SECTION II.--MYOMORPHA--RAT-LIKE RODENTS.

The second section of the order GLIRES, containing the following

families--those that are not Indian being in italics:--

_Myoxidiae_, _Lophiomyidae_, Muridae, Spalacidae, _Geomyidae_,

_Theridomyidae_ (fossil), Dipodidae.

The molar dentition is from 3--3/3--3 to 6--6/6--6, the former being

the usual number; the tibia and fibula are united for at least a third

of their length; the zygomatic arch is slender, and the malar process

rarely extends so far forwards as in the preceding section, and is

generally supported below by a continuation of the maxillary

zygomatic process; the collar-bones are perfect (except in

_Lophiomyidae_). Upper lip cleft; the muffle small and naked; tail

cylindrical, sometimes hairy, but commonly covered with scales

arranged in rings.

In all the Indian mammalogy this section is probably the most

difficult to write about. Our knowledge of the smaller rodents is

extremely imperfect, and is just engaging increased attention. In

the meanwhile I feel that, while I make use of such material as is

now available, before long much will have to be revised and corrected

after the exhaustive inquiries now being made by Dr. Anderson are

published.

The Indian families with which we have to deal are but three--the

_Muridae_, _Spalacidae_, and the _Dipodidae_. The _Arvicolidae_ of

Jerdon's work is merely a sub-family of _Muridae_. Of these the

_Muridae_ take the first place, as containing the greater number of

genera. It is estimated that the total number of species known of

this family throughout the world exceed 330, of which probably not

more than one-fourth or fifth are to be found in India and adjacent

countries.

FAMILY MURIDAE.

CHARACTER.--"Lower incisors compressed; no premolars; molars rooted

or rootless, tuberculate or with angular enamel folds; frontals

contracted; infra-orbital opening in typical forms high,

perpendicular, wide above and narrowed below, with the lower root

of the maxillary zygomatic process more or less flattened into a

perpendicular plate; very rarely the opening is either large and oval,

or small and sub-triangular. Malar short and slender, generally

reduced to a splint between the maxillary and squamosal processes;

external characters very variable; pollex rudimentary, but often

with a small nail; tail generally sub-naked and scaly, rarely densely

haired."--_Alston_, 'P. Z. S.' 1876.

This family is divided into about ten sub-families, of which the

Indian ones are as follows: _Platacanthyominae_; _Gerbillinae_;

_Phlaeomyinae_; _Murinae_; _Arvicolinae_; _Cricetinae_.

The other four are _Sminthinae_, _Hydromyinae_, _Dendromyinae_, and

_Siphneinae_, none of which are found within our limits.

_GENUS PLATACANTHOMYS_.

CHARACTER.--Molars 3/3, divided into transverse laminae;

infra-orbital opening as in typical _Muridae_; incisive foramina and

auditory bullae small; form _myoxine_ (or dormouse-like); fur mixed

with flat spines; tail densely hairy. The general resemblance of this

animal to the dormouse (_Myoxus_) is striking, to which its hairy

tail and its habits conduce, but on closer examination its small eyes,

thin ears, short thumb of the fore-foot bring it into the murine

family. The genus was first noted and named by Blyth, who seemed

inclined to class it as a dormouse, but this has not been upheld for

the reasons given above, and also that _Platacanthomys_ has the

normal _murine_ number of molars, viz.: 3--3/3--3, whereas _Myoxus_

has an additional premolar above and below. These points were first

brought to notice by Prof. Peters of Berlin (_see_ 'P. Z. S.' 1865,

p. 397). There is a coloured plate of the animal in the same volume,

but it is not so well executed as most of the illustrations in the

Society's works.

NO. 316. PLATACANTHOMYS LASIURUS.

_The Long-tailed Spiny Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 198_).

HABITAT.--Southern India.

DESCRIPTION.--Light rufescent brown; the under fur paler, more

rufous on the forehead and crown; whiskers black; under parts dull

white; the hairs on the tail, which are arranged distichously, are

darker than those of the body, infuscated except at the tip of the

tail, where they are whitish; the muzzle is acute; ears moderate and

naked; the fur above is mixed densely with sharp flat spines; the

under coat is delicate and fine; the few spines on the lower parts

are smaller and finer; the thumb is without a nail.

SIZE.--Head and body, 6 inches; tail, 3-1/2, or five inches including

the hair; planta, 1 inch.

This species was discovered by the Rev. Mr. Baker in the Western Ghats

of Malabar, and in Cochin and Travancore, at an elevation of about

3000 feet. He writes of it: "It lives in clefts in the rocks and hollow

trees, and is said to hoard ears of grain and roots, seldom comes

into the native huts, and in that particular neighbourhood the

hillmen told me they are very numerous. I know they are to be found

in the rocky mountains of Travancore, but I have never met with them

on the plains." In another place he adds: "I have been spending the

last three weeks in the Ghats, and, amongst other things, had a great

hunt for the new spiny dormice. They are most abundant, I find, in

the elevated vales and ravines, living only in the magnificent old

trees there, in which they hollow out little cavities, filling them

with leaves and moss. The hill people call them the 'pepper-rat,'

from their destroying large quantities of ripe pepper (_Piper

nigrum_). Angely and jackfruit (_Artocarpus ovalifolia_ and

_integrifolia_) are much subject to their ravages. Large numbers of

the _shunda_ palm (_Caryota_) are found in these hills, and toddy

is collected from them. These dormice eat through the covering of

the pot as suspended, and enjoy themselves. Two were brought to me

in the pots half drowned. I procured in one morning sixteen specimens.

The method employed in obtaining them was to tie long bamboos (with

thin little branches left on them to climb by) to the trees; and,

when the hole was reached, the man cut the entrance large enough to

admit his hand, and took out the nest with the animals rolled up in

it, put the whole into a bag made of bark, and brought it down. They

actually reached the bottom sometimes without being disturbed. It

was very wet, cold weather, and they may have been somewhat torpid;

but I started a large brown rat at the foot of one of these trees,

which ran up the stem into a hole, and four dormice were out in a

minute from it, apparently in terror of their large friend. There

were no traces of hoarding in any of the holes, but the soft bark

of the trees was a good deal gnawed in places. I had two of these

dormice alive for some time, but, as they bit and gnawed at everything

intended to keep them in durance, I was obliged to kill both. I

noticed that when their tails were elevated, the hairs were perfectly

erect like a bottle-brush" ('Proc. As. Soc. Beng.' 1859, p. 290).

SUB-FAMILY GERBILLINAE.

Incisors narrow; molars divided into transverse laminae; pterygoid

fossae short; auditory bullae usually large; hind limbs very long;

tail long and hairy.

_GENUS GERBILLUS_.

Form murine, with the exception of the elongated hind-limbs; muzzle

pointed; ears moderate and oval; eyes very large and bright;

occipital region broad; auditory bullae large; upper incisors

grooved; first molar with three laminae, the second with two, and

third with one only; hinder tarsus and toes much elongated; the

fore-limbs small; tail long and hairy, with a tuft at the end.

[Illustration: Dentition of _Gerbillus_ (magnified).]

NO. 317. GERBILLUS INDICUS.

_The Indian Jerboa-Rat, or Kangaroo-Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 170_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Hirna-mus_, Hindi; _Jhenku-indur_, Sanscrit and

Bengali; _Yeri-yelka_ of the Waddurs; _Tel-yelka_ of the Yanadees;

_Billa-ilei_, Canarese.

HABITAT.--All over India and in Ceylon, but apparently not in Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--Light fulvous brown above or fawn colour, paling on

the sides; under-parts white; the hairs of the back are ashy at the

base, with fulvous tips, a few thin black hairs intermixed chiefly

on the side and cheeks.

The eyebrow is whitish; whiskers long and black and a few grey; the

nose is elongated; the upper jaw projecting nearly half an inch

beyond the lower; tail, which is longer than the body, is blackish

above and below, pale laterally, and terminates with a black tufted

tip; the ears are large and nearly naked; the eye is particularly

large and lustrous, which, with its graceful bounds, have given it

its Indian name of "antelope-rat" (_Hirna-mus_).

SIZE.--Head and body, about 7 inches; tail, 8-1/2 inches; fore-foot,

5/10 inch; hind-foot, 2 inches. Weight, 6-3/4 ounces.

This graceful little creature frequents bare plains and sandy

country in general, where it forms extensive burrows. Hardwicke

writes of it: "These animals are very numerous about cultivated lands,

and particularly destructive to wheat and barley crops, of which they

lay up considerable hoards in spacious burrows. A tribe of low-caste

Hindus, called Kunjers, go in quest of them at proper seasons to

plunder their hoards, and often within the space of twenty yards

square find as much corn in the ear as could be crammed in a bushel."

Sir Walter Elliot's account of their burrows is most interesting.

He says: "The entrances, which are numerous, are small, from which

the passage descends with a rapid slope for two or three feet, then

runs along horizontally, and sends off branches in different

directions. These galleries generally terminate in chambers from

half a foot to a foot in width, containing a bed of dried grass.

Sometimes one chamber communicates with another furnished in like

manner, whilst others appear to be deserted, and the entrances closed

with clay. The centre chamber in one burrow was very large, which

the Wuddurs attributed to its being the common apartment, and said

that the females occupied the smaller ones with their young. They

do not hoard their food, but issue from their burrows every evening,

and run and hop about, sitting on their hind legs to look round,

making astonishing leaps, and on the slightest alarm flying into

their holes." This account differs from that of Hardwicke as regards

the hoarding of food, and from what I can learn is the more correct.

The food of this animal is grain, grass, and roots, but Kellaart

mentions certain carnivorous propensities, for one night several of

them nearly devoured an albino rat which had been put into the same

cage with them. McMaster says of its agility: "I have seen them when

released from a trap baffle and elude dogs in the most extraordinary

manner by wonderful jumps made over the backs, and apparently into

the very teeth of their pursuers."

Buchanan-Hamilton's assertion that "these animals live in holes

which they dig in the abrupt banks of rivers and ponds" is misleading.

They may do so occasionally, but in general they choose sandy plains.

The female is prolific, bringing forth from eight to twelve young

ones, and Dr. Jerdon states that it is said to have occasionally as

many as sixteen to twenty. With regard to Kellaart's accusation of

its being carnivorous at times, I may say I have noticed such

tendencies amongst several other rodents which are supposed to be

purely vegetarians. I have also known ruminants take to flesh-eating

when opportunity offered.

NO. 318. GERBILLUS HURRIANAE.

_The Desert Jerboa-Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 171_).

HABITAT.--The sandy deserts west of the Jumna and Hurriana; also in

Afghanistan according to Horsfield's Catalogue, and probably in

Rajpootana, Sindh, and the Punjab.

DESCRIPTION.--Pale rufous or sandy above, with fine dusky lines, the

hairs being blackish at the base, the rest fawn coloured, with a

blackish tip very minute; sides paler, with fewer dusky lines;

under-parts white, tinged more or less with fulvous or fawn on the

belly; limbs pale fawn; orbits pale; whiskers whitish, a few of the

upper ones dark; tail yellowish-rufous or fawn colour throughout,

with a line of dusky brown hairs on the upper surface of the terminal

half, gradually increasing in length to the tips.

SIZE.--Smaller than the last species. Head and body, 5 inches; tail,

4-1/2.

Jerdon says of this rat that it is "exceedingly numerous in the sandy

downs and sand-hills of Hurriana, both in jungles and in bare plains,

especially in the former, and a colony may be seen at the foot of

every large shrub almost. I found that it had been feeding on the

kernel of the nut of the common _Salvadora oleifolia_, gnawing

through the hard nut and extracting the whole of the kernel. Unlike

the last species, this rat, during the cold weather at all events,

is very generally seen outside its holes at all hours, scuttling in

on the near approach of any one, but soon cautiously popping its head

out of its hole and again issuing forth. In the localities it

frequents it is far more abundant than I have ever seen _G. Indicus_

in the most favourable spots" ('Mammals of India,' p. 186).

NO. 319. GERBILLUS CRYPTORHINUS.

_The Lobe-nosed Jerboa-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Yarkand.

DESCRIPTION.--after Mr. Blanford, who first described and named the

species: "Colour above sandy rufescent, some specimens rather more

rufous than others; below white, the two colours sharply divided on

the sides; cheeks pale; supercilia whitish; feet white; tail above

rather more rufous than the back, paler and occasionally whitish

below, becoming dark brown or blackish above near the end, and with

the slight tuft of longer hairs at the end of the same dark colour;

fur soft and glossy, about half an inch long in the middle of the

back, all the basal portion being at least three-quarters of the

length, dark ashy; the terminal portion pale yellow brown to pale

rufous, with numerous longer hairs with black tips mixed; on the

under surface the hairs are white throughout; on the tail the hair

is rather short, coarse, and close together; there are a very few

longer black tips mixed, but scarcely enough to produce an effect

in the general colour.

"The ears are oval and of moderate length; densely clad with brown

hairs on the anterior portion of the outer surface, and with a fringe

of longer hairs on the anterior margin; the posterior portion of the

external surface is nearly naked, except near the margin, and the

anterior portion of the inner surface is completely destitute of hair,

but the inner surface is more hairy near the hinder margin. The

whiskers are very numerous, the longest slightly exceeding the head;

the uppermost behind being black, all the rest white; all are mixed

at the base with long hairs, which cover the side of the nose; soles

of the fore-feet with scattered white hairs, but nearly naked; those

of the hind-feet densely covered with hair everywhere except at the

extreme tips of the toes and at the heel.

"Mammae, eight--four pectoral and four inguinal, as usual in the

genus.

"The most remarkable character of these species is the presence at

the end of the snout of a semi-circular lobe, which forms a flap

completely covering the openings of the nostrils. This lobe can, of

course, only be well seen in the specimens preserved in spirit. In

the dried skin its presence can sometimes be detected, but not always.

In the only spirit specimen, an adult female, the flap measures about

0.3 inch in breadth, and is barely an eighth of an inch long.

