22 NORTH AMERICAN BATS. 



The fur is cvervwhore soft and tliick; anteriorly less tliiek 

 than posteriori}^ and tinged as follows: neck, beneath the ears 

 and lower jaw, of a faded yellow color ; the breast of a dark 

 fawn, tipped conspicuously with white — a mixture of these 

 two colors, producing a dirty cinereous tinge towards the 

 axillae. The abdomen is of a more uniform color, the fawn hue 

 predominating over the cinereous. Posteriorly the fur is longer, 

 more luxuriant and variegated. The head and posterior surface 

 of the ears are of the same yellowish hue as the anterior portion 

 of neck. Below these points the hair is everywhere of a rich 

 brownish chocolate, or umber smoky fawn color, tipped with 

 white. This contrast of color gives the animal a very brilliant 

 appearance, and has suggested for it the name of "hoary bat," 

 by which it is generally known. 



The fur upon the membranes has a distribution similar to that 

 in L. noveboracensis. Anteriorly it extends in a wide band to the 

 third finger upon the interbrachial membrane, and covers in one- 

 third of the surface of the interfemoral membrane. Posteriorly 

 this membrane, together Avith the dorsum of the foot, is entirely 

 haired. The fur has not generally an extensive distribution upon 

 the wing membranes, though in not a few individuals I have found 

 this tendency marked. A small patch of fur is seen at the base 

 of the thuml) and fifth finger. 



Each hair upon the body has four colors, with the exception 

 of the regions about the head and belly where it has but two. 

 The coloration is as follows : Base plumbeous black ; next to this 

 a dingy yellowish-brown ; sub-tip is of the same hue as base ; the 

 tip being pure white. 



The proportion of the basal color and the white tip is con- 

 stant, but the other shades are variable. Thus upon the back 

 of the neck is the light yellowish shade above mentioned, while 

 the proportion of the plumbeous is scarcely noticeable. But the 

 latter color gradually increases while the former decreases as the 

 fur extends downwards until upon the loins the preponderance 

 of the darker shade with an intermingling of umber brown is 

 very marked. Upon the interfemoral membrane, posteriorly, the 

 fur partakes of the same hue, tipped with grayish-white ; that 

 anteriorly has a fawn colored base with lighter tips. 



