244 



ON THE GENERIC POSITION OF THE GROUPS OF SQUIR- 

 RELS TYPIFIED BY "SCIURUS" BERDMOREI AND 

 PERNYI RESPECTIVELY, WITH DESCRIPTIONS 

 OF SOME NEW ORIENTAL SPECIES. 



BY 



Oldfield Thomas. 



In determining a long-nosed Formosan squirrel of the pemyi 

 group I have had occasion to study the generic relationship of each 

 of the different forms that have of late years been included in the 

 genus Funambuhts, and, as might be expected from Dr. Forsyth 

 Major's descriptions of their teeth in his classical work on the 

 subject,*« I find that several different groups should be recognized as 

 distinct genera. 



Already something has been done by other authors in this direc- 

 tion, and the genera Rhinosciurus, recognized for the species laticau- 

 dattis and its ally tupaioides, Laria for insignis (with which goes hosei), 

 Tamiops for maeelellandi and Sciurotamias for davidianus (+ conso- 

 brinus). In addition, I would suggest that generic rank should be 

 accorded to the two following groups. I do not propose to describe 

 hem in great detail, as particulars about their skulls and teeth have 

 already been published by Dr. Major. 



Menetes, gen. nov. 



Skull of the rounded, upwardly convex " Xenix " type, approxi- 

 mately of the same character as in Laria and the African Funisciurus. 



Teeth more or less hypsodont, the valley between the transverse 

 crests deeply excavated, so that the teeth soon wear into a character- 

 istic horseshoe pattern. P 3 proportionally well developed and 

 standing but little inward of the centre of the tooth-line. 



Range. — Burma, Siam, and Malay Peninsula. 



Type. — Menetes berdmorei (Sciurus berdmorei, Bly.). 



Zetis, gen. nov. 



Frontal region comparatively flat, as in Sciurus : to which this 

 genus would appear to be more nearly allied than to Funambidus. 

 Muzzle very much elongated, the distance from the tip of the 

 nasals to the point at which the premaxillo-maxillary suture mounts 



• P. Z. S. 1893.. p. 189. 



