198 W. T. Blanford — On Himalayan Mammals. [Nov. 



A black squirrel which was amongst the collections, although so finely 

 coloured that it had all the appearance of being a distinct species, was pro- 

 bably a rnelanoid individual of S. lokrlah or 8. lokrloldes, whilst a dark 

 brown cat's skin had probably belonged to a very dark form of Fells Moor- 

 onensls. This skin was brown, with a distinct black stripe down the back, 

 and with the lower part of the tail whitish, as in F. Moormensls. The nor- 

 mal skins of F. Moormensls agreed well with the plate of F. aurata in the 

 Proceedings of the Zoological Society for 1873, but differed much from 

 a specimen from the Malayan peninsula in the Indian Museum. 



The hare sent was probably the true L. pallipes, as it agreed well 

 with the description, and it shewed that the species collected at Changchen- 

 mo in Laclak by Dr. Stoliczka, which Mr. Blanford had on a previous occasion 

 referred with doubt to L. pallipes (J. A. S. B. 1875, p. 109), was distinct. 



The most interesting mammals exhibited, however, were two water- 

 shrews. One of these, Grossopus Himalaleus, had been long known as an 

 inhabitant of the Himalaj^as and had lately been referred by Dr. Anderson 

 to the genus Grocldura, on account of its dentition. Dr. Anderson, however, 

 had overlooked the circumstance that the genus Crossopus was founded on 

 external characters, and the present species must either be classed with 

 C. fodlens, or made the type of a new genus. Prof. Milne-Edwards had 

 lately re-classified the shrews and had proposed a separate subfamily for the 

 aquatic forms, which subfamily included Grossopus, and some Asiatic and 

 American types. One of these types, Nectogale elegans, a new genus and 

 species, was described at the same time by Prof. Milne-Edwards from the 

 collections brought by the Abbe David from Moupin in Eastern Tibet. One 

 of the skins obtained by Mr. Mandelli evidently belonged to this species. 

 Mr. Blanford said that he once saw a small mammal, which he was unable 

 to secure, in a stream at a considerable elevation (about 15000 feet) in 

 Sikkim, and he thought it probable that this was the Nectogale elegans. The 

 species had broad palmated feet, with a row of bristles round the margin, 

 and furnished beneath with sucker-like disks ; the tail was strong with rows 

 of stiff hairs down the lower surface and along each side, it was flattened 

 towards the end and near the extremity had a row of white hairs along its 

 upper surface. The colour of the animal was dull black with whitish glis- 

 tening longer hairs scattered amongst the fur. A few similar hairs were to 

 be seen on the lower back of Crossopus Himalaleus but they were fewer 

 and less conspicuous. 



This animal, if, as appeared in every way probable, it had been obtained 

 in Sikkim, was a most interesting addition to the fauna of the country. 



Capt. Waterhouse exhibited photographs on glass of the solar spec- 

 trum showing the extreme red rays, and read the following note regarding 

 them. 



