of the District of Montreal, 301" 



reddish brown, bushy, susceptible of a disticbous arrangement 

 with light brown tips, inferiorly black and then greyish. A great 

 many of the lateral hairs of the tail have alternate black and 

 brown rings, three of the former intersected by two of the lat- 

 ter. 



S. niger. Black squirrel. 



v.s.p. Length of head and body 13 inches; of tail 13 inches. 

 Fur over the whole body black, at the base greyish black ; on the 

 cheeks and throat brownish black ; tail long, hairs without down ; 

 feet hairy ; claws curved and much compressed, a rudimentary 

 thumb armed with a rounded nail closely adhering to it. A fine 

 specimen shot spring 1838, on the Montreal mountain. 



S. CaroUnensis. Grey squirrel. 



v.s.p. Length the same as the last, but the tail much 

 longer and more bushy. General colour grey composed of black, 

 brown, yellowish and white hairs. In some specimens the colour 

 assumes a golden hue especially about the head and along the 

 sides, all the inferior parts of a lighter hue verging to white ; on 

 the anterior part of the fore and superior parts of the hind feet, 

 the colour changes to a red, which, however the animal may vary 

 in its general colour, is uniform and permanent. I suspect that 

 these two are near varieties of each other, as they are desbribed 

 under the same name by Baird, in his catalogue of N. A. Mam- 

 mals in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institute. I doubt, how- 

 ever, if he is correct. 



Suh genus Pteromys. 



Sub. gen. char. Incisors |, canines none, molars |f = 22. 

 The dental system has the generic characters of the last ; head 

 short and broad ; eyes large and prominent; fore feet 4-dactyle, 

 hind feet 5-dactyle ; bony appendages to the feet supporting a 

 furred lateral membrane serving as a parachute. 



P. volucella. Flying squirrel. 



Sciurus volucella of Linnaeus, Gmelin, Pallas and Sabine. 



v.s.p. Length of body to tail 5 inches 7 lines ; of tail 4 

 inches ; extended alar length 6 inches 3 lines ; between orbits Y 

 lines ; from occiput to nose 1 inch 3 lines. Fur on the back 

 black internally, tipped with a very light brown, around the ears 

 assuming a darker hue ; sides of nose, abdomen, and inferior sur- 

 face of the parachute white, occasionally yellowish on the abdo- 



