121 



June 26, 1832. 

 William Yarrell, Esq. in the Chair. 



Specimens preserved in spirit were exhibited of two species of 

 Mus collected by Lieut.-Col. Sykes in Dukhun, both of which were 

 apparently new to science. One of them is that referred to in 

 Col. Sykes's ' Catalogue of the Mammalia noticed in Dukhun' 

 (Proceedings, Part I. p. 103.). It was characterized by Mr. Ben- 

 nett as 



Mus oleraceus. Mus caudd longissimd ; auriculis rotundatis 

 majusculis ; supra nitide castaneus ; ore, gastrceo, pedibusquejla- 

 vescenti.-albidis. 



Long, capitis corporisque, 24- unc. ; cauda, 4^- ; capitis 1 ; auri- 

 cula, 4-; tarsi postici cum digitis, 4; tibia posticce, £ ; mysta r 

 cum, 1 4-. 



Hab. in arvis India? Orientalis, nidum e foliis graminum in plantis 

 oleraceis construens. 



The upper surface is thickly clothed with rather long smooth 

 silky hairs of a bright pale chestnut colour ; on the under surface 

 and the inside of the limbs the quality of the hairs is the same, but 

 their colour is nearly white with a yellowish tinge. This latter 

 colour extends up the cheeks, round the mouth and the under sur- 

 face of the muzzle, and over the upper surface of the feet ; the hairs 

 on the latter, on the muzzle, and on the long scaly tail, being very 

 short. The claws are white and minute. The ears are rather large, 

 rounded above, and very nearly naked. The muzzle is rather short 

 and obtuse, and the oyes are placed at an intermediate distance be- 

 tween its end and the base of the ears. The moustaches are nu- 

 merous and long, some of them being black, and others silvery or 

 bright chestnut. 



The extreme length of the tail, as compared with that of the body, 

 and the comparative length of the hinder tarsus, furnish characters 

 sufficient to distinguish this Indian field Mouse from all its con- 

 geners. 



The second species belongs to that section of the genus Mus in 

 which spines are intermixed with the fur. It was designated 



Mus platythrix. Mus caudd corpus longitudine subcequante ; 

 auriculis mediocribus nudis subrotundatis : supra Jusco-canescens, 

 pilis plurimis applanatis spinescentibus ; infra et ad pedes jla- 

 vescenti-albidus. 



Long, capitis corporisque, 34- unc. ; capitis, l T V ; caudce t 3 ; auri- 

 cula, \\ .tarsi postici cum digitis, 4;, mystacum, 1-i- ; spina- 

 rum, 4-. 



The head is rather flat, and the muzzle slightly elongated and 



[No. XX.] Zool. Soc. Proceedings of the Comm.of Science. 



