fox squirrels to have been of about the same size (under description of black fox squirrel. Vol. II, p. 73). Judging by his work on other animals, Catesby would never have made such an assertion if he were describing the northern fox squirrel, an animal much smaller than the southern fox squirrel. Both on geo- graphical and technical grounds it is impossible that Catesby's gray fox squirrel could have been intended for the northern fox squirrel, and his gray fox squirrel resolves itself into nothing more than the light colored phase of the southern fox squirrel, while his ])lack fox squirrel is the black phase of the same species. The black or nearly black individuals of the southern fox squirrel are much rarer than the light-colored ones, the proportion being about seven to one in favor of the light ones, and when the two extremes are com- pared they certainly look like very different animals, and are supposed so to be to this day by most southern squirrel-hunters. Catesby tells us that at first he judged the two to be one species, but finally yielded to the common notion and considered them distinct. (Under description of black fox squirrel. ) A point of some interest is that Catesby does not mention the gray squirrel [Scinnis carolinensis Gmelin) at all. It must certainly have been an abundant animal all about him, and it is probable that he confused it with the light-colored phase of the southern fox squirrel, perhaps think- ing the ones he saw younger or smaller individuals of this kind. Kalm gives a short but accurate description of the gray squirrel (Scinrns carolinensis), both as to size and color, as he saw it in Pennsylvania, and his long account of its habits, etc., refers to this species alone, he making no mention of any larger animal. From the composite Linmean species, Scluras ciiiereus, Gmelin, in 1788, took out the southern gray squirrel and gave it the name Sciaras curo- * It is by no means certain that the northern fox squirrel occurs in the southern Alleghanies. The Squirrels of Eastern North America. 153 liiit'iisis, tha8 restricting Sciuruf^ ciiicnnif! Liiiii. to the light color phase of the southern fox squirrel, and it becomes a direct synonym of Sciarusniger Linn., based on the black phase of the same animal from the same locality. The only other name that need be considered at all is Sciurus virginianus of Kerr's Linnteus, 1792. This name was based on the ' Cat Squirrel ' of Pennant's Arctic Zoology, which is an indeterminable animal, said to have a very short tail and to inhabit Virginia, where the i)lanters call it 'Cat Squirrel.' As the vernacular name 'Cat Squirrel' is invariably employed in the South for the gray squirrel, it seems likely that the animal in question was nothing more than that species. It may be well to add that Pennant's gray squirrel was a compound animal, including the gray, the southern fox, and perhaps the northern fox squirrels, but referring best to tlie gray squirrel, as pointed out by Professor Baird in his Mammals of North America in 1857. Professor Baird is the only author to question the standing of Linnjeus' Sciurus cinereus. With his usual acuteness he saw that the name could not apply to the northern fox squirrel, but for some reason he retained it, probably because Le Conte, Bachman, and others had done so. Specimens examined. — Total number, 10, from the following localities: Pennsylvania: Carlisle,!; Rothruck, 2; — 2. Maryland : Prince George Count}', 1 ; — 1. West Virginia : White Sulphur Springs, o. Sciurus carolinensis carolinensis Gmelin. Southern Gray Squirrel ; Cat Squirrel. 1788. Sciunis caroUnemis Gmelin, Syst. Nat., I, 1788, p. 148 (based on Pennant's Lesser Gray Squirrel from Cai-olina). 1877. Sciurus caroliaensis var. carolinensis Allen, Monog. N. Am. Sciuridfe, 1877, p. 704. Tyije locality. — Carolina. Geographic distrihation.—XwaiYiA Zone, fnjm northern Florida north to about the lower Hudson Valley, west through the AUeghanies south of Pennsylvania to Indiana, Missouri, Indian Territory, and the edge of the plains. Habitat.— In the South, where Sciurus carolinensis occurs in the same region with the southern fox squirrel, the two live in woods of very dif- ferent character. The fox squirrel is exclusively an inhabitant of the flat, open ' piney woods.' The gray squirrel lives in the dense hammocks of live oak and water oak, and in the dee]> swamps of cypress, black gum, and great magnolia that border the streams. Farther north it is found in the forests and groves of oak, chestnut, and hickory. Though they feed much on the ground, all the gray squirrels are highly arboreal and very active tree-climbers, springing, when occasion requires it, long distances from branch to branch. The southern gray squirrel is in many places exceedingly abundant, but is much shot by the negroes for food, and where persecuted is very shy and seldom seen, passing the greater part of the day in hollows or 28— Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 1896 154 Bangs — Tlie Squirrels of Eastern North America. nests in tlie trees and feeding only in the early morning and after sunset in the evening. It is migratory to a certain extent, its migrations prob- ably depending on the food supply. General characters. — Size medium; colcjrs quite constant, dark yellowish rusty above, white below ; soles of feet usually naked, the heel covered with hair ; ears sometimes slightly tufted in winter ; pelage soft. Color. —Upper parts dark yellowish rusty, the hairs annulated black and rusty yellow, with usually some gray-tipped hairs on upper surface of legs and arms, sides of neck, and sides of rump, giving a grayer tone to these parts, the yellowish rusty color predominating on head, middle of back, and along sides ; hairs of tail dull yellow at base, then black and tipped with white; under parts white; ears yellowish white, sometimes a slight woolly tuft at base. Cranial characters. — Skull light, developing with age only slight indica- tions of lateral ridges ; rostrum long and rather slender ; nasals narrow and short, not extending back of ascending branch of premaxilla; zygo- mata slanting backward from root and lying close to skull (not so much bowed out as in the fox squirrels and not nearly so much so as in the red squirrels) ; postorbital iDrocesses long and slender ; j^enultimate upper pre- molar normally present in the adult. Size of an average adult skull : basilar length, 50; occipitonasal length, 58.8; zygomatic breadth, 3.3.2; greatest height of cranium above palate, 19.2; greatest length of single half of mandible, .36. Size. — Average measurements of two adult specimens from St. IMarys, Ga. : total length, 450.5; tail vertebrje, 212; hind foot, 60.8. Average measurements of five adult specimens from Raleigh, N. C. : total length, 461.8; tail vertebra^, 205; hind foot, 63.2. General remarks. — Sciurus carolinensis has escaped synonymj' in a most remarkable way. It is rather a happy accident to have the specific name restricted to this form, since it oc(;upies a central position and covers a larger area of country than any one of the four subspecies which surround it and shade directly into it. The most typical specimens of S. carolinensis come from the coast region from northern Florida to Virginia. Specimens from the higher land of North Carolina and Virginia are shading both in color and size toward the northern subspecies {leucotis), while those from the lower Mississippi Valley begin to approach the form of the coast of Louisiana {fuliginosus). S. caroUnensis tyjricits extends about halfway down the Florida peninsula before it wholly breaks off into the subtropical form (extimns). Specimens examined. — Total number, 20, from the following localities : Florida: Rose Bluff, St. INIarys River, 1. Georgia : St. IMarys, 4 ; Mcintosh County, 1. North Carolina : Raleigh, 7 ; Statesville, 2. Missouri: Stotesbury, 2. Indiana: Denver, 1. Indian Territorv : Stilwell, 2. The Squirrels of Eastern Nortlt America. 