88 MR. G. E. H BARRETT-HAMILTON ON [Feb. 6, 



size m favour of the latter, which is confirmed by observations on 

 the weight of the animal. There is possibly a certain amount of 

 iutergradation between North Irish and South Scottish specimens, 

 but I have as yet no evidence of it. I suspect that Scandinavian 

 Hares are larger than those of Scotland, but the number of 

 specimens at present at my disposal is too scanty to establish this 

 fact with certainty. 



The single specimen of the Altai Variable Hare which I have 

 examined is very remarkable in that it belongs to the red-brown 

 type, and closely resembles the Irish Hare : in fact, the only dis- 

 tinguishing characteristic which I can find in it is the fact that the 

 back of each ear is black. It is a remarkable example of the manner 

 in which a particular type of coloration may be independently 

 assumed in quite separate localities. 



There is a very peculiar local form of the Irish Hare, which is 

 found in the County Dublin, Ireland, and in which the upperside is of 

 a uniform buff or cinnamon colour. It seems to me to be of extreme 

 interest to students of colour-variation, as tending to throw light 

 on the possible evolution of species from " sports " or from discon- 

 tinuous variations. That the Irish Hare may have a tendency to 

 vary in that particular direction, even when transported to another 

 country, is shown by the occurrence of a similar sport amongst 

 the introduced Irish Hares of the Island of Mull, Scotland. These 

 sports must, I suppose, be regarded in the light of partially albinistic 

 or leucochroic variations ; but, even if tbeir origin be due in the 

 first instance to disease, they seem to be highly hereditary, and 

 even capable of holding their own against the ordinary form. In 

 the particular district of the County Dublin to which I have 

 referred they are said to occur to the total exclusion of the true 

 Lejms t. Jiibernicus. 



In addition to the above, I take the opportunity of describing 

 from a skull in the British Museum a remarkable Variable Hare 

 from the Island of Yezo, Japan. 



The following are the various forms : — 



(1) Lepus timidus typicus. 



Lepus timidus, Linnaeus, Syst. Nat. ed. x. p. 57 (1758). 



Lepus variabilis. Pallas, Giires, i. p. 1 (1778). 



Lepus alius, W. E. Leach, ' Syst. Cat. of (he Specimens of the 



Indigenous Mammalia and Birds that are preserved in the 



British Museum,' p. 7 (1816). 

 "Lepus borealis Pall.," S. Nilsson, Skandinavisk Fauna, p. 211 



(1820). 

 Lepus borealis sylvaticus, S. Nilsson, Illuminerade Figurer till 



Skandinaviens Fauna, letterpress to pi. 22 (1829-1832): nee 



Bachman (1837). 

 Lepus canescens, Ofversigt af Kongl. Vetenskaps-Akademiens 



Fdrhandlingar, p. 133 (1844). 

 Synonymy. All the above names, except L. alius which has 



