672 



MERRIAM 



Island: basal length 140; zygomatic breadth 77; palatal length 74.5 ; 

 postpalatal length 65 ; breadth across postorbital processes 33 ; inter- 

 orbital breadth 27.5 ; postorbital constriction 22.5 ; greatest breadth of 

 rostrum over roots of canines 26.3 ; lateral series of teeth (from front 

 of canine to back of last molar) 66. 



VULPES REGALIS sp. nov. Northern Plains Fox. 

 PI . XXXVI, fig. 4. 



Type from Elk River, Sherburn Co., Minnesota. No. f^f||, ^ 

 ad., U. S. National Museum, Biological Survey Coll. March 5, 1887, 

 Vernon Bailey. Orig. No. 659. 



Range. — Northern Plains from Dakota to Alberta ; east to Mani- 

 toba and Minnesota ; limits unknown. 



Characte>'s. — Size largest; ears very large and broad; tail very 

 long but diameter less than in rubricosa ; sexual difference in size 

 great ; color a beautiful golden yellow, becoming almost buffy-white 

 on face and posterior part of back ; legs abruptly dark fulvous ; black 

 of feet very pure but restricted in area. 



Color. — Face, top of head, and base of ears pale straw yellow 

 becoming pale fulvous around eyes ; a darker area on each side of 

 nose, reaching from wdiiskers nearly to eye ; upperparts golden yellow 

 or pale yellowish fulvous, becoming almost buffy-white posteriorly and 

 grizzled on hinder part of back ; fore and hind legs abruptly red or 

 rusty fulvous, in striking contrast with yellow of body ; forefeet in- 

 tensely black, the black reaching up on front face of leg, narrowly, to 

 halfway between wrist and elbow ; hind feet intensely black on upper 

 surface, the black narrowing posteriorly and ending at or near ankle; 

 dark fulvous of outer side of thigh sometimes narrowly mixed with 

 grizzled black and whitish. Tail with basal ring like back, without 

 black hairs ; rest of tail to white tip buffy, strongly intermixed with 

 long black hairs, especially on underside. 



Skull. — Skull large, long, and relatively massive, with long slender 

 rostrum, broadly spreading zygomata, large inflated bullae, and narrow 

 slender premolars. Compared with V. kenaie7isis., its nearest ally, it 

 may be distinguished by more slender rostrum,* and very much nar- 

 rower and more spaced premolal's. From harrimani it differs in 

 slightly greater length ; much longer and narrower rostrum and palate ; 

 more spreading zygomata ; larger and more inflated bulla; ; less prom- 

 inent frontonasal sulcus ; narrower and more spaced premolars ; nar- 

 rower upper carnassial, with anterointernal cusp weaker and less pro- 

 jecting over palate ; upper molars decidedly larger ; lower carnassial 