"It is hairy both outside and inside, the hairs being very short and

rather scattered inside; the surface below the nostrils covered by

the flap is also hairy. The use of this lobe is evidently to keep

out sand and dust from the air passages" (W. T. Blanford's 'Mammalia

of the Second Yarkand Mission,' p. 56).

SIZE.--Head and body, about 5-1/2 inches; tail, 5 inches; length of

fore-foot, 0.5 inch; hind-foot, 1.4 inch.

The peculiarity of the lobe, which was first detected by Mr. Oscar

Fraser in removing a skull from a spirit specimen, distinguishes this

species from the other Asiatic forms. There is also a peculiarity

in the skull noticed by Mr. Blanford, which is that the lachrymal

process, instead of being anchylosed to the adjoining bones, as in

others of the genus, is free, and this species is therefore

distinguished from the one most resembling it, _G. unguiculatus_

from Chinese Mongolia, in which the lachrymal process is united to

the frontal.

NO. 320. GERBILLUS ERYTHRURUS.

_The Red-tailed Jerboa-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Afghanistan and Persia.

DESCRIPTION.--Rufous brown above, with a few long black hairs, more

numerous on the rump and thighs; under fur slaty; under-parts white,

gradually blending with the colour of the sides; ears much larger

than in the last species, hairy outside and near the margin inside;

soles of hind feet and toes thickly covered with hair, except on the

hinder half of the tarsus; tail very rufous--brown with a black tip,

black hairs are scattered along the upper surface, and form a black

band towards the end above, finally covering the whole tip.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 6 inches; tail, equal.

Mr. Blanford, to whose 'Eastern Persia' I am chiefly indebted for

the above description, writes: "From _G. Hurrianae_, which Jerdon

thought might probably be the same, the present form is distinguished

by its much larger ears and by the hind feet, and especially the toes,

being more thickly covered with hair beneath; the fur too is longer

and the colour browner on the back; the tail is more rufous, and the

tip blacker; the skull is larger and broader; the nasal portion more

elongate and less concave above, and the hind upper molar has a

distinct talon, or rudimentary second transverse ridge, in young

specimens, traces of which may be detected in the form of the worn

tooth."

Its habits are similar to those of the last species.

NO. 321. GERBILLUS NANUS.

_The Dwarf Jerboa-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Baluchistan.

DESCRIPTION.--The fur is soft and long, rufous brown or fawn colour

above, white below, the colours being less sharply distinguished

than in _G. Indicus_; the hairs of the upper parts have no black tips,

and the basal two-thirds are slaty grey. There is a broad white

supercilium in front, joining the white area of the sides of the face,

so that the brown of the nose is reduced to a rather narrow band;

ears almost naked, a few short whitish hairs near the edge only;

whiskers nearly all white; a few of the upper hairs brown near the

base; feet white above, naked beneath, tail light brown above,

whitish beneath; towards the end a band of darker brown hairs runs

along the upper portion, those at the end lengthened; but there is

a less marked tuft than usual, and there are no black hairs at the

end (Blanford's 'Eastern Persia,' vol. ii. p. 72, _with plate_).

SIZE.--Head and body, 2.6 inches; tail, exclusive of hair, 4.5

inches; hair, 0.55 inches.

This curious little animal was first found and named by Mr. W. T.

Blanford, who obtained two specimens, with others of _G. Hurrianae_,

in a large area of ground that was flooded. He at first supposed them

to be the young of _G. Indicus_, but found on subsequent examination

that they were full grown.

SUB-FAMILY PHLOEMYINAE.

Incisors broad; molars divided into transverse laminae;

infra-orbital opening typical; claws large.

_GENUS NESOKIA_.

Muzzle blunt; ears moderate; claws long; fur rather harsh; tail short,

scaly, sparsely haired; palate narrow; incisive foramina short;

auditory bullae rather small; incisors broad; first molars with

three laminae, the rest with only two.--_Alston_.

There has been some confusion regarding the species of this genus.

Jerdon, in his 'Mammals of India,' gives only two, including

_Arvicola Indica_ and _Mus kok_ of Gray, _Mus providens_ of Elliot,

and _Mus pyctoris_ of Hodgson, under _Nesokia Indica_, and

classifying _Nesokia Huttoni_ with _N. Hardwickii_; but Dr. Anderson,

after a most careful examination of specimens from all parts of India,

has proved the distinctness of _Mus providens vel kok_ from the

species called by Jerdon _Nesokia Indica_, which, being a synonym

of _N. Hardwickii_, he has now renamed _Mus (Nesokia) Blythianus_

(_see_ 'Jour. As. Soc. Beng.' 1878, vol. xlvii. pt. ii.), and Mr.

Blanford had clearly demonstrated that _N. Huttoni_ is a distinct

species from _N. Hardwickii_ ('Zool. of Persia,' vol. ii. p. 59).

NO. 322. NESOKIA HARDWICKII.

_Hardwick's Field-Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 173_).

HABITAT.--North-western India.

DESCRIPTION.--General colour sandy brown on the upper parts, paler

on the sides, dusky grey, with a tinge of yellowish-rufous on the

under-parts; muzzle, feet, and tail flesh-coloured; ears of the same,

but rather darker; head short and bluff; muzzle broad and deep; eye

moderately large; ears moderate, rounded, clad with minute hairs;

fur soft and moderately long, of three kinds, viz. short under-fur,

ordinary hairs, and mixed with them, especially on the back and rump,

numerous long black hairs which project a good way beyond the fur.

SIZE.--Head and body, nearly 8 inches; tail, about 4-1/2 inches.

It is probable that this species is identical with _Mus Griffithi_,

though the dimensions given by Horsfield ('Cat. Mam. Mus. E. I.

Comp.') and the description do not quite agree. He gives the size

of head and body at 6-1/2 inches; tail, 3 inches, and says that the

teeth are nearly white.

NO. 323. NESOKIA HUTTONI.

_Hutton's Field-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Northern India, Afghanistan and Persia.

DESCRIPTION.--Colour above from ferruginous brown to sandy brown,

lower parts isabelline, but frequently appear dark in consequence

of the fur being thin or worn; the basal portion dark slaty grey both

above and below the animal; hairs on the back soft and of moderate

length, a very few black hairs being scattered amongst the brown

ones; tail naked, and ears almost naked, the latter having only a

few extremely short hairs, thinly scattered, and the feet are covered

above very sparsely with short whitish hairs (_see_ Blanford's

'Persia,' vol. ii., for description and plate). Nose and feet

flesh-coloured; ears and tail darker and brownish; mammae eight, as

usual in the genus.

According to Dr. A. Barclay (quoted by Dr. Anderson) the holes of

this rat do not run deep, but ramify horizontally just below the

surface of the ground. It throws out a mound of earth at the exit

of the hole.

NO. 324. NESOKIA SCULLYI.

_Scully's Field-Rat_.

NATIVE NAME.--_Mughi_, Turki.

HABITAT.--Kashgaria at Sanju, south-east of Yarkand.

DESCRIPTION.--Light rufescent brown above, dirty white beneath;

fur fine and silky, blackish-grey at the base, and for two-thirds,

the last third of the longer hairs being fawn colour; face earthy

brown; whiskers black, tipped with white; ears very short,

semi-nude; feet and claws flesh-coloured; tail naked, with a few

scattered fine short hairs.

SIZE.--Head and body, 6.6 inches; tail, 5.2 inches.

NO. 325. NESOKIA PROVIDENS.

_The Southern India Field-Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 172_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Kok_, Canarese; _Golatta-koku_, Telegu of the

Yanadees; _Yea-kwet_ (?) Burmese.

HABITAT.--Southern India and Ceylon, probably Burmah, as one species

is mentioned there by Blyth.

DESCRIPTION.--Head short and truncated, with a deep muzzle; ears

nearly round, semi-nude, sparsely covered with minute hairs; eyes

moderately large, half-way between snout and ear; feet largish;

claws short and stout; tail nearly equalling length of head and body,

semi-nude, ringed, and with short brown bristly hairs round the

margin of the annuli; whiskers full and long; colour of the

fur--which is harsh and long, as in the rest of the genus, and of

the usual three kinds--is a brown, mixed with a tinge of fawn; the

under-parts are whitish, with a yellowish tinge; the nose, ears, and

feet are dark flesh-coloured or brownish, and the feet are covered

with short brown hair. The incisors are orange yellow; the claws

yellowish.

Sir Walter Elliot states that a variety found in red soil is much

redder in colour than that inhabiting the black land. The skull is

considerably smaller, according to Dr. Anderson, than that of the

Bengal _Nesokia_, _N. Blythiana_, of the same age, from which it is

also distinguished by its more outwardly arched malar process of the

maxillary, by its considerably smaller teeth and long but less open

anterior palatine foramina. The brain case is also relatively

shorter and more globular than that of _Nesokia Blythiana_.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 7 inches; tail, 6-1/2 inches.

The habits of this rat are similar to those of the Bengal species,

to which I will allude further on, and it has the same way of taking

to water when pursued.

Jerdon says that this rat is most destructive to tea-trees, biting

the roots just below the surface, more, he believes, because they

happen to come in the way of their burrows than to feed on them.

Sir Walter Elliot writes: "In its habits it is solitary, fierce,

living secluded in spacious burrows, in which it stores up large

quantities of grain during the harvest, and when that is consumed

lives upon the _huryale_ grass and other roots. The female produces

from eight to ten at a birth, which she sends out of her burrow as

soon as they are able to provide for themselves. When irritated it

utters a low grunting cry, like the bandicoot. The race of people

known by the name of Wuddurs, or tank-diggers, capture this animal

in great numbers as an article of food, and during the harvest they

plunder their earths of the grain stored up for their winter

consumption, which in favourable localities they find in such

quantities as to subsist almost entirely upon it during that season

of the year. A single burrow will sometimes yield as much as half

a seer (1 lb.) of grain, containing even whole ears of jowaree

(_Holchus sorghum_)." Sir Walter Elliot goes on to give a most

interesting account of the construction of the burrows of this

animal.

NO. 326. NESOKIA BLYTHIANA.

_The Bengal Field-Rat_.

NATIVE NAME.--_Yenkrai_, Bengalee.

HABITAT.--From Ghazipur in the North-west to Eastern Bengal and

Cachar. Very common about Calcutta.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur coarse as in the genus, profusely intermixed with

long piles, more numerous on the lumbar and sacral regions, which

project a long way beyond the ordinary pelage. The general colour

a dark brown with yellowish hairs intermingled, which give a somewhat

rufous tinge, paler beneath. Nose, ears, and feet flesh-coloured;

tail naked, ringed, and sparsely covered with short bristly hairs

at the margin of the rings; feet moderately large; claws short and

stout; eyes moderately large, placed a little nearer to the ear than

to the snout; ears rounded, semi-nude, covered with a fine down;

whiskers black; incisor teeth rich orange, but generally white

towards their tips.

The female has eight pairs of mammae.

SIZE.--Head and body, 8-1/4 inches; tail, 6-1/2 inches.

I have already alluded to the distinguishing features of the skull

of this species, as compared with _Nesokia providens_. From the skull

of _N. Hardwickii_ it differs in its considerably narrower incisors

and smaller and more irregularly laminated molars, and by its long

and open anterior palatine foramina. It has also a more arched skull

(_Anderson_).

This animal, which is included in Jerdon's _Nesokia Indica_, is very

generally distributed over Lower Bengal. In the neighbourhood of

Calcutta, Alipore for instance, it is abundant, and is a great

nuisance in gardens. It burrows in tortuous directions, only a few

inches below the ground, there being no definite plan, some being

more complicated than others--the principal passage leading to a

chamber containing a nest of leaves and grass. I have been told by

natives that large quantities of grain are stored by these rats. When

I first heard of its aquatic powers, I was led to believe that it

was a species of vole, and was particularly desirous to get one, not

being aware of any true water-rat in India. However, the reports of

the natives have been confirmed by what Sir Walter Elliot states

regarding the habits of _N. providens_, and by Dr. Anderson, who made

several experiments with these rats in captivity. He says: "To test

this aquatic power, I had two rats placed in a large wire birdcage,

and the cage partially submerged; if the rats, when in those

circumstances, were much annoyed, they immediately dived to the

bottom of the cage, where they could be observed running about under

water. I also had them removed from the cage, and let loose in the

large sheet of water in the Zoological Gardens, between the two iron

bridges. When let loose at the bank, and an attempt was made to catch

them, they immediately dived; and the stronger of the two did not

appear at the surface for some time, when it was observed at a

considerable distance from the bank making for the opposite side."

In confinement these rats are not engaging pets; they show a

considerable amount of surliness and ferocity. I have noticed that

on approaching the bars of the cage, one would grind its teeth, put

back its ears, and fly at you with a grunt.

NO. 327. NESOKIA BARCLAYIANA.

_Barclay's Field-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Northern India, the North-west and some parts of Bengal

(Purneah) and Assam.

DESCRIPTION.--General colour brownish; under surface silvery grey;

feet and muzzle flesh-colour; tail nearly black; claws horny white;

a white band from the nose through the eye; muzzle short and bluff;

forehead slightly arched; tail exceeding the length of the trunk,

but not equal to head and body, ringed, and sparsely clad; fur coarse;

piles moderately long.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 8-3/4 inches; tail, 7-1/4 inches.

This rat was first discovered by Dr. Arthur Barclay at Goona in

Central India, and apparently it appears to be identical with

specimens collected at Srinagar in Kashmir, in the Purneah district,

and in Cachar.

* * * * *

The next two have usually been classed as true _Mus_, and the latter

is to be found in Jerdon; but, from the breadth of the incisors and

the lamination of the molars, which are less sinuous and relatively

larger than in _Mus_, and from other characteristics of the skull,

they are nearer allied to _Nesokia_ than to the true rats.

NO. 328. MUS (NESOKIA) ELLIOTANUS.

_Elliot's Field-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Bengal, Assam, Khasia hills.

