252 Transactions. — Zoology. 



I am now of opinion that a sociable species of rat which 

 was to be found on the Canterbury Plains, near Oxford, in the 

 years 1855-56 was M. maorium. Something of their habits 

 are described in the Transactions, vol. xxiii., p. 195 : " Taking 

 a spade and the pointers, we would beat around, and the 

 dogs would presently come to a stand. Going up, an area of 

 some 10ft. would be noticed of a nice green colour among the 

 prevailing brown, being free from tussock [Poa australis] , and 

 covered by a small flattish-leaved grass, whose leaves had 

 their points curved or bent towards the ground. At distances 

 apart in this green patch were numerous rat-holes. 

 From recollection, they [the rats] were reddish-brown, and 

 perhaps white underneath, of a fair size, and not unlike the 

 Norway rat (Mus decumanus) . Still, I feel certain they could 

 not be the Norway rat, but a distinct species of a more social 

 disposition, for full-grown ones lived together to the number 

 of eight to fourteen, and were not a family of young rats." 



Some four years ago (1890), on reading Mr. Eutland's 

 paper in the Transactions, giving an account of the so-called 

 Maori rat (M. maorium) in the north part of the Southern 

 Island, I set to work to try and find the same rat in the 

 forests here, where I am located — Wimbledon, Hawke's Bay. 

 The grey or brown rats had so great a variety of shades of 

 colour and size that this was no easy matter, and a collection 

 of skins and measurements had to be made of all sorts before 

 I could come to a decision. Ultimately, what I had at first 

 considered to be the young of the larger species (the' Norway 

 rat) proved to be entirely distinct, and to have special 

 characteristics peculiar to themselves. 



This rat (M. maorium ?) is coloured brownish-grey, mixed 

 with black hairs ; black hairs plentiful from forehead to nose, 

 which is pinkish-skinned ; belly, dirty white, also light slate- 

 colour, very dark fur underneath. This white slate colour is 

 often seen on the underside of the wild rabbit in New Zealand. 

 Yellowish-brown stripe down breastbone (not always) ; coloured 

 on legs down to claws, which are pink, with white hairs ; ears 

 are often, or nearly always, jimped as with small excrescences 

 on edges (as if from disease), but this seems a distinct peculi- 

 arity of the species; face broad, outline Eoman, possibly 

 from hair standing outward naturally ; ridge of bone between 

 ears, on back of head, very prominent, sometimes with patches 

 of black colour on the underside of the skin. A second de- 

 scription is: Male, ears jimped with fighting (?), reddish- 

 brown, with black hairs slightly longer; short black hairs on 

 head, giving a stand-up look to the coat, as of an animal very 

 cold or sick (this may be taken as a distinct characteristic of the 

 variety). Nose and mouth pink; under-jaw, belly, inside fore 

 legs, blue-whit* 1 , with dark under down. Faint bar of reddish 



