124 On Ocliolona (Conothoa) auiita. 



XII. — Xofc P)i Ocliotona (Conothoa) auri ta, i?/«H/., 

 from Laduk. By J. LEWIS BoNIlOTE, M.A. 



SiN'CE writing my paper on tlie genus Ocliotona (P. Z. S. 

 1904, ii. ]ip. 205 et seqq.) I have through tlie kindness of 

 Col. A. K. Ward received some S])eciiueiis of an Ocliotona 

 from the Pangong Lake, the typical locality of Blant'ord's 

 O. aiirita, which, from reference to his description and plate, 

 1 have no hesitation in referring to tliat s[)ecie.s. 



In my paper quoted above I considered, in default of 

 specimens, that Blanford's 0. aurita was probably identical 

 with Giinther's 0. viacrotis; this, however, is ?JoMhe case, 

 though in view of the stress laid by the describer on the 

 large size of the ears, as also evinced by the name, the 

 mistake was perhaps natural and pardonable. The following 

 is a description of Col. AVard's specimens from the Pangong 

 Lake, Ladak, and Nubia Valley : — 



General appearance very similar to Blanford's plate. 

 Colour above bufiish grey grizzled with black, each hair 

 being black at its base with a huffish subterminal portion 

 and a black tip, which tips are frequently worn otf to a 

 greater or less extent. The feet are white with a tendency 

 to yellowish in their median portion. The underparts are 

 pure white with an indistinct narrow median line of yellowish. 

 Between the ears, across the shoulders, and reaching down 

 the sides of the neck is a broad band of pure buff, divided in 

 two in the middle line by a few of the hairs having black 

 lij)S. The whole of the head is rather brighter and yellower 

 than the rest of the body, but there is no trace of the rufous 

 suffusion of this part which is found in both 0. Roi/lei and 

 0. viacrotis. The skull is typical of the CurzonicB ( = subgen. 

 Conothoa) group. But in some specimens the anterior 

 ])ortion of the large palatine foramen does not immediately 

 broaden out from its anterior end, but the two sides run 

 parallel for a short distance ; they, liowever, never show any 

 tendency to approach each other and can theretbre not be 

 confounded with the rufescens ( = subgen. Ochotona) group. 



In general features the skull resembles most closely tliat 

 of 0. Curzonim, from which there is little to distinguish it, 

 except that the postorbital process of the zygoma is not so 

 long and narrow ; in size it is about the same. Jb'rora 

 0. lloylei the skull may be distinguished, apart from iis 

 rather smaller size, by the fact that the palatal foramen is 

 more triangular in general outline, the posterior portion 

 tending to open out more on either side. 



