1909.] R. E. Lloyd : The Races of Indian Rats. 



99 



were all captives in the cage did not deter them from showing their 

 natural antipathy. The shrew betook itself to a corner of the cage 

 and faced its aggressors who seemed unable to accomplish anything 

 against the shrew's powerful incisor teeth. One adult concolor 

 and a shrew were then placed together in a cage ; the shrew became 

 the aggressor at once and pursued the other vigorously for about 

 five minutes. An adult concolor, however, is a most active rat, 

 and the experiment ended b}' both coming to rest in opposite corners 

 of the cage. 



On the other hand, it was often noticed that if Mus concolor 

 and the white-bellied Mus rattus of Rangoon were placed together 

 in a cage they showed no signs of antipathy. Members of these 

 two races are sometimes caught together in the same trap. 



In continuation of the subject I will quote a letter received 

 from Captain Davys. 



' ' Have you ever noticed that if a big Gunoinys and Gerbillus 

 indicus are put into a cage together, the Gunomys at once attacks 

 and kills the Gerbillus, or Gerbilli. Even when the cage is being 

 carried by a man the Gunomys does this. He seems to have a 

 special hatred of the Gerbillus. Last night I put three Mettada 

 and three Gerbillus into a cage with one Gunomys. The Gunomys 

 killed all the three Gerbilli within ten minutes, but did not interfere 

 with the MeUada." It may be mentioned that Mus mettada is a 

 much smaller rat than Gerbillus. 



It seems therefore that special enmity exists between particular 

 races of rats. 



1. Hossack, W. C. 



2. Thomas, Oldiield 



3. Bonhote, J.L. 



4. Thomas, Oldfield 



5. Thomas, Oldfield 



6. Wroughton, R. C. 



7. Sclater, W. L. 



8. Bonhote, J.L. 



LITERATURE. 



' ' An account of the rats of Calcutta," 



Mem. Ind. Mus., vol. i. No. i (1907). 

 " On the Indian species of the genus 



Mus,'' Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1881, 



p. 521. 



" On a new rat of the Mus rufescens 

 group," Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (7), 

 vol. xi (1903), p. 473. 



' * On the mammals of the Hume collec- 

 tion," Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1886, 



P- 54- 

 ' ' A subdivision of the old genus Neso- 



kia," Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (7), vol. 



XX (1907), p. 202. 

 ' ' Notes on some rats of the Mus 



mettada group," Journ. Bom. Nat. 



Hist. Soc, vol. xvii (1907), p. 997. 

 ' * Notes on some Indian rats and mice,' ' 



Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1890, p. 522. 

 " Report on the mammals," in An- 



nandale and Robinson, Fasciculi 



Malayenses, Zoology, part i (1903). 



