March, 1904. Mammals of Southern California — Elliot. 315 



small colonies or families. Farther north in the Panammt 

 Range they are much less common and inhabit chiefly the higher 

 levels above 2,000 feet. Tracks were seen in Antelope Valley, 

 where they are said to be fairly common. The Swifts are often 

 seen during the day sitting a-t the mouths of their burrows and 

 are usuallv easily approached and shot. This sort of curiosity 

 or stupidity leads them to speedy extermination in settled 

 districts. Afoot they are much swifter and possess more endur- 

 ance than the coyote, often being able to outrun trained grey- 

 hounds." 



Vulpes necator. 



Yulpes necator Merr., Wash. Acad. Scien., 1900, p. 664. 

 Elliot, Syn. N. Am. Mamm., Append., 1901, p. 433. 



4 Specimens: 3 Whitney Creek, 1 Ramshaw Meadows, all 

 virtually topotypes, Mount Whitney. 



These examples are all in the summer coat, having been taken 

 in June and July. Two of them answer fairly well to Dr. 

 Merriam's description of the species; the other two are entirely 

 different, and if the skulls were missing they might be regarded 

 as young, and one is; the other is that of an adult animal, 

 although not very old. The nose, back of neck and dorsal region, 

 throat and line down breast and abdomen, is black, with white 

 hairs mixed on back and under parts ; haunches sooty ; sides of 

 neck and body yellowish buff; fore and hind legs black for their 

 entire length on the outer side, but with buff intermingled on 

 part of the outside of the thigh; elbow inside deep buff; tail 

 above buff at base, remainder gray; hairs tipped with black, 

 beneath sooty, with buff intermingled; ears on outside black. 

 While these specimens are so different from typical V. necator, 

 they undoubtedly belong to that species, and were taken in the 

 same locality as the most typical of the examples, Whitney 

 Creek. Thev probably represent the midsummer coat, with 

 most of the bright-colored fur absent. "This fox is fairly 

 common in the Boreal Zone 111 the vicinity of Mount Whitney, 

 where it occurs from 8,500 feet to timber-line. Most of the 

 specimens were taken at 9,000 feet, at which elevation it is most 

 abundant." 



u ROC YON. 



Urocyon cinereo-argenteus inyoensis. 



Urocvon c. inyoensis, Elliot, Pub. Field Columb. Mus., m, 1904, 

 p. 268. Zoology. 



