1898.] MU. OLDFIELI) THOMAS ON SCITJEtTS FINLATSONl. 245 



April 5th, 1898. 



Lt.-Col. H. H. GoDWiK-AusTEN, F.E.S., Vice-President, 

 in the Chair. 



The Secretary read the following report on the additions to the 

 Society's Menagerie during the month of March 1898 : — 



The registered additions to the Society's Menagerie during the 

 month of March 1898 were 102 in number. Of these 22 were 

 acquired by presentation, 50 by purchase, 1 was born in the 

 Gardens, 8 were received by exchange, and 21 on deposit. The 

 total number of departures during the same period, by death 

 and removals, was 79. 



Among these may be specially noticed : — 



An example of the Galapagan Tortoise (Testudo (/alapagensis), 

 one of the Giant Tortoises of the Galapagan Islands, deposited 

 by the Hon. Walter Eothschild, F.Z.S., on March 27th. This 

 Tortoise is believed to be about 130 years old, and is said to weigh 

 about 85 cwt. 



Mr. Oldfield Thomas exhibited a series of specimens of a 

 Siamese Squirrel provisionally assigned to Sciurus finlayson 

 Horsf., which had been obtained at Ayuthia, Siam, by Mr. Stanley 

 S. Flower, to illustrate the remarkable variability to which this 

 species was subject. The specimens had all been shot in one grove 

 of trees a few miles north of Ayuthia on Feb. 5, 6, and 7, so that 

 the factors of local and seasonal variation were entirely excluded, 

 and these Squirrels were thus most valuable material for the studj 

 of individual variation in colour. 



After eliminating duplicate specimens, the following seven forms 

 could be distinguished : — 



1. Head and back dark grizzled, more or less tinged with rufous. 

 Ears, feet, and belly red. Tail grizzled black and yellowish. 



2. Like no. 1, but the muzzle partly white, and the tail broadly 

 washed with rich red. 



3. Crown and back still dark grizzled I'ufous, but muzzle, ears, 

 hands, feet, and whole of belly white, as they were in all the 

 succeeding specimens. Tail as in no. 1. 



4. Like no. 3, but tail above grizzled blackish washed with red 

 (as in no. 2), beneath white (as in no. 7). 



5. Crown and back grizzled whitish-grey, the rufous tone quite 

 gone. Tail grizzled, washed with huffy instead of rufous. 



6 & 7. Like no. 5, but the tail in the first grizzled, washed with 

 white, and in the second quite white. 



Finally, the type of S. finlaysoni was wholly white, while at 

 the other end of the series forms such as '^ S. ferruc/ineus" and 

 " S. splendidus " were rich red throughout. 



At first sight it might be supposed that it would be hopeless to 



