1904.] Allen, New South American Mammals. 33 * 



Felis maripensis, sp. nov. 



Type, No. 21308, $ ad., Maripa, Caura district, Venezuela, Dec. 7, 

 1901; coll. S. M. Klages. 



Nape hairs directed forward. Ground color of upper parts deep 

 tawny, nearly uniform over the whole dorsal region, the lower back 

 and rump being scarcely paler than the neck and shoulders, but flanks 

 slightly paler; whole upper surface heavily striped and blotched with 

 black, the black greatly predominating over the lighter interspaces; 

 the black markings are mostly solid, a few only, and these on the 

 sides of the thoracic region, enclosing tawny areas, or forming rosettes; 

 nape stripes five, very sharply defined, the middle one a narrow line, 

 the outer pairs forming broad bands, 10 to 15 mm. wide, and extend- 

 ing from the top of the head to the shoulders; the narrow median 

 stripe, except for slight interruptions at the shoulders, extends con- 

 tinuously to the base of the tail, with an average width of about 10 

 mm. ; ventral surface and inside of limbs clear white, heavily blotched 

 with black, which occupies fully half the area except on the lower 

 abdomen ; outer surface of limbs pale tawny, marked with small oval 

 spots of black; ears externally black with the usual grayish white 

 marginal spot; dorsal area of tail mostly black, broken by irregular 

 cross lines of pale tawny, which divide into half rings o white on the 

 sides and beneath. 



External measurements (approximately from the softened skin) : 

 Total length, 1 285mm.; head and body, 935; tail, 350; ear, 48. The 

 feet afford no measurements, they having been skinned out down to 

 the toes. 



Skull: Total length, 144; basal length, 130; basilar length (of 

 Hensel), 121; zygomatic breadth, 90; breadth of rostrum at base of 

 canines, 40; mastoid breadth, 57.5; width of braincase, 53; interor- 

 bital breadth, 27; postorbital breadth, 32.5; tip to tip of postorbital 

 processes, 57; palatal length, -55; inner base of incisors to end of 

 pterygoid processes, 78; width of palate at front of edge of p3, 32; 

 nasals very broad at anterior border, uniform wedge-shaped, 33 x 18.5 ; 

 audital Lullae, 26.5 x 15; length of p3 on outer border, 17.5; width of 

 p 3 , at front border, 9.5 



Felis maripensis is a large, dark colored form of the F. par- 

 dalis group, but is very different from any of the Mexican or 

 Central American forms, and from that of the Santa Marta 

 district of Colombia. It is characterized by the deep uniform 

 tawny ground color of the upper parts, which closely resem- 

 bles that of the jaguar; the generally solid, very coarse black 

 markings; and the very large size of the upper carnassial 



