24G 



lower ranges of the Himalayas to the extreme south, but does uot 

 occur in lower Bengal, where it is replaced by the next one." 



No. 49, Page 67. Hystrix Bengalcnsis. 

 Bengal Porcupine. 



Which he says, is 



" Smaller than leucura ; crest small and thin, the bristle* 

 blackish ; body spines much flattened, and strongly groved, ter- 

 minating in a slight seta ; slender flexible quills much fewer than in 

 leucura, white with a narrow black band about the centre ; the 

 thick quills basally white, the rest black, mostly with a white 

 tip ; a distinct white demi-collar ; spines of lumbar region white, 

 as are those of the tail and rattle ; muzzle less hirsute than in 

 leucura. 



Length of one, head and body 28 inches ; tail 8. 



Blyth compared this species with the hill porcupine, which it 

 resembles in its smaller crest, and also in its general characters, but 

 it more resembles leucura in the proportion of the large quills and 

 other points. He has quite recently written me from England 

 that he considers the porcupine recently described by Sclater as 

 H. malabarica, to be the same as his bengalensis. Sclater des- 

 cribes it as having a great general resemblance to leucura, but 

 differing in the less bristly snout, and the longer tail, as also in 

 many of the quills being orange-colored in the place of white, 

 especially some of the spines of the back and tail whilst others 

 were black and white as iu the common kind. If Mr. Blyth is 

 right in his identification of the two species, the orange color of 

 the quills would appear to be only a local variation, and even this 

 does not appear to be constant : for Mr. Day, who first noticed the 

 orange porcupine, states that in captivity they lose much of their 

 orange color, and its vividness greatly decreases when they are ill. 

 Besides the general points of distinction between leucura and 

 malabrica, Mr. Sclater points out a few slight peculiarities in the 

 form of the skull of the latter. 



The Bengal porcupine is found in lower Bengal, extending into 

 Assam and Arrakan, and also in South Malabar ; if Blyth's identi- 

 fication be correct. Nothing peculiar is recorded of its habits." 