155 Sciurus caroliuensis leucotis (Gapper). Northern Gray Squirrel. 1830. Sciurus leneoiis Gapper, Zoijl. Journal, V, p. 206, 1830; Bachraan, Proc Zool. Soc. London, 1838, p. 96. 1792. Sciurus ciuercus Schreber, .Silugth., IV, 1792, p. 766, pi. CCXII ; Harlan, Fauna Am., 1825, p. 173. 1815. Sciurus pennsylvanicus Ord, Guthrie's Geog., 2d Am. ed., II, 1815, p. 292 {nomen nudum). 1815. Sciurus hiemalis Ord, Guthrie's Geog., 2d Am. ed., II, 1815, p. 292 ; Rhoads, Appendix to reprint of Ord, 1894, p. 20. (Intermediate.) 1826. Sciurus niger Godman, Am. N. H., II, 1826, p. 133; Richardson, Fauna Bor.-Am., I, 1829, p. 191; Bachman, Proc. Zool. .Soc. London, 1838, p. 96; And. and Bach., Quad. N. Am., 1, 1849, p. 261, pi. XXXIV. 1842. Sciurus vuipinus DeKay, N. Y. Zool., I, 1842, p. 59. 1849. Sciurus migratorius Aud. and Bach., Quad. N. Am., I, 1819, p. 265, pi. XXXV. 1877. Sciurus carolinensis var. leucotis Allen, INIonog. N. Am. Sciuridpe, 1877, p. 701. 1894. Sciurris carolinensis pennsylvanicus Rhoads, Appendix to reprint of Ord, 1894, p. 19. Type locality. — Region between York and Lake Simcoe, Ontario. Geographic distribution. — Transition Zone and locally, lower edge of Canadian Zone from the AUeghanies of Pennsylvania north through New York and Xew England to southern Xew Brunswick and southern Canada ; west to Minnesota. Habitat. — Hard- wood forests and groves of oak, chestnut, and hickory. Abundant over most of the country it occupies, but local in the north, and only occurring where there are large tracts of hard wood. Often very numerous and tame in the parks of the large cities, where it is care- fully protected. The northern gray squirrel is highly migratory, but the migrations probably depend wholly on food supply and occur irregularly. Sometimes a large section of country will be deserted for several years, and at other times an unusually heavy crop of beech nuts or acorns will attract the gray squirrels in enormous numbers. General characters. — Size large ; tail long and bushy ; much given to melanism locally, but especially northward. Color of normal examples much lighter above than in carolinensis typicus, being silvery gray. Feet large, the soles sometimes covered with hair between the pads in winter. Color. — In winter pelage, upper parts silvery gray, the hairs banded yellowish brown and black, with, long white tips ; the yellowish brown color often predominating on head, center of back, and upper surface of hands and feet; under parts white (sometimes a specimen will be a little rusty between fore legs or on neck or chest) ; hairs of tail long, yellowish at base, then black and deeply tipped with white ; ears yellow'ish white, sometimes with woolly tufts at base. In summer the white tips of the hairs wear off, giving a more yellowish appearance to the whole upper parts, with sometimes a good deal of rusty on the back, sides, neck, and legs. Wholly black (melanistic) individuals are common at some localities, and at such places ever}' degree between the black and gray can be found. Cranial characters. — Skull larger than that of typical carolinensis, but otherwise similar. Size of an average adult skull : basilar length, 54.4 ; 156 Bangs — The Squirrels of Eastern NortJi America. occipitonasal length, 65.2; zygomatic breadth, 35; greatest height of cra- nium above palate, 19.8; greatest length of single half of mandible, 37.2. Size. — Average measurements of five adult specimens from Liberty Hill, Conn. : total length, 505.5; tail vertebrte, 230.6; hind foot, 71.7 General remarks. — Mr. Rhoads, in the appendix to his edition of Ord (1894, p. 19), tries to bring into use Ord's name Sciurus pennsylvanicus for the northern gray squirrel, calling it Sciurus carolinensis pennsylvanicus (Ord). Ord's name is a nomen nudum, and has no standing in nomen- clature, even if we can guess the species he meant to apply it to. Gapper's name leucotis is well founded and has been in current use for nearly twenty years, ever since Allen reestablished it in his Monograph of the American Sciuridse in 1877. About Ord's Sciurus hiemalis I feel some doubt. The name unquestion- ably was given to a gray squirrel in winter pelage, but from the localit}' attributed it, " Little Egg Harbor, New Jersey," the animal was probably intermediate between the southern and northern grays, and it therefore seems wiser to allow Gapper's name to stand for the northern gray squirrel. Specimens examined. — Total number, 33, from the following localities: Ontario: Mount Forest, 1. Wisconsin : Madison, 1. Minnesota: Elk River, 1. Massachusetts: Belmont, 1 ; Brookline, 15; Wareham, 4; Marthas Vineyard, 2. Connecticut : Liberty Hill, 8. Sciurus carolinensis hypophaeus Merriam. Merriam's Gray Squirrel. 188(). Sciurus carolinensis hypophxus Merriam, Science, Vol. VIII, p. 351> April 16, 1886; Allen, Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., Vol. VL 1894, p. 171, foot-note. Type locality. — Elk River, Minnesota. Geograpldc distribution — The edge of the forest belt in INIinnesota (a region having quite a distinctive mammalian fauna). Limits of range unknown. General characters. — Size large, equaling that of leucotis. Color of upper parts rather darker than in leucotis and enci'oaching all round on under parts, leaving only a small central streak of white on belly. Soles of feet densely furred in winter between the pads, naked in summer. Ears well tufted in winter. Pelage in winter very long and full. Color. — In winter upper parls dark iron gray, mixed with j'ellowish and rusty ; the hairs banded, yellowish rusty and black, and somewhat tipped with white ; a small irregular central streak of white on belly ; rest of under parts like back ; chest and under side of neck sometimes uniform yellowish brown ; tail dark, the black band of hairs longer and the white tips shorter than in leucotis; ear tufts well developed in winter, yellowish white ; in summer the general color is dai'ker and more j'ellowish, owing to the wearing down of the hair. The Squirrels of Eastern North America. 