I 78 Bulletin American Museum of Natural History. [Vol. XIX, 



of about one third shorter. It is, however, an interesting 

 fact that the present form finds its closest relationship with 

 the rixosus group of Arctic America rather than with the Old 

 World nivalis group. 1 



"The one specimen from Gichiga was taken in a mouse 

 trap on the tundra near my station at Kooshka. During the 

 year while I was at this station I had from 25 to 100 baited 

 and unbaited traps set continuously, but caught only this 

 one. Some of the residents at Gichiga said that they had 

 never seen the animal before while others maintained that it 

 was a young ermine, so that I consider it rare, at least in the 

 vicinity of Gichiga. The pelt from Marco va was given me 

 by Mr. Sokolnikoff , the commanding officer there, who caught 

 it swimming in the Anadyr River and who said it was the only 

 one that he had seen during his three years there. 



"The specimen of Putorius rixosus eskimo described by 

 Stone in the Mcllhenny Collection from Point Barrow (No. 

 848), was a nursing female with 10 mammae developed; an- 

 other in the same series taken in the middle of June had 1 2 

 mammae developed, and 12 foetal young in the oviducts." 

 N. G. B. 



33. Lutra lutra (Linn.). 

 OTTER. 



This species is not represented in the present collection. 

 Mr. Buxton's notes respecting it are as follows : 



"Russian name, Vee-drdh. No otters are now found in 

 the Gichiga country although they undoubtedly occurred 

 there formerly. They are still taken along the smaller tribu- 

 taries of Pengina and Anadyr Rivers, further inland, and in 

 Kamchatka. I was unable to secure any specimens in the 

 flesh or skulls, but pelts were plentiful at Marco va at from 

 six to ten roubles each. A few pelts are shipped out by the 

 traders each year, but the bulk of them are used by the Rus- 

 sian inhabitants." N. G. B. 



1 On the)Weasels of the P. nivalis group, see Barrett-Hamilton, Ann. and Mag. 

 Nat. Hist. (7), V, Jan. 1900, pp. 41-50. 



