﻿MAMMALS OF NORTHERN COLOMBIA — HERSHKOVITZ 345 



December through January, February, and March. Two subadults 

 from foothills of the Sierra de Perijd, taken in February, agree with 

 the topotypes. A series of three adult specimens and one immature 

 individual from Rio Tocuyo, Lara, is more somberly colored through- 

 out than either nigronuchalis and continentis but with head, as in the 

 latter race, more warmly colored than in the former. The Tocuyo 

 series shows gradation between the two dark-naped races on one hand 

 and between the dark-naped and rufous-naped cottontails of eastern 

 Venezuela on the other. One Rio Tocuyo specimen with nuchal 

 patch Tawny is practically indistinguishable from some individuals of 

 margaritae from Margarita Island. Another with nuchal patch 

 Front's Bro%vn is intermediate, except for a slightly warmer rostral 

 patch, between the pale topotype of nigronuchalis at hand, and the 

 darker Curagao specimen. The Rio Tocuyo specimens were collected 

 by G. H. H. Tate as a member of the Phelps Venezuela Expedition. 

 Allen {supra cit.) recorded other specimens collected by Carriker in 

 the same locality. 



Osgood (supra cit.) observed that continentis is "excessively abun- 

 dant in the vicinity of Maracaibo and in the similarly arid region on 

 the east side of the lake, extending in this direction at least to the 

 Empalado Savannas where it is rather rare. It is sold daily in the 

 market of Maracaibo, and it was there our specimens were obtained. 

 The Venezuelans hunt it at night with a torch made from a tightly 

 wrapped bundle of diy sticks, one man carrying the torch and another 

 the gun, usually a single-barreled muzzle-loader of the cheapest 

 possible construction. At other times small ground fires are kindled 

 at intervals throughout several acres and the hunter goes stealthily 

 from one to the other shooting at such rabbits as have been attracted 

 by the lights. The rabbits seem to be exclusively nocturnal, not 

 stirring even in the short twilight of morning and evening. At day- 

 break or nightfall I repeatedly traversed localities much frequented 

 by them but had no glimpse of one." 



Specimens examined. — Twelve. Maracaibo, 6 including the type 

 (C.N.H.M.); Rio Cogollo, Zulia, 2 (C.N.H.M.); Rio Tocuyo, Lara 4 

 (A.M.N.H.). 



SYLVILAGUS FLOHIDANUS CUMANICUS (Thomas) 



Lepus sp. Robinson and Lyon, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 24, p. 161, 1902 

 (said to be "found, but are scarce" in San Julian, near La Guaira). 



Lepus cumanicus Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 6, vol. 20, p. 552, 1897. 



S[ylvilagus] cumanicus, Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 8, vol. 11, p. 211, 

 1913 (margaritae and superciliaris synonyms of cumanicus). 



Sylvilagus cumanicus cumanicus, Hummelinck, Studies on the fauna of Curagao, 

 Aruba, Bonaire and the Venezuelan Islands, vol. 2 (The Hague), p. 100, 

 1940 (part, not valenciae; Manglillo and Chacopata, Peninsula de Araya). 



