CLASSIFICATION OF THE SCIURID.E. 



223 



philvppinensis, inelanogaster, temtis, hrooJcei, loivii, murhnis. I 

 have not seen their bacula ; but those described above are 

 sufficient to show how variable this bone is within the limits of 

 the genus as admitted by Thomas. The variation, indeed, is so 

 great that it is impossible to affirm any character by which the 

 baculum of Tometctes can be distinguished from the bacula of 

 Dreinio'mys, Rhinosciurus^ Taimiops, and Lariscus. It is not 

 improbable that a careful comparison between the bacula of all 

 the species assigned at present to Tomeuies will give useful indi- 

 cation of interspecific relationship. 



Text-figure 22. 



A. Baculum of Dremomys loTcriali, from the left side. 



B. The same of _D. rujigenis. 



C. The same of D. rnfigenis fuscus. 



D. The same of D. dawsoni. 



E. The same of Lariscus jalorensis. 



F. The same of Wiinosciurus robinsoni. 



G. The same of Tamiops maclellandi harhei. 

 H. The same of Nannosoiurus microtis. 



I. The same of JS'. wliiteheaai. 

 K. The same of JV. exilis. 



The baculum of a specimen of Lariscus jalorensis from Bukit 

 Tangga, Negri Sembilan, is represented by the blade and the 

 piece of the shaft to which it is attached. This portion of the 

 blade is compressed and shows no angulation of its inferior 

 border, which suggests that the upcurvature was gradual as in 

 Tomeutes viitatus or Dremomys daivsoni. Its apex is produced 

 as an acute angle beyond and in the same line as the upper edge 

 of the blade, which is nearly straight, with a slightly depressed 

 apex, and forms an acute angle with the line of the hinge very 



