300 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XI 



The question may probably be asked, why I do not adopt the Ameri- 

 can system and use trinomials, Sciurus indicus dealbatus, etc., as has 

 been done by several good naturalists. My reason is that the plan 

 appears to me a retrograde step in nomenclature and a reversion from 

 the simple and convenient binomial terms of Linnaeus to the cumbrous 

 polynomials of his predecessors. Not only is it certain, if once trinomi- 

 als are admitted, that additional terms will be added to suit the whims 

 of spec alists and to flatter the vanity of name-givers, but there is a 

 radical difference between the various kinds of sub-specific forms for 

 which a distinctive name is wanted. For many years trinomials have 

 been largely used by horticulturists to label cultivated varieties of 

 plants, and by several writers for races of tame mammals. There are 

 many wild varieties both <>f plants and animals that are not dependent 

 on geographical distribution; there are geographical races, as in the 

 case of the Indian squ'rrels, and there are in some cases, as amongst 

 insects, seasonal varieties. .Moreover, in some of the lower animals there 

 are alternating generations of various kinds, and besides these, there 

 are the " Mutations," as they have been termed, of fossil species found 

 in successive divisions of geological strata. Why, amongst all these 

 kinds of variation, the trinomial method should be reserved for geo- 

 graphical races is a question that does not appear easy to answer ; it 

 has not been so reserved in the past, nor, if it continues to be employed, 

 is it likely to be in the future, but surely there should be a distinction 

 maintained between the nomenclature applied to distinct types of varia- 

 tion, such as artificial varieties and geographical races. 



The following is the synonymy (very briefly given), the coloration 

 and distribution of the different races of large Indian squirrels. 



1. Sciurus indicus or S. indicus var. typicvs — The Bombay Squirrel. 



The Bombay Squirrel, Pennant, Syn. Quad., p. 281 (1.771). 



Sciurus indicus, Erxleben, Syst. Reg. An., p. 420 (1777). 



Sciurus purpureus, Zimmermann, Spec. Zool. Geog. Quad., p. 518 

 (1777). 



Sciurus bombayanus, Boddaert, Elench. Anim., p. 117 (1785). 



Sciurus elphinstoneij Sykes, P. Z. S. (1831), p. 103 ; Jerdon, 

 Mam., p. 167 ; Fraser, Zool. Typ., pi. 26. 

 Upper parts, including the ears, shoulders, external surface of hind 

 limbs to the feet and tail, bright chestnut-red, a narrow cheek stripe 



