862 MR. OLDFIELD THOMAS OX [Nov. 27, 



5. MlCROMYS SPECIOSUS PENINSIIL/E, Subsp. 11. 



cS. 688, 696, 713, 714, 723. $. 655, 677, 7U0, 709, 716. 

 Min-gvong, 110 miles S.E. of Seoul. 1200'. 



(S . 724, 729, 730, 732, 733, 738. $ . 725. 10 miles N. of 

 Taikn, S. Korea. 1000-1300'. 



Like true Japanese J/, s'peciosus, but witb longer and more 

 hairy tail. 



Genei'al appearance of winter specimens quite as in Japanese 

 examples. Fur soft and fine, quite without spines ; hairs of back 

 about 9-10 mm. in length. General colour above pale rufous- 

 fawn, the dorsal area finely lined with black. Lips, cheeks, and 

 whole of under surface white ; the hairs slaty for. their basal 

 halves. Ears brown. Upper surface of hands and feet silvery 

 white. Tail avei'aging longer than in ti'ue .speciosus, generally 

 longer than the head and body, well-haired to the tip, the hairs 

 practically hiding the scales ; white on the sides and below, the 

 brown of the upper surface narrowed to a line rarely attaining 

 2 mm. in breadth : in true speciosus the brown covers the whole 

 upper surface of the tail ; tip occasionally pencilled with white. 

 Mamnife 2—2 = 8. 



Skull and teeth as in speciosus, except that the palatine foramina 

 are usually rather shorter, more open, and with moi'e smoothly- 

 rounded edges, and the bullte average smaller. 



Dimensions of four specimens, measured in the flesh : — 



Head & body. Tail. Hind fucit. Ear. 



mm. mm. mm. mm. 



^. 696 107 111 23-5 15 



:J. 723 100 109 24 16 



$.716 106 111 24 15-5 



2 . 709 (Type). 109 108 24-5 16 



Skull (of type) — greatest length 29 mm. ; basilar length 23 ; 

 greatest breadth 14-1 ; interorbital breadth 4*2 ; breadth of brain- 

 case 12-2; palatal foramina 5-6 X 2-3 ; length of upper molar 

 series 4. 



Tf/2M. Female. B.M. No. 6.12.6.45. Original number 709. 

 Collected 12 December, 1905. 



This Mouse shows- such evident signs of relationship to the 

 Japanese M. speciosus that I have little doubt that in summer, 

 like its island ally, it acquires a spiny coat. 



I am well aware that most modern mammologists would call this 

 animal a species, and not merely a subspecies, both on grounds of 

 distribution and constancy of characters. But it appears to me 

 one of the cases where the immense convenience of showing by the 

 name the exact alliance of the animal should override theoretical 

 definitions as to Avhat are " species" and what "subspecies." In 

 the genus Micromys, with its six well-defined and distinct " good 

 species " (in the old sense), from tv\^o to four of them present in 

 every locality between Ireland and Japan, a liinomial term such 



