ZOOLOGY — MAMMALS. 



95 



SCIUKUS FOSSOR, Peale. 



California Grey Squirrel. 



Scmntsfossor, Peale, Mainm. and Birds, U. S. Ex. Ex. 1848, 55. 



AnD. & B.tcH. N. Am. Quad. Ill, 1854, 264 ; pi. clhi, f. 2. 



Baird, Gen Rep. Mammals, 1857, 264. 

 Sciurm heermanni, Leconte, Pr. A. N. Sc. Phila. VI, Sept. 1852, 149. 



Sp. Ch. — Size of S. vulpinus, but more slender. Tail vertebra as long as the body, with the hairs, much longer. Five upper 

 molars. Above, grizzled bluish grey and black ; beneath, white, without any differently colored separating line. Tail black, 

 with the exterior white ; the whole under surfdce finely grizzled. Back of ears and adjacent tufl on the occiput, chestnut. 



Fort Dalles, 0. T., January, 1855.— (Nos. 36, 37, 38.) 



No. 36 ; January 17, 1855. — Large grey squirrel of Lewis & Clark. 



Ears long ; fur of ears, on their anterior border, whitish and sparse ; inside thinly covered 

 with whitish ; outside sparsely covered with fulvous fur. Edges of eyelids sparsely covered 

 with yellowish white. "Whiskers jet black. Tip of nose black, with a dark stripe leading to 

 the forehead. Cheeks and throat white, tinged with fulvous, with a few fine black hairs inter- 

 spersed on the cheeks. Fur of top of head (gray?) at the base, for one-half its length, then 

 black, subterminally white, tipped with white, with some longer black hairs interspersed. 

 Fur of the back the same, only longer, and with scattering long hairs of jet black. Inside of 

 legs and the throat, chest, and belly, white. The hind legs have less white. In stroking 

 smooth and flattening the tail a broad subterminal bar of black is seen its whole length on 

 each side, followed by a tip or edging of white ; two other lesser bars are found nearer the 

 roots of the hair on each side of the median line, when the tail is flattened. 



Female having young was seen March 25th. 



Dimensions of fresh skin. 



Inches. 



Length of skin to root of tail ^ ' 14 



Tail, (vertebrte,) about 12 



Including fur 15 



Whiskers 2 



Fur on middle of tail ! 3 



Breadth of tail i 6 



Lines. 



This squirrel inhabits the oak groves in the neighborhood of Fort Dalles, and is also found 

 in the high pine trees in the neighborhood of the oaks. 

 Wasco name, Cow ten. 

 They are most excellent eating ; and average, when full grown, 2 pounds in weight. 



