LAGOMYID^E. 



455 



Family LAGOMYID.E. 



The animals comprised in this family are of small size, all being 

 considerably smaller than a rabbit. The ears are short and rounded 



Fig. 148. Skull of Lagomys rufcscens, x 1. 



and there is no external tail. The skull is depressed, orbits ellip- 

 tical and separated by a narrow frontal area. There are no 

 postorbital processes. A narrow pointed bony lamina extends 

 backwards from the zygomatic arch nearly to the meatus. The 

 clavicles are perfect, the fore and hind limbs short and subequal. 

 Only a single genus is known. 



Genus LAGOMYS, Cuvier (1798). 



Characters of the family. The species are like a guinea-pig in 

 form and inhabit burrows amongst rocks. Some have a peculiar 

 call, on account of which they have been designated piping hares, 

 but this peculiarity does not appear to have been observed in Hima- 

 layan species. In many of the forms, perhaps in all, individuals 

 have rufous patches at the side of the neck corresponding appa- 

 rently to glandular areas. All have the soles of all the feet hairy ; 

 the fur is generally thick and soft. The intestines are excessively 

 long in all the species ; I found them in L. rufescens to be 12 times 

 the length of the head and body. 



m. . Vertebrae: C. 7, D. 38, 



Dentition: 



i. , pm. 



L, 5, S. 2, 0. about 10 (in L. rufescens). 



The genus is chiefly confined to Central and Northern Asia, one 

 species extending into Eastern Europe and one being found in 

 North America. Several kinds inhabit the Himalayas, Tibet, and 

 Afghanistan. '. 



