MAMMALS 



The mammalian fauna of Sussex compares favourably with tliat of 

 other English counties of which an account has been published, botli 

 with respect to the number of species and the abundance of individuals. 



The circumstance that the present is the first account of Sussex 

 mammals as a whole, and that the records relating thereto in zoological 

 journals have been very scarce, will explain the imperfect treatment of 

 the marine forms. 



Of the bats admitted by general consent into the British list the 

 only species hitherto unrecognized in Sussex are the lesser horseshoe bat, 

 Rhinolophus hipposiderus ; the parti-coloured bat, VespertUio murimis ; and 

 the hairy-armed bat, Pipistrellus leisleri. The greater horseshoe and 

 Bechstein's bat are only known to have occurred on one occasion each ; 

 but on the other hand some species usually regarded as rare — such as 

 the serotine, Natterer's, and the whiskered bat — are shown to be by 

 no means infrequent. 



No more need be said here of the Insectivora than that the lesser 

 shrew appears to be common, especially in the eastern division of the 

 county. 



We may remark upon the pleasing circumstance that the badger 

 fully holds its own in many parts. In the neighbourhood of Hastings 

 there is hardly a parish unrepresented. This animal is in general so 

 unobtrusive and harmless that its presence may be hardly suspected even 

 on an estate where it is fairly numerous. After diligent inquiries we 

 have failed to ascertain that a single Sussex polecat is preserved in any 

 collection. With respect to the marine Carnivora the common seal is 

 the only species included. 



Coming to the Rodentia we have been able to include the yellow- 

 necked mouse, a subspecies of the long-tailed field mouse recognized as 

 British since 1894. The bank vole is often mistaken for the field vole, 

 and like the latter it is subject to much variation in numbers from time 

 to time. The black rat has disappeared, leaving behind practically no 

 evidence of its former abundance. 



In conclusion we may remark that much remains to be done, and 

 especially in regard to the occurrence of the marine forms and the dis- 

 tribution of the smaller terrestrial forms. In the case of the former, 

 examples caught near or stranded upon the shore should be photo- 

 graphed unless they belong to well known species. The absence of such 

 means of identification renders useless the numerous notices of the cap- 

 ture of cetaceans and seals contained in the columns of local newspapers. 



299 



