MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY. 213 



■17. Blarina brevicaucla. (Sorex brevicandus Say, Emmons's 

 Rep., p. 13 ; Blarinatalpoid.es Gray). Mole Shrew. Common. By 

 far ilic most numerous species of the family. 



A second species of Blarina, the J J. brevicauda of Gray (Sorex brevicaudtts 

 Say) was formerly reported to exist in this State. Connecticut, New York, 

 and throughout Eastern North America generally. But Professor Baird 

 supposes it, if distinct from B. talpoides, to be exclusively Western; he 

 has, however, tailed to point out any differences of much weight between 

 specimens he refers respectively to S. brevicaudus Say and S. talpoides 

 Gapper (B. talpoides Gray). In his diagnosis of B. brevicauda he says: 

 '' Largest of all Aim ric in shrews hitherto discovered (?)," and gives its di- 

 mensions as " Length, unstretched, over four inches to the root of the tail "; 

 while he gives the "average length of head and body " of B. talpoides as 

 " three and a half inches." Say gives the length of the head and body of 

 S. bfevicaudus as three inches and five eighths, or 3.G2, which but slightly 

 exceeds Professor B.iird's average for B. talpoides ; the two largest speci- 

 mens of which he gives measurements (No. 2.078, from Massachusetts, and 

 No. 2,1 1G, from Illinois) slightly exceed this size. A Massachusetts speci- 

 men before me measures fully four inches, and two others exceed 3.75. 

 Under B. talpoides he says, " Willi a large number of specimens before 

 me, I have been more than usually perplexed in the attempt to determine 

 the species of short-tailed shrews, as given by authors, and especially to 

 distinguish between S. brevicaudus and S. Dehayi, of Bachman, De Kay, 

 and oihers. I am satisfied that the latter species is identical with S. tal- 

 poides of Gapper (which indeed has priority of date), having found no 

 essential differences between Canadian specimens and those from Mas- 

 sachusetts, Vermont, New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, and elsewhere. 

 Capper's specimen, it will be remembered, was taken in the district be- 

 tween York and Lake Simcoe, in Upper Canada. 



" Thus far," he continues, " I have not been able to find any shrews from 

 Massachusetts, New York, or adjoining States, possessing all the characters 

 assigned by Bachman and De Kay. The hair of the same species varies 

 with the season, being longer, softer, and fuller in winter; the precise shade 

 of color is likewise not constant. The proportions of the shrews, unless 

 taken from alcoholic or fresh specimen*, vary exceedingly in the same spe- 

 cies, according as the skin is under or over stuffed. 



"For the present, therefore, I shall refer all the large shrews with short 

 tails from the Atlantic States to the >'. talpoides. I have, however, before 

 me some specimens from the Upper Mi-souri and Iowa, which, as they 

 differ in size from any in the East, and agree rather more closely with 

 the S. brevicaudus of Say, I shall refer to this species."* 



* North American Mammals, p. 41. 