157 Crardal characters. — Skull about the size of that of leucotis, showing no characters by which it can be separated from any of the carollnensis series. Size of an average adult skull: basilar length, 54.6; occipitonasal length, 63.2; zygomatic breadth, 34.6; greatest height of cranium above palate, 19; gi'eatest length of single half of mandible, 35.4. Size. — Average measurements of nine adult specimens from Elk River, Minn. : total length, 496.3; tail vertebrae, 220.4; hind foot, 67.2. General remarks. — Little is known of this fine squirrel. IM3' knowledge of it comes wholly from Dr. Merriam's description and from four speci- mens from the type locality, Elk River, Minn., kindly lent me by him, and ten topotypes in the Bangs collection. One point of some interest is that the northern gray squirrel (Sclurus caroUnensis leucotis) occasionally occurs at Elk River in considerable num- bers with hypophicas, but has not been known to breed there, appearing only in migrations. This fact suggests the possibility of hypoplueiis prov- ing to be a distinct species when more is known of it. Specimens examined. — Total number, 14, from Elk River, Minn. Sciurus carollnensis faliginosus (Bachman). Bayou Gray Squirrel. 1838. Sclurus fuUglnosus Bach., Proc. ZoiJl. Soc. London, 1838, p. 96 ; Aud. and Bach., Quad. N. Am., Ill, 1853, p. 240, pi. CXLIX. 1895. Sclurus carollnensis fuUglnosus Bangs, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., XXVI, p. .543, 1895 ; Rhoads, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sciences, Phila., 1896, p. 196. Type locality. — Near New Orleans, La. Geographic distribution. — The bayou region of the coast of Louisiana. General characters. — Size larger than true carollnensis; colors rich and dark ; under parts never pure white and often clear ferruginous ; tail long and bushy, the hairs but slightly tipped with white ; feet large, soles naked ; ears with often a woolly tuft at base in winter. Color. — Upper parts deep yellowish ferruginous, varied with black ; the hairs banded, many of them having the black band extending to the tip ; tail dark, the hairs yellowish ferruginous at base, then black and tipped with white, the black subapical band very broad and the white tips short ; under parts varying from clear buffy ferruginous, the cliin only gray, to smoky gray ; line of demarkation between colors of uj^per and under parts always low down and irregular; ear tufts well developed, ferruginous in the examples with ferruginous under parts, grayish white in the exam- ples with gray under parts. Cranial characters. — Skull a little larger than that of true carollnensis, otherwise similar. Size of an average adult skull: basilar length, 50.6; occipitonasal length, 60; zygomatic breadth, 33.4; greatest height of cra- nium above palate, 19.8 ; greatest length of single half of mandible, 36. Size. — Average measurements of ten adult specimens from Gibson, La. : total length, 467; tail vertebrte, 219.5; hind foot, 67. General remarks. — Sclurus carollnensis faliginosus is confined in its ex- treme form to the heavy swamps of the bayou region of the coast of Louisiana. Farther north in the ' prairie ' regions of the same State it 158 Ba)i[ji< — The Squirirls of Easfcni North Arnerica. begins gradually to approach caroUnensls h/picus, a large series from Acadia Parish, La., showing this tendency. Mr. Rhoads speaks of the living gray squirrels he saw in the park at Memphis, Tenn.,* and refers them to fuUginofius, on account of their large size and dark coloring. They are probably about like the examples from central Louisiana, which retain the large size and dark color above, but have pure white under jjarts, and can safely be called intermediates between caroUncnsis and fuUyinosus, though perhaps nearer fuliginosus. Specimens examined. — Total number, 87. from the following localities : Louisiana: Gibson, Terre Bonne Parish, 13; Cartville, Acadia Parish, 3; Point Aux Loups Springs, Acadia Parish, 21. (Those from Acadia Parish not extreme.) Sciurus carolinensis extimus subsp, nov. Everglade Gray Squirrel. Type from Miami, Dade Co., Florida. No. 4519, $ young adult, collec- tion of E. A. and O. Bangs. Collected March 12, 1895, by L. Brownell. Total length, 432; tail vertebrae, 194; hind foot, 54. Geographic distribution. — Subti'opical fauna of south Florida, northward about half way np the peninsula. Habitat. — Everglades and oak and cabbage palmetto hammocks. Not found in the ' piney wood.s.' General characters. — Size smallest of the carolinensis series ; tail and hind foot short; color much lighter, more gray than in carolinensis typicas ; soles naked ; ears with sometimes a slight woolly tuft at base. Cobr. — Upper parts yellowish gray, the hairs banded black and dull yellow, a few tipped with white (much the same color as the upper parts of ieucotis in summer pelage) ; tail light colored, the hairs yellowish at base, then black and tipped with white ; under parts white ; ear tufts white. Cranial characters. — Skull smaller than that of true carolinensis, other- wise similar. Size of an average adult skull, the tj^pe : basilar length, 47 ; occipitonasal length, 55; zygomatic breadth, 31.2; greatest height of cranium above palate, 18 ; greatest length of single half of mandible, 33.2. Size. — Average measurements of seven adult specimens from ^liunii, Fla. : total length, 438.4 ; tail vertebrae, 190.9 ; hind foot, 47. General remarks. — Sciurus carolinensis extimus represents in its small size, short tail, and small hind foot the extreme of differentiation of the caro- linensis series, but differs widely from true carolinensis, its nearest geo^ graphical cousin, in its much grayer color. This j^ellowish gray color is probably highly protective, the animal spending most of its life among trees covered with the gray Spanish moss, Tillandsia usneoldes, which its color almost exactly matches in tone. S. carolinensis extimus is only typical in.the peculiar subtropical f^iunaof the everglades and southern part of the Florida peninsula. Specimens from Citrus Co., Fla., are larger and darker in color and are rather nearer to true carolinensis than to extimus. The gray squirrel of northern Florida is true carolinensis. *Proc. Acad. Nat. Sciences Phila., 1896, p. 196. The Squirrels of EaHtcrn Nortli America. 159 Specimens examined . — Total nuiiiber, 8, from tlie following localities: Florida: Miami, Dade Co., 7; Oak" Lodge (east peninsula, opposite Micco), Brevard Co.,1; also 21 from Citrus Co. (Citronelle, 2 ; Blitches Ferry, 10), which are intermediates between caroUnams and e.ii'unns. Sciurus hudsonicus hudsonicus (Erxleben). Red S(][uirrel ; Chickaree. 1777. Sciurus vulgaris e Jiudsonicns Erxleben, Mammalia, 1777, p. 416. 1778. Sciurus Imdsonius Pallas, Nov. Spec. Glir., 1778, p. 376. 1820. Sciurus rubrolineatus Desmarest, Mamm., I, 1820, p. 333 (Encyclo- pedic Methodique). 1827. Tamia hudsonia Lesson, Man. Mamm., 1827," p. 231. 1843. Tarnias rubrolineatus Schinz, Syn. Mamm., II, 1843, p. 48. 1877. Sciurus hudsonius var. hudsonius Allen, Monog. N. Am. Sciuridie, 1877, p. 672. Type locality.— Hudson Strait. 