4 ARKIV FÖR ZOOLOGI. BAND 7. N:0 9. 



fined light patch. The clark spöts in front of the eyes and 

 above the whiskers are rhombic in outhne, dark chocolate- 

 brown in colour and sharply defined. The whiskers are white 

 and contain only a small number of bristles, even fewer than 

 in ^. c. hindei. Upper lip, cheeks, sides of neck, and throat 

 sharply contrasted yellowish white. A greyish brown stripe 

 along the angle of the mouth. Tail and hind-feet of the same 

 colour as the back. The fore-feet are a little paler. The hairs 

 of the lower parts are very little paler than the back, but the 

 greyish yellow colour of the wool-hairs shines through there. 

 The wool-hairs of the upper parts are different, being white 

 with broad brown tips. The wool-hairs have thus more white 

 than in other subspecies except A. c. meneliki. The hair of 

 the new subspecies is much coarser but less dense and less 

 furry than in A. capensis and A. c. hindei with which it has 

 been directly compared. The greater thickness of the indivi- 

 dual hairs in ^. c. congica is very easily seen with the help of 

 a hand-lens. The difference in length of the fur is not so great, 

 but as it is less dense at the same time as it is coarser and more 

 depressed in ^. c. congica the appearance of the skin is very 

 different from that of the other two subspecies just mentioned. 

 Especiall}^ on the under parts the hairy covering is very thin 

 for an Otter and the light underfur shines through everywhere. 



The structure of the feet of the new subspecies is different 

 from A. capensis and A. c. hindei with which it has been directly 

 compared. The fingers are longer and practically quite naked 

 above. In this latter respect it appears to resemble A. c. an- 

 golce but according to Thomas' description the latter has only 

 the »second and third phalanges quite naked» while in the 

 Congo Otter the first joint as well, is naked, even if some scat- 

 tered rudiments of hair can be detected with the aid of a lens. 

 There is no web on the fore-feet. 



The toes of the hind-feet are also nearly completely naked, 

 although the rudimentary hairs on the basal phalanges are 

 somewhat more numerous than on the fore-feet. The web is 

 very little developed and does not reach further than to the 

 joint between the basal and the second phalanges, w^hile it 

 reaches the terminal phalanges in the t^^pical race from South 

 Africa. On the hind-feet rudiments of claws can be seen on 

 the second, third, and fourth toe. The same is also the case 

 on one side of a specimen of the typical A. capensis in this 



