2 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



Beyond just casually noticing that the specimen seemed larger 

 than the British Bank- Vole, I took no further notice of the 

 specimen until last November, when, having occasion to go 

 through my collection of small mammals, I noticed a remark- 

 able difference between it and Evotomys glareolus. I determined 

 to try and obtain further specimens, and wrote to a friend in 

 Jersey to get me some. The result of my letter was seven adult 

 Voles, and I at once saw that I had something very different 

 from the Common Bank-Vole. Beyond just quoting what Mr. 

 Miller wrote, that E. ccesarius was "much darker in colour," 

 Mr. Bunting gives us no description of the external characters, 

 relying more on the shadowy characters of the cranium for his 

 description. The Jersey Vole is remarkable in many ways. Its 

 close affinity to the Common Bank- Vole of England is question- 

 able, differing widely from that animal. That " things are not 

 always what they seem " is a saying that is very often only too 

 true. Writing of birds, Seebohm remarks : — " It is quite a 

 mistake to suppose that the European Jay is more closely allied 



to the Japanese than to the Siberian or Chinese Jays It 



is nearest allied to the Siberian Jay" [Garrulus brajidtii]. The 

 above remarks would bear an analogy to the Jersey Vole, whose 

 nearest ally (as anyone would naturally suppose) would be 

 E. glareolus ; but this in a sense is far from being the case. As 

 far as Britain is concerned, certainly E. glareolus and E. skomer- 

 ensis are its nearest allies. Mr. Miller says it is closely allied 

 to E. nageri, E. vasconia, and E. norvegicus, all three being 

 found in the colder portions of Europe. According to this state- 

 ment, zoologists are here confronted with a puzzling but in- 

 teresting problem which will be well worth attention to try and 

 solve, especially the devotees of zoogeography. As Mr. Bunting 

 truly remarks, that an animal like E. ccesarius, " which inhabits 

 an island with so mild a climate as Jersey possesses, is inte- 

 resting to notice." 



It would appear, as the result of my examinations, that the 

 Jersey Bank- Vole undergoes two phases of pelage— a summer 

 and autumn and a winter (and spring ?) one. 



Description of an adult male (summer) .—Muzzle and cheeks 

 grey, intermixed with long black hairs ; a long irregular area of 

 deep reddish brown, each hair tipped black, extending from fore- 



