200 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1S91. 



IMPORTANT A(!OESSIONS. 



Dr. W. L. Abbott supjileiuented the very valuable collection of East 

 African mammals, mentioned in the report of last year, by another of 

 almost equal interest and im])ortauce. Tliese are the first Atrican col- 

 lections of any nmgnitude which t!ie Museum has received, and Dr. 

 Abbott's g-enerosity in i)resentini;- them is very highly appre(;iated. In 

 addition to the s])ecies mentioned in last year's report, the second col 

 lection contains si)ecimens of the river hog, Poidmoehcerus sp.; the ich- 

 neumons, Herpe.sti'S caffvr and H.fialem; a \)y^^niy nnte\o\)e, Nan of raf/ns 

 moHchatus^ aiul the rare bat, Miujadmna cor. The collection contains 

 in all 76 specimens, a part of which are jjreserved in alcohol. In addi- 

 tion, Dr. Abbott presented the skins of 5 lemnrs from Madagascar, and 

 one bat from the Seychelles Islands. 



A si)ecimen of Kelaart's monkey, ISemnopit keens Jcelaartii, was pur- 

 chased. One important fruit bat, the ty])e of Pteroims lanigera, H. 

 Allen, was likewise purchased. 



A series of 21 Madagascar insectivores, preserved in alcohol, includ 

 ing a specimen of Oryzorictes, was obtained from Fr. Sikora. The col- 

 lection contained also a specimen of a, species of Nesomys. 



Prof. Miles Rock presented two silky anteaters, Cycloturus, from 

 Livingstone, (xuatemala. A specimen of the hairy-nosed wombat, 

 PJiascolomy.H lafi/rons was purchased. 



Among' American mammals, the most interesting accession of the 

 year was, perhaps, an adult male walrus from Walrus IvSland, Bering 

 Sea, obtained by (3ai)t. W, C. Coulson, of the IT. S. Revenue Marine. 

 It is a fine, large skin of this reuuirkable but ra])idly disappearing ani 

 mal. 



Mr. William Palmer, of the museum, was detailed to collect material 

 in the Piibilof Islands, Bering Sea, and on the mainland of Alaska. 

 Heobtained the skin of a large Steller's sea-lion, Emnetoinas stelleri, from 

 Walrus Island, a, number of fur seals, and many specimens of mar- 

 mots, shrews, and Arctic foxes. 



Dr. W. L. Ralph, of Utica, N. Y., ]»rcsented a mounted skin of a gray 

 Florida wolf. The w(df is believed to be almost extinct in that state. 

 Two pairs of elk antlers interlocked were dei)osited by the Hon. Clin- 

 ton L. Merriam, of Locust Grove, N. Y. Interlocking in this species 

 appears to be of extremely rare occurrence. 



The skin of an undescribed .species of tree mouse, afterwards made 

 the type of Phenacomys lonyicaudus True, was presented by Mr. Aure- 

 lius Todd, of Eugene City, Oregon. It was obtained at Marshfield, in 

 Coos County. Dr. J. C. Merrill, U. S. Army, presented a small collec- 

 tion of mice, etc., from the Indian Territory, a region not well repre- 

 sented in th<' collections. F'our skins of the ground squirel, >Spermo2)h- 

 ilns beldinyi, were presented by Mr. L. Belding, of Stockton, Cal. Mr. 