'Ad fretum Hudsonis.' GeograpJuc distribution. — Boreal North America, from Labrador to Alaska, south to Maine and the northern peninsula of Michigan, and along the tops of the higher Alleghanies to Roan Mountain, North Carolina. Habitat. — Spruce and fir forests. Feeds largely on the seeds of conifers. The northern red squirrel is excessively abundant in all favorable situ- ations. In many places one can often count twenty or thirty individuals ■within sight or hearing at one time. Always noisy and jerky in its motions, the red squii-rel is usually tame and unsuspicious. It feeds and lives both on the ground and in the trees, and is a very agile climber. General cliaracters. — Size smallest of the eastern squirrels; tail short, fiat, and narrow ; a decided difference in color and markings between winter and summer pelage ; * dorsal stripe in winter chestnut rufous ; sides olivaceous gray ; white of underparts vermiculated with black ; in summer pelage hardly distinguishable from the next subspecies by color alone; soles densely furred in winter and somewhat so in summer; ear tufts in winter, long, protruding well beyond the ear ; pelage in winter very full and. soft. Color. — Winter pelage : Upper parts with a broad dorsal band extending from between the ears down upper surface of tail, bright chestnut rufous ; sides, upper surface of legs and arms, and cheeks olivaceous gray, the hairs banded with black ; upper surface of feet and hands often more yel- lowish ; under pai'ts grayish white, thickly vermiculated with blackish, the hairs plumbeous at base. An indistinct blackisli line usually shows on sides between colors of upper and under parts. On the upper surface of the tail the hairs are clear chestnut rufous, and only a few have black rings ; on the sides and lower surface they are dull yellowish at base and tips and black in the middle. Summer ])elage : Upper jjarts with no dorsal stripe ; a peculiar feri-uginous gray with an olivaceous cast, the hairs banded with black, becoming clear ferruginous on upper surface of hands and feet, and sometimes legs and arms also ; under parts white, often *In this connection, see Allen on 'Seasonal Variation in Color in Sciurus ]iud.' Baiifj.^ — The Squirrclx of Easkni XortJt America. :\Iassacliusetts : Wareham, 4 ; INIount Greylock, 1 ; Waverly, 3 ; Con- cord, 1 ; Waltham, 1. Connecticut : Liberty Hill, 8. Indiana: Denver, 1. Missouri: Stotesbury, 1. Maryland : Forest Glen, 1. Virginia : Nelson County, 2. West Virginia : White Sulphur Springs, 1. Intermediates: Georgia: St. Marys, 10; Mcintosh County, 1. Sciuropterus volans querceti subsp. nov. Florida Flying Squirrel. Ti^pe from Citronelle, Citrus Co., Fla., No. 2451, ? old adult, collection of E. A. and 0. Bangs. Collected by F. L. Small, September 17, 1894. Total length, 235; tail vertebrae, 95 ; hind foot, 32. Geogmphir, distribution. — Peninsular Florida, north to southern Georgia ; exact western limits of range unknown. Habitat. — The hammocks and margins, where there is plenty of live oak and water oak; nocturnal, spending the day in hollow stumps or in nests in the thick bunches of Spanish moss. General characters. — Very similar to S. volans tj/picus, from which it differs in having the upper parts more uniform russet, and the under parts, especially the under surface of tail, strongly washed with the same color ; soles naked ; audital bulUie wheel-shaped, very large and deep. Color.— V\-)Y>er parts russet, shading to yellowish drab in places ; cheeks grayish white; upper surface of feet and hands sooty gray; toes rather lighter; under parts white, a good deal shaded with pinkish russet. Cranial characters.— S^nW similar to that of »S\ volans, except that the audital bullae are much larger, more inflated, and broadly wheel-shaped (see figs. 31 and 32). Size of an average adult skull (the type) : basilar lengtli, 30.2 ; occipitonasal length, 34.6 ; zygomatic breadth, 21 ; greatest height of cranium above palate, 12.8 ; greatest length of single half of man- dible, 21.4. Size. — Average measurements of thi-ee adult specimens from Citronelle, Fla.: total length, 237.G6; tail vertebnie, 102.66; hind foot, 31.33. General retiiarks. — Sciuropterus rolan.>< querceti passes into true rolaus in southern Georgia, a series of specimens from St. ]\Iarys, Ga., being in- termediate between the two. A specimen from Powhatan Plantation, near Gibson, La., without a skull, seems referable to this form, and may thus extend its range tc the coast of Louisiana. Specimens examined. — Total number, 3, all from Citronelle, Citrus Co., Fla. Fig. 31.— Audital bulla of Sciurop/erus volans. KiG. 32. —Audital bulla of Sciuropterus v. querceti. EXPLANATION OF PLATES. All the figures are life size and were drawn by Dr. J. C. McConnell. PI..VTE VIII. Pig. 1. tSclurus niger L. — 9 old adult, Citronelle, Fla. (No. 1978, Bangs coll.) 2. Sclurus ludovieianus Custis — c? olf^ adult, Point aux Loups Springs, La. (No. 2929, Bangs coll.) 3. Sciiirus ludovicianns vlcinus B&ngs — 9 old adult; the type, White Sulphur Springs, W. Ya. (No. 5215, Bangs coll.) 4. Sciunis carolinensis hypophxas Merriam — (^ old adult. Elk River, Minn. (No. 3942, Merriam coll.) Plate IX. Fig. I. Sciurus carolinensis leucotis Gapper — 9 old adult. Liberty Hill, Conn. (No. 1043, Bangs coll.) 2. Sciurus carolinensis faliginosus [Bach.) — (5^ old adult, Gibson, La. (No. 2833, Bangs coll.) 3. Sciurus carolinensis Gmelin — 9 old adult, St. Marys, Ga. (No. 5141, Bangs coll.) 4. Scinrus carolinensis extimus Bangs — 9 adult; the type, IMianii, Fla. (No. 4519, Bangs coll.) Plate X. Fig. 1. Sciurus liudsonicus loqna.r Bangs— rj* old adult; the type. Liberty Hill, Conn. (No. 4270, Bangs coll.) 2. Sciurus hudsonicus (Erxleben) — ,5* old adult, Hamilton Inlet, Lab- rador. (No. 3956, Bangs coll.) 3. Sciuropterus sabrinus (Shaw) — c? old adult, Greenville, Me. (No. 4962, Bangs coll.) 4. Sciuropterus rolansquerceti BungH—'^ old adult; the type, Citronelle, Fla. (No. 2451, Bangs coll.) 5. Sciuropterus volans (L.)— (J*old adult, Tiiberty Hill, Conn. (No. 4269, Bangs coll.) 6. Sciuropterus situs Bangs — rj* adult ; the type, top of Katis Moun- tain, White Sulphur Springs, W. Va. (No. 4931, Bangs coll.) (167: PROC. BIOL. SOC. WASH., X, 1896 1 SCIURUS NIGER 2 SCIURUS LUDOVICIANUS 3 SCIURUS LUDOVICIANUS VICINUS 4 SCIURUS CAROLINENSIS HYPOPH^US PRCC. BIOL. SOC. WASH., X, 1896 PL. IX 1 SCIURUS CAROLINENSIS LEUCOTIS 3 SCIURUS CAROHNENSIS 2 SCIURUS CAROLINENSIS FULIGINOSUS 4 SCIURUS CAROLINENSIS EXTIMUS PROC. BIOL. SOC. WASH., X, 1896 1 vSCIURUS HUDSONICUS LOQUAX 2 SCIURUS HUDSONICUS 3 SCIUROPTERUS SABRINUS 4 SCIUROPTERUS VOL.'VNS yUEKCETI 5 SCIUROPTERUS VOLANS 6 SCIUROPTERUS SILUS Vol. X, pp. 169-174 December '29, 1896 PROCEEDINGS or THE / BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON \?