368 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



the Bank Vole from the Short-tailed Vole, and will conclude by 

 giving some account of the habits of the rarer species as noticed 

 by several good observers. This by way of supplement to the 

 remarks under this head, which are given in the second edition 

 of Bell's ' British Quadrupeds.' 



Yarrell, when first describing the Bank Vole as British, 

 under the name of Arvicola riparia, pointed out the striking 

 difference between that species and A. agrestis in the length 

 of the tail in proportion to length of body, the tail of the Bank 

 Vole being much longer, equalling about one-half the length 

 of the body ; while that of the Short-tailed Vole reaches only to 

 one-third of the length of body. The number of caudal vertebrae 

 he ascertained to be in A. agrestis, 19; in A. glai-eolus, 23. In 

 agrestis, also, which is the larger of the two species, he found the 

 cavity of the thorax much larger, the ribs of greater expanse, the 

 sternum longer, and the feet slightly shorter. The proportions 

 of the Bank Vole, as Bell has pointed out, are more elegant, its 

 colours brighter, and its fur more smooth and glossy. The head 

 is naiTower and less flattened ; the eyes larger and more con- 

 spicuous ; and the ears longer, showing distinctly above the fur. 

 The head and back are rich chestnut, which passes on the flanks 

 into a more or less clear grey ; while the breast, belly, and feet 

 are almost pure white.* The young are much darker in colour 

 than the adults. 



Of nine adults obtained by Mr. Rope in Suffolk, near 

 Blaxhall, the average dimensions were : — Head and body, 3 

 inches 8 lines ; tail, 1 inch 9 lines. One example, a female, 

 measured as much as 4 inches in head and body, the tail being 

 1 inch 9 lines. An old female (with five young), brought in by a 

 cat belonging to Mr. Norgate, of Spurham, near Norwich, was 

 larger and redder than an old male ; ear, 6 lines long and 6 broad ; 

 base of tail covered with long hair, like that of the body (ZooL, 

 1874, p. 4236). 



Arvicola agrestis is a dweller in the open fields; A. glareolus 

 affects more sheltered situations. The haunts of the latter 



* Mr. Kope says, "the bright fawn or orange tint observable on the 

 under parts of some specimens varies a good deal in intensity, being some- 

 times altogether absent." An albino specimen, procured at Chelmsford in 

 August, 1885, by Mr. E. Rosling, was reported in 'The Zoologist' for that 

 year, p. 433. 