DESCRIPTION.--This rat is thus described by Dr. Anderson. It is the

nearest approach in size to the bandicoot: "Head short and deep;

muzzle deep and broad; eye half-way between ear and nose, moderately

large; ears not large, rounded, sparsely covered with short hairs;

feet large and well developed, with strong claws, and sparsely clad;

tail sparsely covered with short bristles on the margins of the

annuli, and nearly equalling the length of the body and head. Pelage

coarse, with moderately large piles, most numerous on the back;

vibrissae moderately long.

"General colour, above brown, with intermixed yellowish or pale

brown hairs producing much the same colour as in _M. (N.)

Blythianus_; paler on the sides, and passing into greyish on the

under-parts; nose and feet flesh-coloured; ears dark brown; tail

blackish" ('J. A. S. B.' 1878, vol. xlvii; pt. ii. p. 231).

NO. 329. MUS (NESOKIA) GIGANTEUS.

_The Bandicoot_ (_Jerdon's No. 174_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Indur_, Sanscrit; _Ghunse_, Hindi; _Ikria_,

Bengali; _Heggin_, Canarese; _Pandi-koku_, i.e. pig-rat, Telegu;

_Oora-meyoo_, Singhalese.

HABITAT.--Throughout India; also in Ceylon.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur coarse, consisting of the three kinds, of which

the coarser piles are very long, and almost hide the general pelage

on the lumbar and dorsal regions. These piles are almost absent on

the head, neck, and sides; general colour earthy brown, with

yellowish hairs intermixed; the piles blackish-brown; under-parts

dusky brown, mixed with grey; limbs brownish; nose, inside of ear

and feet flesh-coloured; tail black, ringed, and sparsely haired.

The female has twelve mammae.

SIZE.--Head and body, from 12 to 15 inches; tail, from 11 to 13.

Weight, about 3 lbs.

This is a well known rat, but it is not common in Calcutta, although

supposed to be so. People frequently mistake very large specimens

of the common brown house-rat (_Mus decumanus_) for this animal,

which, Blyth remarks, is rare here. Jerdon states that it is common

in the fort of Madras, where he killed many, some of large size. When

assailed it grunts like a pig, hence its Telegu name _Pandi-koku_,

from which the word bandicoot is derived. McMaster states that the

bandicoot, though so formidable in appearance, does not show so good

a fight as an ordinary English rat, being a sluggish and cowardly

animal; and though, from its size and weight, it takes a good deal

of worrying, it seldom does much in self defence, and any moderately

good dog can kill it with ease. It is however a most destructive

animal, doing much damage to granaries, gardens, and even

poultry-yards. In some parts of the country, as for instance Fort

St. George in Madras, Government used to pay a reward of one anna

for every bandicoot killed within the walls.

SUB-FAMILY CRICETINAE.

CHARACTER.--Molars tuberculate; infra-orbital opening sub-typical,

not much narrowed below, and the perpendicular plate little

developed; large internal cheek pouches.--_Alston_.

_GENUS CRICETUS--THE HAMSTERS_.

Form thick-set, with short limbs and tail, the latter sparsely haired,

not scaly. "Skull with marked but rounded supra-orbital ridges

continued into temporal ridges; coronoid process high and falcate"

(_Alston_). The incisors are plain; the molars tuberculated when

young, but in the old animal the tubercles are worn down and exhibit

laminae. They are very nearly related to the true rats, but differ

conspicuously in the possession of large cheek pouches--like those

of the pouched monkeys, into which they stuff the grain they carry

to their burrows. The hind-limbs have five toes, the fore-feet four

only, the thumb being represented by a wart. The European hamster

is a very destructive little animal, from its numbers and the

quantity of grain it stores away in its burrows. They have two sets

of burrows for summer and winter, the latter being the deepest and

most complicated. They pass the winter in a torpid state, but make

up for it by their activity in the summer months. The young are

produced twice in the year and in number varying from six to eighteen,

and they develop very rapidly. Their eyes open in about a week, and

when a fortnight old the parents drive them off to shift for

themselves. The European hamster is a most savage little creature,

and has been known to attack even a red-hot bar, and hold on in spite

of the pain.

[Illustration: Dentition of _Cricetus_.]

[Illustration: _Cricetus_.]

* * * * *

The two following are dwarf species--_Cricetulus_ of some

authors:--[22]

[Footnote 22: Dallas mentions (Cassell's 'Nat. Hist.') a species

from Kumaon, _Cricetus songarus_.]

NO. 330. CRICETUS PHAEUS.

_The Persian Hamster_.

HABITAT.--Yarkand, Gilgit, Persia.

DESCRIPTION.--Cinereous above, white below; the colour varies from

pure ashy grey to grey with an isabelline tinge.--_Blanford_.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 4 inches; tail, 1-1/4 inches.

NO. 331. CRICETUS FULVUS.

_The Sandy Hamster_.

HABITAT.--Yarkand, Gilgit.

DESCRIPTION.--Colour above light sandy brown to sandy grey; no band

down the back; lower parts, feet, and tail white; fur very soft, fully

half an inch long in the middle of the back in some specimens. Rather

larger than the last species. (_See_ Blanford's 'Second Yarkand

Mission,' p. 45.)

SIZE.--Head and body about 4-1/2 inches; tail about 1-1/2 inches.

SUB-FAMILY MURINAE.

CHARACTER.--Molars tuberculate, at least in youth; infra-orbital

opening typical; pterygoid fossae lengthened; auditory bullae

moderate; cheek pouches absent or very small; tail scaly, more or

less naked, cosmopolitan (_Alston_). Three molars in each jaw, the

first of which is the largest and the hinder one the least. I think

that, with the exception of the islands of the Pacific Ocean, some

of the members of this family are known in every quarter of the globe.

_GENUS MUS_.

"Muzzle pointed; eyes prominent; ears rather large, sub-naked; fur

soft (rarely mixed with spines); pollex rudimentary; claws short;

tail moderate or long, scaly, with scattered hairs; no cheek pouches;

skull elongate, narrow; temporal ridges nearly parallel; palate

compressed; incisive foramina long; auditory bullae moderately

large; coronoid process high, falcate; incisors rarely grooved;

molars with transverse ridges, each composed in youth of three

tubercles" (_Alston_).

NO. 332. MUS RATTUS.

_The Black Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 175_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Kala-mus_, _Kala-chuha_, Hindi; _Kala-meeyo_,

Singhalese.

HABITAT.--Chiefly Europe, but is said to be of south Asian origin;

it is stated to occur in towns near the sea-coast in India, and

Kellaart obtained it in Trincomalee only.

DESCRIPTION.--Greyish-black above, dark ashy beneath, or, as

Kellaart describes it, "above blackish-brown, along the dorsal line

nearly black; sides paler, some of the hairs with pale fulvous tips;

beneath and inside of limbs fur very short, of a uniform sooty ash

colour, separated from the colour above by a distinct line of

demarcation; ears large, rounded, slightly fulvous externally"

('Prodromus Faunae Zeylanicae,' p. 58).

[Illustration: Dentition of Black Rat.]

SIZE.--Head and body about 6-1/2 to 7-1/2 inches; tail, 7-1/2 to 8

inches.

Jerdon says of this rat that the muzzle is sharper than that of the

brown rat; the ears are more oval; it is lighter in its make, and

has much longer hair.

Whether this rat be, as Jerdon seems to suspect, imported into India

in ships or not, it is generally supposed to have had its origin in

southern Asia, and is almost identical with the Egyptian rat (_M.

Alexandrinus_). It was the common rat of England, and indeed of

northern Europe, whence it was expelled by its formidable rival, the

brown rat, before which it has gradually receded, and it is seldom

found now in England.

NO. 333. MUS DECUMANUS.

_The Brown Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 176_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Ghur-ka-chuha_, Hindi; _Demsa-indur_, Bengali;

_Manei-ilei_, Canarese; _Gaval-meeyo_, Singhalese.

HABITAT.--Throughout India, Ceylon, and in some parts of Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur greyish-brown, mixed with tawny above, with

longer piles of a dark colour, almost black; ears round; tail

generally longer than head and body, scaly, with short bristles at

the margins of the rings.

SIZE.--Head and body, from 8 to 10 inches; tail, from 6 to 11 inches.

The brown rat of India is identical with that of Europe, most

naturalists being now agreed that it originally came from the East.

It was supposed by Pallas that the brown rat crossed over into Russia

about the year 1727. When frightened by an earthquake, numbers swam

over the Volga from countries bordering on the Caspian Sea. It seems

to have driven out the black rat before it wherever it made its

appearance. In England it was introduced by shipping about the middle

of the last century, and has since then increased to such an extent

as to swarm over the whole country, and render the old English black

rat a comparatively rare animal. From its ferocity and fecundity the

brown rat is a veritable pest; if it cannot beat a retreat from an

enemy it will show most determined fight, and in large numbers will

attack and kill even men. A story is related by Robert Stephenson,

the great engineer, that in a coal-pit in which many horses were

employed, the rats, allured by the grain, had gathered in large

numbers. On the pit being closed for a short time, and the horses

being brought up, the first man who descended on the re-opening of

the work was killed, and devoured by the starving rats. Similar

stories have been told of men in the sewers of Paris. In the horse

slaughterhouses at Montfaucon in Paris, the rats swarm in such

incredible numbers that the carcases of horses killed during the day

would be picked clean to the bone during the night; sometimes upwards

of thirty horses would be so devoured. This shows the carnivorous

tendencies of these abominable pests. I confess to a general love

for all animals, but I draw the line at rats. There is something

repulsive about one of these creatures, and a wicked look about his

large protruding eye, like a black glistening bead, and his ways are

not pleasant; instead of keeping, as he ought, to sweet grain and

pleasant roots, he grubs about for all the carrion and animal matter

he can get.

I find there is no bait so enticing to the brown rat as a piece of

chicken or meat of any kind. I have heard stories of their attacking

children, and even grown-up people when asleep, but I cannot vouch

for the truth of this beyond what once happened to myself. I was then

inhabiting a house which swarmed with these creatures, and one night

I awoke with a sharp pain in my right arm. Jumping up, I disturbed

a rat, who sprang off the bed, and was chased and killed by me. I

found he had given me a nip just below the elbow. I once had a most

amusing rat-hunt in the house I now occupy. I had then just taken

it over on the part of the Government, in 1868. The whole building

is floored with polished marble, which, being new, was like

looking-glass. I found an enormous rat, which I took for a bandicoot,

in one of the bath-rooms, and, shutting him in for a while, I closed

the doors of a very large room adjoining, which was quite empty, and

then turned my friend in with a small black-and-tan terrier. The

scrimmage that ensued was most laughable, as both rat and dog kept

slipping and sliding all over the place. At last the former was pinned

in a corner, where he made a most determined stand, and left several

marks before he died. They seldom now come so high as the third story,

but we had two or three last year which dug a hole through a brick

wall into my study, and they were surreptitiously disposed of unknown

to my eldest little girl, whose passionate love for every living

creature made her take even the rats under her protection, and one

of them would come out every morning in the verandah to be fed by

her with crumbs and grain. This one was spared for a while, but I

was not sorry to find one day that it had fallen into a tub of water

in a bath-room and was drowned.

The brown rat breeds several times in the year, and has from ten to

fourteen at a time, and it is to be hoped that there is considerable

mortality amongst the infants. I have never kept rats as pets, but

have noticed amongst mice a tendency on the part of the mother to

devour her offspring. I have no doubt that this also is the case with

the brown rat, and aids in keeping down its numbers. It is stated

that they will attack, kill, and eat each other. The Rev. J. G. Wood

remarks in his Natural History: "From some strange cause the male

rats far outnumber the females, the proportion being about eight of

the former to three or four of the latter. This disproportion of the

sexes may possibly be caused by the cannibalistic habits of the rat,

the flesh of the female being more tender than that of the opposite

sex. Whatever may be the cause, it is clear that the wider increase

of these creatures is greatly checked by the comparative paucity of

females." During the late siege of Paris by the Germans, amongst the

various articles of food which necessity brought into use, rats held

a high place as a delicacy. It is a difficult matter to stop the

burrowing of rats; the best plan is to fill the holes with Portland

cement mixed with bits of bottle glass broken in small pieces. It

is said that quicklime will temporarily prevent rats from entering

a hole, as the lime burns their feet. A friend of mine lately told

me of some wonderful Japanese bird-lime which he uses. It is spread

on a board, and will retain any rat that puts even one foot on it.

An albino variety is common, and is sold for pets. Rats are partial

to certain scents, and some are consequently used by trappers. In

Cooley's 'Cyclopaedia' the following receipts are given:--

1. Powdered cantharides steeped in French brandy. It is said that

rats are so fond of this that if a little be rubbed on the hands they

may be handled with impunity.

2. Powdered assafoetida 8 grains, oil of rhodium 2 drams, oil of

aniseed 1 dram, oil of lavender 1/2 dram. Mix by agitation.

3. Oil of aniseed 1/2 ounce, tincture assafoetida 1/4 ounce.

4. Oil of aniseed 1/4 ounce, nitrous acid 2 to 3 drops, musk

(triturated with a little sugar) 1 grain.

These scents are not only rubbed on traps, but a few drops are mixed

with the various rat poisons, of which perhaps the most efficacious

is phosphorous paste.

NO. 334. MUS ANDAMANENSIS.

_The Andaman Rat_.

HABITAT.--The Andaman and Nicobar islands.

DESCRIPTION.--A little darker on the back than _Mus decumanus_,

paler on the sides, and dull white below. "The long piles are at once

distinguished by their flattened spinous character, which is also

slightly the case in _M. rattus_, though much less conspicuously than

in the present species. It would appear to be a burrower in the

ground" (_Blyth_). Ears round as in the brown rat.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 8 inches; tail the same.

NO. 335. MUS ROBUSTULUS.

_The Burmese Common Rat_.

HABITAT.--British Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--Dark-brown above, under-parts whitish, stoutly

formed, with tail not quite so long as head and body; feet

conspicuously white.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 6 inches; tail, a little shorter.

Mr. Mason remarks of this rat that they are only second to the white

ants for the mischief they perpetrate. "They burrow in the gardens,

and destroy the sweet potatoes; they make their nests in the roofs

by day, and visit our houses and larders by night. They will eat into

teak drawers, boxes, and book-cases, and can go up and down anything

but glass. In the province of Tonghoo they sometimes appear in

immense numbers before harvest, and devour the paddy like locusts.

