636 MR. W. T. BLANFORD ON THE [DcC. 6, 



race commonly called V. montana '. The North-African V. nilotica 

 and the Persian V. persica are considerably smaller ; and V. griffithi 

 of Afghanistan, V.pusilla of the Punjab, and V. leucopus of Western 

 India are of still inferior dimensions, tlie last-named being the 

 smallest of the series. But except in size I can find no constant 

 distinction between these races. I do not think in any case that 

 V. griffithi and V. pusilla can be distinguished from V. leucopus, 

 and I have equally little hesitation in uniting V . fiavescens and the 

 so-called V. montana with V. alopex ; but I do not feel so sure 

 about V. persica and V. nilotica. So far as India is concerned, it 

 appears most convenient to recognize as distinct species the large 

 V. aZo^jex (including V . fiavescens and V. montana v, hiinalayica) and 

 the small V. leucopus (comprising V. pusilla and V. griffithi), 

 especially as the two are said to occur together in Afghanistan ; and 

 it is possible that V. nilotica, originally described as being the size 

 of the European Red Fox {V. alopex), may he a variety of that 

 species, and V. persica of V. leucopus. The North-American Cross 

 Fox, Canis fulvus v. pennsylvanicus, appears also to be a variety of 

 V, alopex. 



IX. On the Generic Terms Mustela, Martes, and Putorius. 



By most English naturalists the Martens have been referred to a 

 genus Martes, and the Polecats and Weasels to Mustela, under the 

 supposition that the old Linnaean genus Mustela was thus divided 

 hy Cnvier in 1797 in his 'Tableau Elementaire.' This was not 

 the case ; he merely called the Martens in French " Les Martes." 

 But he did divide the genus in the ' Regne Animal,' 1st ed., pub- 

 lished in 1817, and proposed four subiienera, keeping the Martens 

 alone in Mustela, and usi ig Putorius for tlie Weasels and Polecats ". 

 Alston urges, P. Z. S. 1879, p. 468, that the names then proposed 

 by Cuvier cannot be employed as they are only of subgeneric 

 value ; but not only have they been generally used by continental 

 naturalists, but several of the best known genera of birds, amongst 

 others Ploceus, Vidua, and Budytes, stand on precisely the same 

 foundation, having been similarly proposed in the same work. There 

 is nothing to show that the Weasels were considered the typical 

 forms of Mustela by Linnaeus ; indeed his description of the genus 

 points rather to the Martens, and the word Mustela in Latin appears 

 to have been employed for a Marten. 



X. On Xantharpyia, Eleutherura, and Cynonycteris. 



My friend Mr. Dobson, in his valuable works on Chiroptera, has 

 ado{)ted Peters's term Cynonycteris, first proposed in 1852, fur the 

 genus of Fruit-eating Bats comprising Pteropus amplexicaudatus , 



' Canis vulpcs montana, Pearson, J. A. S. B. v. p. 313. According to the views 

 of many of the best natm-alists, a trinomial appellation like this has no claim 

 to priority, and Ogilby's Canis himalayiciis, P. Z. S. 1836, p. 103, given the same 

 year, would be preferred. 



^ My attention was called to this by Mr. Oldfield Thomas. 



