52- GILriN — OK THE MAMMALIA OF NOVA SGOTIA., 



speaks of a pure white with leaden base, our animal never reaches . 

 this; a rusty white in mid-winter is all ours attains to. Our 

 nearness to the ocean causes our climate to approximate to south- 

 ern ISTew England, where the hares become in winter only hoary. 

 Mr. Welch has the credit of publishing the first original, exact, 

 and exhaustive articles on change of colour caused by climactral 

 influences, ever given to the publicc My observations were made 

 from the Halifax markets, which are abundantly supplied with 

 hares. BeoinninG: the 18th October, I found one with two white 

 whiskers. On the SOth I found one with a whisker half vfhite and 

 half black, but in no other respects changed. On the 9th^and 10th 

 November, I examined many more, one had hair in front of thighs 

 getting long and white, several more had the same appearance on 

 fronts of thighs, but in addition, the rump and tail becoming 

 covered with long and white hairs, a white patch each side of the ; 

 nose, a patch upon the forehead and backs of ears becoming hoary. 

 One had a patch of white running up the side of the belly, in front 

 of thigh. The whiskers were generally white. J^ovember 18th, a 

 very large buck hare, had forehead to the eyes white, spot middle 

 of forehead and back of 6yes wliite, backs of both ears and stripe 

 running down nape of neck, white. Some wliite and long hairs in 

 front of fore legs, (which are also becoming rusty) and shoulders 

 vrith long white hairs, the hind legs, with exception of toes and 

 pads are soiled white, this soiled white has invaded the whole rump 

 tail and is creeping over the hind flanks and down the back to 

 about two inches. Under a strong glass, this soiled look is caused 

 by long black hairs scattered about. The brown fur still remain- 

 ing is short and lustreless, still having many black hairs through it, 

 and the edges ill defined where it borders upon the white. The, 

 toes both before and hind are light rusty, and all the pads, rusty 

 white, and much thickened in patches ; on opening the fur on the 

 brown parts and examining it with a strong glass, the basal fur is 

 seen, and through it a short crop of white hairs > sticking up and 

 crossing each other in all directions is seen. In the pure white of 

 the belly and where the change has taken place, this crop is not 

 seen. Everywhere the long white hair is thicker than the old 

 brown hair which comes out on pulling, about as easily as the new., 



