1903.] Allen, Mammals from Northeast Siberia. *57 



In full winter dress the pelage is very thick and soft and, including 

 the underfur, pure white to the base, except the ears, which are very 

 narrowly tipped with black. 



This southern form of the Siberian Arctic Hare is repre- 

 sented by 24 skins and skulls, 2 additional skins, 2 skeletons, 

 and 14 additional skulls, taken in the vicinity of Gichiga by 

 Mr. Buxton. They are all in white winter pelage except 

 three, and were collected as follows: Oct. i, i; Nov. 5 and. 

 6, 2; Jan. n, 7; Feb. i, 12; Feb. 15, 12 (skulls only); July 

 27, i (young). 



The weight of three specimens, as recorded by Mr. Buxton, 

 is, respectively, 7^, 8, and 8J pounds. Whether these were 

 of average size or exceptionally large is not stated. 



The table on page 158 gives the external measurements of 

 20 adult males and 1 7 adult females, taken by Mr. Buxton from 

 the fresh specimens, and also the two principal measurements 

 of the skull. The range of variation is not very large, and is 

 due in part to immaturity, the smaller specimens being shown 

 by the skull to be the younger members of the series. The 

 females average slightly smaller than the males, except in 

 respect to the length of the tail which, as often happens in 

 other species, is longer in the females than in the males. 



It is probable that the Arctic Hares of Europe and Asia 

 are all referable as subspecies to Lepus timidus Linn., but in 

 the absence of material for their investigation the Siberian 

 forms are treated under binomial names. Lepus canescens of 

 Nillson, from southern Scandinavia, is said to have a similar 

 representative in the Stanovoi Mountains of southeastern 

 Siberia, and indeed by some writers, as Middendorff and 

 Radde, they have been considered as indistinguishable. It 

 seems, however, probable that very appreciable differences 

 would be found on comparison of adequate material from the 

 two reigons. Nordquist has considered the Northeast Sibe- 

 rian form as a variety of L. timidus, for which he has proposed 

 the name Lepus timidus var. tschuktschorum (Vega-Exped. 

 Vetensk. lakt., n, 1883, pp. 84-90). The form here described 

 differs from the latter in considerably smaller size, less mas- 

 sive skull, much lighter dentition, and apparently a more 



