ON THE VOLE AND SHREW OF THE ORKNEY ISLANDS 7 



British species. At the same time it departs sufficiently 

 widely from Jlf. amphibius to justify the conclusion that it 

 forms a distinct species. 



I. 



I, 



2-. 



A. 



B 



A, 



B. 



FIG. i. 



FIG. 2. 



A = Upper molars (right) of 

 Jlf. orcadensis. 



B= Upper molars (right) of 

 M. agrestis. 



A = Lower molars (left) of 

 J\I. orcadensis. 



B = Lower molars (left) of 

 M. agrestis. 



As regards the Orkney Shrew. It has down to this 

 date been considered an interesting fact, in the insular dis- 

 tribution of British mammals, that while the Lesser Shrew 

 (Sorex minutus] is the species found in the Hebrides and in 

 Ireland, it was not only absent from the Orkneys, but was 

 replaced there by the Common Shrew (Sorex araneus}. 1 

 make bold, however, to say that I very much doubt if the 

 Common Shrew has ever been captured in the Orkneys. 

 At the date of publication of Baikie and Reddle's " Historia " 

 the Lesser Shrew had not been recognised as an inhabitant 

 of our islands, so that it is not surprising that these authors 

 should have regarded the Orcadian Shrew as being the same 

 species as that which was common to Great Britain. 