In both 1857 and 1858 the Karens on the mountains west of the city

lost all their crops from this pest." They seem to migrate in swarms,

and cross rivers by swimming. Mr. Cross captured one out of a pair

he observed swimming the Tenasserim river at a place where it is more

than a quarter of a mile wide. _M. Berdmorei_ is the same as this

species.

* * * * *

The following three are Burmese rats collected by Dr. Anderson during

the Yunnan Expedition, and are new species named by him:--

NO. 336. MUS SLADENI.

_Sladen's Rat_.

HABITAT.--Kakhyen hills; Ponsee at 3500 feet.

DESCRIPTION.--Head rather elongated; snout somewhat elongate;

muzzle rather deep; ears large and rounded, sparsely clad with short

hairs; feet well developed, hinder ones rather strong; claws

moderately long and sharp; the feet pads markedly developed,

indicating an arboreal habit of life; tail slightly exceeding length

of head and body, coarsely ringed, there being three rings to each

one-tenth of an inch; the hairs sparse and brown; general colour of

upper surface reddish-brown, more rufous than brownish, palest on

the head, many hairs with broad yellow tips; cheeks greyish-rufous;

chin, throat, and chest whitish, also the remaining under-parts, but

with a tinge of yellowish; ears and tail pale brownish. (Abridged

from Anderson's 'Anat. and Zool. Res.' p. 305.)

SIZE.--Head and body of one, about 6.30 inches; tail, 7.20 inches.

Dr. Anderson says this species is closely allied to Hodgson's _Mus

nitidus_, but its skull is less elongated, with a shorter facial

portion, with very much shorter nasals, and with a more abruptly

defined frontal contraction than either in _M. nitidus_ or _M.

rufescens_ so called. He adds that this appears to be both a tree

and a house rat.

NO. 337. MUS RUBRICOSA.

_The Small Red Rat of the Kakhyen Hills_.

HABITAT.--Kakhyen hills and the Burma-Chinese frontier at Ponsee,

and in the houses of the Shan Chinese at Hotha.

DESCRIPTION.--"Snout moderately pointed and long; ears small, and

somewhat pointed; hind foot long and narrow; claws moderately long,

compressed and sharply pointed; upper surface dark rusty brown,

darkest on the middle and back, and palest on the muzzle, head and

shoulder; on the sides and lower part of shoulder the reddish brown

tends to pass into greyish; feet greyish; the sides of the snout

greyish; all the under-parts silvery grey tending to white, without

any trace of rufous, or but with a very faint yellowish blush; the

tail, dull brown, is somewhat shorter than the body and head, and

it is coarsely ringed, 2-1/2 rings to one-tenth of an inch, the hair

being short, sparse, and dark brown" ('Anat. and Zool. Res.' p. 306).

SIZE.--Head and body, 5.70 inches; tail, 5.15 inches.

NO. 338. MUS YUNNANENSIS.

_The Common House Rat of Yunnan_.

HABITAT.--Yunnan, at Ponsee; Hotha and Teng-yue-chow.

DESCRIPTION.--"Muzzle rather short and broad; ear large and rounded,

its height considerably exceeding the distance between the inner

canthus and the front of the muzzle, sparsely clad with short hairs;

feet well developed; hind foot moderately long; pads prominent;

claws compressed, strong, curved, and sharp; tail coarsely ringed,

three rings to one-tenth of an inch; upper surface dark rich brown,

with intermixed pale hairs, with broad brown tips, the sides of the

face below the moustachial area, chin, throat, and all the

under-parts yellowish washed with rufous; the ears and tail dusky

brown; feet pale yellowish, and more or less brownish above; the tail

varies in length, but is generally longer than the body and head,

although it may occasionally fall short of that length" ('Anat. and

Zool. Res.' pp, 306, 307).

SIZE.--Head and body, 5.70 inches; tail, 5.65 inches. An adult female

had a much longer tail.

NO. 339. MUS INFRALINEATUS.

_The Striped-bellied Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 178_).

HABITAT.--Madras; Bustar forests.

DESCRIPTION.--"Above, the fur fulvous, with the shorter hairs lead

coloured; throat, breast, and belly pure white, with a central pale

fulvous brown streak; tail slightly hairy."--_Jerdon_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 5-1/2 inches; tail, not quite 5 inches; another

about 5 inches; tail, 4-1/4 inches.

Jerdon calls this a field rat in his popular name for it, but I think

that the term should be restricted to the _Nesokia_ or true field

and earth-burrowing rats. He is of opinion that Gray's _Mus

fulvescens_ from Nepal is the same, the description tallying to some

extent, concluding with: "in one specimen a central yellow streak,"

i.e. on the belly.

NO. 340. MUS BRUNNEUS.

_The Tree Rat_ (_Jerdon's. No. 179_).

HABITAT.--India and Ceylon. The common house rat of Nepal.

DESCRIPTION.--Above rusty brown; below rusty, more or less

albescent; extremities pale, almost flesh-coloured; ears rather

long; head rather elongated; tail equal to and sometimes exceeding

head and body.

SIZE.--Head and body, from 8-1/2 to 9-1/2 inches; tail, from 9 to

9-1/2 inches.

Jerdon states that this rat, which Dr. Gray considered identical with

_M. decumanus_ (_see_ 'Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist.' vol. xv. 1845, p.

267), "is to be found throughout India, not habitually living in

holes, but coming into houses at night; and, as Blyth remarks, often

found resting during the day on the _jhil-mil_ or venetian blinds.

It makes a nest in mango-trees or in thick bushes and hedges. Hodgson

calls it the common house rat of Nepal, and Kellaart also calls it

the small house rat of Trincomalee." It is probable that this is the

rat which used to trouble me much on the outskirts of the station

of Nagpore. It used to come in at night, evidently from outside, for

the house was not one in which even a mouse could have got shelter,

with masonry roof, and floors paved with stone flags. Kellaart

evidently considered it as distinct from _M. decumanus_, which he

stated to be rare in houses in the town of Trincomalee, though

abundant in the dockyard.

NO. 341. MUS RUFESCENS.

_The Rufescent Tree Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 180_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Gachua-indur_, Bengali; _Ghas-meeyo_, Singhalese.

HABITAT.--India generally; Ceylon.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur above pale yellowish-brown; under fur lead

coloured, mixed with longer piles of stiff, broad, plumbeous black

tipped hairs; head long; muzzle narrow; whiskers long and black; ears

large, subovate, slightly clad with fine hairs; eyes large; incisor

teeth yellow; feet brownish above, but the sides and toes are

whitish; tail longer than head and body.

SIZE.--Head and body, from 5-1/2 to 7-1/2 inches; tail from 6-1/2

to 8-1/2 inches.

This is _M. flavescens_ of Elliot, and is so noticed in Kellaart's

'Prodromus.' He calls it "the white-bellied tree-rat of Ceylon," and

he states that it lives on trees or in the ceiling of houses in

preference to the lower parts. Sir Walter Elliot observed it chiefly

in stables and out-houses at Dharwar. According to Buchanan-Hamilton

it makes its nests in cocoanut-trees and bamboos, bringing forth five

or six young in August and September. "They eat grains, which they

collect in their nests, also young cocoanuts. They enter houses at

night, but do not live there." Kellaart's _M. tetragonurus_ is a

variety of this, if not identical.

NO. 342. MUS NIVEIVENTER.

_The White-bellied House Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 181_).

HABITAT.--The lower Himalayan ranges.

DESCRIPTION.--"Above blackish-brown, shaded with rufous; below

entirely pure white, tail and all."--_Blyth_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 5-1/4 to 7 inches; tail, 6 to 7-1/2 inches.

Hodgson stated this to be a house rat in Nepal, but not very common.

Jerdon found it common at Darjeeling. Specimens have been received

from Mussoorie.

NO. 343. MUS NITIDUS.

_The Shining Brown Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 182_).

HABITAT.--Nepal; Darjeeling.

DESCRIPTION.--Dusky brown above, dusky hoary below. According to

Hodgson it is "distinguished for its smooth coat or pelage, wherein

the long hairy piles are almost wanting. It is a house rat, like _M.

niveiventer_, but much rarer, and frequents the mountains rather

than the valleys." The long hairs are 11/16 inch in length, horny

at the base, with black tip, the short fur ashy, with rufous tips.

SIZE.--Head and body, 6-1/2 inches; tail 7-1/4 inches.

Blyth writes of this species ('J. A. S. B.' vol. xxxii. 1863, p. 343):

"We have several specimens of what I take to be this rat from

Darjeeling. They are especially distinguished by the fineness and

softness of the fur. One specimen only, of eight from Darjeeling,

which I refer to this species, has the lower parts pure white,

abruptly defined."

There is a smaller rat, only four inches in length, which agrees

exactly with the above, which Hodgson named _M. horietes_. It is not

mentioned in Blyth's Catalogue, but it has not been overlooked by

Blyth, as Jerdon's remarks would lead one to suppose, for in the

'Memoir on the Rats and Mice in India,' by the former, in the 'J.

A. S. B.' vol. xxxii. for 1863, it is entered with a quotation from

Hodgson.

NO. 344. MUS CAUDATIOR.

_The Chestnut Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 183_).

HABITAT.--The lower Eastern Himalayas, i.e., Nepal, Darjeeling,

&c.; also in Burmah, Lower Pegu, and Martaban.

DESCRIPTION.--"Above a fine bright cinnamon colour, with

inconspicuous black tips; the under-parts white, which is abruptly

divided from the cinnamon hue above" (_Blyth_). Sometimes

yellowish-white (_Jerdon_). Muzzle sharp; ears and tail long.

SIZE.--Head and body, about six inches; tail, 7-3/4 inches.

According to Blyth the Nepal specimens are darker than those from

Burmah, which he says "differs only from the Nepalese animal of Mr.

Hodgson by having the upper parts entirely of a bright cinnamon

colour."

NO. 345. MUS CONCOLOR.

_The Common Thatch Rat of Pegu_.

HABITAT.--Upper and Lower Burmah, Malayan peninsula.

DESCRIPTION.--I have been unable to trace any accurate description

of this rat, which Blyth says "conducts from the long-tailed arboreal

rats to the ordinary house mice." In his 'Catalogue of the Mammals

of Burmah,' published in the 'Jour. Asiatic Soc. Beng.' for 1875,

he remarks that "it requires to be critically examined in the fresh

state." In the 'J. A. S. B.,' vol. xxviii. p. 295, he describes a

young one as dark greyish mouse colour; but this is not reliable,

as the young rats and mice change colour as they attain full

growth.[23]

[Footnote 23: Since writing the above, Dr. Anderson has kindly

allowed me to examine the specimens of _Mus concolor_ in the museum,

and in the adult state they are considerably more rufescent. In one

specimen, allowing for the effects of the spirit, the fur was a bright

rufescent brown; but, whatever be the tint of the prevailing colour,

it pervades the whole body, being but slightly paler on the

under-parts. Size, about 4 inches; tail, about 4-1/2 inches.--R. A.

S.]

NO. 346. MUS PALMARUM.

_The Nicobar Tree Rat_.

HABITAT.--Nicobar Islands.

NO. 347. MUS CEYLONUS.

HABITAT.--Ceylon.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur soft, lead colour; hair of upper parts tipped with

dark fawn and black; ears large, naked; whiskers long, black; tail

longer than the head and body, scaly.

SIZE.--Head and body, 4-3/4 inches; tail, 6 inches.

"This small rat is found in out-houses in the cinnamon gardens at

Colombo. I have no reason to think it to be the young of the former

species (_M. decumanus_); the teeth were well developed; the darker

colour and long tail will easily distinguish the species from other

Colombo rats" (_Kellaart_). The character of the molar teeth is all

that can be depended on in the foregoing description, and this may

require further investigation. The young of rats and mice are always

darker than the adults, and the tail is longer in proportion.

* * * * *

The following are doubtful species:--

NO. 348. MUS PLURIMAMMIS.

_Jerdon's No. 177_.

This, which Blyth considered a good species, is, I am informed,

referable with _M. Taraiyensis_ and _M. Morungensis_ to Gray's

_Nesokia Bengalensis_. The type and drawing of it are in the British

Museum.

NO. 349. MUS AEQUICAUDALIS.

of Hodgson, described in Horsfield's Catalogue as pure dark brown

above, with a very slight cast of rufescent in a certain aspect;

underneath from the chin to the vent, with interior of thighs,

yellowish-white; ears nearly an inch long; head proportionately long

('Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist.' new series, iii. p. 203). This, with

Blyth's _M. nemoralis_, seems identical with _M. brunneus_.

_Mus arboreus_ of Horsfield's Catalogue is _Mus rufescens_. It

remains to be seen whether there is sufficient difference between

_M. rufescens_ and _M. niveiventer_ to warrant the separation of the

latter as a distinct species.

* * * * *

The following species lead on to the mice--beginning with the

long-tailed arboreal species, _Vandeleuria_ of Gray, which connect

the arboreal rats with the house mice.

The characteristics of _Vandeleuria_ are: upper incisors triangular,

grooved in front; ears hairy; fur soft, with long bristles

interspersed; long tail, sparsely haired; hind feet very long,

slender; soles bald beneath; toes .45 long, slender, compressed, the

pads much more strongly developed than in ground mice; the inner and

outer toes with a small flattened nail.

NO. 350. MUS OLERACEUS.

_The Long-tailed Tree Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 184_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Marad-ilei_, Canarese; _Meina-yelka_, Telegu of the

Yanadees (_Jerdon_).

HABITAT.--Throughout India from north to south, but has not been

reported from Ceylon. In Burmah Dr. Anderson found it in the valley

of the Nampoung, a frontier stream dividing Burmah from China.

