146 SIXTH REPORT — 1836. 



travels northwards to the islands of the Arctic Sea, but its south- 

 ern range cannot be defined until its identity with the com- 

 mon wolf of the United States be proved or disproved. Accord- 

 ing to Lewis and Clark, the latter crosses the continent to 

 Upper California. The Mexican wolf seems to differ from oc- 

 cidcntalis chiefly in the black parts of the fur forming bands on 

 the flanks; an accurate comparison of the two is still required. 

 Canis latrans, or the prairie wolf, is found on the Saskatchwan 

 and Missouri, being confined, as its name imports, to the prairie 

 lands. It is probable that the Californian ochropus and the 

 Mexican nigrirostris are but varieties of latrans. Authors are 

 not more decided with respect to the species of foxes. Cuvier 

 thinks that the canis fulviis differs from the European vnJj)es 

 merely in having more brilliant fur; but, as Mr. Bennett 

 has remarked, it is impossible for any one to contemplate 

 the two species together in the Zoological Gardens without 

 observing their very different aspects : the black, silver, and 

 cross foxes of the furriers are mere varieties of fulvus. A no- 

 tion exists in the United States that the descendants of Euro- 

 pean foxes introduced by the early settlers are now numerous 

 in the countiy, but the fact has not been established by a deci- 

 sive comparison of specimens, and it is possible that the ani- 

 mal of supposed European origin is the Virginian fox {cinereus 

 or cifiereo-ai'gentafus oi Schreber), which at certain seasons has 

 a reddish hue. The latter ranges from Upper Canada across 

 the continent to the banks of the Columbia, southwards to 

 the Gulf of Mexico, and, according to Cuviei*, throughout 

 tropical America. The kit-fox {velox) is peculiar to the prairies, 

 and does not go higher than the 55th parallel of latitude; it is 

 very similar in habits to the Asiatic corsac. Thieneman has 

 distinguished two species of arctic fox, which wei-e formerly 

 confounded under the name of lagopus. One for which he 

 has retained this appellation is stated in Fischer's synopsis to 

 be an inhabitant of Europe only ; but it is the species which 

 frequents the arctic coasts of America as far west as Mac- 

 kenzie's River, and descends along the shores of Hudson's 

 Bay to the 58th parallel. The other species, named isatis, 

 characterized by its acute ears and coloured tip of the tail, 

 is said to be an inhabitant of the northern parts of Asia and 

 America; but I suspect that its range in the latter country 

 is confined to the west side of the Rocky Mountains, as it did 

 not fall under my observation to the eastward. On the Pacific 

 coast the arctic fox is said to occur as far south as the 58th or 

 59th degree of latitude. 



Tlie confusion of synonyms in the genus /e^/5 is not less per- 



