414 



University of California Puhlicafiovs in Zoology [Vol.21 



Martes caurina vancouverensis, new subspecies 



Vancouver Island Pine Marten 



Type locality. — Golden Eagle Mine, 20 miles south of Alberni, 

 Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Type, male adult, skin with 

 skull; no. 12474, Mus. Vert. Zool. ; collected b.y E. Despard (orig. 

 no. 41) ; July 20, 1910. 



Material. — Six specimens, skins with skulls and three of them 

 with complete skeletons, from the type locality and from Errington, 

 Vancouver Island, B. C. 



Fig. (i 



Fio-. 8 



Fig. 5. Miistela caurina caurina, [(^} adult; no. 1063, coll. S. G. Jewett ; 

 Skagit Valley, 4 miles north of International Boundary, British Columbia; Sep- 

 tember, 1920. " X 1. 



Fig. 6. Mustela caurina vancouverensis, (^ adult; type, no. 12474, Mus. Vert. 

 Zool.; Alberni, Vancouver Island, British Columbia; July 20, 1910. X 1. 



Fig. 7. Mustela caurina humioldtensis, ^ subadult ; type, no. 19158, Mus. 

 Vert. Zool.; Carlotta, Humboldt County, California; February, 1913. X 1. 



Fig. 8. Mustela caurina sierrae, (^ subadult; no. 24822, Mus. Vert. Zool.; 

 Bullfrog Lake, Fresno County, California; August 29, 1916. X 1. 



Diagnosis. — Externally like Martes eaurina caurina (C. H. ]\Ier- 

 riam [1890, p. 27]), but skull markedly different: rostrum shorter; 

 frontal region and, indeed, whole cranium broader; zygomatic spread 

 greater; molariform teeth more crowded and more skewed out of 

 alignment ; last upper molar decidedly smaller and its heel far less 

 expanded anteroposteriorly. (See figs. 1-8.) Skull in general pro- 

 portion>s more nearly like that of Mustela. 7iesopJiila Osgood (1901, 

 p. 33, pi. 5), but smaller (see Swarth, 1912, pp. 104, 105) and with 

 weaker dentition ; last upper molar much smaller, and heel even less 

 expanded, thus nearly as in Mustela americana. 



Geographic range. — So far as known, only Vancouver Island, 

 British Columbia. 



