1908.] ox MAMMALS FROM NORTHERN CHINA. 963 



but also in several other Oriental Potamonidte — I find it in 

 Potamon (Fotccmoncmtes) cunicularis and in P. {ParatlielphuscC) 

 ti-idantatum, but not in African species referred to these two 

 subgenera, — and the clue thus afforded might, if followed up, 

 lead to results important for the classification of the family. 



EXPLANATION OF PLATE LXVIII. 



Fig. 1. Gecarcinucus Ingt-ami, male, from above, natural size. 



2- „ ,• „ anterior part ot bod}', seen from in 



front. 



3- „ „ „ larger chela, from tlie outer side. 



4. „ „ „ third maxilli^jed. 



5. ,, „ ,, abdomen. 



4 



The Duke o£ Bedford^s Zoological Exploration in Eastern 

 Asia. — XI. On Mammals from the Provinces of Shan-si 

 and Shen-si, Northern China. By Oldfield Thomas, 

 F.R.S., F.Z.S.* 



[Received December 15, 1908.1 



The collection dealt with in the present paper is a continuation 

 of that described in the last part (sitprdj p. 635), which con- 

 tained a certain number of Shan-si Mammals, collected up to 

 February 1908. After despatching that series Mr. Andei'son, 

 now accompanied by Mr. A. de C. Sowerby, an English resident 

 in Shan-si, commenced work again immediately after starting 

 from Tai-Yuen-Fu, whence he moved westwards and soutliwards, 

 across the Hoang-ho, down to Yen-an-fu, in Shen-si. He then 

 turned northwards again, crossed the Great Wall at the south- 

 eastern corner of the Ordos Desert, wdiich I had asked him to 

 visit, and from there w^orked back again to the centre of Shan-si, 

 where, except for the interesting topotypical series of Entamias 

 asiaticics senescens, picked up on the way to Peking, the collecting 

 of this set came to an end. 



The collection as a whole is of extreme interest arid value as 

 being the first we have received from the far eastern edge of the 

 inland desert area of Central Asia. It therefore gives us the 

 exact Eastern limit on this latitude of certain of the Centi-al Asian, 

 desert forms, such as Merione,s, D'lpus, and Ochotona, while in 

 other cases it shows the effect that this raised desert area has on 

 such forms as have penetrated to it from the lower country still 

 further east to the coast. This effect is mainly in a general 

 paling of colour, without alteration in structure, only one species t, 



* [The complete account of the new species described in this communication 

 appears here ; but the names and preliminary diagnoses of those underlined were 

 published in the 'Abstract,' No. 63 (Dec. 15, 1908).— Editor.] 



t The Hedghog. 



