LBPUS. 449 



eyes open and are able to reproduce at the age of about 6 months. 

 In the European hare the young of the same litter are said to be 

 sometimes dropped at considerable intervals. Eabbits differ from 

 hares considerably ; they dwell in burrows, and the young are born 

 naked and with the eyes closed. The curious hispid hare also 

 burrows. 



Synopsis of Indian, Ceylonese, and Burmese species. 



A. Ears as long as the head or longer, tail 



white beneath. 



a. A black patch on the back of the 



neck L. nigricollis, p. 449. 



b. No black patch. 



a'. Upper surface of tail rufous-brown ; 



fur harsh L. ruficaudatus, p. 450. 



V. Upper surface of tail blackish brown ; 



fur soft L. dayanus, p. 451. 



c'. Upper surface of tail black. 



a". General colour distinctly rufous . . L, peguensis, p. 451. 



b". General colour not rufous L. tibetanm, p. 452. 



<?. Tail wholly or almost wholly white. 

 a". Ear longer than hind foot with 



tarsus L. oiostolus, p. 452. 



b". Ear not longer than hind foot with 



tarsus L. hypsibius, p. 453. 



B. Ears shorter than head, tail brown through- 



out ; fur bristly L. hispidus, p. 454. 



319. Lepus nigricollis. The black-naped Hare. 



Lepus nigricollis, F. Cuv. Diet. Sc. Nat. xxvi, p. 307 (1823) ; Elliot, 

 Mad. Jour. L. S. x, p. 218 ; Kelaart, Prod. F. Z. p. 72 ; Blyth, 

 Cat. p. 132 ; Jerdon, Mam. p. 225. 



Khargosh, H. ; Sassa, Mahr. ; Malla, Can. ; Musal, Tam. ; Kunddi, 

 Chourapilli, Tel. ; Moilu, Mai. ; Hava, Cing. 



Ears thinly clad. Fur somewhat harsh and coarse. 



Colour above rufescent brown and black mixed, except a large 

 black or brownish-black patch on the back of the neck, extending 

 from the ears to the shoulders. Tail rufous-brown above, blackish 

 towards the end. Fore neck, breast, and limbs rufous ; chin, throat, 

 and lower parts from fore limbs white, the dorsal and ventral 

 tints passing gradually into each other on the flanks. Ears outside 

 brown anteriorly, grey posteriorly, dusky towards the tip, narrowly 

 margined with whitish inside. Dorsal fur ash-grey or creamy 

 white at the base, then black, then rufous or rufescent white, 

 the extreme tips black. Animals from the Nilgiri hills and 

 Ceylon are more richly coloured than those from the plains, but one 

 Nilgiri skin, sent to me by Mr. Hampson, is blackish brown above 

 and not rufous. 



Dimensions. Head and body 19 inches, ears 4-75, tail (without 

 hair ?) 2-5 ; a skull measures 2-9 in basal length and 1-65 in breadth 

 across the zygomatic arches. Nilgiri hares weigh 5 to 8 Ibs., but 



