134 Mr. O. Thomas on tlie 



X. — The Geographknl Races 0/ Hevpestes bracliyuru3, 

 Oray. By Oldfield ThOMAS. 



(Published by permission of the Trustees of the British Museum.) 



Herpestes brachtusus was originally described on a speci- 

 men coming from Malacca, and examples from Sumatra and 

 Borneo have since been referred to the same species. A study 

 of the material now available shows that while they seem 

 to be all rightly referred to //. brachyurut — being alike in 

 all their more essential characters, — yet that they may be 

 separated into four geographical races, one each from the 

 Malay Peninsula and Sumatra and two from Borneo. 



Nearly allied to H. brachyarus is the //. semitorquatus of 

 Borneo, with a longer tail, redder coloration, a light but 

 variable mark on the side of the neck, and lighter dentition, 

 the anterior upper molar especially being without the marked 

 thickening of the anterior side of the inner lobe nearly 

 always found in //. brachyurus. 



The subspecies which I should recognise may be distin- 

 guished as follows : — 



A. Hairs of anterior part of chest and lower neck of 



irregular direction, grizzled greyish and buffy. 



a. Upper surface coarsely and prominently ticked 



with buffy whitish. Belly brown with some 



light tickings. (Malacca.) H.b. braohynrui. 



b. Upper surface blackish, with scarcely any 



tickings. Belly black. (Sumatra.) H. b. sumatriua. 



B. IJairs of anterior chest and lower neck definitely 



directed forwards, blackish, in continuity with 

 the prominently black belly. 



c. Colour dull blackish olivaceous, without rufous 



suffusion. Skull of normal shape. (Northern 



Borneo ; Sarawak (lowlands).) H. b. rajah. 



d. Colour more or less suffused with rufous, 



especially on head and throat. Skull 

 shortened, with unusual zygomatic spread, 

 (Mountainous region of E. Sarawak.) H.b. dt/acorum. 



Details of new forms : — 



Herpestes brachyurus sumatrius. 



Apparently less robust than true brachyurus, but the 

 only specimen available is a female. General colour above 

 blackish brown, with comparatively few of the light buffy- 

 whitish tickings found in brachyurus. Belly blackish, but 

 anteriorly this colour changes abruptly to grizzled buffy 

 greyish on the neck, throat, and chin ; the hairs of the lower 



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