LEPUS. 44& 



eyes open and are able to reproduce at the age of about 6 months. 

 In the European hare the young of the same htter are said to be 

 sometimes dropped at considerable intervals. Rabbits differ from 

 hares considerably ; they dAvell in burrows, and the young are born 

 naked and with the eyes closed. The curious hispid hare also 

 burrows. 



Synopsis of Indian^ Ceylonese, and Burmese sjiecies. 



A . Ears as long as the head or longer, tail 



white beneath. 

 (I. A blaek patch on the back of the 



neck L. nigricoUis, p. 449. 



h. No black patch. 



a'. Upper surface of tail rufous-brown ; 



fur harsh L. niflcaudutus, p. 450. 



V . Upper svuface of tail blackish brown ; 



fur soft L. dayanus, p. 451. 



c'. Upper surface of tnil black. 



n". General colour distinctly rufous .. L. pegtiensis, "p. 451. 



b" . General colour not rufous L. tibetanus, p. 452. 



d'. Tail wholly or almost wholly white. 

 a". Ear longer than hind foot with 



tarsus L. oiostolus, p. 453. 



b". Ear not longer than hind foot with 



tarsus L. hypsihius, p. 453. 



B. Ears shorter than head, tail brown through- 



out ; fur bristly L, hispidus, p. 454. 



319. Lepus nigricoUis. The hlack-naped Hare. 



Lepus nigricoUis, F. Cuv. Diet. Sc. Nat xxvi, p. 307 (1823) ; Uniof, 

 Mad. Jour. L. S. x, p. 218 ; Kelaart, Prod. F. Z. p. 72 ; Blyth, 

 Cat. p. 132 ; Jerdon, Mam. p. 225. 

 Kliaryosh, H. ; Sassa, Mahr. ; Media, Can. ; Musal, Tarn. ; Kundeli, 

 Clwurapilli, Tel. ; Moilu, Mai. ; Hava, Cing. 



Ears thinly clad. Fur somewhat harsh and coarse. 



Colour above rufescent brown and black mixed, except a large 

 black or brownish-black patch on the back of the neck, extending 

 from the ears to the shoulders. Tail rufous-brown above, blackish 

 towards the end. Fore neck, breast, and limbs rufous ; chin, throat, 

 and lower parts from fore limbs white, the dorsal and \'entral 

 tints passing gradually into each other on the flanks. Ears outside 

 brown anteriorly, grey posteriorly, dusky towards the tip, narrowly 

 margined with whitish inside. Dorsal fur ash-grey or creamy 

 white at the base, then black, then rufous or rufescent white, 

 the extreme tips black. Animals fi'om the Nilgiri hills and 

 Ceylon are more richly coloured than those from the plains, but one 

 Nilgiri skin, sent to me by Mr. Hampson, is blackish brown above 

 and not rufous. 



Dimensions. Head and body 19 inches, ears 4'75, tail (without 

 hair?) 2*5 ; a skull measin'es 2*9 in basal length and l-fi5 in breadth 

 across the zygomatic arches. Nilgiri hares weigh 5 to 8 lbs., but 



