468 MR. E. R. ALSTON ON THE BRITISH MARTENS. [June 3, 



2. On the Specific Identity of the British Martens. 

 By Edward R. Alston, F.L.S., F.Z.S., &c. 



[Eeceived May 20, 1879.] 



Two European species of Martens have been generally recognized 

 by naturalists since the days of Albertus Magnus and Agricola, 

 although some writers, including Linnseus himself, regarded them as 

 identical. It is only of late years, however, that their specific dis- 

 tinctness has been finally proved ; and before considering the ques- 

 tion of the identity of the British Martens, it will be well to point 

 out the true synonymy and diagnostic characters of the species in 

 question, concerning which some confusion still appears to exist. 



Several systematic writers, especially in Germany and America, 

 have assigned the Linnaean title Mustela to the Martens instead of 

 to the more truly typical Weasels, on the ground that this had been 

 done by Cuvier. But the names Putorius and Mustela were only 

 employed by the great French zoologist to mark sous-genres, and 

 were not used binomially to indicate distinct genera \ The first de- 

 finite separation was made three years later by Nilsson, who gave 

 the generic title of Martes to the present group 2 ; and thus both 

 priority and propriety sanction the restriction of the name Mustela 

 to the true Weasels and Ermines. There has also been some differ- 

 ence of opinion as to the specific name which should properly be 

 given to the Mustela martes of Linnseus. Many writers have em- 

 ployed abietum, apparently on the ground that it was used as a 

 varietal name by Linnaeus himself. This, however, is not the case : 

 the varieties abietum and fagorum were not accepted by him ; 

 he merely says that such a distinction was recognized by the pea- 

 sants 3 . Moreover, if abietum be used, the universally known name 

 of foina for the allied species would have to be withdrawn in favour 

 of fagorum. The earliest equivalent to Mustela martes appears 

 undoubtedly to be Nilsson' s Martes sylvatica ; and the synonymy of 

 the two species should therefore stand thus : — 



I. Martes sylvatica. 



Mustela. martes, Linnaeus, Syst. Nat. (12th ed.), i. p. 67 (1766). 

 Martes sylvatica, Nilsson, Faun. Skand. (1st. ed.) i. p. 41 (1820). 



vulgaris, Griffith, Cuvier's An. Kingd. v. p. 123 (1827). 



abietum, Fleming, Brit. Animals, p. 14, ex Ray (1828). 



sylvestris, Nilsson, Faun. Skand. (2d ed.) i. p. 171, ex 



Gesner (1847). 



1 'Kegne Animal' (l re eU, 1817), i. pp. 147, 199. 



2 Skand. Fauna (1st ed. 1820), i. p. 41. The genus Martes has been quoted 

 by Lilljeborg and some others as instituted by "Gr. Cuvier, 1797;" this error 

 appears to have originated in a misunderstanding of the Preuch plural Maries 

 in the ' Tableau Elementaire.' 



3 " Varietas duplex rustieis : Fagorum gutture albo ; Abietum gutture flavo." 

 Syst. Nat, (12th ed.) i. p. 67. 



