1852.] 149 



Description of a New Species of SciURUS. 

 By John L. Le Conte, M. D. 



SciuRus Heermaxni Lee. 



Supra e nigro alboque intermixtis griseus, subtus albus, auribus magnis 

 breviter pilosis, naso nigro, cauda disticha, albo-marginata, corpore non 

 breviore. 



From tip of nose to root of tail, - - - 12*5 inches. 

 Head, -_.---_ 3.2 



Length of ear, ------ -9 



Breadth of ear, ------ '7 



Fore foot to end of longest claw, - - - 2-1 



Hind foot to end of longest claw, - - - 3-2 



Tail to end of vertebrse, - - - - 9-8 



Tail to end of hair, ----- 13. 



California, from Dr. Heermann. Body above entirely of a light grey color, 

 produced by an intermixture of black and white points ; the hairs individually 

 are long and not fine ; they are gray at base, soon becoming black, and have a 

 pure white band about the middle ; intermixed with them are a few longer pure 

 black hairs. On the upper surface of the feet the hair is shorter, and the black 

 part comparatively smaller. A small spot towards the tip of the nose, and an 

 indistinct line above the eyes are black. The whiskers are shorter than the 

 head and entirely black. The ears are large, subtriangular, rounded at the tip, 

 and covered both within and without with short gray hair, which does not in 

 anyway form a fringe at the margin. Beneath the body is pure white, except 

 the perineum, which is gray. Tail long and distichous, with long hairs which 

 are black, with a gray base and white tip ; in those towards the edge the black 

 color is less developed, and some are even whitish with three black bands, of 

 which the outermost is very distinct. The tail thus appears gray, becoming 

 black externally, with a broad white margin ; beneath it is a little lighter in 

 color. 



This species is one of a multitude of interesting objects procured by Dr. A, 

 L. Heermann during a three years' residence in California. I beg him to accept 

 the dedication of it as a slight token of my appreciation of this active exertion 

 in studying the habits of animals, and collecting specimens in the less frequented 

 portions of our territory. 



At first sight S. Heermanni bears a strong resemblance to several gray 

 squirrels found in the Atlantic States, more especially to S. cinereus, but 

 the much larger size of the ears, the deeper gray color of the upper surface of 

 the feet, and the absence of any brown color about the head, at once distinguish 

 it from all its neighbors. 



Synopsis of the Scydm^nid^ of the United States. 



By John L. Le Conte, M. D. 



Since the publication of the extremely classical monograph of Scydmaenus by 

 Dr. Schaum,* and his corrections to the same,j the number of species found in 

 America has been greatly increased. A journey by Dr. Schaum to this country 

 has contributed largely to this result, and to him I am indebted for a fine series 

 of the species found by him, mostly in Louisiana. To M. Em. Wapler, late of 

 New Orleans, I must also express my acknowledgements for a beautiful series of 

 Scydmaeni, as well as other minute Coleoptera of Louisiana. The other species 



* Analecta Entomologiea. 



} Germar's Zeitschrift fur Entomologie, vol. 5. 



