Mammals from Lake Edward, Quebec. 47 



by the train, and that he had picked them up on several occasions 

 when going over the road on his hand-car in the morning. The 

 trappers get otter every winter, and the black bear is fairly com 

 mon. The wolverine is still sometimes met with and occasion 

 ally this expert trap robber proves a great nuisance to the trapper 

 in the winter by rinding his line of deadfalls, following it up, de 

 molishing every one, and eating the bait and any animal that 

 may have been caught. 



Sciurus hudsonicus Erxl. Red Squirrel. 5 specimens. 



Red squirrels were extremely abundant and a great nuisance, as they 

 persisted in getting into our mouse traps, and as the traps were usually 

 not strong enough to kill them outright they carried away a great many. 

 A few that were caught around the neck in the Schuyler mouse traps 

 w r ere killed. We also caught a great number in steel traps baited with 

 salt pork or meat. 



Castor canadensis Kuhl. American Beaver. 3 specimens. 



Beaver are still quite common in all this region, but are relentlessly 

 pursued by the Indians and are decreasing very fast. The nearest beaver 

 to Lake Edward were on the .Teannotte river. We were too busy to go 

 after them ourselves and so hired two Indians and sent them down the 

 Jeannotte. In five days they returned with a whole family of beaver 

 an old male and female and three young. Unfortunately they had utterly 

 ruined the old female and one of the young by shooting them in the 

 heads with their rifles. The old male was a very fine, large beaver and 

 according to the Indians was five years old. The specimen measured : 

 total length, 1,130; tail, 410; hind foot, 176. 



The same two Indians, in the winter of 1894-1895, killed sixty beaver 

 and told me they expected to get about forty this winter. In addition to 

 the Indians, there are many other trappers working this country every 

 season with great thoroughness, and the beaver stand but a poor chance. 



Synaptomys fatuus sp. nov. Northern Lemming Mouse. 9 specimens. 



Type No. 3857, coll. of E. A. and 0. Bangs ; female adult, from Lake 

 Edward, Quebec, September 28, 1895. Total length, 125; tail, 16; hind 

 foot, 19. E. A. and 0. Bangs, collectors. 



General characters. Slightly smaller and darker than S. cooperi, with 

 smaller and lighter skull and much narrower and shorter incisors. Coat 

 very long and full. 



Color. Upper parts sepia brown, thickly interspersed with black- 

 tipped hairs ; under parts slate gray, with in places a slight brownish 

 tinge ; feet drab ; tail nearly unicolor, slightly paler below, darker at the 

 tip, and sparsely haired. 



Skull. The skull, as compared with that of S- cooperi, is rather smaller 

 and narrower, with less spread to the zygomata and more slender rostrum. 



Teeth. The molar teeth are substantially the same as in S. cooperi, but 

 the incisors are very much narrower and shorter. 



