African Mungooses. 117 



young. The propoitionally long tail is specially mentioned 

 by Kiipi^ell. 



Dimensions : — 



Head and body 300 mm. ; tail 340 ; hind foot oS. 



Skull : condylo-basal length 62 ; basilar length 37 ; zygo- 

 matic bieadth 32; palate bieadth across/?* 20; length c-m' 

 21-5. 



llah. Type locality near Massowa, Abyssinia. (Cotype, 

 B.M. no. 163 rt.) 



61). 10. 24. 11. Soaroo, Abyssinia ( W. T. Bhinfard). 



69. 10. 24. 13. Adigrat, Tigre, Abyssinia {W. T. 

 Blunford) . 



69. 2. 2. 6. Abyssinia. Purchased. 



6. 11. 1. 17. L. Zuai, Abyssinia [Zaphiro, 11. N. 

 McMillan). 



Herpestes Galinieri is from the figure plainly a very 

 young M. gracilis. Mr. Thomas has quite recently made a 

 special examination of all the specimens in the Paris Museum 

 and assures me that the animal figured by Desmurs and 

 Prevost as 11. gracilis^ on wiiich both the names Lefebvrei 

 and ochromelas were based, is a pale example of M. s. gracilis, 

 in spite of the resemblance that the figure bears to 

 M. ochraceus. 



11. Mungos sanguineus mutgigella, Riipp. 



1835. Herpestes mutgif/ella, Riippell, N. Wirb. Abyss, p. 29. 

 1839. Ichneumia nigricaudatus, Geoffroy, iNfag. Zool. p. 18. 

 1877. Herpestes mtitscheltschela, Ileuglin, Reis. N.O.-Afr. p. 43. 



Riippell defines M. mutgigella as " blackish umber-brown." 

 There is considerable individual variation in the extent to 

 which the body-hairs are annulated. In a cotype from near 

 Masowa all annulation is completely absent, while in a 

 specimen from Erythr^a almost all the hairs are annulated, 

 though very coarsely. In all cases, however, it would seem 

 that annulation of the hairs is absent on the tail. The form 

 is rather larger than typical M. sanguineus and has a rather 

 markedly short tail. 



Dimensions as follows : — 



Head and body 350 mm. ; tail 320 ; hind foot 62. 



Skull : condylo-basal length G.3 ; basilar length 60 ; 

 zygomatic breadth 34 ; palate breadth across jy^ 21 ; length 

 c-m^ 23. 



Hah. Type locality Dombea and Simeu Dists., Abyssinia. 

 (Cotype, B.M. no. 164 a.) 



46. 6. 15. 37. Abyssinia. 



