SPORT AND SCIENCE ON THE 



from Tabool . are topotypes, the subspecies 

 having been described by Mr. Thomas from 

 specimens taken by Anderson in this district. 



One of the four specimens taken 20 miles 

 west of Lama Miao, inside the ruins of Sui-lang- 

 ch'eng, is remarkable in having a much greyer 

 and softer pelt than any of the others. At 

 first sight I took it to be a totally different 

 animal, but from an examination of its skull 

 and its other characteristics it seems to belong 

 to the same species. 



The Chinese name is " Sha hsu," meaning 

 " Sand rat " (Sha = sand ; hsu = rat). 



16. 31 er tones auceps, Thos. 



Five specimens, 1 ^, 4 $?. Wu-tsai, 20 

 miles W. of Ning-wu Fu, Shansi. 6,000 



ft. (?) 



Originally described from the T'ai-yiian 

 Fu district, Mr. Thomas says of it : "Of 

 the other Chinese Meriones described, this 

 very pretty species may be distinguished from 

 M. unguiculatus by its whitish claws, buffy 

 ears, whiter bullae, and less blackened tail ; 

 from M. psammophilus by its larger size 

 and buffy ears ; and from both by its enor- 

 mously large bullae, which indicate that it 

 is not really closely allied to either of them." 



This species is purely nocturnal in its 

 habits, which may account for the " enor- 

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