100 ZOOLOGY. 



The two species occurring in the region explored maybe distinguished 



as follows : 



[. Tail scantily hairy (nearly as in Mus). 



a. Tail tricolor, barely or not, as long as the body without the head. 



Feet entirely white. Length, 9 inches or less ; tail, G or less . .floridana. 

 II. Tail densely hairy (as in Myoxus), bieolor. Size of the first, or larger. .CiNEREA. 



NEOTOMA Fi.OBLDANA, Say and Ord. 

 Wood Rat. 



Mus floridana, Obd, Bull. Soc. Philoin. Phila.. ISIS, 181. 



Arvieola floridana, Harlan, Fn. Am., 1825, 141. 



Neotoma floridana, Say & Orb, J. A. N. S. P., iv, 1825, 352, pi. x, figs. 1, 2, 3, 4. — 



Ooues, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sei. Phila., 1874, 175. 

 Lcmmusfloridainis, Fischer, Syn., 1829,299. 

 Neotoma mexicana, Bd., P. A. N. S. P., vii, 1855, 333; M. N. A., 1857, 490; Mex. B. 



Surv., ii, 1859, 14, pi. 24, f. 1, a-g.— Coues, Am. Nat., i, 1807,399. 

 Neotoma micropus, Bd., P. A. N. S. P., vii, 1855, 333; M. N. A., 1857, 492; Mex. B. 



Surv., ii, 1859, 44. 



IIab. — Southern United States and Northern Mexico. North to Maryland (Au- 

 dubon), New York (Pell), and Massachusetts (Gibbs). Illinois, Arkansas, Kansas. 



This is the ordinary species of Arizona and New Mexico ;.the following 

 one being chiefly confined to mountains, and being also more abundant 

 farther north. 



The Bush Rat (Neotoma mexicana) is abundant throughout the Territory, 

 and forms no small item in the economy of the Indians. Not only the 

 numerous tribes of the Colorado, but also the various branches of the Apache 

 family, make great use of them as an article of food. After the destruction 

 of Apache " rancherias," we always found, among other implements and 

 utensils, numerous sticks, about as big as walking-canes, one end of which 

 was bent in the shape of a hook, hardened in the fire, and a little sharpened. 

 These, we were informed and have every reason to believe, were used to 

 probe holes and poke about brush-heaps for rats, and to drag them out 

 when discovered. 



This statement may be doubted by those who know of the Bush I vat 

 only as an arboreal species, building a compact globular nest of grasses 

 and sticks in mezepute and other low, thick trees. While this is certainly 

 the case, there is no doubt that, under different circumstances, it may live 