DESCRIPTION.--Upper surface rich rufous or chestnut red, paling to

brown on the ears and muzzle before the eyes; under-parts white, with

a yellowish tinge; feet pale brown, shading off into white on the

toes; under surface of feet yellowish; tail brownish or dusky with

grey hairs; it tapers to a point, finely ringed; sparsely haired

between the rings, the hairs more numerous and longer towards the

tips. The length of the head, according to Dr. Anderson, whose

description ('Anat. and Zool. Res.' p. 313) is more complete than

Jerdon's, is about one-third the length of the body; the muzzle is

moderately long and slightly contracted behind the moustachial area;

eyes large; ears ovate, sparsely clad.

SIZE.--Head and body, from 2-1/2 to 3 inches; tail one-half longer

than the combined length of body and head.

Jerdon says of this pretty little mouse that "it is most abundant

in the south of India, where it frequents trees, and very commonly

palm-trees, on which it is said to make its nest generally. It,

however, occasionally places its nest in the thatch of houses, on

beams, &c. It is very active, and from its habits difficult to

procure" ('Mammals of India,' p. 202). According to Sykes it

constructs its nest of oleraceous herbs in the fields, and Hodgson

states it to tenant woods and coppices in Nepal.

NO. 351. MUS NILAGIRICUS.

_The Neilgherry Tree Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 185_).

HABITAT.--Ootacamund.

DESCRIPTION.--"Above deep but bright chestnut brown, beneath bright

fawn yellow, with a distinct line of demarcation between the two

colours; head rather elongated; ears long, oval; tail somewhat

hairy."--_Jerdon_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/2 inches; tail, 5 inches.

This tree mouse was discovered and named by Dr. Jerdon. He says: "The

first I observed was brought into the house by a cat. I afterwards,

on two or three occasions, found the nest, a mass of leaves and grass,

on shrubs and low trees, from four to five feet from the ground, and

on one occasion it was occupied by at least eight or ten apparently

full-grown mice."

NO. 352. MUS BADIUS.

_The Bay Tree Mouse_.

HABITAT.--The valley of the Sittang, Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--"Similar to _M. oleraceus_, but with the eye fully

twice as large, and black whiskers; colour of the upper parts a more

rufous chestnut or cinnamon hue, of the lower parts white, almost

pure."--_Blyth_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3 inches; tail, 4-3/8 inches.

NO. 353. MUS GLIROIDES.

_The Cherrapoonjee Tree Mouse_.

HABITAT.--Khasia hills.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur exceedingly dense and fine, of a light brown,

tinged with fawn; the basal two-thirds of the piles are dusky ash

coloured; the lower parts are white, very faintly tinged with fawn;

the white purest about the lips and chin; whiskers long; feet large

and sparsely clad with white hairs; a distinct brown mark on each

hind foot reaching almost to the division of the toes; ears smallish,

ovoid, naked.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2 inches; tail (?) mutilated.

Blyth says this animal has much of the aspect of the European dormouse

(_Myoxus avellanarius_), but nothing is said about its dentition,

which would at once settle the question whether the young specimen

with its imperfect tail were a true _Mus_ or a species of

_Myoxus_.[24]

[Footnote 24: See Appendix A for description and dentition of

_Myoxus_.]

NO. 354. MUS PEGUENSIS.

_The Pegu Tree Mouse_.

HABITAT.--The Sittang valley, Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--Fulvescent olive brown on the upper parts,

yellowish-white below; whiskers remarkably long; the tail very long

and conspicuously haired towards the tip; more so, Blyth remarks,

than any other mouse, especially when held up to the light.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/8 inches; tail, 3-7/8; in one specimen,

4-1/2 inches.

* * * * *

We now come to the terrestrial or house mice.

NO. 355. MUS URBANUS.

_The Common Indian Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 186_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Lengtia-indur_, Bengali; _Mesuri_, _Musi_, _Chuhi_,

Hindi.

HABITAT.--Throughout India and Ceylon.

DESCRIPTION.--Somewhat resembling the English mouse, but with very

much longer, coarser tail, larger eyes, and smaller ears; dusky

reddish-brown above, somewhat paler below; the feet paler still,

whitish in some; the tail nude, thick at base, longer by an inch than

the head and body, and of a dark brown colour. The young are more

dusky.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 2 to 3 inches; tail, 3 to 4 inches.

I have kept these mice in confinement for considerable periods, and

have had many opportunities of studying their habits of late. During

many years' residence in the Currency Office, I never once found a

mouse in my private quarters on the third story, although I

frequently observed them in the vaults and strong rooms on the ground

floor. During my absence at Simla in 1880 my quarters were unoccupied,

as the Public Works Department were giving the building a thorough

repair. It was then, I suppose, a few of the mice from the ground

floor were driven upstairs, and, being unmolested by us, as we liked

to see the little things playing about, they increased to a most

uncomfortable extent within eight months. I failed to discover their

breeding places, though I suspect they made much use of a large

doll's-house for the purpose, for on taking out the front staircase,

under which the bells of the establishment were hung, I found a nest

of torn paper, and I caught two young ones in one of the rooms. Some

of them came out every night whilst we were at dinner, and paid a

visit to a rose-headed parraquet (_Palaeornis rosa_), mounting up

on Polly's perch, and sitting down to supper in the tin receptacles

for food at each end. She generally treated them with silent contempt,

or gave a snappish little peck if they were too familiar; sometimes,

when they were too sky-larky, she retreated to her ring above, where

she swung and looked down at them from a coign of vantage. Their

agility in running up and down the wires of a cage is marvellous.

They have also an extraordinary faculty for running up a

perpendicular board, and the height from which they can jump is

astounding. One day, in my study, I chased one of these mice on to

the top of a book-case. Standing on some steps, I was about to put

my hand over him, when he jumped on to the marble floor and ran off.

I measured the height, and have since measured it again, 8 feet 9-1/2

inches.

I consider this species the most muscular of all mice of the same

size. I have had at the same time in confinement an English mouse

(albino), a Bengal field mouse, and house mice from Simla of another

species, and none of them could show equal activity. I use, for the

purpose of taming mice, a glass fish-globe, out of which none of the

other mice could get, but I have repeatedly seen specimens of _M.

urbanus_ jump clear out of the opening at the top. They would look

up, gather their hind quarters together, and then go in for a high

leap. They are much more voracious than the Simla or other mice. The

allowance of food given would be devoured in less than half the time

taken by the others, and they are more given to gnawing. What sort

of mothers they are in freedom I know not, but one which produced

four young ones in one of my cages devoured her offspring before they

were a week old. I have two before me just now as I write, and they

have had a quarrel about the highest place on a little grated window.

The larger one got the advantage, so the other seized hold of her

tail, and gave it a good nip.

* * * * *

Now we come to some doubtful species, doubtful in the sense that they

should not be separated, but considered as one to be named afterwards,

according to priority of discovery. Dr. Anderson is at present

investigating the matter, and we must await his decision, but from

such external observations as I have been able to make, it appears

probable that the following will prove identical:--

_Mus homourus_; _Mus Darjeelingensis_; _Mus Tytleri_; _Mus

Bactrianus_; _Mus cervicolor_(?)--_Jerdon's Nos. 187, 189, 190, 191,

and 192_. These are all hill mice, except the last, and found under

the same conditions.

NO. 356. MUS HOMOURUS.

HABITAT.--Lower Himalayan range.

DESCRIPTION.--Dark rufescent above, rufescent white below; hands

and feet fleshy white; tail equal to length of head and body; "fur

more gerbille-like in character than in _M. musculus_" (or

_urbanus_), stated to be the common house mouse of the Himalayan hill

stations from the Punjab to Darjeeling. Stated by Hodgson to have

eight teats only in the female, other mice having ten. Possibly his

description was founded on young specimens. I myself was of opinion

for some time that I had got two species of hill mice, a larger and

a smaller, the latter being so much darker in colour, but I kept them

till the young ones attained full size in six months, at which time

they were not distinguishable from the old ones. Hodgson may have

overlooked the pectoral mammae when he noted the number.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/2 inches; tail, 3-1/2 inches.

NO. 357. MUS DARJEELINGENSIS.

DESCRIPTION.--Dusky brown, with a slight chestnut reflection;

under-parts pale yellowish-white.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3 inches; tail, 2-1/2 inches.

NO. 358. MUS TYTLERI.

HABITAT.--Dehra Doon.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur long and full, pale, sandy mouse-coloured above,

isabelline below; pale on the well-clad limbs, and also on the tail

laterally and underneath.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-3/4 inches; tail, 2-3/4 inches.

NO. 359. MUS BACTRIANUS.

HABITAT.--Punjab, Kashmir, Candahar, Baluchistan, and Southern

Persia.

DESCRIPTION.--Upper parts brown above, with a sandy tinge, more on

the head; the longer hairs with a dusky tip; the basal two-thirds

deep ash; under-parts and feet white; tail clad thinly with fine

whitish hair; the fur in general long, dense, and silky.

SIZE.--Head and body, from 2-1/4 to 3-1/4 inches; tail, about the

same.

This is the mouse, I think, that I caught in the house at Simla in

1880. Of eight specimens I got--seven in a cupboard in the

dining-room and one in a bath-room--I sent two in spirits to the

Indian Museum and brought down to Calcutta three alive, which I kept

for about seven months, when they died. I have since then seen living

specimens of _M. bactrianus_ from Kohat, with which they appear to

be identical. They also resemble--I speak under correction--_M.

cervicolor_, which is a field mouse found in Bengal. I made the

following notes regarding them: Fur very fine, close and silky,

rufescent brown, more rufous on the head, isabelline below; feet

flesh-coloured, hinder ones large, much larger than those of the

English mouse; the hind-quarters are also more powerful; has a very

pretty way of sitting up, with the body bent forwards, and its hands

clasped in an attitude of supplication. The young mice seem darker

both above and below, and are much more shy than the old ones, of

which one soon after being caught took bits of cake from my fingers

through the bars of its cage. More delicate looking than _Mus

urbanus_, with a much shorter and finer tail; less offensive in

smell.

Dr. Anderson got, not long ago, two of these mice in a box from Kohat.

They bore the journey uncommonly well, and were in lively condition

when I saw them at the Museum. Whilst we were talking about them,

we noticed an act of intelligence for which I should not have given

them credit had I not seen it with my own eyes. They were in a box

with a glass front; in the upper left-hand corner was a small sleeping

chamber, led up to by a sloping piece of wood. The entrance of this

chamber was barred by wires bent into the form of a lady's hair-pin,

and passed through holes in the roof of the box.

The mice had been driven out, and the sleeping-chamber barred, for

they were having their portraits taken. Whilst we were talking we

found, to our surprise, that one mouse was inside the chamber,

although the bars were down. There seemed hardly space for it to

squeeze through; however, it was driven out, and we went on with our

conversation, but found, on looking at the cage again, that our

little friend was once more inside, so he was driven out again, and

we kept an eye on him. To our great surprise and amusement we saw

him trot up his sloping board, put his little head on one side, and

seize one of the wires, which worked very loosely in its socket, give

it a hitch up, when he adroitly caught it lower down, hitched it up

again and again till he got it high enough to allow him to slip in

underneath, and then he was quite happy once more. He had only been

in the box two days, so he was not long in finding out the weak point.

I begin to believe now in rats dipping their tails into oil-bottles,

and other wonderful stories of murine sagacity that one reads of.

Mice, are supposed to live from two-and-a-half to three years. I had

the English albino above mentioned for three.

NO. 360. MUS CRASSIPES.

_The Large-footed Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 188_).

HABITAT.--Mussoorie and, according to Jerdon, the Neilgherries.

DESCRIPTION.--This is stated to be like _M. homourus_, but the

difference is well marked in a very much longer tail and much larger

feet.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-3/4 inches; tail, 3/4 inch; hind foot, 3/4

inch.

NO. 361. MUS SUBLIMIS.

HABITAT.--Ladakh, 13,000 feet.

DESCRIPTION.--Brown above; whitish below; the colours gradually

blending; fur soft and long; all except the tips dark slaty grey,

the terminal portions of the shorter hairs being light brown, and

of the longer hairs dark brown; upper whiskers black; lower white;

ears oval; feet thinly clad with short light brown hairs; tail with

short bristly hairs, dusky brown above, whitish below; tail longer

than head and body.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2.6 inches; tail, 3.05; length of hind foot,

0.83 inch.

Mr. Blanford, who named the above species, which was procured in the

expedition to Yarkand, is doubtful whether it may not be referable

to the last species.

NO. 362. MUS PACHYCERCUS.

HABITAT.--Yarkand.

DESCRIPTION.--Sandy brown above; under-parts white; fur soft and

very like _M. bactrianus_; ears large, rounded, hairy; feet clad

above with white hair; soles naked; tail thick, shorter than head

and body, and thinly clad with white bristles throughout; skin dark

above, pale below; incisors deep yellow.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2.35 inches; tail, 1.9 to 2 inches.

Mr. Blanford says this is a house mouse. It is figured in Blanford's

'Mammalia of the Second Yarkand Mission.'

NO. 363. MUS ERYTHRONOTUS.

HABITAT.--Yarkand, Persia.

DESCRIPTION.--Rufous, washed with blackish above, white below,

abruptly separated; hairs on the back are slaty at the base, then

blackish and bright ferruginous at the tips, the extreme points being

black, except on the sides, where the black tip is wanting; upper

whiskers black, lower white; ears large, rounded, naked; feet white

above, dusky and naked below; tail equal to head and body, nearly

naked. Mammae six.

SIZE.--Head and body, 4 inches; tail, 4.2 inches.

This mouse is figured and carefully described in Blanford's 'Eastern

Persia,' vol. ii. p. 35.

NO. 364. MUS CERVICOLOR.

_The Fawn-coloured Field Mouse_.

HABITAT.--Bengal, Nepal, Southern India.

DESCRIPTION.--"Distinguished by its short tail. Above dull fawn,

below sordid white; lining of ears and extremities pale" (_Blyth_).

"Ears large, hairy" (_Jerdon_). Of the specimens I have seen the fur

is soft and of a light sandy brown above and white below, very like

_M. bactrianus_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/2 inches; tail, 2-7/8 inches.

NO. 365. MUS TERRICOLOR.

