JAN., 1912. MAMMALS, VENEZUELA AND COLOMBIA OSGOOD. 43 



a number of animals daily. The region affords excellent opportunity 

 for still hunting, but since the deer are most active after dark and our 

 object being specimens rather than sport, we adopted the method of 

 the native hunter, that is, watching from a point of vantage in a tree. 



Although there is an abundance of other food, the deer prefer the 

 fruit of various trees which they glean from the ground and since the 

 fruit falls little by little from day to day, the animals form the habit of 

 going regularly from tree to tree in search of the tidbits. The trees 

 being often widely separated, it is perfectly simple to track the deer 

 to their favorite resorts and await their return. In April the trees in 

 bearing and therefore most resorted to were a large beautiful Pithe- 

 colobium known as the carocaro and yielding a curled fleshy brown pod 

 and an unidentified smaller tree with rough bark and glossy leaves 

 .known as the moquillo, bearing scanty clusters of green drupes somewhat 

 resembling short plump olives. Our watch was usually from 5 to 9 

 p. M. or even until 10 p. M., at which hour the animals were still moving. 

 The greatest activity, however, seemed to be between six and eight. 



The specimens obtained should eventually throw considerable 

 light on the relationships of the nominal species 0. gymnotis and O. 

 savannarum, but without material from the savannas of Guiana little 

 can be done at present. The type of 0. gymnotis, in the Berlin Museum, 

 is said to have come from Colombia but its exact source is unknown. 

 As the earliest name applied to a deer coming from northern South 

 America, it is more than likely to be the proper one for our specimens 

 even though they were obtained in the "savannas." Moreover, they 

 lack metatarsal glands and have practically naked ears, characters 

 supposed to distinguish gymnotis from savannarum. External field 

 measurements of an eight point buck are: Total length 1570; tail 

 vertebras 185; hind foot 392; height at shoulder 930; front of shoulder 

 to hip 810; pectoral girth 870; circumference of neck 435. 



Mazama americana citus subsp. nov. Venezuelan Brocket. 



Type from El Panorama, Rio Aurare, eastern shore of Lake Mara- 

 caibo, Venezuela. Adult male. No. 18776 Field Museum of Natural 

 History. Collected Jan. 19, 1911, by W. H. Osgood and S. G. Jewett. 



Characters. Similar to M. americana (M. nemorivaga of authors*), 

 but slightly larger with especially large cheek teeth and minor cranial 



* Moschus americanus Erxleben 1777 unquestionably applies to the same animal as Cervus nem- 

 orivagus Cuvier 1817 and there appears to be no reason for continuing the use of the later name. The 

 dubious americanus found on an anterior page of Erxleben's work applies to the genus Odocoileus 

 and therefore has no interest in this connection except among those not only making the strained 

 attempt to give it nomenclatural status, but also failing to see generic distinction between Mazama 

 and Odocoileus. 



