New SperrnopMle from California. 317 



XIV, — Description of a New Spermophile from California, 

 Spermophilus beldingi, sp. nov. 



BY 0. HART MERRIAM. 

 Read December 17th, 1888. 



During the summer of 1885, Mr. L. Belding sent me a Spermo- 

 phile from the summit of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, in 

 Placer Co., California, which was unlike any I had previously 

 seen. It belonged to the genus Spermophilus, and evidently 

 was more closely related to S. richardsoni townsendi than to any 

 other species, though it differed, materially from the published 

 descriptions of that animal. Its most striking characteristic 

 was a broad dorsal band of rufous, which was separated from 

 the yellowish of the sides by a distinct line of demarcation. 

 Moreover, it lacked the indistinct spots which are charac- 

 teristic of tow7isendi. Believing this interesting Spermophile to 

 be undescribed, and desiring to secure a number of specimens, 

 I engaged Mr. Charles A. Allen, of Nicasio, to visit the locality 

 where Mr. Belding discovered the species. Mr. Allen had no 

 difficulty in finding its haunts, and succeeded in capturing a 

 fine series of specimens, which served to emphasize its distinct- 

 ness. Unwilling, however, to describe it without actual com- 

 parison with 8. townsendi, I have been forced to wait until the 

 present autumn for the opportunity, which I now possess, and 

 which shows the new species to differ even more markedly from 

 townsendi than I had supposed. I take pleasure in naming it 

 in honor of its discoverer, Mr. L. Belding, of Stockton, Califor- 

 nia, whose contributions to the knowledge of the zoology of the 

 region, particularly its ornithology, entitle him to lasting remem- 

 brance. The new species may be recognized from the following 

 ■description: 



SPSRinOPIIIIiUS BELDINGI, sp. nov. 



Sierra Nevada Spermophile. 

 Typo, HHj ? ^^'} Merriam Collection. From Donner, Cali- 

 fornia, June 22d, 1886. 

 DESCRiPTiOi^ OF Type. — Size about equal to, or a trifle larger 