_The Earth-coloured Field Mouse_.

HABITAT.--India generally, I think. It has been found in the valley

of the Ganges, in Bengal, in the Santal district west of Midnapore,

and Southern India.

DESCRIPTION.--The colour varies according to the soil, but in

general fawn brown, more or less rufescent--those from the valley

of the Ganges being darker than those from the ferruginous soil of

other parts. The under-parts are white, abruptly separated from the

brown; fur short and soft.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-1/2 inches; tail, 2-1/8 inches.

NO. 366. MUS PEGUENSIS.

_The Pegu Field Mouse_.

HABITAT.--The valley of the Sitang River, Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--"Fur very full and dense, pale fulvescent olive brown

on the upper parts, slightly yellowish-white below; whiskers

remarkably long" (_Blyth_). Tail longer than head and body, and well

clad with hairs, especially towards the tip.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/8 inches; tail, nearly 4 inches.

NO. 367. MUS NITIDULUS.

_The Shiny Little House Mouse of Pegu_.

HABITAT.--The Sitang valley in Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--The description given of this mouse by Blyth is

extremely vague. He says: "A house mouse apparently, with tail equal

to head and body, and uniformly furnished with minute setae to the

end; ears large and ample; colour nearly that of _M. decumanus_, with

the under-parts subdued white, tolerably well defined."

He remarks further on that the front teeth are conspicuously larger

than those of _M. musculus_ and _M. urbanus_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/4 inches; tail, the same.

NO. 368. MUS BEAVENI.

_Beaven's Mouse_.

HABITAT.--Maubhum, and, according to Blyth's Catalogue, Burmah,

valley of the Salween.

DESCRIPTION.--"Above rusty brown, medially black; lips and the whole

under side pale ochraceous; feet white, all the hair being slate

coloured at the base; tail above brown, below with white hairs; upper

whiskers black, lower white. Rather smaller and more delicately

built than our common harvest mouse."--_Prof. Peters_, 'P. Z. S.'

1866, p. 559.

NO. 369. MUS CUNICULARIS.

_The Little Rabbit-Mouse_.

HABITAT.--Cherrapunji, Assam.

DESCRIPTION.--"A small field (?) mouse, remarkable for its ample

ears and tail shorter than head and body; colour of a wild rabbit

above, below white; and the feet with brownish hairs above, but with

white hairs upon the toes; tail conspicuously ringed; the setae

minute and inconspicuous."--_Blyth_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-1/2 inches; tail, 2-1/8 inches; ears

posteriorly half an inch.

NO. 370. MUS ERYTHROTIS.

_The Cherrapunji Red-eared Mouse_.

HABITAT.--Cherrapoonji, Assam.

DESCRIPTION.--A small mouse with very deep soft fur, very long and

silky, of a rich dark brown colour, grizzled and brightly tinged with

rufous or rufo-ferruginous towards the tail, and upon the ears

conspicuously. In such spirit specimens as I have seen the colour

was darker than in life, but the soft silkiness of the fur could be

seen to advantage as it floated in the clear liquid; the lower parts

are whitish, tinged with fawn; feet with brown hairs above; ears

small and hirsute, and the tail is also hairy.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-1/4 inches; tail, 2-3/8 inches.

NO. 371. MUS FULVIDIVENTRIS.

HABITAT.--Ceylon, Trincomalee.

DESCRIPTION.--This is a small mouse very like _Mus cervicolor_, or

perhaps _M. terricolor_, which it more nearly approaches in size.

Kellaart in his 'Prodromus,' calls it _cervicolor_, but Blyth

afterwards separated it under the name given above, though after all

I think he was doubtful whether it ought to have been so distinguished.

The fur is long, soft, and glossy, fulvous fawn brown above, paler

below; feet dingy grey.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-9/10 inches; tail, 2-5/10 inches.

NO. 372. MUS KAKHYENENSIS.

_The Kakhyen Mouse_.

HABITAT.--Burmo-Chinese frontier, Ponsee.

DESCRIPTION.--Differs from _Mus urbanus_ by its shorter tail, longer

hind feet, and larger ears; muzzle moderately deep, and short; ears

large and rounded; fur long, dense, and soft, reddish-brown on the

upper parts, with a dark speckled appearance due to the stronger

hairs having broad brown tips; sides of the head dusky greyish; chin

to vent and under-parts greyish-white, with a silvery sheen; feet

dusky pale brown; ears and upper surface of tail dark brown, under

surface of tail pale brown.--_Anderson_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2.90 inches; tail, 3.36 inches.

This mouse was discovered and named by Dr. Anderson, who procured

one example at Ponsee, where it occurs, he says, on the old rice and

Indian corn clearings. The next species is also a new one discovered

and named by him.

NO. 373. MUS VICULORUM.

_The Kakhyen House Mouse_.

HABITAT.--The Burmo-Chinese frontier, Ponsee.

DESCRIPTION.--Muzzle rather sharply pointed, moderately long and

not deep; ears moderately large, rounded; its height a little in

excess of the distance between the inner canthus and the front of

the muzzle; hind-feet not long; tail a little longer than the body

and head, finely ringed, five rings to one-tenth of an inch; fur soft,

short, dense, dull dark brown on the upper parts, tending to blackish

on the back, paling to brownish on the sides, and passing into pale

dusky brownish on the under parts with a silvery sheen; feet

brownish; toes with shining greyish-yellow hairs; ears and tail

brown. (_See_ Anderson's 'Anat. and Zool. Res.,' p. 308.)

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-9/10 inches; tail, 3.14 inches.

This species, according to Dr. Anderson, frequents the villages and

houses of the Kakhyens. He obtained it at Ponsee.

* * * * *

We now come to an interesting little group of mice, of which the hairs

are mixed with flat spines, which form the genus _Leggada_ of Gray,

a term taken from the Wuddur name for the next species.

_GENUS LEGGADA_.

CHARACTERISTICS.--Molars high, with somewhat convex crowns; the

cross ridges of the upper grinders deeply three-lobed; the front one

with an additional lunate lobe at the base of its front edge; fur

fine, mixed with numerous spines somewhat flattened.

NO. 374. LEGGADA PLATYTHRIX.

_The Brown Spiny Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 194_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Leggade_ and _Kal-yelka_, of Wuddurs; _Gijeli-gadu_,

Telegu, of Yanadees; _Kal-ilei_, Canarese.

HABITAT.--Southern India.

DESCRIPTION.--Sandy brown or light brown fawn above, white

underneath, with a band of pale fawn separating the two colours.

The fur mixed with flat transparent spines, smaller beneath; head

long; muzzle pointed; ears rather large, oblong, rounded, about half

an inch in length.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/2 inches; tail, 2-1/2 inches.

The following description has been given by Sir Walter Elliot and

reproduced in Jerdon's 'Mammals': "The Leggade lives entirely in the

red gravelly soil in a burrow of moderate depth, generally on the

side of a bank. When the animal is inside the entrance is closed with

small pebbles, a quantity of which is collected outside, by which

its retreat may always be known. The burrow leads to a chamber in

which is collected a bed of small pebbles on which it sits, the thick

close hair of the belly protecting it from the cold and asperity of

such a seat. Its food appears to be vegetable. In its habits it is

monogamous and nocturnal.

"In one earth which I opened, and which did not seem to have been

originally constructed by the animal, I found two pairs, one of which

were adults, the other young ones about three-parts grown. The mouth

of the earth was very large, and completely blocked up with small

stones; the passage gradually widening into a large cavity, from the

roof of which some other passages appeared to proceed, but there was

only one communication with the surface, viz. the entrance. The old

pair were seated on a bed of pebbles, near which, on a higher level,

was another collection of stones probably intended for a drier

retreat; the young ones were in one of the passages, likewise

furnished with a heap of small stones."

Dr. Jerdon adds he has often opened the burrows of this mouse, and

can confirm the above account. He also states that the Yanadees of

Nellore declare that one variety uses small sticks instead of stones

to sit upon, and they give it a distinct appellation, but he could

not detect any difference in the specimens they brought him.

NO. 375. LEGGADA SPINULOSA.

_The Dusky Spiny Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 195_).

HABITAT.--Punjab, and also Southern India.

DESCRIPTION.--"Nearly affined to _M. platythrix_ (Sykes), but of a

dark dusky colour above, with fulvous tips to the softer fur; below

and all the feet dull whitish; upper rodential tusks orange, the

lower white; whiskers long and fine, the posterior and longer of them

black for the basal half or more, the rest white."--_Blyth_, 'J. A.

S. B.' 1863.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-3/4 inches; tail, 3 inches.

NO. 376. LEGGADA JERDONI.

_The Himalayan Spiny Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 196_).

HABITAT.--Himalayan range, up to 12,000 feet.

DESCRIPTION.--"Bright dark ferruginous above, pure white below;

some fine long black tips intermingled among the spines of the back;

limbs marked with blackish externally; the feet white."--_Blyth's_

'Mem., J. A. S. B.' vol. xxxii.

SIZE.--Head and body, 4 inches; tail, 3-1/2 inches.

Dr. Jerdon first found this mouse at Darjeeling, but afterwards in

the valley of the Sutlej in Kunawur, at an elevation of nearly 12,000

feet, living under large stones.

NO. 377. LEGGADA LEPIDA.

_The Small Spiny Mouse_ (_Jerdon's No. 197_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Chitta-burkani_, _Chit-yelka_, _Chitta-ganda_,

Telegu of Wuddurs; _Chitta-yelka_ of Yanadees.--_Jerdon_.

HABITAT.--Southern India.

DESCRIPTION.--Similar to _L. platythrix_, but smaller and more

weakly spinous; above pale sandy brown, pure white below, the two

colours clearly separated. "The spines are small, fine, transparent,

and of a dusky tinge, tipped with fawn; head very long; muzzle

pointed; ears large, ovate, naked; tail naked, limbs rather long,

fine."--_Jerdon_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 2-1/2 to 3 inches; tail, 2-3/4 inches.

Jerdon says of this mouse that he has found it in gravelly soil in

gardens and woods in most parts of Southern India making a small

burrow, which generally has a little heap of stones placed at a short

distance from the hole. It is preyed on now and then by the common

Indian roller or jay, and it is very generally used as a bait to catch

that bird with bird-lime.

_GENUS GOLUNDA_.

The following rats are separated by Gray as a distinct genus, which

from the Canarese name of the type he has called _Golunda_, the

characteristics of which are: "the grinders, when perfect, low, with

a broad, flat crown; the cross ridges of the crown of the upper

grinders divided into three distinct slightly raised tubercles;

upper incisors grooved; rest like _Mus_."

NO. 378. GOLUNDA ELLIOTI.

_The Bush Rat or Coffee Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 199_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Gulandi_, Canarese; _Gulat-yelka_ of Wuddurs;

_Sora-panji-gadur_, Telegu of Yanadees; _Cofee-wattee-meeyo_,

Singhalese (this name seems to me a corruption of "coffee rat").

DESCRIPTION.--Fur thick and stiff, fulvous brown, mixed with black,

some olive brown mixed with fulvous, tawny grey beneath; hairs of

upper parts flattened, ashy grey, tipped yellow, with some thinner

and longer ones, also tipped yellow, with sub-terminal black band;

under fur soft and of a light lead colour; face and cheeks rough;

ears moderate, sub-ovate, hairy; tail round, tapering, scaly and

hairy, dark brown above, yellowish below; cutting teeth yellow.

SIZE.--Head and body, 4-1/2 inches; tail, 4 inches.

Dr. Kellaart says these are the rats most destructive to coffee-trees,

whole plantations being sometimes deprived of buds and blossoms by

them.

There is an illustration of one in Sir Emerson Tennent's 'Natural

History of Ceylon' in the act of cutting off the slender branches

which would not bear its weight in order to feed on the buds and

blossoms when fallen to the ground. "The twigs thus destroyed are

detached by as clean a cut as if severed with a knife." Sir Walter

Elliot writes of it: "The _gulandi_ lives entirely in the jungle,

choosing its habitation in a thick bush, among the thorny branches

of which, or on the ground, it constructs a nest of elastic stalks

and fibres of dry grass thickly interwoven. The nest is of a round

or oblong shape, from six to nine inches in diameter, within which

is a chamber about three or four inches in diameter, in which it rolls

itself up. Round and through the bush are sometimes observed small

beaten pathways along which the little animal seems habitually to

pass. Its motion is somewhat slow, and it does not appear to have

the same power of leaping or springing by which the rats in general

avoid danger. Its food seems to be vegetable, the only contents of

the stomach being the roots of the haryalee grass. Its habits are

solitary (except when the female is bringing up her young) and

diurnal, feeding in the mornings and evenings." Dr. Jerdon says:

"The Yanadees of Nellore catch this rat, surrounding the bush and

seizing it as it issues forth, which its comparatively slow actions

enable them to do easily. According to Sir Emerson Tennent the

Malabar coolies are so fond of their flesh that they evince a

preference for those districts in which the coffee-plantations are

subject to their incursions, where they fry the rats in cocoanut-oil

or convert them into curry." Both he and Dr. Kellaart mention the

migratory habits of this animal on the occurrence of a scarcity of

food. Kellaart says that in one day on such visits more than a

thousand have been killed on one estate alone.

NO. 379. GOLUNDA MELTADA.

_The Soft-furred Bush Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 200_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Mettade_, of Wuddurs; _Metta-yelka_, Telegu of

Yanadees; _Kera ilei_, Canarese.

HABITAT.--Southern India and Ceylon.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur very soft; above deep yellowish, olive brown or

reddish-brown, with a mixture of fawn; under fur lead colour; chin

and under parts whitish; head short; muzzle sharp; ears long and

hairy; tail shorter than body, scaly, but scales covered with short

black adpressed hairs; feet pale.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/2 to 5-1/2 inches; tail, 2-1/4 to 4-1/4

inches.

