nt'w Afrlcnn (ivnus o/Muslelida'. 7r2'.\ 



hliu-kisli brown. Lartro ]>;uls of palms ami soles nakfil. Imt 

 tlio wliolr ])laiitar surfaccMif the feet is thickly hairy. (^Maws 

 thick and stronnr^ their up])er curvature about as in G. Alhi- 

 vian(h\ but they are far stouter, especially terminally; the 

 fore ami hind ones are about equal in Icn^^^th ; in colour they 

 arc dcej> brown, the liind ones ti|)))e(l with white. Tail 

 nearly half the length of the head and body, well-clothed 

 ■with long coarse hairs, which on its basal half are iucon- 

 s]iicuously ringed subterminally with black, but gradually 

 become wholly white on its distal half. 



Dimensions of the type (an adult skin, sex unknown) : — 

 Head and body (a|)])roximate) /)40 millim. ; tail (c.) 2.")"), 

 with hairs 250 ; hind foot (from calcaneum) without claws 1)0, 

 with claws 98. Longest fore claw, in a straight line above, 

 1^}"5 ; ditto, hind foot, 12. Length of radius 67, ulna 84, 

 tibia 88. 



J/ah. :Mian/.ini, :^^asailand, 8000 feet. 

 Coll. F. J. Jackson, September 1889. 

 This interesting animal, when laid beside representatives 

 of the other allied genera, is readily distinguishable from all 

 of them, firstly by the entire absence of either a poUex or a 

 liallux, neither of these digits being absent in any other 

 member of the suborder Arctoidea, while the llerpestine 

 Bdeogale* and Siiricata are the only genera in the wliole of 

 the Carnivora which resemble it in the absence of both. 

 But apart altogether from this diagnostic character, one would 

 not know in what genus to place the animal, and this is a 

 test by which tlie validity of all ])roposed new genera should 

 be tried. Were it, in that case, Brazilian in locality it might 

 be referred to Galiciis (whose synonym, Galera^ is so 

 ■well known that I liave presumed to use it for the basis of 

 the generic name), although the shorter ears and thicker 

 claws would still indicate considerable divergence. Of the 

 Old-Wovld genera all the Meline forms are separable by their 

 longer and straighter claws, as are the Musteline ones by 

 their having these shorter and more curved. Coming to 

 African forms, we have only the coarse-haired, short-tailed, 

 and large-clawed Mellivora, and the delicately built and 

 parti-coloured Ictidonyx and Pa;ciIogaJe to deal with ; and no 

 one could possibly refer Mr. Jackson's animal to any of these. 

 Of course I would not be understood to say that Galeriscus 

 is really more closely related to Galictis than to any Old- 



* From Bdeo(/ale\tse\f Gale7'isetis is readily distinguished by its generally 

 Musteline, or, rather, INIeline, appearance, its broader head, larger nose- 

 pad, and short hairy ears. Its feet, ho-wever, are undoubtedly very like 

 those of that animal. 



