EAST ATKICAN MAMMALS IN NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



125 



O Q A 





Genus PELOMYS Peters. 



1852. Pelomys Peters, Mon.-ber. K. Preuss. Akad. 

 Berlin, p. 275. (P. fallax.) 



The creek rat seems to be uncommon in most 

 parts of British East Africa. No member of 

 the restricted genus Pelomys was collected by 

 the Smithsonian African Expedition, but while 

 on the Rainey Expedition Mr. Heller found 

 the following species abundant in the Taita 

 Mountains. 



PELOMYS FALLAX IRIDESCENS HeUer. 



Plate 35. 



1912. Pelomys fallax iridescens Heller, Smithsonian 

 Misc. Coll., vol. 59, No. 16, p. 12. July 5. 

 (Mount Mbololo, Taita Mountains, British 

 East Africa, altitude 5,000 feet; type in U. S. 

 Nat. Mus.) 



Specimens. — Fifty-five, from localities as 

 follows : 



British East Africa: Mount Mbololo, 37, 

 including 10 in alcohol (Heller); Mount Sagalla, 

 13, including 4 in alcohol (Heller); Mount 

 Umengo, 2 (Heller); Voi, 3 (Heller). 



There is great variation in color among skins 

 of this form from a single locality. In some 

 the iridescent greenish tint is very conspicuous 

 over the entire upperparts. The opposite ex- 

 treme from this condition is with almost no 

 green in the make-up of the coloration above and 

 with the subterminal rings of the longer hairs 

 Sudan-brown rather than yellowish-buff, giving 

 the animal a very different general appearance. 

 There is a continouus growth of skull through- 

 out life, and specimens with the teeth so much 

 worn that all trace of the cusps is lacking still 

 have the basi-sphenoid suture open. 



For measurements of specimens see page 126 . 



Genus MYLOMYS Thomas. 



1906. Mylomy s TnoiiAS, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 

 ser. 7, vol. 18, p. 224. September. {M. 

 cuninghamei.) 



This poorly characterized genus perhaps 

 should not be recognized as distinct from 

 Pelomys, with which it is closely related. 



