I 2 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS [vOL. 45 



SCIURUS ICTERICUS sp. nov. 



Type. — Adult female (skin and skull), No. 121,727, United States 

 National Museum. Collected on Tana Bala, Batu Islands, Febru- 

 ary 4, 1903, by Dr. W. L. Abbott. Original number, 2223. 



Characters. — In general appearance like Sciurus vittatus, but size 

 greater, color above darker, lateral stripes less distinct, and cheeks 

 bright, clear, yellowish buff. 



Color. — Type : upperparts and outer surface of legs a uniform 

 fine grizzle of black and buff, the former everywhere in excess. 

 Underparts and inner surface of legs rufous. Cheeks clear buff- 

 yellow in striking contrast with surrounding parts. This color 

 extends from base of whiskers to level of anterior margin of ear, and 

 is continuous with the clear buff-yellow eye ring. This ring is 3 

 mm. wide over middle of eye. Posteriorly the buff area extends 

 upward onto basal half of ear, but in this region it becomes dull and 

 grizzled. Behind month and chin it becomes mixed with the rufous 

 of underparts. The lips and chin are, however, dark grizzled gray. 

 Outer surface of ears blackish. Feet like legs, but tinged with 

 gray. Pale lateral stripe dull, light smoke-gray, only 5 mm. wide 

 at middle and reduced in extent at each end. Dark stripe blackish, 

 about 7 mm. wide, slightly longer than pale stripe. Tail like back, 

 but more coarsely grizzled, and light bands on hairs less yellow ; 

 pencil indistinctly blackish. 



Skull and teeth. — The skull is similar to that of Sciurus vittatus 

 but is much larger and the audital bullae are broader and less ele- 

 vated. Teeth similar to those of Sciurus vittatus but larger 

 throughout. 



Measurements. — Measurements of type : total length, 420 ; head 

 and body, 225 ; tail vertebras, 195 ; hind foot, 49 (46) ; skull, greatest 

 length, 54 (51) ;^ basal length, 46.6 (43.6) ; zygomatic breadth, 

 32.6 (30) ; least interorbital breadth, 20 (18) ; mandible, 34 (32) ; 

 maxillary toothrow (alveoli), 10.2 (9.6). 



Specimens examined. — Nine, from the following of the Batu 

 Islands: Pulo Pinie, i ; Tana Bala, 7; Tana Masa, i. 



Remarks. — This strikingly characterized squirrel needs no special 

 comparison with any of the members of the group to which it be- 

 longs. The specimens show no variation worthy of note except 

 that the skin from Pulo Pinie has the light element in the tail less 

 yellow than the others. 



' Cranial measurements in parenthesis are those of an adult female 

 Sciurus vittatus from Tapanuli Bay, Sumatra (No. 114,518). 