- ROMEROLAGUS NELSONI, A NEW GENUS AND SPECIES OF RABBIT FROM MT. POPOCATEPETL, MEXICO. BY DR. C. HART MERRIAM. Among the many new and interesting mammals collected by Mr. E. W. Nelson in Mexico during the past five years, one of the most remarkable is a small, short-eared, tailless rabbit dis- covered high up on Mt. Popocatepetl, at and above an alti- tude of 3,000 meters (approximately 10,000 feet). This singular animal has exceedingly short hind legs, and instead of moving by a series of leaps like ordinary rabbits, runs along on all fours, and lives in runways in the grass like the meadow mice. Mr. Nelson has prepared, at my request, the following account of his experience Avith this extraordinary animal. He says : " On m}'^ first visit to Mt. Popocatepetl in the spring of 1893, I learned that these little rabbits were found there, and on my return to the city of Mexico I prepared for an expedition to secure them. On Januar}'- 5, 1894, my assistant, Mr. E. A. Gold- man, and I made our camp on the side of a canon at an altitude of about 3,350 meters (11,000 feet) on the northwest slope of the mountain. We were accompanied by three Indian hunters and our packer. Among the firs and alders at this altitude the north- erly slopes of the hills and canons are covered with a luxuriant growth of saccaton grass in huge bunches, from three to six feet across, and often reaching a height of 6 or 8 feet, which covers the ground so that the only open spaces are small spots scattered irregularly here and there. A search under the overhanging masses of long grass blades showed a perfect network of large arvicola-like runways tunneling through the bases of the tus- 30— Bior,. Soc. Wash., Vol. X, 1896 (169) 170 Merriam — .4 New Babbit from. Mexico. socks, and }):issinL? from one to another under the shelter of tlie outcurving masses of leaves. It was evident that the rahbits were very numerous here, and we all proceeded to hunt the vicinity carefully for them. The first day I saw three, but was unable to get a shot at any. One came running through the grass along one of the hidden trails and, seeing me, stopped in a little opening only seven or eight feet away. It was too near to shoot, and so escaped after looking at me with inquiring eyes for a few moments. The next evening I shot one by taking a stand on a large log, whence I could see several small openings in the grass, and saw one as it stopped a moment at the en- trance of a runway. By persistent hunting for three days my Indians secured three more. " On our first night wire snares' were set without success, so the next night we put out a lot of steel traps in the runways. This latter method was very successful, and three fine specimens were taken in a small area a few yards across. So far as ob- served, these animals are strictly limited to the heavy growth of saccaton grass, between about 3,050 and 3,650 meters (10,000 and 1"2,000 feet), a few ranging a little above and below these limits in favorable places along canon slopes. I found them equally numerous in the heavy grass on canon slopes and hill- sides and in the dense growth of grass about the sides of the small park-like openings in the forest. They make their forms within the matted bases of the huge grass tussocks by tunnel- ing passageways along the surface of the ground through the mass of old grass leaves and stems and then hollowing out snug retreats within the weather-proof shelters thus obtained. Their concealed runways were intermingled with those of the common meadow mice of the mountains, and the striking resemblance in coloration and habits between the two animals was remarkable. Like the arvicolas, the rabbits are mainly nocturnal, but are occasionally found moving about b}^ da3^ They become more active just at dusk, and on frosty mornings sometimes come out at sunrise into the small oj^enings among the grass to bask in the warmth. My Indian hunters claimed that they often found thera out sunning themselves in this way on summer afternoons after cold, heavy showers. " This species has practically no external tail, though in some specimens there is a small fleshy papilla two or three millimeters in length ; in others even this is absent. In this respect the animal resembles the pikas (Lagomys).'''' A New Rabbit from Mexico. 171 Animals differing so widely in habits and manner of progres- sion as the present species and the ordinary rabbits would be expected to differ in their skeletons. Fortunately, Mr. Nelson preserved a perfect skeleton of the new rabbit, which on com- parison with those of the several subgenera of Lepus shows differ- ences of considerable morphologic weight. The clavicle is complete and articulates directly with the sternum (fig. 33) — a thing that never happens in the genus Lepus. Huxley describes the clavicle of the rabl)it as "incom- plete at both ends," and Flower states that it " is very short and is suspended by long ligaments between the scapula and the sternum." The manubrium or presternum is broadly exi)anded between and anterior to the articulation of the first pair of ribs (fig. 33), a condition unknown in the genus Lepus, in which it is always long and narrow (fig. 34). Flower calls attention to the corre- lation existing between the form of the presternum and the degree of development of the clavicle, stating that " the presternum is compressed and produced forwards in those rodents in which the clavicle is absent or rudimen- tary," as the hares, and '' is generally broad in the forms which have the clavicle well developed, as the rats, beavers, &c." This interesting correlation is well exemplified in the Popocatepetl rabbit, which, having a complete clavicle, has also a broad manu- brium. The segments of the mesosternum (between the pre- sternum and xiphoid) are only three in number (fig 33), while in all the subgenera of Lepus the number is four (fig. 34). The ribs are correspondingly reduced, only six pairs instead of seven articulating with the sternum. The tubercles of the ribs are not produced into spiniform processes, as in Lepus, And disa})pear in the sixth pair. In Lepus they extend to the eighth pair. The scapula is rather narrow, with a long metacromial process, as in Lepus. There are four sacral vertebrae, as in Lepus (the first and anterior part of the second articulating with the ilia), and nine Fig. 33— Sternum of Romerolagiis nel- soni (nat. size). Fig. 34— Sternum of Lepus timidtis (much reduced). A 172 Merrkim — A New Rahhit from Mexico. caudal vertebrae, the last three of which are upturned and rudi- mentary. The fifth cervical vertebra is peculiar. Its transverse process projects directly outward instead of backward, and its inferior lamella has only a trace of the posterior extension usual in rab- bits. The metapophyses begin on the tenth dorsal vertebra and are present in all the succeeding vertebne to the last lumbar, in- clusive. The anapophyses are much as in Lejms proper, being- present, though small, on the ninth to twelfth dorsals, inclusive, and on all the lumbar vertebra^ except the sixth and seventh. The transverse processes of the lumbar vertebrae are peculiar, each developing a broad posterior flange, which extends the full length of the side of the vertebra. Hypopoi)hyses are present on the first, second, and