The Aim ricn a Varying Hares. 81 



mode of life, which are the same throughout its range. In Transition 

 country it only occurs in deep, dark, moist woods, where the conditions 

 are the same as those offered by a much more northern climate. That 

 it has but a weak hold upon a place in the fauna of the Transition zone 

 is shown by the rapidity with which it disappears when the conditions 

 that enabled it to exist there are slightly changed. 



I have specimens from Quebec. Ontario, New Brunswick, Maine, New 

 Hampshire, and Massachusetts. 



Lepus americanus struthopus subsp. nov. 



Type from Digby, Nova Scotia. No. 2025, 9 ad., coll. of E. A. and 0. 

 Bangs. Collected August 4, 1894, by Outram Bangs. 



Geographic distribution. — Province of Nova Scotia. 



Subspecific characters. — Size of L. americanus virginianus ; hind foot much 

 smaller; color (in summer pelage) darker and duller, rarely showing the 

 reddish brown shades seen in virginianus ; otherwise similar to virginianus. 



( 'olor. — Adult in summer pelage : Upper parts varying individually from 

 raw umber to bistre, sometimes shaded ahout head, neck, and on flanks 

 with dull ferruginous ; black tipped hairs not numerous, often arranging 

 themselves into a narrow dorsal stripe: belly and chin to pectoral band 

 dull white; ears dark brown above, becoming dusky or black at tips, 

 narrowly bordered by a yellowish brown band ; hands and feet irregu- 

 larly marked with dusky and sometimes with whitish blotches. Young 

 similar to adults. Winter pelage, white. 



Cranial characters. — The skull of/., americanus struthopus is in all essen- 

 tial characters like that of L. americanus virginianus. The audital bullae 

 are constantly a little smaller. 



Measurements. — Average of nine fully adult specimens, males and females, 

 from Nova Scotia : Total length, 474.77; tail vertebras, 49.83; hind foot, 

 127..'!^. (For individual measurements see table.) 



Remarks. — Lepus americanus struthopus is a peninsular form confined to 

 the Province of Nova Scotia. It probably intergrades with L. americanus 

 virginianus, though 1 have seen no specimens from that part of Nova 

 Scotia adjoining New Brunswick. The principal character that distin- 

 guishes the Nova Scotia bare is its remarkably small hind foot. The 

 color of the summer pelage is usually much darker and duller than in 

 L. americanus virginianus. In my series of twelve in full summer pelage 

 one specimen only is about the color of average specimens of virginianus, 

 all the others being much darker. The dusky markings on feet, hands, 

 nape, and top of head so common in struthopus are rarely, if ever, present 

 in virginianus. 



Lepus americanus struthopus is exceedingly abundant throughout the 

 Province of Nova Scotia, except on the hard-wood ridges. 



Within a few years this form has been introduced into Newfoundland, 

 and rinding there a region exactly suited to its needs, with no indigenous 

 competitor, it has increased with great rapidity, so that now it is quite 

 generally distributed throughout the southern part of the island. I am 



