182 Annals of the South African Museum. 



The limits which I have somewhat arbitrarily fixed as the 

 boundaries of South Africa are the Cunene Eiver, dividing German 

 South-West Africa from Angola on the west and the Zambesi Eiver 

 on the east, so that my territory includes the British colonies of the 

 Cape of Good Hope and Natal, the South African Eepublic and the 

 Orange Free State, Bechuanaland and Rhodesia, German South- 

 West Africa, and that portion of Portuguese East Africa which lies 

 south of the Zambesi. 



It is highly probable that a considerable number of new forms 

 remain to be discovered within this region : in the last few years a 

 good many have been described by Mr. Thomas and by Mr. de 

 Winton, especially from Ehodesia. The total number of species 

 mentioned in this paper are 62 ; of these 44 are represented in the 

 South African Museum ; 18 are still wanting. In the following list 

 only one new species is described : Malacothrix pentonyx, on p. 202. 



FAMILY SCIUEIDAE. 



GEN. XEEUS. 



Xerus, HEMPEICH and EHRENBERG, Symb. Phys., i. (1832). 



Type X. rutilus. 



Fur harsh, often spiny ; external ears short or absent ; no cheek 

 pouches ; fore limbs with four toes, all clawed, of which the two 

 middle ones are considerably larger than the others, and a rudi- 

 mentary pollex with a flat nail ; hind foot with five toes all clawed, 

 all the claws long and nearly straight ; skull large and broad, with 

 very small postorbital processes. 



Dentition. i. 1/1 c. 0/0 p.m., 2/1 or 1/1 m. 3/3 == 20 or 22. 

 Molars semi-hypsodont (i.e., with high crowns) and lophodont (i.e., 

 with regular transverse ridges and valleys), not tubercular. 



XERUS CAPENSIS, THE GROUND SQUIRREL. 



Sciurus capensis, KERR, Linn. Anim. Kingd., p. 266 (1792) ; A. 

 SMITH, S. Afr. Quart. Journ., ii., p. 127 (1834). 



Sciurus namaquensis, LICHTENSTEIN, Cat. Eer. Nat., p. 2 (1793). 

 Sciurus levaillantii, KUHL, Beitr. Zool, p. 67 (1820). 

 Sciurus sctosus, SMUTS, Enum. Mamm. Cap., p. 33 (1832). 

 Xerus sctosus, LAYARD, Cat. Mamm. S. Afr. Mus., p. 47 (1862). 



