nexo Genus of African Mongooses. 177 



natinallv tluiiiicfl aftontiDU firsf. Tlio result was tlie tlisco- 

 V(M"v of the c<)inj)lete aljsciice of all external trace of the first 

 cli<:;it of the fore-foot — a feature hritigin;^ C. selonsi into line 

 with Bdeoijale and severin<^ it from Cynictis. It does not 

 appear whether this character was detected \)y the authors 

 above quoted and dismissed as a taxideiiiiic accident or 

 iie<>lected as unimportant systematically, or not. Possibly 

 the presence of the corresponding digit in C'l/niclis penicillata 

 was for the moment forgotten *. 



However that may be, the character is, in my opinion, 

 quite siitlicient tor generic recogriiiion. I propose, therefore, 

 to place C. selousi in a new genus, which may be named and 

 diagnosed as follows: — 



Paracynictis, gen. nov. 



Related to Cynictis, but differing in the suppression of 

 digit 1 of the fore-foot, the digital formula being -4 — 4 as ia 

 Bd ogale. 



Type, Cynictis selousi, de Wint. 



Two genera of African mongooses have the same digital 

 formula as Paracynictis — namel}', Surica/a and Bdeogale ; 

 but with neither of the last two can the first be associated. 

 Suricata occupies an isolated position in the group, and need 

 not be further considered in this connection ; but, as already 

 stated, Paracynictis selousi bears such a close superficial 

 resemblance to some species of BdeogaU, like B. nigripes, 

 that the main reasons for its exclusion Irom that genus may 

 be biiefly given. Apart from the differences mentioned by 

 de Winton in his original diagnosis, the skull of Paracyiiidis 

 selousi is very like that of Cynictis peuicillata, and shows no 

 special resemblance to the massive .skull of Bdeogale. The 

 bulla is larger and more inflated than in Cynictis, and the 

 partition divides it into two subcqual chambers, whereas in 

 Cynictis the posterior chamber is smaller than the anterior. 

 In Bdeogale, on the contrary, the anterior chamber is smaller 

 than the posterior, in B. puisa about half its size. Numeri- 

 cally the teeth of Paracynictis are as in Bdeogale, but, 

 wh rer.s in the former the injiitting portions of ;'m\ m\ and 

 ni^ of the Uj)ptr jaw are transversely elongated and narrow, 

 in Bdecgafe they are very rioticeably thick-r and more 

 rounded. JSiuiilar but h ss well-marked differences occur in 

 the molars of the lower jaw. 



• The coloured figure of C. selousi published by de Wiuton shows the 

 feature in question quite plainly. 



