CACOMISTLE 



fore- and hind feet furred to pads; five toes on each foot, claws 

 semi-retractile; digitigrade; habit nocturnal. 



Color. — vSexes colored alike; no very great seasonal varia- 

 tion. 



Upperparts — General tone grayish brown formed by a 

 mixture of buff, gray, and brownish black, darkest on back, 

 the sides yellowish gray; pelage dark gray at base; blackish 

 about eyes, a small brownish black patch on side of muzzle 

 and in front of ear; tail brownish black with seven white bands. 



Underparts. — Buffy white; tail with white bands broader 

 than on upper side and running into one another alongmid-line. 



Immature very much like adults. 



Measurements. — Males, total length, 32 inches; tail 

 vertebrce, 17 inches; hind foot, 2.8 inches. Weight about 2.5 

 pounds. Females somewhat smaller than males. 



Geographical Distribution. — Southern United States from 

 Texas west. 



Food. — Small mammals, birds, insects and occasionally 

 fruit. 



Enemies. — Probably too active to be caught under ordinary 

 circumstances by the larger carnivores which would prey on it 

 if they could; possibly caught occasionally by Great Horned 

 Owls. 



Species and Subspecies of the Genus Eassariscus 



Texan Cacomistle. — Bassariscus astutus flaviis Rhoads. 



As described above. Found in the western half of Texas 

 north into Colorado and southern Utah and west through 

 New Mexico and Arizona; scattered records from as far east 

 as Louisiana and Alabama. 



Western Cacomistle; Oregon Ring-tailed Cat. — Bassariscus 

 astutus oregonus (Rhoads). [ = Bassarisctis raptor (Baird)] 

 Darker than flavus. Upperparts wood-brown mixed with 

 blackish; underparts deep buffy. Total length, 30 inches; 

 tail vertebrae, 15 inches; hind foot, 2.y inches. Found from 

 southern Oregon south through California. 



Nevada Cacomistle. — Bassariscus astutus nevadensis Miller. 

 Smaller than oregonus; "color peculiar in the clear gray of 

 head in front of ears, and in the reduction of the amount of 

 buff in general tint of neck and anterior half of back, this 

 entire region appearing more ashy than in any other adult 

 specimen in fresh pelage seen; underparts pale cream buff 

 behind fore legs, less pallid anteriorly." (Miller) Total 

 length, female, 25.6 inches; tail vertebras, 12.4 inches; hind 



