The Squirrels of Eadern North America. 161 



Sciurus hudsouicus loquax siibsp. nov. Sonthein Chickaree. 



1815. S'ciunis carolinensis Ord, Guthrie's Geog., 2d Am. ed., II, 1818, p. 292. 

 (Name preoccupied by Gmelin for the southern gray squirrel.) 



Type from Liberty Hill, Conn., No. 4270, (^ adult, collection of E. A. 

 and 0. Bangs. Collected l)y Ontram Bangs December 24, 1895. Total 

 length, 323 ; tail vertebree, 141 ; hind foot, 47. 



Geographic distribution. — Transition and Carolinian zones, from southern 

 Maine and southern Minnesota to A^irginia, Avest to the edge of the plains. 

 Not found in the tops of the higher Alleghanies where Imdsonicus typieu.^ 

 takes its place. 



Habitat. — INIixed woods, groves, and in fact almost everywhere ; per- 

 haps most numerous where there are large tracts of Pinus rigida, the seeds 

 of which it is very fond of. Very abundant over the whole of its range 

 except the southern part, wdiere it becomes rare and local. 



General characters. — Size somewhat larger than Imdsonicus typicus ; tail 

 longer ; color of dorsal stripe in winter pelage usually brighter red ; under 

 parts pure grayish white, not vermiculatcd ; soles and palms fnrred in 

 winter, naked in summer. 



Color. — Winter pelage : upper parts with a broad dorsal ):)and extending 

 from between ears down upper surface of tail, varying from bright fer- 

 ruginous to orange rufous ; sides and upper surface of arms and legs yellow 

 or rusty gray, with sometimes an olivaceous cast, the hairs banded with 

 black ; under parts clear grayish white, without vermiculations, the hairs 

 plumbeous at base ; usually a black line shows indistinctly along sides 

 between colors of upper and under parts ; hairs of upper surface of tail 

 clear ferruginous ; those of lower surftice and sides dull yellow at base and 

 tip and black in middle. Summer pelage : Impossil^le to tell with cer- 

 tainty from summer pelage of hudsonicus typirux, l)nt usually more fer- 

 ruginous gray and less olivaceous gray. 



Cranial characters. — Skull averaging larger than that of liudsordcus typi- 

 cus; otherwise similai". Size of an average adult skull (the type) : basilar 

 length, 40; occipitonasal length, 46.4; zygomatic breadth, 27; greatest 

 height of cranium above palate, 1().4 ; greatest length of single half of 

 mandible, 28. 



Size. — Average measurements of eight adult specimens from Liberty 

 Hill, Conn. : total length, 318.3; tail vertebne, 133.5 ; hind foot, 47.42. 



General remarks. — Professor Baird, in his Mammals of North America, 

 first pointed out the fact that northern examples of Sciurus hudsonicus had 

 the under parts vermiculated with black and the southern examples did 

 not. Dr. Allen, in his Monograph of the North American Sciuridse, dwelt 

 at some length on the differences between the two races, but did not sep- 

 arate them by name. In winter pelage Sciurus hudsonicus typicus and 

 Sciurus Jiudsonicus loquax can be told apart at a glance, but in their sum- 

 mer coats they are not so easily distinguished ; as a rule, however, loqua.c 

 is more rusty and less olivaceous, and the difference in size between indi 

 viduals of the same age is well marked, IlujUduIcus typi.cux being always 

 the smaller of the two. 



29— Bioi,. Soc. Wash., Vor,. X, 1896 



