centre, there seems to he a tendency to deposit brilliant pigment in the hair, and
for the change to progress less rapidly in the surrounding parts, the antmty of
action seeming to he concentrated in, and to he diffused from, the origmal area of
change. We hare, thus, squirrels with brilliant, red, dorsal areas of different sizes
and with long hair, while the surrounding parts have not as yet emerged, or only
partially so, from the grey stage; and these forms constitute the S.-cameeps, Gray,
and the S. chrysmotm, Blyth. The former term is explained by the circumstance
that the red never appears to involve the head. The change of colour is also some-
times inaugurated from the base of the tail, spreading upwards on to the rump.
These metamorphoses are the exact counterparts in red of those which take place in
S. atrodorsalis in black. .
.S phayrei corresponds in the colour of the upper fur to the yellow phase
of S cmiceps, and the tail is the same as in it, having a black tip, which
is the character also that th a t appendage has in S. g g g f f i j j g j I» som®
examples of S. phayrei, the dusky or blackish is not confined to the lateral
line hut extends over the outside of the fore limbs, the feet being always yehow
in squirrels presenting these characters. Some specimens of S. pygerythrm show
a distinct tendency to have yellow feet, and further research will probably
prove S. phayrei to he only a variety of S. pygerythrm. When Blyth first
encountered this form he simply regarded it as a variety of 8. pygerythrm and
I believe his first opinion will he ultimately found to he more m accordance
with the real interpretation of the facts than the conclusion he afterwards
^ In thé Paris Museum, there is an example of 8. blmfordm from Upper
Burma, which distinctly shows a dark, lateral streak, so that, taking into consideration
the other examples to which I have already referred, there seems_ to
he a presumption that it and S. phayrei are one and the same species, and that they
are probably identical with S. pygerythrm. Moreover, my impression, is that a
more extensive series will establish their identity with I eamceps, This new of the
question is also supported by a small series of these squirrels in the Leyden Musemn
H Tounghu, in Upper Burma, presented by the Marquis of Tweedale. Prom the
characters manifested by these squirrels, and the circumstance that they were all
shot in one locality, they are of great interest. One is an «luit, and muits upp
parts it exactly resembles
tail, hut, like 8. phayrei, it has a broad, hlacMsh-hrown, lateral stripe.. The others
' are smaller and resemble the foregoing specimen in all their characters, except tha
they have no dark, lateral streak, and that the feet of two are concolorous with the
upper parts, while in the remaining squirrel the feet appear to, he cbangmg to
yellow, as in the adult. The two former of these, therefore, conform to the
type of S. pygerythrm, hut the fur of the upper parts is greyer and not so
rS d y coloured as in it, hut the annulation of the fur hasi the same
in both. The remaining specimen in its features is distinctly referable to
S. blmfordü.
S c i u r t j s g r i s e im a n u s , A. M.-Edwards.
Sciwus griseimanus, A. M.-Edwards, Key. et Mag. Zool, Juin’1867, p. 195; Rech. des Mammif.
1868-74, p. 164.
Macroxus inornatus, Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist. Oct. 1867, vol. xx. p.' 282.
Macroxus leucopus, Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist. Oct. 1867, vol. xx. p. 282.
I t appears highly probable th a t the squirrels to which the above synonymy
refers will be found to be specifically identical with S. camceps. S. grisemimus has
a very strong resemblance to the grey phase or variety of that species,—indeed so
marked that when it is laid beside a series, it is hardly possible to distinguish the one
from the other.
Moreover, I cannot point to a single character by which to separate the skull
of typical S. ccmiceps from the skull of a specimen of S. griseimanus obtained from
Prof. A. M.-Edwards.
S. leucopus, Gray, is identical with S. griseima/tms, and S. inornatus corresponds
to the grey phase of S. cmiceps.
These squirrels are from Saigon, the Laos mountains, and Cambodja.
ScruRUS a t r o d o r s a x i s , Gray.
/ Sciwus flavimanus, Is. Geoff. St.-Hil. Guem. Mag. de Zool. 1832, Voy. aux Ind. Orient,
(Bélanger) Zool. 1884, p. 148 ; Gervais, Voy. au tour du Monde (Eyd. et Soul.) Zool. voIf
i. 1841, p. 40 ; Schinz, Syn. Mamm. vol. ii. 1845, p. 84; Blyth, Joum. As. Soc. Beng. vol.
xvi. 1847, p. 872.
Sciwus atrodorsalis, Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist. vol. x. 1842, p. 263 ; Hand-last Mamm.
B. M. 1843, p. .148; Blyth, Journ. As. Soc. Beng. vol. xvi. 1847, p. 872, pi. xxxvii. fig. 2;
ibid. vol. xvii. 1848, p. 845; ibid. vol. xviii. 1849, p. 602; ibid. vol. xxiv. 1855, p. 477; ibid.
vol. xxviii. 1859, p. 276; ibid-, vol. xliv. (ex. no.) 1875, p. 86; Cat. Mamm- As. Soc. Mus.
1868, p. 105; Horsfield, Cat. Mamm. E. Ind. Co.’s Mus. 1851, p. 154; Peters, Proc. Zool. Soc.
1866, p. 428; W. T. Blanford, Ann, and Mag. Nat. Hist. vol. i. 1868, p. 152.
Sciwus vittatus, Wagner, Schreber, Sâugeth. Suppl. vol. iii. 1848 (in part), p. 199 ; Cantor, Joum.
As. Soc. Beng. vol. xv. 1846, p. 250 (in part). ’
Sciwus hyperythrus, Blyth, Journ. As. Soc. Beng. vol. xxiv. 1855, p. 474; Cat. Mamm. As. Soc,
Mus. 1863, p. 182.
In S. atrodorsalis there are two well-marked phases of pelage, one in which the
black on the hack is present and another in which it is entirely absent. Young and
adult animals alike are met with exhibiting each of these phases.
In the phase in which no black is developed, the upper parts of the animal and
the feet are a yellowish-rufous, the upper surface of the head, as far backwards as
the ears inclusive, is generally orange-red, the under surface from the chest backwards
and the inside of the limbs being more or less chestnut ; the under surface of
the neck is orange-yellow, or almost concolorous with the fulvous upper parts, the
orange-yellow tending to form a mesial line on the chest. The tail is very variable ;
in a young specimen it has seven, alternate, orange and black bands, the orange being
f 2