YULPES. 153 



V. leucopus, however, appears to be the only form actually found 

 amongst the sand-hills of the desert. The habits, so far as they 

 are known, exhibit no peculiarity. Jerdon considers this fox 

 more speedy than V. benyalensis and capable of giving a capital 

 run even with English greyhounds. 



75. Vulpes alopex. The common Fox. 



Canis vulpes and C. alopex, Linn. Syst. Nat. i, p. 59 (1766). 

 Canis vulpes montana, Pearson, J. A. S. B. v, p. 313 (1836). 

 Canis himalaicus, Oyilby, P. Z. S. 1836, p. 103. 

 Vulpes'nipalensis, Gray, Charksworttts Mag. N. H. i, p. 578 (1838). 

 Vulpes montanus, Blyth, J. A. S. B. xi. p. 589, xxiii, p. 730 ; Adams, 



P. Z. S. 1858, p. 516 ; Jerdon, Mam.'lnd. p. 152 ; Blanf. J. A. S. 13. 



xlvi, p. 323, xlviii, p. 95 ; Scully, P. Z. S. 1881, p. 202 ; id. A. M. 



N. H. ser. 5, viii, p. 225. 

 Vulpes flavescens, Gray, A. M. N. H. (1) xi, p. 118 (1843) ; Hutton, 



J. A. S. B. xiv, p. 344 ; Adams, P. Z. S. 1858, p. 516 j Blyth, Cat. 



p. 42; Blanf ord, Yark. Miss., Mam. p. 22, pi. li. 

 Vulpes alopex, Blanford, P. Z. S. 1887, p. 635. 



Lomri, H. ; JRubah, Pers. ; Luh <5 , Laash , Kashmiri ; Wamu, 

 Nepal. 



A large, and, in winter, richly-coloured fox with long fur and 

 a superb brush. The skull is elongate, but the muzzle is less 

 narrow proportionally than in the smaller Indian forms. 



Colour of the Himalayan variety. Middle of the back varying 

 from pure chestnut to dull rufous, speckled with white or yellow, 

 or to dark iron-grey (black and rufous mixed). The cross stripe 

 on the shoulder sometimes scarcely apparent, in other skins very 

 distinct and with well-marked buff patches on each side before and 

 behind. The hinder part of the back and the thighs much greyer 

 and more speckled with white ; the sides paler in colour ; lower 

 parts varying from creamy-white to almost black, being probably 

 much paler in summer than in winter. There is generally a white 

 spot in the middle of the chest, which, with the throat, is often 

 much darker than the belly, or the dusky portion of the latter may 

 be confined to a median band. The woolly underfur on the back 

 purplish brown ; terminal portion of longer hairs rusty-red, with 

 generally a white or whitish ring near the end, the extreme tip 

 often black. The underfur of other parts of the body varies from 

 yellowish white to dusky. The ears are black outside, light rufous 

 or buff within. The face is rufous ; there is a large black spot in 

 front of the eye, and the cheeks are white. The outside of the 

 limbs are ferruginous, black and white mixed, sometimes one 

 colour prevailing, sometimes the other. Tail greyish, more or less 

 rufous, many of the hairs with black tips, but the end of the tail is 

 conspicuously white. 



In spring, when the long winter fur is shed, the animal can 

 scarcely be recognized ; the dark underfur gives a greyish-brown 

 tinge to the back, whilst the sides are pale and the lower parts 

 whitish. 



