ilie Common lledgehoij. ?>(M 



I fiml that a))|)arc'iitly t!u! coloration ti-iuls to become liglitcr 

 as the animal ratii^^e.s southward, until Spanish s|)('eimcn.s arc 

 almost white. 'I'hi.s is ellectcd by a li-hteiiing not only of 

 the hairs but also of the spines. 'I'hese appear to become 

 whiter along their whole length, so that while in one spine 

 the dirty is represented by a purer white atul the brown band 

 has little intensity, in another the brown band may have 

 entirely disapj)eared and the colour is white throughout the 

 whole length of the spine. In its extreme form this l)ecome3 

 a very well-marked subspecies, which I accordingly here take 

 the opportunity to describe. 



Another ()hase of the animal is represented in Italy, where, 

 as regards colour, the hedgehogs are slightly |)ah*r than 

 those of Western Europe. In Sicily there is a subs|)ccies of 

 which the longer, thicker bristles havt^ broader while and more 

 strongly contrasted deeper black annulations. The Il(jumanian 

 hedgehogs are distinguishable by the fact that the dirty-white 

 hairs of the under surface are arranged in a defined breast-spot, 

 thus approximating (in this respect only) very closely to E. con- 

 color^ Martin, of which the Museum possesses the type specimen 

 from Trebizond. In other res|jects the type of E. e. concolor 

 is of highly remarkable appearance, and differs in its dark 

 burnt-umber coloration from specimens from Mount Lebanon, 

 which, although similar to E. e. concolor in size and propor- 

 tions, possess the white tips to the spines which characterize 

 our own hedgehog. I suspect, however, that the colour of 

 the former is due to the process of preservation to which it 

 was subjected, and hence I refer the Lebanon specimens to 

 E.e. concolor. Lastly, two specimens from Pekin and Chefoo 

 show that there occurs at the extreme eastern limit of the 

 great Palaiarctic Region a hedgehog which, although paler, is 

 yet not very widely diflbrent from our own. 



One or two points of general interest deserve a brief notice 

 before I pass on to enumeiate the various subspecies ; arid, 

 firstly, it is interesting to find Eastern European mammals 

 approaching or intergrading with those of Western Asia. 

 Several similar instances have recently been brought before 

 our notice. Thus we have Ovis ophion iirniiana ^ of the 

 islands of Lake Urmi, intermediate between 0. ophion of 

 Cyprusand 0.orientalisoiA.^\ix\ Microtus Musijnani illyricus^ 

 of Bosnia, intermediate between M. Musicjnani of Spain and 

 AJ. persicus oi Kurdistan and Persia; Mcles meles viediter- 

 ramus \ of Crete, intermediate between M. m. iypicus of 



* A. Giinther, Journ. Linn. Soc, Zool. vol. xxvii. p. 37 i. 



t Barrctt-Hftiuilton, .-Vnu. & Mag. Nut. Ilist., March 18i>9, p. 225. 



X III. oj). at. Nov. la99, p. 383. 



