452 Mr. E. Blytli's Notices of carious Mammalia. 



Semnopithecus maurus of Heifer would probably prove to be the 

 S. obscwus, Reicl; and tlie Society has now received skins of 

 the latter species from Captain Phayre, and some living young 

 specimens from Captain Abbott; and the skull of this animal, 

 compared with that of a skeleton prepared from a Tcnasserim 

 specimen sent in spii-its by the late Dr. Ilelfer (Journ. As. Soc. 

 vii. 669), leads mc to refer the latter also to the same species, 

 which, it may be remarked, is the only member of its genus as 

 yet ascertained from Arracan southward to the Straits, where (in 

 the vicinity of Singapore) specimens of it were obtained by Mr. 

 Cuming. 



The skins adverted to are those of fidl- grown animals, and 

 they accord very well with the description of the species furnished 

 by Mr. Martin ; but two very conspicuous characteristics of the 

 living animal might pass unnoticed in these skins, namely, the 

 variegation of the face, which is of a leaden black, contrasting 

 with pinkish Hesh-colour on the mouth and lips, extending to 

 the lining of the nostrils, besides which a large semicircular mark 

 of a paler and more livid tint occupies the inner half of each 

 orbit ; and secondly, a longitudinally-disposed erect crest upon 

 the vertex, rising abruptly from amid the rest of the hair of that 

 part, and being analogous to that of the Sumatran S. cristatus 

 (Raffles), with which I should not be surprised to find the pre- 

 sent species identical. Raffles however says nothing of the varie- 

 gation of the face, and he remarks that " the young Chinykaus 

 are of a reddish fawn-colovu-, forming a singular contrast with 

 the dark colour of the adults," whereas very young examples of 

 the present animal agree in colour with full-grown ones ; he also 

 mentions that the under part of the body is merely '^ paler," 

 while in the Ai-racan animal this is dull white, and purer white 

 in the young. In adults, the whole hair of the crown is much 

 elongated, the tuft still rising up among the rest; and that 

 forming the whiskers stands far out on each side, forming lateral 

 peaks in addition to the vertical one. Five examples before me 

 (three of which are alive) exhibit scarcely any difference in shade 

 of colour, all being of an ashy dusky black, darkest on the head 

 and extremities, a good deal silvered on the back, white under- 

 neath or in front, and the tail more or less albescent either at 

 base only, or for the basal half or two-thiris, or even the entire 

 tail ; there is little trace of beard, and the shortish scanty hairs 

 growing upon the flesh-coloured lips are white. The young, be- 

 sides a whining noise to express their wants, frequently emit a 

 mewing cry that might be mistaken for the mew of a cat. 



To the same group of Semnopitheci belongs my S. pileatus 

 (Journ. As. Soc. xii. 174), a species which abounds on the skirts 

 of the Tipperah hills, retiring far into the interior during the 



