293 Monograph of the Genus Sciurus. 



head and cheeks brownish black ; hairs of the back, plumbeous 

 at the roots, then cinereous, then black, with white lips ; hairs 

 of the tail white with a ring of black three fourths of the way 

 from roots. General hue light grey, with occasional black hairs 

 interspersed mostly on the neck and shoulders. This is the va- 

 riety called by Bosc, S. capistratus. 



Tax. niger. (S. niger. Gates, and Bartram. ) Nose and ears white, 

 with a few light colored hairs on the feet. Body and tail black. 



Yar. griseo-nigricans. Nose, mouth, under-jaw and ears white ; 

 head, thighs, and beneath, black. Desni. Encyc. Method. Mam. 

 333. A fourth variety is common in Alabama ; sometimes also 

 seen in South Garolina. Of this, the head and neck are black ; 

 the ears and nose white ; back, dark rusty brown ; neck, thighs, 

 and beneath, bright ferruginous ; tail annulated with black and 

 red. The color of the young does not always correspond with 

 that of the parent of the same sex. Thus the male parent of a 

 black color, may produce young of the same sex which are grey, 

 and vice versa. 



Dimensions of the Fox Squirrel. 



Length of head and body, - - - 



" of tail, (vertebrae,) - _ _ _ 



" of palm, and middle fore claw, 

 " of sole and middle hind claw, 



" of fur on back, - - - - - 



Height of ear posteriorly, - - - _ 



Geographical distribution and habits. — Exists sparingly in 

 New Jersey ; not observable in the mountainous districts of Vir- 

 ginia. In the pine forests of the Garolinas, it is a common inhab- 

 itant. Found also in Florida and Alabama. The fox squirrel 

 prefers high and thinly wooded pine ridges, and frequently resorts 

 to the vicinities of rich valleys for the nuts, acorns, and chinka- 

 pins, Castanea pmnila^ which such soils produce. The nest is 

 commonly a hollow oak, through the thin decayed trunk of which 

 it either gnaws with its teeth a sufficient cavity, or occupies the 

 deserted hole of the ivory-billed woodpecker. (Picus. principalis.) 



" The summer duck too is frequently a competitor for the same 

 residence ; contests for possession occasionally take place between these 

 three species, and I have generally observed, that the tenant that 



