RACCOONS OF NORTH AND MIDDLE AMERICA 39 



becoming rusty brownish on median line between eyes, and ochraceous 

 buffy on upper surface of muzzle; sides of muzzle, lips, and chin 

 white; under parts in general thinly overlaid with buffy grayish; 

 throat patch brownish black; ears grayish with small black patches 

 at posterior base; legs grayish, becoming whitish on feet; tail above 

 with about five or six black rings and a black tip, alternating with 

 light ochraceous buffy rings, the dark rings becoming buffy and less 

 distinct below. 



Cranial characters. — Skull small and slender, with weak or obsoles- 

 cent postorbital processes of frontals; very similar to that of P. I. 

 lotor, but smaller and more delicate in structure; jugal narrower; 

 sides of frontals diagonally behind and below postorbital processes 

 usually less deeply indented or laterally constricted; maxillary tooth 

 row shorter; posterior upper premolar and upper carnassial usually 

 distinctly smaller; very similar to that of P. I. elucus in general form, 

 but rather decidedly smaller; brain case narrower, frontal region 

 flatter, less "humped." Compared with that of P. I. fuscipes the skull 

 is much smaller, more slender, with narrower frontal region, and 

 postorbital processes of frontals (not very prominent in fuscipes) less 

 developed. 



Measurements. — Type: Total length, 720 mm.; tail vertebrae, 218; hind foot, 

 103. An adult male from Hurricane, Ala.: 772; 258; 109. Skull: Type: 

 Greatest length, 104.8; condylobasal length, 98.6; zygomatic breadth, 64.4; 

 interorbital breadth, 22.5; least width of palatal shelf, 14.6; maxillary tooth row 

 (alveoli), 39.8; upper carnassial, crown length, 7.8, crown width, 7.9. 



Remarks. — The Alabama raccoon agrees more closely in combina- 

 tion of characters with typical fotor than with any of the other known 

 subspecies, although its distribution area constitutes a wedge, sepa- 

 rating the ranges of elucus, fuscipes, and litoreus. [See appendix, 

 p. 84.] Intergradation with these forms is evident, but the lines of 

 demarcation between them appear to be fairly sharply drawn. 



Specimens examined. — Total number 57, as follows: 

 Alabama: Ashford, 2 (1 skull without skin); Barachias, 5 (skulls only); Castle- 

 berry, 2; Huntsville, 1; Hurricane (4 miles north), 2; Orange Beach, 

 11 (9 skulls without skins); Perdido Bay, 1 (skull only); Sylacauga, 2 

 (skulls only). 

 Florida: Apalachicola, 5 (skulls only). 

 Georgia: Geneva, Talbot County, 1 (skull only); Juniper, Talbot County, G;!" 



Nashville, 2 (1 skin without skull); Talbot County, 5 (skulls only). 

 Kentucky: Hickman, 2. 



Louisiana: Baton Rouge, 1;" Morrow, Saint Landry Parish, 1 (skull only); 

 Mississippi River (mouth), 1 (skull only) ^i [referable to P. I. megalodous, 

 see appendix, p. 84]. 

 Mississippi: Bay Saint Louis, 1 (skin only); Saucier, 1; '- Washington, 2. 

 Tennessee: Arlington, 1; Big Sandy, 1; Clarksville, 1. 



i« Mus. Conip. Zool. 



" Louisiana State Univ. Mus. 



12 Southern Forest Expt. Sta. Collection. 