The specific name of this rat is an absurd corruption, such as is

not unfrequent in Dr. Gray's names, of the native _mettade_, which

means soft. According to that accurate observer Sir Walter Elliot,

"the _mettade_ lives entirely in cultivated fields in pairs or small

societies of five or six;[25] making a very slight and rude hole in

the root of a bush, or merely harbouring among the heap of stones

thrown together in the fields, in the deserted burrow of the

_kok_,[26] or contenting itself with the deep cracks and fissures

formed in the black soil during the hot months. Great numbers perish

annually when these collapse and fill up at the commencement of the

rains. The monsoon of 1826 having been deficient in the usual fall

of rain at the commencement of the season, the _mettades_ bred in

such numbers as to become a perfect plague. They ate up the seed as

soon as sown, and continued their ravages when the grain approached

to maturity, climbing up the stalks of jowaree and cutting off the

ear to devour the grain with greater facility. I saw many whole fields

completely devastated, so much so as to prevent the farmers from

paying their rents. The ryots employed the Wuddurs to destroy them,

who killed them by thousands, receiving a measure of grain for so

many dozens, without perceptibly diminishing their numbers. Their

flesh is eaten by the Tank-diggers. The female produces six to eight

at a birth."--'_Madras Journ. Lit. Sc._' x. 1839.

[Footnote 25: In this case probably parents and young.]

[Footnote 26: _Nesokia providens_.]

Kellaart's _Golunda Newera_ is, I fancy, the same, although the

measurement he gives is less. Head and body, 3-1/4 inches; tail,

2-1/2. The description tallies, although Kellaart goes upon

difference in size and the omission of Gray to state that _G. meltada_

had the upper incisors grooved. He says that "this rat is found in

pairs in the black soil of Newara Elia, and is a great destroyer of

peas and potatoes." So its habits agree.

_GENUS HAPALOMYS_.

This was formed by Blyth on a specimen from Burmah of a murine animal

"with a long and delicately fine pelage and exceedingly long tail,

the terminal fourth of which is remarkably flattened and furnished

with hair more developed than in perhaps any other truly murine form;

limbs short, with the toes remarkably corrugated underneath; the

balls of the inguinal phalanges greatly developed, protruding beyond

the minute claws of the fore-feet, and equally with the more

developed claws of the hind-feet; head short; the ears small and

inconspicuous; the skull approaches in form that of _Mus

Indicus_,[27] but the rodential tusks are broader and flatter to the

front. Molars as in the _Muridae_ generally, but much worn in the

specimen under examination; they are considerably less directed

outward than usual, and the bony palate has therefore the appearance

of being narrow; the superorbital ridges project much outward in form

of a thin bony plate, and there is a considerable process at the base

of the zygoma anteriorly and posteriorly to the anti-orbital

foramen; zygomata broad, and compressed about the middle."

[Footnote 27: _Nesokia Blythiana_.]

NO. 380. HAPALOMYS LONGICAUDATUS.

HABITAT.--Shway Gheen, in the valley of the Sitang river in Burmah,

or its adjacent hills.

DESCRIPTION.--"Fur long and soft, measuring about five-eights of an

inch on the upper parts, slaty for the basal two-thirds, then

glistening brown with black tips, and a few long hairs of very fine

texture interspersed; lower parts dull white; whiskers black, long

and fine, and there is a tuft of fine blackish-hair anterior to the

ears."--_Blyth_.

SIZE.--Head and body of a male, 5-3/4 inches; tail 7-1/4 inches. Of

another specimen, female: 5-1/4 inches; tail, 7-1/2 inches; sole,

1-1/8 inch; ears posteriorly, 1-1/4 inch.

Specimens of adult male and female with a young one were forwarded

to the Asiatic Society's Museum by Major Berdmore.

* * * * *

We have now come to the end of the purely murine group as far as they

exist within the limits assigned to these investigations. I ought

perhaps to give some short notices of the following specimens

discovered in Thibet by the Abbe David, and described by Professor

Milne-Edwards in his 'Recherches sur les Mammiferes.'

NO. 381. MUS OUANG-THOMAE.

_The Kiangsi Rat_.

HABITAT.--Kiangsi in Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--A tawny grey above, mixed with long hairs, tipped with

brown, greyish below; between the fore-paws a crescent of pure white,

which is a distinguishing mark of the species.

SIZE.--A little less than _Mus rattus_, which is about seven inches

long; tail an inch longer.

This rat Professor Milne-Edwards describes from a single specimen;

it is apparently rare, and was named after the Abbe David's Chinese

servant--'Recherches sur les Mammiferes,' p. 290.

NO. 382. MUS FLAVIPECTUS.

_The Yellow-breasted Rat_.

HABITAT.--Moupin; Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--Reddish-brown; chin greyish; throat and chest tawny,

mixed with grey; belly and inside of limbs yellowish-grey; ears large,

nearly naked; incisors deep yellow; tail brown, covered with short

hairs.

SIZE.--About 7-3/4 inches; tail, 6-1/4 inches.--'Mammiferes,' p.

289.

NO. 383. MUS GRISEIPECTUS.

_The Grey-breasted Rat_.

HABITAT.--Moupin; Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--Brown above; the under-parts of a clear grey.

SIZE.--About the same as the last, but with a somewhat shorter

tail.--'Mammiferes,' p. 290.

NO. 384. MUS CONFUCIANUS.

HABITAT.--Moupin; Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--Fawn brown above, pure white below; lower part of

cheek white; on the back the fur is interspersed with longer hairs

of a blackish tint; feet pale.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 4 inches.--'Mammiferes,' p. 286.

NO. 385. MUS CHEVRIERI.

HABITAT.--Moupin; Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--General colour tawny brown, grizzled with dark brown;

lower parts of a clear grey, almost white; ears short; feet small;

tail covered with short hair.

SIZE.--About 4-3/4 inches; tail about 3-1/2 inches.--'Mammiferes,'

p. 288.

NO. 386. MUS PYGMAEUS.

_The Pigmy Mouse_.

HABITAT.--Moupin; Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--Distinguished by its very short ears and the square

form of its head; deep brown above; greyish-yellow beneath; tail

shorter than in the common mouse.

SIZE.--About 2-3/4 inches; tail, about 2 inches.--'Mammiferes,' p.

291.

ARVICOLINAE.

In this sub-family the molars are generally semi-rooted or rootless.

The _Arvicolinae_ or Voles consist of the American Musquash (_Fiber

zibethicus_), a very beaver-like water rat of large size; the

Lemmings (_Myodes_), of which there are several species which are

celebrated for their vast migrations; and the true Vole (_Arvicola_),

which is the only genus found in India, and then only in the colder

climate of the Himalayas. There are several species in Europe, of

which three are found in England. According to Professor Dallas, the

true Voles number about fifty species, arranged by various writers

under a considerable number of sub-genera. In India we have only

eight known species, and two more from the adjacent country of

Thibet.

[Illustration: Dentition of _Arvicola_.]

The European forms of _Arvicolae_ have been divided by Blasius into

four sub-genera of two divisions--the first division having rooted

molars in the adult animal--containing one sub-genus only,

_Hypudaeus_ of Illiger; the second division consists of three

sub-genera with rootless molars, viz. _Paludicola_, _Agricola_, and

_Arvicola_, which last has again been subdivided into long-eared and

short-eared Voles--_Arvicola_ and _Microtus_--distinguished by the

former having eight and the latter four mammae, and respectively six

and four tubercles on the plantae, the ears of the latter being almost

hidden by the fur.

None of the forms with which we have now to deal belong to the first

division, for, as far as the matter has been investigated, the Indian

Voles have rootless molars, but the character of the teeth in some

differs from the European forms, and therefore Mr. Blanford has

proposed a new section, _Alticola_, for their reception. I have not

space here, nor would it accord with the popular character of this

work, to go minutely into all the variation of dentition which

distinguish the different species. To those who wish to continue to

the minutest details the study of the Indian Voles, I recommend a

most careful and elaborate paper on them by Mr. W. T. Blanford, F.R.S.,

in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, vol. L., pt. ii.;

but without entering into the microscopic particulars of each

species, I may here give a general idea of the formation of the teeth

of the _Arvicolae_ differing as it does so much from others of the

myomorphic or mouse-like group of rodents. In these the general

contour of the molar teeth is roundish oblong, the margins being wavy

or indented, according to the convolutions of the enamel, but in the

Voles there is a sharp angularity about these indentations; the

marginal lines, instead of being in well-rounded curves, are sharply

zigzag, forming acute angles. If you were to draw two close parallel

zigzag lines it would give you some idea of the contour of these teeth.

The molars are in fact composed of alternating triangular prisms,

with the outer folds of enamel forming deep and acute angles. The

other characteristics of this family are: skull, with brain case

rhomboidal, frontals much contracted; infra-orbital opening

typical; limbs moderate; tail moderate, or short and hairy.

_GENUS ARVICOLA_.

Muzzle blunt; fore-feet small, with short claws; soles naked; tail

longer than the hind-foot, clad with short hairs; incisors plain,

smooth in front. The fore-feet in some species have but a small wart

in place of a thumb; in others there is a small thumb with a minute

claw. The hind-feet have five toes.

NO. 387. ARVICOLA STOLICZKANUS.

_The Yarkand Vole_.

HABITAT.--Yarkand.

DESCRIPTION.--"Bright ferruginous brown above, pure white beneath;

fur soft, rather woolly, 0.5 to 0.6 inch long on the middle of the

back, the basal portion throughout both head and body being dark

leaden grey; this is the case on the back for about three-quarters

of the length of the hairs; the remaining quarter is rufous white,

tipped with darker rufous, whilst numerous rather longer hairs are

dark rufous-brown at the ends; rather a sharp line divides the rufous

of the back from the white belly; upper part of the head the same

colour as the back; upper whiskers dark brown, lower, including the

longest, white; ears small, rounded, hairy, completely concealed by

the fur, with rather short bright rufous hair near the margin inside;

and covered outside with longer and paler hair; feet small, the thumb

of the fore-foot quite rudimentary and clawless; remaining claws

long, compressed, sharply pointed, but much concealed by the long

white hairs which cover the upper part of the foot, sales naked;

tarsus hairy below, a few hairs between the pads of the toes; tail

short, apparently about a quarter the length of the body and head

together, covered with stiff fulvescent white hair, which extends

about half an inch beyond the end."--_W. T. Blanford_, 'Sc. Res. of

Second Yarkand Mission,' p. 43.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 4 inches; tail, with hair, 1-1/2.

NO. 388. ARVICOLA STRACHEYI.

_The Kumaon Vole_.

HABITAT.--Kumaon.

DESCRIPTION.--Light brown above, with a greyish tint and dusky

forehead; under-parts, feet, and tail white; ears small, not longer

than the fur, and thickly clad with hair; feet of moderate size; thumb

as in the last; tail short and covered with white hairs.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 3.7 inches; tail; 0.7.

This vole was procured first by Capt. (now Lieut.-Gen.) R. Strachey

at Kumaon.

NO. 389. ARVICOLA WYNNEI.

_The Murree Vole_.

NATIVE NAME.--_Kannees_.

HABITAT.--Northern Himalayas; Murree.

DESCRIPTION.--Dark brown above, with a slight greyish tinge; head

rufescent, and under-parts pale brown; tail dark brown; ears short

and rounded, hidden by the fur; fore-feet rather large; thumb small,

with a short claw; incisors orange.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 4-3/4 inches; tail 1-1/4 inch.

NO. 390. ARVICOLA ROYLEI.

_The Cashmere Vole_ (_Jerdon's No. 202_).

HABITAT.--Kashmir; Kunawur near Chini at 12,000 feet.

DESCRIPTION.--Yellowish-brown, with a rufous tint on the back, paler

below; tail brown above, whitish underneath; feet concolorous with

the under-part; ears small, hairy and nearly hidden by the fur;

incisors yellow in front.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-3/4 inches; tail, 1-2/12 inch.

Jerdon states he got this vole at Kunawur, near Chini, again on the

south side of the Barendo pass, and also in the Pir Punjal.

NO. 391. ARVICOLA BLANFORDI.

_The Gilgit Vole_.

HABITAT.--Kashmir territory; Gilgit, at an elevation of 9000 to

10,000 feet.

DESCRIPTION.--Light greyish-brown above, slightly tinged with

rufous; greyish-white underneath; fur soft, the basal three-fourths

being slaty grey, the rest fawn colour, in some instances with black

tips, the hairs of the under-parts being white tipped; ears

moderately large, well above the fur, hairy; very long whiskers,

chiefly white, a few brown; feet whitish, moderate size; tail

cylindrical, not tapering, and well clad with hair, which project

about a fifth of an inch beyond the end of the vertebrae.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 4-1/2 inches; tail, 2 inches.

This vole was described by Dr. J. Scully in the 'Annals and Magazine

of Natural History,' for November, 1880, vol. vi., and he named it

after Mr. W. T. Blanford. It is said to be common on the mountains

around Gilgit.

* * * * *

The next two species come under the section _Paludicola_.

NO. 392. ARVICOLA BLYTHII.

HABITAT.--Western Thibet, Leh and Ladakh.

DESCRIPTION.--General colour above yellowish-brown, below pale

isabelline; fur soft; basal two-thirds of the upper hairs, and

one-half of the lower hairs, dark slaty; the upper hairs are tipped,

some isabelline and some, which are coarser and longer, dark brown;

ears round, small, equal, with the fur thinly clad with pale brown

hairs inside, and more thickly so with longer hairs outside; upper

whiskers dark brown, lower whitish; feet pale isabelline; soles

naked; tail cylindrical, distinctly ringed, covered with short light

brown hair like the under-parts in colour.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 3 to 4 inches; tail, 1 to 1-1/4 inch.

Mr. Blanford has written fully regarding this species, which was the

type of Blyth's genus _Phaiomys_, in the 'Scientific Results of the

Second Yarkand Mission,' page 39, in which he contends, after going

through a mass of literature on the subject, that there are no grounds

for constituting it the type of a new species; and, if this be

conceded, then the specific name given by Blyth, viz. _leucurus_,

being forestalled, it is necessary to rename it, which he has done

in honour of that well-known naturalist.

NO. 393. ARVICOLA MANDARINUS.

_The Afghan Vole_.

