FIELD BOOK OF MAMMALS 



Found along the southern rim of the Grarid Canyon m 

 northern Arizona south to the Mogollon Mountains and 

 east into New Mexico; Umits of range unknown. 

 Tuft-eared Squirrel. — Sciurus aberti numus Merriam. 



" Similar to S. aberti, but gray of upperparts decidedly paler; 

 red dorsal area obsolete or nearly so; upperside of tail paler; 

 ear tufts pale fulvous, grizzled and tipped with black (in- 

 stead of mainly black); tail apparently shorter /Mer- 

 riam) Total length, 19-5 inches; tail vertebrae 8 6 inches; 

 hind foot, 2.8 inches. Found in the Cimarron Mountains, 

 Mora County, New Mexico, north into extreme south- 

 western Colorado. , ,- x n- ^ 

 Northern Tuft-eared Squirrel.— Scturus aberti Jerreus irue. 

 Differing from typical aherti in having gray upperparts 

 without the reddish dorsal band; uppersides of feet gray, 

 toes whitish; ear tufts black, mixed with gray and chestnut; 

 tail above and below, gray banded with black and edged 

 with white; underparts white. Said to occur m a umform 

 dark brown phase. Total length, 19 mches; tail vertebra, 

 8 ^ inches; hind foot, 2.3 inches. Found through a narrow 

 strip down the center of Colorado just west of 105 but 

 cros^in^ to the east of this meridian about 39 • 

 Y.a.ih2Jo SQuirrel.—Sciunis kaihaberisis Mevr^^m 



"Similar in size and general character to S. aberti but un- 

 derparts mainly black instead of white, and tail mainly 

 white all over instead of white on underside only. (Mer- 

 riam) Upperparts dark grizzled gray; dorsal band rusty 

 red- nose black; lower sides and upperpart of forelegs and 

 thighs nearly solid black; underparts mixed black and gray. 

 Found on the top of Kaibab Plateau, north side of the 

 Grand Canyon, Coconino County, Arizona. 



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The Tuft-eared Squirrels are unique among North American 

 Squirrels in the possession of conspicuous tufts of long hairs on 

 the ears, and resemble in this respect the Tree Squirrels of 

 northern Europe and Asia. They are the showiest of our 

 Squirrels and easily distinguished from all the other large 

 arboreal Squirrels of North America by the characters of 

 tufted ears and peculiar color pattern. _ 



These Squirrels are rather restricted in their habitat, being 

 found only in a narrow strip along the Rocky Mountams 

 from the southern United States into Mexico. They live on 

 the high plateau through which the Grand Canyon of the 

 Colorado is cut and in the isolated mountain ranges which 

 arise from the Colorado Plateau. The Tuft-eared Squirrels 

 make their homes in the coniferous forests and their altitudmal 

 range is from about 5.000 to 9,500 feet above sea-level. 



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