FELIS 461 



smaller than corresponding upper teeth, their crowns rounded 

 and flattened, with faintly indicated longitudinal groove. 

 Canines simple, without cingulum, rather large, the shaft curved 

 very slightly backward, that of upper tooth terete with a few 

 longitudinal grooves in enamel, that of lower slightly hollowed 

 on inner and posterior surface. Anterior upper premolar about 

 as large as outer incisor, though with crown not so high, its root 

 single, but often showing indications of longitudinal division. 

 Its usual position is a little behind middle of wide diastema 

 between canine and first large premolar. Other premolars 

 (except carnassial) essentially alike in form, two-rooted, the 

 crowns compressed, triangular when viewed from the side, some- 

 what longer than high, the base elliptical, slightly wider 

 posteriorly than anteriorly, that of pm^ wider than the others 

 and somewhat inclined to assume a concavo-convex outline ; 

 anterior border of pm^ simple, that 

 of pm^ and pm^ with a small basal 

 cusp (better developed in latter than 

 in former) ; posterior borders of all 

 three teeth with two secondary cusps, 

 the basal formed by the rudimentary 

 cingulum, the second on base of main 

 cusp ; pm^ slightly smaller than the 

 others. Upper carnassial about twice 

 as long as broad, the outline of its 

 crown almost an isosceles triangle, 

 though inner side is slightly longer fig. 97. 



than outer ; inner lobe at anterior Felia nlvestru. Teeth. Nat. size. 

 border of crown, scarcely breaking the 



general contour, its cusp low but well developed, terete ; outer 

 or main cutting portion of tooth with three cusps, the anterior 

 low and very similar to that of inner lobe, the median and 

 posterior of the usual carnassial type, the posterior cutting edge 

 nearly horizontal and meeting anterior commissure at an abrupt 

 angle (about 50^). Upper molar small, transversely compressed 

 imperfectly two-rooted, the crown al:)out half as long as wide 

 without definite structure though showing traces of an outer and 

 inner cusp. Lower molar consisting of a sub-equal paraconid and 

 protoconid, the latter slightly the larger, the anterior and 

 posterior borders of tooth nearly vertical, the upper border 

 formed by the two sub-equal commissures, both of which slope 

 downward toward the middle, where they meet at an angle of 

 about 50"" ; outer surface of tooth convex longitudinally, inner 

 surface rather deeply concave. 



Rcmarhs. — Externally Fells nilcestris is distinguishable from 

 domestic cats with well developed markings of the "striped 

 tabby " type* by slightly greater size and by the somewhat 



* For figures of the two main types of marking in domestic cats see 

 Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, London, 1907, pis. viii and ix. 



