A NEW SPECIES OF RACCOON DOG. 



By WILLIAM T. HORNADAY. 



IN November, 1902, the New York Zoological Society received 

 from Captain Thomas Golding, of the steamer "Afridi" a 

 collection of about twenty live animals from Japan, China and 

 Singapore. In the collection was a small white animal which bore 

 a slight resemblance to an immature Arctic fox, and which up to 

 its arrival had been called a "White Fox." It was obtained by 

 Captain Golding in Nagasaki, Japan, of a native dealer in live 

 animals, who was unable to give its history, and could only state 

 that it came from the northern portion of Japan. 



It was at once apparent that the creature was not a fox, and 

 also that it represented a species which at the least is very rarely 

 seen in captivity. An examination of its external characters re- 

 vealed an unmistakable resemblance to Nyctereutes procyonoides, 

 the raccoon dog, of Japan and north China. Inasmuch as the 

 animal appeared to be immature, and it seemed possible that its 

 pelage might undergo seasonal changes of some importance, it 

 was decided to defer bringing it into notice, and keep it under 

 observation for at least a year. 



During the fifteen months which this strange specimen has 

 lived in the Zoological Park, it has not undergone any noteworthy 

 change in pelage, nor has it perceptibly increased in size. It 

 therefore seems fairly conclusive that the creature is adult, and 

 that its colors are constant throughout the year. It is not an al- 

 bino individual of the well-known raccoon dog referred to above, 

 with living specimens of which it has been in constant comparison. 

 There appears to be no escape from the conclusion that this speci- 

 men represents a species hitherto unknown, and it is quite time 

 that it should be described. 



NYCTEREUTES ALBUS, sp. nov. 



WHITE RACCOON DOG. 



No. 1 37 1. Type, an adult female, obtained alive at Nagasaki, 

 Japan, by Thomas Golding, and living in the New York Zoologi- 

 cal Park from November 21st, 1902, to date (February 15th, 

 1904). 