third lumbar vertebrfc, as in Lepus, though relatively short. The bones of the legs and feet show a number of more or less important differences, some of which may be mentioned here. The depression on the inner side of the trochlear facet of the humerus is small and flat instead of deeply sulcate ; the fibular malleolus is less strongly developed ; the navicular bone differs materially in form and its inferior crest is conspicuously shorter than in Lepas, and does not reach forward beneath the bases of the metatarsals. The skull, singularly enough, does not show the departure from Lepus that one would expect from a study of the other bones. It agrees in the main with skulls of the American cot- tontails (sul)genus Sylvilagus), but differs in the postorbital pro- cesses, which are small, divergent posteriorly, and altogether wanting anteriorly, and in the jugab which is greatl}^ elongated posteriorly. The interparietal is distinct, and in old age becomes ankylosed with the supraoccipital. The thoroughly leporine character of the skull shows that the animal can hardly be re- garded as ancestral to Lepm, as might have been inferred from its short ears, short hind legs, and various skeletal characters, but that it is a specialized offshoot from the genus Lepus itself. The taxonomic value of the characters which serve to dis- tinguish the Popocatepetl rabbit from the true rabbits, and more particularly the peculiarities of its sternum and clavicle, require the erection of an independent genus for its reception. Hereto- fore the genus Lepus has enjoyed the distinction of coincidence in characters with the family to which it belongs. Now the A JSffAV Rabbit from Mexico. 173 family circle of the Leporida? must be extended to include the new member.* From the foregoing it will l)e evident that the new animal is of unusual interest to naturalists. The curious combination of its anatomical characters, the peculiarit}^ of its mode of locomo- tion, the oddity of its habits, and the isolation of its home — high up on lofty Popocatepetl — give it an interest quite apart from that which attaches to most new discoveries. For this reason it affords me special pleasure to bestow upon the new and remarkable genus, of which it is the type, the name Romerolngas, in honor of the venerable Seiior Don Matias Romero, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary from Mexico, as a slight token of appreciation for the active interest he has taken in the explorations of the United States Biological Survey in Mexico, and in recognition of the many courtesies he has ex- tended to our field naturalists during the past five years. , ROMEROLAGUS gen. nov. T(/pe. — Ro)iiefolagus nelsonl sp. nov., from Mt. Popocatepetl, ^Mexico. Diagnosis. — Size small; ears exceedingly short, shorter than in any known species of Lepus ; hind legs and feet short ; skull much as in Lepus (subgenus S[/b:ilagus), except that the postorbital processes are small, di-' vergent, and wanting anteriorl}^ and the jugals much elongated jioste- riorly ; clavicle complete and articulating with both sternum and scapula ; presternum broadly expanded anteriorly, mucli broader than long in front of first pair of ribs [narrow and slender in Lepm'] ; mesosternum of 3 seg- ments [4 in Lepusl ; 6 pairs of ribs articulating witli sternum [7 jjairs in Lepus'] ; transverse process of 5th cervical vertebra directed straight out- ward (instead of backward) , its inferior lamella lacking the usual posterior extension ; transverse processes of all lumbar vertebrpe broadly expanded, their bases covering entire length of vertebrae; hypopophyses present on first 3 lumbar vertebrae, but small ; inferior crest of navicular bone short and not i)roduced under base of metatarsal. Romerolagus nelsoni sp. nov. Popocatepetl Rabbit. Ti/pe from Mt. Popocatepetl, Mexico (altitude 3,350 meters or 11,000 feet). No. 57949, r^ ad., U. >S. Nat. Mus., Dept. Agric. coll. Collected Jan. 6, 1894, by E. W. Nelson and E. A. Goldman. Original number 5639. Geogvapldc distribution. — Boreal Zone of Mt. Popocatepetl, between the altitudes of 3,050 and 3,660 meters (10,000-12,000 feet). *It is singular that of the four characters given by Flower and Lydek- ker in the first sentence of their diagnosis of the family Leporidte ("im- perfect clavicles, elongated hind limbs, short recurved tail, and long ears " ) , not one applies to the Popocatepetl rabbit. 174 Merriam — .1 JVeiv Rahhit frorii Mexico. General characlcrs. — Size small ; eav8 and liiiul feet very short ; no ex- ternal tail ; coloration dark. Color. — Upper parts, sides, and pectoral collar grizzled grayish brown, with a yellowish suffusion, and strongly mixed with black-tipped hairs (the yellowish due to a broad subapical zone of this color on each hair) ; belly and chin smoky grayish washed with buffy ; upper surfaces of feet buffy yellowish, much lighter than rest of upper parts; ears without markings. Cranial characters. — Skull similar in a general way to that of Lepnn .vjl- vaticus, but much smaller ; supraorbital processes small, slender, divergent, and not approaching frontals posteriorly ; jugals much elongated and incurved posteriorly, not defined anteriorly (supraorbital notch absent) ; braincase less decurved and more depressed posteriorly than in Lepns sijl- r'a/(cus and its allies ; zygomata standing far out from sides of cranium; palatal bridge relatively broad ; audital bullae moderately inflated. Measurements. — Type specimen : total length, 311 ; tail vertebrte, 0 ; hind foot, 53 ; ear from notch in dry skin, 36. Average of 6 adults from type locality : total length, 295; hind foot, 52. The type is the largest of the seven specimens. Remarks.— ^Iv. Nelson's account of the habits of this rabbit, as observed by him on Mt. Popocatepetl, has been given at the beginning of the ])res- ent article. Mr. Nelson saw runways which he believes were those of the same species, at an altitude of 3,050 to 3,350 meters (10,000 te 11,000 feet) on the southeast side of Mt. Iztaccihuatl. INDEX Names of new species and subspecies are printed in heavy type A Page Abies arizonica 115-118 lasiocarpa 115, 117 subalpina 115, 117 Acer saccharinuni 33 Aconitum uncinatum 31 •^gialitis tenella 54 jOgialltis tlioi-aeica 53-54 varia 54 Agrostis elata 30, 41 Aletris farinosa 38 Aloefolia 104 Aniarantus albus 38 paniculatus 38 Anemone nemorosa 31 Anhalonium lewinii viii Annual meeting xii Anychia dichotoma 33 Aphyllon unifloruni 37 Apocynum androsa;niifolium 30, 36 Arabis dentata 31 Aralia nudicaulis 35 Arctic plants, Earliest record of. 103 Arctomys monax 95 Aristida purpurascens 30, 41 Arvicola (Synaptomys) gossii 60 Asclepias albicans viii obtusifolia 36 rubra 36 variegata 36 verticillata 36 Aspidium cristatum 43 Aster concolor 35 Atalaphii borealis loi cinerea loi B Bailey, Vernon : List of mammals of Dis- trict of Columbia 93-101 Tamarack swamps as boreal islands viii Two mammals new to vicinity of Washington viii Bangs, Outram : Florida deer 25-28 vSquirrels of eastern North Amer- ica 145-167 Weaselsof eastern North America. 