HABITAT.--Afghanistan; Chinese Mongolia.

DESCRIPTION.--Light greyish rufescent brown above, white beneath;

ears short, hidden by the fur and hairy; feet whitish; tail rufescent

brown.

SIZE.--About 4 inches; tail about 1 inch.

This vole, which is described and figured by Milne-Edwards, is

supposed to have been found in Afghanistan from a specimen in

Griffith's collection. _A. mandarinus_ comes from Chinese Mongolia,

and it is figured in the 'Recherches sur les Mammiferes.'

* * * * *

The next species was made a separate genus, _Neodon_, by Hodgson,

which has been adopted by Jerdon; but there are no good grounds for

continuing this separation. Mr. Blanford is certainly of this

opinion, and in his remarks on it (_see_ his 'Sc. Results Second

Yarkand Mission,' pp. 41-42) he writes: "The genus _Neodon_, appears

to be founded on characters of only specific importance, and the type

_N. Sikimensis_ is, I think, a true _Arvicola_."

NO. 394. ARVICOLA SIKIMENSIS.

_The Sikim Vole_ (_Jerdon's No. 203_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Phalchua_, Nepalese, apparently Hindi; _Cheekyu_,

Kiranti; _Singphuci_, Thibetan.

HABITAT.--Nepal; Sikim; Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur soft and silky. "Deep brownish-black above with

a slight rusty shade, minutely and copiously grizzled with hairs of

a deep ferruginous tint" (_Horsfield_). Or a deep golden brown from

yellow hairs being intermixed; bluish-grey beneath, with a slight

fulvous tint; fur leaden grey for the basal three-fourths, the

terminal fourth being brownish or tawny with some tipped black; the

hairs of the under-parts are dipped with dirty white; ears project

beyond the fur moderately, and are hairy; feet very slender; tail

thinly clad with short brown hair. The female has six mammae.

SIZE.--Head and body, about 4-3/4 inches; tail, 1-1/2 inch.

Horsfield gives 5 inches for head and body.

According to Jerdon this vole has only been procured in Sikim near

Darjeeling, at heights varying from 7000 to 15,000 feet; but I

believe the area it inhabits to be much larger. Hodgson found his

specimens at Darjeeling, and on one occasion got a nest in a hollow

tree in the forest; it was saucer-shaped, of soft grass without any

lining, and contained a male, female, and two young. The latter were

"2-1/8 inches long, hairy above, nude below, and blind; the ears also

closed." Jerdon writes: "Mr. Atkinson found it under fallen trees

and stones on the top of Tonglo, near Darjeeling, 10,000 feet, whence

also I had a specimen brought me."

* * * * *

The next species is one described and figured by Professor

Milne-Edwards, and from Thibet he has two illustrations of it--one

of an entire blackish-brown, the other darker above, but with the

black belly.

NO. 395. ARVICOLA MELANOGASTER.

HABITAT.--Moupin in Tibet.

DESCRIPTION.--"It is characterised by the colour of the lower parts,

which are a blackish-grey. The upper parts are sometimes as black

as a mole, sometimes grizzled with brown" ('Mammiferes,' p. 284).

The brown specimen with the dark belly is evidently a rarity.

FAMILY SPALACIDAE.

The members of this family are characterised by very large incisors;

some have premolars, as in _Bathyergus_ and two other genera, but

not in the _Spalacinae_, of which our bamboo-rat (_Rhizomys_) is the

representative in India. "The grinding teeth are rooted, not

tuberculate, but with re-entering enamel folds; infra-orbital

opening moderate or small, with no perpendicular plate; occipital

plane high, often sloped boldly forward; palate narrow; form

cylindrical; eye and ear-conch very small, sometimes rudimentary;

limbs short and stout; claws large; tail short or absent" (_Alston_,

'P. Z. S.' 1876, p. 86). There are two subfamilies--_Spalacinae_ and

_Bathyerginae_.

_GENUS RHIZOMYS--THE BAMBOO-RAT_.

"Form robust; eyes very small; ears very short, naked; pollex

rudimentary; tail rather short, partially haired; skull broad;

occipital plane only slightly sloped forward; infra-orbital opening

small, sub-triangular; upper incisors arched forward; no premolar;

upper molars with one deep internal and two or more external

enamel-folds; the lower molars reversed."--_Alston_.

NO. 396. RHIZOMYS BADIUS.

_The Chestnut Bamboo-Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 201_).

NATIVE NAME.--Known to the Chingpaws or Kakhyens as the

_Yewcron_.--_Anderson_.

HABITAT.--The Sikim and Nepal Terai; Burmah; Arakan; Kakhyen Hills.

[Illustration: _Rhizomys badius_.]

DESCRIPTION.--Fine fur, of a grey or slaty grey for two-thirds of

the basal portion, the remaining upper third being from a deep to

a bright chestnut. "Most intense on the head, and dullest on the rump"

(_Anderson_). "Below dark ashy grey" (_Jerdon_). "The fur of the

under-parts in these Eastern examples of the species" (referring to

those from the Kakhyen hills) "is paler and more reddish than

chestnut, whereas in some Nepal animals it inclines even to slaty

grey, washed with reddish. The area immediately around the muzzle

and the chin is pale brownish, with a tinge of greyish, and the teeth

are brilliant reddish, the nose, ears, feet, and tail being pale

flesh-coloured" (_Anderson_, 'Anat. and Zool. Res.' p. 329).

SIZE.--Head and body, 7 inches; tail, about 2-1/2 inches.

Jerdon says of this species that "it eats the roots of bamboos and

other trees, constructing burrows under the roots. It is said to be

very bold, and easily taken." "In Burmah it constructs its burrows

amongst a rank and tall jungle grass, on the roots of which it is

said to live" (_Anderson_). Blyth, who writes of the Burmese form,

says: "it is barely separable from _R. badius_, from which it seems

to differ only in its much brighter colouring."

NO. 397. RHIZOMYS ERYTHROGENYS.

_The Red-cheeked Bamboo-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Burmah; the Salween hill tracts; Tenasserim.

DESCRIPTION.--Upper parts dark iron grey; almost black on the top

of the head; the upper lip, chin and upper part of the throat are

white, also the chest and belly, which are however more or less tinged

with grey and reddish; the lower portion of the throat is dark grey;

the sides of the head and cheeks are bright golden red; the feet are

sparsely clad and leaden coloured, except the toes of the hind feet,

which are fleshy white; tail rather thick at the base, quite naked,

not scaly, and of a leaden hue; claws rather broad, and moderately

strong.

SIZE (of the living female).--Head and body, 14-3/4 inches; tail,

5.35 inches.

Dr. Anderson, from whose work I have taken the above description,

and who was the first to describe and name this animal, says that

a female was recently received in the Zoological Gardens from Mr.

A. H. Hildebrand.

NO. 398. RHIZOMYS PRUINOSUS.

_The Hoary Bamboo-Rat_.

HABITAT.--Assam; very common about Cherrapoonjee; Burmah; Kakhyen

hills east of Bhamo.

DESCRIPTION.--Brown above, grizzled with white; the base of the fur

being slaty grey, tipped with brown, and intermixed with longer hairs,

terminating in white bands; underneath much the same, only the

white-tipped hairs are shorter and less numerous; whiskers dark

brown; the head is generally more grey; ears, nose, feet and tail

of a dusky flesh tint; tail one-third of the body.

SIZE.--Head and-body, about 11 to 13 inches; tail, 3 to 4 inches.

NO. 399. RHIZOMYS MINOR.

_The Small Bamboo-Rat_.

NATIVE NAME.--_Khai_, Aracanese.

HABITAT.--Burmah, Upper Martaban, and at Yanageen on the

Irrawaddy.--_Blyth_.

DESCRIPTION.--"Dark sooty brown above, slightly tinged with deep

umber, which is most distinct on the sides of the head and neck, and

in reflected light; the under parts are like the upper, only the brown

tint is almost absent; the whiskers are black, and tail very sparsely

haired" (_Anderson_). "Dusky brown colour, with white muzzle and

around the eye, and pale naked feet" (_Blyth_).

SIZE.--Head and body, 6-1/2 inches; tail, 1-3/4 inch.

Blyth says he obtained a living specimen in Upper Martaban, and

recognised it as the same as what had been obtained in Siam. The Rev.

Mr. Mason writes of it: "This animal, which burrows under old bamboo

roots, resembles a marmot more than a rat; yet it has much of the

rat in its habits. I one night caught a specimen gnawing a cocoa-nut,

while camping out in the jungles."

* * * * *

I may here mention a curious little animal, which is apparently a

link between the MURIDAE and the SPALACIDAE, _Myospalax

fuscocapillus_, named and described by Blyth ('J. A. S. B.' xv. p.

141), found at Quetta, where it is called the "Quetta mole." A full

account of it by Mr. W. T. Blanford is to be found in the 'Journal

Asiatic Society of Bengal,' (vol. L. pt. ii.).

FAMILY DIPODIDAE.

This family contains a form of rodent similar to, yet more pronounced

than, the jerboa rats, of which I have already treated. It includes

the true Jerboas (_Dipus_), the American Jumping Mice (_Zapus_), the

_Alactaga_, and the Cape Jumping Hare (_Pedetes caffer_). The

characteristics of the family are as follows:--

"Incisors compressed; premolars present or absent; grinding teeth

rooted or rootless, not tuberculate, with more or fewer transverse

enamel folds; skull with the brain-case short and broad;

infra-orbital opening rounded, very large (often as large as

the orbit); zygomatic arch slender, curved downwards; the malar

ascending in front to the lachrymal in a flattened perpendicular

plate; facial surface of maxillaries minutely perforated; mastoid

portion of auditory bullae usually greatly developed; metatarsal

bones elongated, often fused into a cannon bone; form gracile; front

portion of body and fore-limbs very small; hind limbs long and strong,

with from three to five digits; tail long, hairy. Three sub-families"

(_Alston_ On the Order GLIRES, 'P. Z. S.' 1876). The three

sub-families are _Zapodidae_,[28] _Dipodinae_ and _Pedetinae_, but

we have only to deal with the second.

[Footnote 28: Formerly _Jaculinae_.]

[Illustration: Dentition of Jerboa.]

_GENUS DIPUS--THE JERBOAS_.

Hind feet with three digits; tail cylindrical and tufted; incisors

grooved; premolars absent, or, if found, then in the upper jaw and

rudimentary; skull with very broad occipital region; greatly

developed auditory bullae; the cervical vertebrae are more or less

anchylosed, and the metatarsals are united. They are not found in

the plains of India, though one species inhabits Yarkand, and two

more are found in Eastern Persia.

[Illustration: _DIPUS_.]

NO. 400. DIPUS LAGOPUS.

_The Yarkand Jerboa_.

HABITAT.--Koshtak, south of Yarkand; Yarkand; and

Yangihissar.--_Blanford_.

DESCRIPTION.--"Colour above light sandy brown, slightly washed with

dusky, below pure white; a white band across the outside of the thigh;

tail pale brown above, whitish below, with a tuft of longer hair,

altogether about 2-1/2 inches long; at the end the terminal portion

pure white, the proximal portion black or dark-brown on the upper

part and sides, but brown or white beneath the tail. The fur is very

soft and rather long, 0.6 to 0.8 inch in the middle of the back; on

the upper parts it is ashy grey at the base and for the greater parts

of its length, pale sandy brown near the end; the extreme tip dusky

brown; on the lower parts it is white throughout; ears about half

the length of the head, oval, naked inside, thinly clothed with short

brown hair outside; face sandy; the hairs grey at the base; sides

of head whitish; whiskers as usual very long, exceeding three inches;

the uppermost brown; the longest white, except at the base; the lower

entirely white; the long hairs beneath the hind feet all white, as

are the feet throughout."--_Blanford_, 'Sc. Res. of Sec. Yarkand

Mission,' pp. 58,59.

_GENUS ALACTAGA_.

"Hind feet with _five_ digits, of which the first and fifth do not

reach the ground; tail cylindrical, tufted; skull with the occipital

region less broad, and the auditory bullae smaller; infra-orbital

opening with no separate canal for the nerve; incisors plain. One

very small premolar present above only."--_Alston_.

NO. 401. ALACTAGA INDICA.

NATIVE NAME.--_Khanee_, Afghan.

HABITAT.--Afghanistan; Eastern Persia.

DESCRIPTION.--Fawn colour above; the hair with black tips and ashy

grey at the base; under-parts white; upper parts of thigh white; a

black spot behind and inside the thigh just below the white;

remainder of the outside and lower part of the inside of the thighs

brown; a white line running down the front, and extending over the

upper portion of the tarsi and feet; proximal portion of tarsus brown

at the sides. (_See_ 'Blanford's Eastern Persia,' vol. ii. p. 77.)

The tail is brown with a white tip; ears thinly clad with brown hairs;

head brown above, whitish around the eyes; whiskers black.

SIZE.--Head and body, 3-1/2 inches; tail, 7 inches.

This animal is unfortunately named, as it is not Indian at all;

equally unfortunate, as Mr. Blanford has shown, is Blyth's name

_Bactrianus_, for it does not inhabit that tract, so the original

title stands. Hutton, in his 'Rough Notes on the Zoology of Candahar'

('J. A. S. B.' xv. p. 137), writes of it as follows: "This beautiful

little animal is abundant over all the stony plains throughout the

country, burrowing deeply, and when unearthed bounding away with

most surprising agility after the manner of the kangaroo-rat. It is

easily tamed, and lives happily enough in confinement if furnished

with plenty of room to leap about. It sleeps all day, and so soundly

that it may be taken from its cage and examined without awaking it;

or at most it will half open one eye in a drowsy manner for an instant,

and immediately close it again in sleep. It retires to its burrows

about the end of October, and remains dormant till the following

April, when it throws off its lethargy and again comes forth." There

is a good engraving of this animal in Cassel's new Natural History.

* * * * *

We have now closed our account of the Myomorpha or Mouse-like Rodents,

and will proceed to the next Section, HYSTRICOMORPHA, or

Porcupine-like Rodents.