MAMMALS OF MESOPOTAMIA. 341 



Buxton remarks from Amara, they are common but very difficult to 

 trap. He trapped one with cheese, but the rest of his specimens were 

 shot at the mouth of the burrow. He adds: " during the spring- floods 

 they excavate hard even by day light and come to the surface to throw out 

 earth". I also found them difficult to trap and my specimens from Sheikh 

 Saad garden were dug out of their holes by a gang from a Santali Labour 

 Corps, who proved experts at catching them alive in their hands and were 

 sorely disappointed that they were not allowed to eat them. 



They live in colonies in holes in dry banks of canals. Their holes are 

 always stopped at the entrance with loose earth. So anxious are they 

 that the holes shall be closed, that I used to remove the loose earth. 

 Very shortly a head would appear and the damage be immediate!' 

 repaired. 



The nearest ally in colour to N. huxtoni is N. huttoni from Kandahar, an 

 illustration of which appears in Blanf. Eastern Persia ii, p. 61, a neigh- 

 bouring species. 



Nesokia bailwardi from S. Caspian is a dark wood brown. 



Mr. Oldfield Thomas I'.as named the Mesopotamian species after Capt. 

 P. A. Buxton. 



32. Mus MUscuLUs GENTiLis, Brants. 



1827. Mus gentilis, Brants, Muizen, p. 126. 

 House Mouse. Arabic ' Fars.' 



8cJ 5$ Amara Buxton, 27-11-17 to 8-9-18. 

 1 c? Sinn Abtar, Kut Shortridge, 5-7-16. 



1 Busra Cox-Oheesman, May 1916. 



Ic? Twin Canals „ 15-11-16. 



Id 1 $ Sheikh Saad Cox-Cheesman, 26-2-17 & 4-3-17. 



1$ Busra Kilminster, 22-5-18. 



1 c? 1 2 „ Whitehead. 15-5-18 & 20-5-18. 



2 d 1 2 „ May, 27-5-18 & 28-5-18. 

 1 Amara Wall, M. 10 in al. 



1 „ Connor, M. 11 in al. 



3 Busra Christy, June 1918 in al. 



These mice are found in the fields as well as in houses, and often 

 turned up in tents in the most distant desert camps. Among the speci- 

 mens received were several tending to a chestnut brown coloration on the 

 back. The majority were brown. 



Blanford obtained a specimen of Mus bactrian%s, the Kandahar house 

 mouse, from Shiraz and mentions that he expects that this will be the 

 house mouse of S. Persia. 



i/MS musculus musculus of Linnfeus, the common house mouse of 

 Europe, although originating from Central Asia, has now been carried all 

 over the world. Typical forms of this have recently been taken at Menjil, 

 N. W. Persia, by Buxton. 



Mus musculus gentilis, an Eastern form of the common house mouse is 

 found in Egypt. A rough guide to these three forms is belly dark, with 

 slate coloured bases, to hairs, 3Ius. m. musculus. Belly whitish, but 

 with slate bases to hairs, Mus. m. gentilis. Belly white, with white bases 

 to hairs, Mus. bactrianus. The tails of the Mesopotamian specimens from 

 measurements in the flesh, average 76-5 m.m. which is eleven m.m shorter 

 than a series recently collected by Hotson in Shiraz. Several Mesopotamian 

 specimens have the pure white underparts of M. bactrianus. 