1-24 Skunks of genus Mephitis of east- ern North America 139-144 Mammals froin Lake Edward, Que- bec 45-52 31— Biol. Sue. Wash., Vni,. X, 1896 Page Bailey, Vernon : New mammals from In- dian Territory and Missouri 135-138 The cotton mouse (Peromyscus gos- sypinus) 1 19-125 Batchelder, Charles F. : New shrew of ge- nus Sorex 133-134 Heal, F. E. L- : Food of blue jay viii Food of cow bird ix Bears, American 65-83 Bidens connata var. coniosa 35 Bison bison 94 Blarina brevicauda 50, 100 parva 100 Botrychium ternatuni var. dissecta 43 Bromus tectorum 42 C Calamagrostis nuttalliana 41 Callitriche austini 34 verna 34 Camelina sativa 32 Campanula americana 35 aparinoides 36 Canis nubilus 94 Cardamine hirsuta 31, 32 parviflora 31, 32 pennsylvanica 31 silvatica 31, 32 Carex alopecoidea 40 communis 41 communis var. wheeleri 41 conjuncta 40 emmonsii 40 folliculata 41 glaucodea 40 lagopodioides 40 laxifiora 40 laxiflora var. divaricata 40 laxiflora var. patulifolia 40 lupulina 41 muhlenbergii var. euervis 40 oligocarpa 40 pallescens 40 platyphylla 40 polytrichoides 39 prasina 41 pubescens 41 retrocurva 40 shortiana 40 stenolepis 41 (175) 176 The Biological Society of Wasltinytrm. Page Carex stipata 40 squarrosa 41 torta 40 tribuloides var. reducta 40 umbel lata 40 willdenovii 39 Cariaciis ainericaiius 25, 27, 28 Cariaciis osceola 26-2S Castor canadensis 47, 94 Caucalis anthriscus 35 Cerastiuni alpinuni 105 Cervus canadensis 94 dania aniericana 25 virgiuianus 25 Chserophylluni procunibens 34 Charadrius pecuarius 54 tenellus 54 Chesnut, Victor K. : Pfaff's recent investi- gations on Rhus poisoning ix Clematis virginiana 31 Clitoria mariana 33 Cochlearia britanuica 104 fenestrata 104 spitzbergensis 104 Commelina communis 39 hirtella 39 virginica 39 Condylura cristata 51, 100 Convolvulus arvensis 37 spithaniccus 37 Cotton mouse (Peroniyscusgossypinus).. 119-125 Coville, Frederick V. : Botanical explora- tions near Mexican boundary ix Different editions of some Govern- ment expedition reports ix • Exhibition of hair ball of Trifolium incarnatum x Exhibition of Indian bow made of Taxus brevifolia xii Inflorescence of the Juncacete xii Juncus confusus, a new rush from Rocky Mountain region xi, 127-130 Exhibition of Protococcus nivalis and Nymphaea polysepala xi Notice of Britton and Brown's illus- trated flora of the northern United States and Canada xi Rlbes ei-ytlirocarpnin, a new currant from vicinity of Crater Lake, Oregon 131-132 Cyperus aristatus 39 flavescens 30 retro fractus 39 Cypripediuni pubescens 38 Cystopteris fragilis 43 D Dall, W. H. : Exhibition of skins of the glacier bear lUrsus emmonsi) ix Danis 65 Page Deer, Florida 25-28 Dentaria cardiophylla 32 heterophylla 32 Desinodium ciliare 33 niarilandicum 33 Desniodus, Milk dentition of 113-114 rufus 113-114 Dewej', I,. H. : Sisymbrium altissimum as a tumble weed x Didelphis virginianus 94 District of Columbia, List of mammals of 93-101 Dixon, Henry H. : Recent researches on ascent of sap in trees ix Dodecatheon nieadia 36 Dorcelaphus 25 Drosera rotundifolia 34 Dryas octopetala 106 E Eatonia dudleyi 41 obtusata 41 pennsylvanica 42 Election of officers xii Eleocharis intermedia 39 Eragrostis purshii 42 Erianthus alopecuroides 43 I^riophorum virginicura 39 Euarctos 65, 78 Eupatorium altissimum 35 aromaticum 35 hyssopifolium 35 semiserratum 35 Euphorbia commutata 38 Evermann, Barton W. : Animals from an artesian well at San Marcos, Texas ix Fishes and Fisheries of Indian River, Florida x Story of two salmon ix Evotomj-s gapperi 49 fuscodorsalis 49 F Fedia clitoria 35 Felis concolor 94 domesticus 98 Fernow, B. E. : A pine coppice ix Spiny plants from Arizona xi Fiber zibethicus 49, 96 Fimbristj'lis capillaris 39 Fir, New, from Arizona xi, 115-118 Fish, Pierre A. : Action of electricity upon nerve cells viii Fucus vesiculosus 106 Fumaria officinalis 31 G Gale 2, 6, 51 Galinsoga parviflora 35 Galloway, B. T. : Action of copper in poi- soning fungi ix Index. 177 Page Galloway, B. T. : Recent advances in our knowledge of the plant cell x Gaultheria procumbens 36 Gentiana ochroleuca 36 Geranium colunibinum 33 Gill, Theo. : Category of family or order in biology xi Characteristics of families Salmon- idte and Thymallidse x Greene, Edward I,.: Distribution of Rham- nus and Ceanothns in America viii Salient features of flora of islands off Southern and Lower California x H Habenaria lacera 38 tridentata 38 Helianthemum canadense 32 Hemicarpha subsquarrosa 39 Herpestis uigrescens 37 Hesperomys cognatus 122 gossypinus 122 Hieracium pilosella 105 Hicks, G. H. : Mildews (Erysiphese) of Michigan xi Holm, Theo. : Alpine flora of Pikes Peak and Grays Peak in Colorado xii Earliest record of Arctic plants.. 103-107 Exhibition of rare books and discus- sion of generic name Macounastrum. ... xii Fourth list of additions to flora of Washington, D. C 29-43 Howard, L. O. : Exhibition of photograph of triplets x Plymenopterous parasites of shade- tree insects xi The shade-tree question from an insect standpoint ix Hydrocotyle ranunculoides 34 Hyonycteris discifera 109 Hypudseus gossypinus 122 I Ilex glabra 30, 33 laevigata 33 Iponifea lacunosa 37 J Judd, Sylvester D. : Peculiar eye of an am- phipod crustacean Jiiiicns coiifusus 127-130 dichotonius 12S, 129 georgianus 12S greenei 129 secundus 129 tenuis 128, 129 tenuis congestus 127, 129 Juiicus tenuis occideiitalis 129 vaseyi 130 Page Kalmia glauca 46 Kyllinga puniila 39 I,aminaria 106 lyasionycteris noctivagaus loi Lechea 86 I,eduni latifolium 46 L,enamings (Synaptoinys). Revision of.... 55-64 I,epidiuni draba 32 l,eptochloa mucronata 30 Lepus americanus 50 sylvaticus 98 Licpus sylvaticus alacer 136 sylvaticus bachmani 136 Linum striatum 33 Lobelia puberula 35 Lophanthus nepetoides 37 Lutra hudsouica 99 Lutreola vi.son 51, 99 Lygodium palniatum 43 Lynx rufus 98 M Macounastrum xii Mammals of District of Columbia 93-101 Mammals from Lake Edward, Quebec 45-52 Mammals, New, from Indian Territory and Mis.souri 135-138 Mearns, Edgar A. ; Mammalsof the islands off Southern and Lower California x Melampyrum americanum 37 Mephitis elongata 139, 142-143, 144 hudsonica 140 mephitica 51, 99, 140-141. 144 Mepliilis niepliitica scrutator 139, 141-142. 144 Merriam, C. Hart : American weasels viii Big bears of North America ix New fir from Arizona xi, 115-118 Notes on fauna of Oregon xi Preliminary synopsis of American bears 65-83 Revision of Lemmings of genus Synaptomys 55-64 Romero log us iielsoni, a new genus and species of rabbit from Mex- ico 169-174 Sorex veroepacis from Guatemala added to collection of shrews in tlie U. S. National Museum xi Supplementary notes on tropical American shrews xi Microsorex 50 Microtus chrotorrhinus 49 Microtus foiitigeuus 48-49, 52 pennsylvanicus 49, 97 xauthognathus 49 178 Tlie Biological Society of Washington. Page Mictomj's 57. 