296 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXIII 



From thence onward, even including Naini Tal and Almora,* only the 

 white bellied form appears in the collection. Secondly, the coloration at 

 several, especially of the higher, stations, is extraordinarily constant for 

 each locality, while noticeably diflering from that of other stations. 



Further in connection with Oapt. Lloyd's paper and conclusions on 

 the variations of " Mus rattus " (Records, Ind. Mus. Ill, pt. 1. 1909), it 

 is most interesting to note that series of (1) the white bellied form of 

 rufesaens, (2) E. vicerex and (3) E. nitidus were taken at Khati, living side 

 by side and breeding perfectly true, without hybrids, thus pointing to 

 a full specific difference between the three forms. 



When the E. rufescens group in the survey comes to be worked out in 

 detail, this collection will be of the utmost value. I fear it is doubtful if 

 the survey will be able to extend collecting to much more of the Himala- 

 yas : if any member would lay himself out to make a collection represen- 

 tative of some other district such as this, he would do a most excellent 

 work, 



(47) Epimys vicerex, Bonh. 



The North Asian Rat. 



1903. Mus vicerex, Bonhote, A. M. N. H. XI, ser. 7, p. 473. 

 1891. Mm rattus, Blanford, Mammalia. No. 272 {partim). 



4 J d , 3 $ $ , Dhakuri 9,000' ; 6 J c5 , 6 $ $ , Khati, 7,600'. 



Bonhote described his vicerex from a specimen taken at Simla. About 

 a year earlier, Satunin (Ann. Zool. Mus. St. Petersburg, VII, p. 588, 1902) 

 described a form from Ferghana, Turkistan, which is evidently very 

 closely related to, if not identical with, vicerex. We appear therefore to be 

 here on the southern limit of a North Asian species. 



This form is at once distinguishable from the white bellied variety of 

 rufescens by its shorter, markedly bicolor tail (dark above, pale below). 



(48) Epimys nitidus, Hodgs. 



1845. Mus nitidus, Hodgson, A. M. N. H. XV, p. 268. 

 1891. Mus rattus, Blanford, Mammalia No. 272 {partim). 



4 c? cJ , 5 2 $ , Khati, Pindar Valley, 7,600' ; 1 c? , 2 2 $ , Lwar- 

 khet, 6,000'; 27 d ^, 33 $ $, Lohaghat, Almora, 5,600'; 2 

 d c? , 3 $ 5 , Ratighat, 3,700'. 



Though closely related to rufescens, this species is recognisable by its 

 shorter tail and pale blue grey underparts ; this colour effect is produced 

 by the slate coloured hairs being tipped with white. 



" According to the natives of Lohaghat this is a field rat which comes 

 near and into villages during the winter. It seems to be fond of rocky 

 situations and occasionally makes a small collection of nutshells outside 

 its abode"— 0. A. C. 



(49) Epimys niviventbb, Hodgs. 



The White-Bellied Rat. 



1836. Mus (Rattus) niviventer, Hodgson, J. A. S. B. V., p. 234. 



1891. Mus niviventer, Blanford, Mammalia No. 280. 

 2S S, 7 5 ? , Dhakuri, 9,000'. 



This species is separated from the rufescens group by its bicoloured tail as 

 well as by skull characters. E. niviventer, which is a grey brown colour 

 above, has a tail only slightly exceeding the head and body in length. 



* These are European cantonments and there must be a constantly recurring' 

 chance of importing' dark bellied individuals from the Railway, 



