RESULTS FROM MAMMAL SURVEY. 37 



Dimensions of the type, meas-ured in the flesh : — 



Head and body 377 mm ; tail 415 ; hindfoot 71 ; eai- 26 ; weight 

 2 lbs. 



Skull, greatest length (c.) 68 mm. 



Hob. — Lowland areas all round Ceylon. Type from Wellawaya, 

 Uva Province. Alt. 608'. 



Tfiie. — Adnlt female. B. M. No. 15. 7. 1. 5. Original number 

 304.' Collected 6th July 1913 by Major E. W. Mayor. Presented 

 by the Bombay Natural History Society. About thirty specimens 

 examined. 



This squirrel, which woiild appear to be the common form of 

 the lowlands of Ceylon, is very variable in colour, but may always 

 be distingaiished by its grizzled grey body, with which the black 

 frontal patch contrasts strongly, its bufiy cheeks, and grey tail. 

 As already explained it is the squirrel spoken of by most previous 

 au.thors as Sciunis maoroums, under which name a recognisable 

 figure of it has been given by Blyth.* 



Whether these three forms should be considered species or sub- 

 species is doubtful, but since the differences between macroura and 

 Qnelanochra are very superficial, and those between macroura and 

 dandohna are afiected by the variability of the latter (No. 34<7, B.M. 

 No. 15. 7. 1. 6. is indeed distinctly intermediate) we provisionally 

 consider them as subspecies only. Their respective geographical dis- 

 tributions will present an interesting study for naturalists in Ceylon 

 to work out. 



0. — The Singhalese Species of Funambulus. 



BY 



Oldfield Thomas and E. C. Weoughton. 



(^Published by permission of the Trustees of the British Museum.) 



The Genus Funambulus is represented in Ceylon by three well- 

 marked species, of which two are localised in high altitudes while 

 the third is spread throughout every part of the Island, and in 

 consequence varies considerably, forming geographical races or 

 sub-species. 



The following is a key to the various forms which, with the aid 

 of the fine series collected by Major Mayor, we have been able to 

 differentiate. True F. -palmarum does not occur in Ceylon, but is 

 included in the key for the sake of convenience. 



Key, 



A. — Underside ferruginous ... ... F. layardi, Blyth. 



B. — Underside brown ... ... ... F. hathleenoi, nom. 



nov. 



* J. A. S. B., XVI., pi. XXXVL, fig. 2. 