60-63 Mictomys dalli 62 iumiitus 61 truei 62-63 wrangeli 63 Mikania scandens 35 Miller, Gerrit S., Jr. ; Central American Thyroptera 109-112 Milk dentition of Desmodus 113-114 Subgenera of Voles (Microtinoe) viii Monarda punctata 37 Monotropa hypopitys 36 Moore, V. A. : Flagella of motile bacteria with special reference to their value in differentiating species vii Muhlenbergia sobolifera 41 Musdecumanus 94, 96 musculus 95 rattus 94 volans 164 Muscari racemosa 3^ Mustela americana i3- 5^ boccamela 20 cicognani 18 erminea 7 frenata 9 fusca iS longicauda 7 pennanti 5i pusilla 19 richardsoni 13 vulgaris iS, 20 Myosotis laxa 37 N Nasturtium armoracia 31 sylvestre 31 Neogale 6 Neosorex 5° Neotoma baileyi i35 pennsylvanica 96 o CEuothera pumila 34 sinuata 34 Ophioglossum vulgatum 43 Orobanche minor 37 Oxyria digyna 107 P Palmer, T. .S. : Rabbit drives in the West... vi Panicuni capillare var. minima 42 commutatuni 42 lanuginosum 43 microcarpon 42 nitidum 43 proliferum 42 pube.scens 43 ramulosum 42 Page Panicuni scoparium 42 sphserocarpon 42 viscidum 42 Papaver dubium 31, 106 nudicaule 106 Pastinaca sativa 34 Pentstemon Isevigatus 37 attwateri 136, 137 Peromyscus aureolus 120, 122 Peromysciis belliis 137 canadensis 49 Peromyscus canadensis abietoruiii.. 49-50 floridanus 122 gossypinus 119-125 gossypinus mississippiensis 123-124 Peromyscus gossypinus iiigricu- lus 124-125 gossypluns palmarius 124 leucopus 96, 120, 122 mearnsi 122 niveiventris 121 rowleyi i37 Phacelia covillei 36 parviflora 37 Phalaris arundinacea 42 canariensis 42 Phaseolus perennis 34 Phenacomys 46 Phlox paniculata 36 Physalis philadelphica 37 pubescens 37 Pieters, Adrian J. : Influence of fruit-bear- ing on mechanical tissue of twigs viii Pirns coronaria 34 Plantago patagonica var. aristata 3S Plover, New, from Madagascar 53-54 Poa flexuosa 42 sylvestris 42 Pogonia ophioglossoides 38 verticillata 38 Pollard, Charles I^ouis : Further remarks on Britton and Brown's illustrated flora xii Iresine paniculata, an addition to the flora of Washington xi Observations on flora of District of Columbia viii Purple-flowered, stemless violets of Atlantic coast 85-92 Polygala 86 ambigua .^3 curtisii var. pychnostachya 33 incarnata 33 verticillata 30, 33 Polygonum muhlenbergii 38 bistorta 105 tenue io, 38 viviparum 105 Potentilla fragiformis 106 maculata 106 Index. 179 Page Poteriuin canadense 34 Procyon lotor 99, 135 Proserpinaca palustris 34 Pteroiiiys hudsonius 162 sabrinus 162 volucella 164 Putorius agilis 13 brasiliensis frenatus 6, 9-10 erminea 10, 13. 16, 19 frenatus 7 fuscus 19 loiigicauda 6, 7-8 Putorius loii;;icaiultt spatlix 6, S. 9 noveboracensis 6, 13-16, 99 peninsviloe 6, 10-13 pusillus 21 richardsoni 6, 13, i6-i 161 Sciurus caroliueiisis extiinus.. 146, 15S-159 carolinensis fuliginosus 146, 157-158 carolinensis hypophasus 146, 156-157 carolinensis leucotis 146, 155-156 cinereus 95, 147, 150, 155 hudsonicus 47,94-95, 146, 159-160 Sciurus liuclsouicus loqnax 146, 161-162 hiemalis. 155 labradorius 152 ludovicianus 146, 149, 150 Sciurus ludovicianus viciuus.. 146,150-15:; macroura. 149 magnicaudatus 149 migratorius 155 iiiger 146, 147-14S, 155 occidentalis J49 pennsylvanicus 155 rubicaudatus 149 rubrolineatus 159 rufiventer 149 sabrinus 162 sayi 149 subauratus 149 volans 164 volucella 164 vulpinus 147, 150, 155 Scleria pauciflora 39 Scutellaria parvula 37 Sedum 104 Selaginella apus 43 rupe.stris 43 Sempervivum tectorum 104 Senecio vulgaris 35 Seriocarpus solidagineus 35 Shrew, new, of the genus Sorex 133-134 180 Tlte Biological Society of Washington. Page Silene armeria 33 nivea 33 Simpson, Charles T. : Extra-limital Missis- sippi Uiiios vii Sisyrinchium 86 Sitomys megacephalus 120, 123 Skunks (Mephitis) of eastern North Amer- ica 139-144 Smith, E;rwin F. : Action of sunlight on Bacillus tracheiphilus x Bacterial disease of potatoes, toma- toes, and egg-plants xi Exhibition of L,euconostoc from a sugar vat in Louisiana xi Sorex albibarbis 50 fumeus, 134 hoyi 50 Sorex niacrurus i33-i34 Sorex personatus 5°. 99. I34 trowbridgii 134 Specularia perfoliata 35 Spircea aruncus 34 Sporoboius asper 41 vaginaiflorus 30, 41 Squirrels of eastern North America 145-167 Stanton, T. W. : The genus Remondia x Stejneger, I,eonhard : Use of formalin in the iield ix Sternberg, George M.: Malarial parasite and other pathogenic Protozoa xii Synaptomys cooperi 47, 52, 58, 59, 97 Syiiaptoniys dalli 62 fatuus 47-4S, 52. 58-59 Uelaletes 59 Iielaletes gossil 60 innuitus 61-62 stonei 58 Synaptomys Irnei 62-63 ■^vraneeli 63 Tamia hudsonia 159 Taraiasrubrolineatus 159 striatus 95 Tamias striatus veil iistus 137-138 striatus griseus 137 striatus lysteri 138 Thalarctos 65, 69 maritinius 66, 69 Thyroptera, Central American 109-112 albiventer 112 bicolor 112 discifera 109-112 tricolor no, 112 Topping, D. Leroy : Rediscovery of Ficaria ficaria in District of Columbia x Tragopogon porrifolius 35 Tribulus maxiraus 3° Trifolium medium 33 Page Trillium sessile 38 Tripsacum dactyloides 43 Trisetum palustre 42 Tsuga pattoniana 132 u Uniola gracilis ; 30, 42 Urocyon cinereoargentatus 98 Ursus americanus 66, 78, 79, 94 arctos 78, 80 beringiana 66, 6g, 71 cadaverinus 80 Ursus dalli 69, 71-73 emraonsi 66, 82 Ursus floridaiius 65, 66, 81-82 horriseus 66, 69, 75-77 horribilis 65, 69, 74-75 Ursus tiorribilis alasceiisls 74 Iiorribilis califomicus 76 luteolus, 66, 79, So Ursus niidcleiidorfli 65,69-70 piscator 66 richardsoni 66, 69, 77-78 Ursus sltkeiisis 65, 69, 73, 74 Utricularia gibba 37 V Veratiura viride 38 Veronica americana 37 hederifolia 37 serpyllifolia 37 Vesperimus 122 Vespertilio lucifugus 101 subulatus 50, loi Vesperugo fuscus loi georgianus loo-ioi Viola affinis 92 asarifolia 92 ciliata 90, 92 congener 92 cucuUata 88, 92 cucullata cordata 88, 89, 92 cucullata palmata 92 dentata 87, 90, 91, 92 emarginata 90, 92 heterophylla 92 lanceolata 32 obliqua 87, 88, 91, 92 ovata 90, 9I1 92 ovata hicksii 92 palmata 87,88,91, 92 papilionacea 92 pedata 91 pedata bicolor 91 pedata inornata 91 pedatifida 91 primuljefolia 92 primulifolia 92 sagittata 87, 89, 90, 91 Index. 181 Page Viola septemloba 87, 91, 92 sororia 92 striata 32 teiiella 33 tricolor var. arvensis 33 triloba 92 villosa 88, 89, 91, 92 villosa var. cordifolia '... 92 Violets, Purple stemless 85-92 Viverra mephitica 140 Vulpes pennsylvanicus gS w Waite, M. B. : Life history of pear-blight microbe vii Walcott, Charles D. : Preliminary notes on Middle Cambrian medusse ix Washington, Fourth list of additions to flora of. 29-4.^ Page Weasels of eastern North America 1-24 White, David : New forms of Palaeozoic Alga; from Centr&l Appalachian Re- gion viii Structure and relations of Butho- graptus, Plumulina, and Ptilophyton from the North American Pakeozoic viii Woods, Albert F. : Action of overdose of hydrocyanic acid gas on tomato plants., x Spotting of maple leaves xi Woodwardia angustifolia 43 X Xyris flexuosa 30, 38 Z Zapus hudsonius 97 insignis 50 Vol. X, pp. 169-174 December 29, 1896 PROCEEDINGS OF THK BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON ROMEROLAGUS NELSON I A NEW GENUS AND SPECIES OF RABBIT FROM MT. POPOCATEPETL, MEXICO DR. C. HART MERRIAM WASHINGTON, D. C. PeBMSHED P,Y THU BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OP WaSHIXGTON 'nimmr.li"' LIBRARY liJH l^t^z A