66 



No- 46- Mus urbanus? Mus dubius! 



JERDON, No. 186, PAQB 203 ; COMMON INDIAN MOUSE. 

 I found in my room at the Club at Ootacamund, a full-grown 

 female mouse not, as far as I can see, fully described in Jerdon 

 is it No. 186 "Mus dubius ? it can hardly be so, for that variety 

 is said, by Jerdon, at page 204, to be considered to be the young 

 " of Mus urbanus," which is conspicuous from its small ears and 

 large eyes. 



The dimensions were as follows : 



Head, -fa of an inch, 



Ear, much rounded and nude, T *^ of an inch, 



Body, 2-^ of an inch, 







Eye, very small, in this respect differing from " Mus urbanus," 

 tail bare, except tip which was slightly tufted, 3 T V of an inch, 



Color, upper parts dark-brown throughout, slightly paler on 

 chest and between hind legs ; not a white hair on the animal. 



I sent my specimen to the Madras Museum, it may however after 

 all turn out to be " Mus urbanus." 



No. 47- Rhizomys- 



JERDON, No. 201, PAGE 214 ; BAMBOO RATS. 



These curious, not to say hideous looking creatures, were often 

 brought into Shuay Gheen and Tounghoo in Burmah by the Karens, 

 who found them about the roots of bamboos ; all that I have seen 

 were very savage, and although they did not seem* to dislike con- 

 finement, quite untameable. 



I fancy that Shaw in Vol. 2 of his Mammalia alludes to this, or a 

 nearly allied species, as the " blind rat," the bite of which he says 

 is very severe, and that " it has no voice but emits a kind of snort- 

 " ing sound and gnashes its large teeth in a menacing manner 

 " raising its head at the same time." 



Those I have mentioned were probably " Rhizomys castaneus," 

 mentioned at page 214 of Jerdon and, if I mistake not, specimens 

 were sent to the Calcutta Museum by the late Major Berdmore. 



