ALLEN: MAMMALS FROM THE BLUE NILE VALLEY. 339 



British East Africa, F. c. IccmpI, type locality, Kirui, Elgon, and F. c. 

 beirac, type locality, Beira, Portuguese East Africa. I have been able 

 to make direct comparison with specimens in the Museum represent- 

 ing the races galcopardus and hindei but from a study of these and of 

 Wroughton's descriptions it is clear that the nerval of the dry flat 

 country of the Blue Nile Valley is distinct from them all. It appears 

 to be very much paler than kempi of the Elgon district and hindei of 

 British East Africa, and represents to an extreme degree the reduction 

 of the striped pattern to one entirely of spots on the body. The 

 shortness of the tail and its color-pattern are also noteworthy. 



It is a pleasure to associate this fine cat with the name of Dr. John C. 

 PhiUips, to whose enthusiasm and generosity the present collection is 

 due. The type specimen was trapped by him in a scattered growth 

 of thorn trees on the outskirts of the native village of El Garef. 



Lynx caracal nubica (Fitzinger). 



Sudan Caracal. 



Caracal nuhicus Fitzinger, Sitzb. Kon. akad. wiss. Wien, math.-nat. cl., 1869, 

 60, pt. 1, p. 20.5. 



The Caracal is apparently uncommon in the region traversed. 

 There are specimens living in the Zoological Gardens at Gizeh, that were 

 caught on the Blue Nile, and we trapped an immature specimen at 

 Magangani a few miles below Roseires. It had come to the bait in 

 the late afternoon within a short distance of our camp. 



MUNGOS ALBICAUDUS ALBESCENS (Gcoffroy). 



White-tailed Mongoose. 

 Herpestes albescens Geoffrey, Rev. et mag. zooL, 1839, p. 16. 



This was the only ^Mongoose we met with. Specimens were ob- 

 tained on the Blue Nile and on the Binder River. It seemed to be 

 one of the commonest of the smaller Carnivora. Although the 

 smaller species of mongoose are active by day, this species apparently 

 is nocturnal. At a camp a few miles above Roseires, one came to a 

 trap within a few yards of the tent in the early evening, doubtless the 

 same animal that succeeded in stealing the bait from a trap even 

 nearer the preceding evening. At Magangani, on visiting the traps 



