362 DR. ST. G. MIVART ON THE ARCTOIDEA. [Apr. 21, 



is nevertheless allied to Proeyon. Its two species range from tlie 

 southern parts of the United States to Central America. The soles 

 of the feet are hairy. 



There are 13 dorsal, 7 lumbar, 3 sacral, and more than 23 caudal 

 vertebrae. In addition to the cranial characters pointed out by Prof. 

 Flower \ which are very fully given, there is nothing which need 

 here be noted beyond the relatively large size of the infra-orbital 

 foramen and of the postorbital processes of the frontals. The palate 

 hardly extends beyond the last molars, but the mesopterygoid fossa 

 is very long. 



Molar formula = P. \, M. |, 



The teetb are like those of Procyoji, except that the fourth upper 

 premolar narrows posteriorly. It has three external cusps (whereof 

 the middle cusp is much the largest), and two internal cusps, the 

 posterior one of which is much the smaller. Thus, but for the 

 second internal cusp, it would be like the corresponding tooth of 

 Paradoxurus. It is a really sectorial tooth. The first upper molar 

 is like the same tooth of Proeyon, except that it is relatively broader ; 



house, P. Z. S. 1839, p. 137, note ; Flower, P. Z. S. 1869, pp. 31-34 : Lichtenstein's 

 Darst. neu. Saug. pi. 43 ; Charlesworth, P. Z. S. 1841, p. 60 ; De Saussure, Eev. 

 et Mag. de Zool. 1S60, p. 7, pi. i. ; Peters, Monats. Berlin, 1874, p. 70-1, pis. i. & 

 ii. ; Baird, Mammals of N. Amer. p. 147, and Zool. of Mexican Boundary, 

 part ii., Mammals, p. 17, pi. 14. figs. 2 a-e\ AUen, Bull. TJ. S. Geol. Surrey, 

 vol. V. p. 33fi; Audubon, ii. p. 314, fig. 98; Paul Gervais, Voyage de la 

 'Bonite' (1841), and Mammiferes, vol. ii. p. 42; De Blainville, Osteograpliie, 

 Mustela ; Turner, P. Z. S. 1848, p. 81 ; Wagner, Saug. Siippl. vol. ii. p. 277. 



This animal, called Cacomistle, is said to have somewhat the look of a Fox 

 and the ringed tail of the Eaccoon, and a body umeh like the Vison's. The fur 

 soft, with long hairs interspersed. Ears well def eloped, erect, and pointed, 

 almost naked externally, but clothed with short hairs within. The posterior 

 edge is split. The whiskers are long, eyes rather large, and tail bushy, de- 

 pressed, ringed black and white. Feet with naked pads, but the rest of the 

 under surface hairy. Claws short, but partially retractile. The animal is 

 about the size of a Cat, being 17.t inches from tlie nose to the root of the tail, 

 with the tail 16 inches long, exclusive of the hairs at its tip. It is of a dull 

 brownish yeUow mixed with grey (with long black hairs interspersed) above 

 and whitish beneath. The tips of the ears, a spot above and below the eye, and 

 the upper lip are j-ellowish white. The tail has 7 or 8 brownish-black rincrs 

 (which become wider antero-posteriorly), with a black tip. It is called the 

 " Cat-Squirrel "' by the Texans. It lives amongst rocks and trees. It is not 

 rare, but is seldom seen, being nocturnal. It is easily tamed and even domes- 

 ticated, and makes a mild and playful pet ; it is useful for destroying mice 

 and rats, but is a very destructive animal to poultry, and is naturally bold. 

 The female specimen which was killed is said to have fought furiously with 

 claws and teeth, and shown uo disposition to fly. Four or five young aclhered 

 to her teats so firmly that it required considerable force to detach them ; thouo-h 

 when they were removed the mother had been dead several hours, they showed 

 no signs of discomfort. It prefers to inhabit woods traversed by watercourses. 

 It feeds on small quadrupeds and birds, and makes its nest in the trunks of 

 trees, in holes from 12 to 18 inches deep, which are the result of natural decay. 

 It is said, however, always to remove the bark round the mouth of the hole it 

 inhabits, and when no such marks are to be detected, it is a sign that the animal 

 has abandoned that dwelling. The tail is carried bent over the back, much in 

 the fashion of a Squirrel. It has three or four young at a birth. 



1 P. Z. S. 1869, pp. 10 and 33, and fig. 3 a. 



