MURIDJE 115 



Lassen Counties and occasional in the Sierras south to Mount 

 Whitney. Occasional on Mount Shasta and probably occur in 

 small numbers in the mountains west to the Pacific. 



Ash-colored Rats appear to live mostly among rocks, often 

 in lava cliffs. The nests are not nearly as large as those of 

 fuscipes and some others. In trapping for them I succeeded 

 best with meat baits. The food is varied but is mostly vegetable, 

 including juniper berries and twigs. In winter they invade 

 barns and houses, and carry off anything eatable and many un- 

 eatable things that take their fancy. A peculiarity not frequent 

 in this genus is the strong musky odor, which remains with skins 

 in the cabinet many years. Judging from the scanty material 

 at hand the young are born from the first of May to the end of 

 July. 



Subgenus Neotoma. 

 Skull comparatively smooth and thin ; rostrum of moderate 

 length; tail scant haired, rat-like; hind feet of moderate size. 



Neotoma fuscipes Baird. (Dusky — foot.) 



DUSKY-FOOTED BRUSH RAT. 



Large; tail long; ears large; above bistre or sepia darkened 

 by black tips of the hairs, base of hairs slaty ; sides varying from 

 grayish tawny olive to grayish brown, shading into the color 

 of the back, distinctly outlined against the grayish white or buffy 

 white belly and throat, the hairs of the lower parts plumbeous 

 at base except on throat, breast and anal region ; fore feet and 

 toes of hind feet white, the upper surface of the hind feet dusky 

 or spotted with dusky; ankles blackish; tail blackish scarcely 

 lighter beneath ; hairs of tail short but hiding the skin. Young; 

 gray with very little tawny or reddish tinge. 



Length about 407 mm. (16 inches); tail vertebrfe 205 

 (8.10) ; hind foot 40 (1.60) ; ear from crown 35 (1.40). 



Type locality. Petaluma and Santa Clara, California. 



