102 [October, 1841. 



colour is a shade lighter than on the back. The tail, which from the broad 

 white tips of the hair has a white appearance, is brown at the roots, and 

 three times annulated with black. The upper lips, chin, neck and 

 under-surface, including the inner surface of the legs , white; the 

 hair being of this colour from the roots ; feet, a soiled yellowish white. On 

 the outer surface of the hind leg, above the heel, a small portion of the fur 

 is brown. There is also a spot of the same colour on the upper surface of 

 the hind foot. 

 Dimensions 



Length of the head and body, 11 inch. 11 lines. 



Do. tail, 12 " 6 " 



Height of ear, 9 " 



Heel, to end of middle claw, 2 '' " 



Breadth of tail, with hairs extended, 5 " 6 " 

 This species, in its general appearance, so much resembles some varieties 

 of the Sc. cinereous and Sc. leucotis, that, had it not been for its distant 

 western locality, we should at first have been tempted to set it down, with- 

 out further examination, as one or other of those species. There can, how- 

 ever, be no doubt, from its differing in so many details of colour, of its 

 being distinct from either. 



Habitat. Northern parts of California. 



Sciurus molli-pilosus. Soft-haired Squirrel. 



S. molli-pilosus. Cauda corpore curtiore ; dorso fusca; lateribus et 

 colli partibus rufis ; abdomine cinereo. 



Soft-haired Squirrel. 



Tail shorter than the body ; back dark brown; sides of the neck and 

 flanks rufous; under surface, cinereous. 



Form. This species is a little larger than Sciurus Hudsonicus, with which 

 we have compared it; its legs especially are considerably longer and more 

 robust; the fur is much softer, the hair longer and less glossy than that of 

 the former species. 



Colour. The teeth are yellow; the upper parts, including the nose, ears 

 and outer surface of the legs and upper surface of the tail, are dark brown. 

 This colour is formed by the hairs being plumbeous at the roots, tipt with 

 light brown and black. On the sides of the neck, the shoulder and near 

 the thighs, the colour is reddish brown. The tail, which is not very dis- 

 tichous, is brown, twice annulated with black ; a few of the hairs are tipt 

 with grey. On the under surface, the lips, cheeks and chin are greyish- 

 brown ; the inner surface of the fore legs, the throat and abdomen cine- 

 reous, lightly tinned in some places with rufous. 



This species differs so widely in all its details, from Sc. Hudsonicus, that 

 it is scarcely necessary to point out their distinctive marks of difference. 

 The space occupied by the lighter colours on the under surface is much 

 narrower than in the former species, nor is there, as in that species, any 

 black line of separation between the colours of the back and under surface. 

 Length of body, 8 inch. 6 lines. 



Do. tail to end of hair, 7 

 Height of ear, 



Tarsus, 2 



Habitat. Northern parts of California. 



Sciurus occidentalis. Western Squirrel. 



S. (occidentalis.) Vellere longo ac molli; auriculis aretis ; cauda. cor- 

 pore longiore, quoad caput, fasciam dorsalem et caudam nigro; lateribus 

 furvis ; abdomine fusco. 



Western Squirrel. 



Fur long and soft; ears narrow ; tail longer than the body ; head, dorsal 

 1 ine and tail, black; beneath, dark rusty brown. 



