I 



1878 ] J. Anderson — On Indian Species q/*Ei*inaceiis. 195 



XVIII. — On the Indian Species of the G'(?ww* Erinaceus. — J^y ^' Anderson", 

 M. D., Supdt. Indian Museum, and Professor of Comparative Anatomy ^ 

 Medical College. 



(Read 4th December, 1878.) 



(With Plates III, IV, V and Va.) 



Dr. Jerdon* recognized only two species of Indian Hedgehog, viz., 

 Erinaceits collaris, Gray, and Erinaceus micropus, Blyth, distinguishing the 

 former as the North Indian and the latter as the South Indian hedgehog. 

 But besides these, the following supposed species had either been described 

 or indicated as belonging to the Indian and Himalayan fauna, before the 

 publication of Jerdon's work. They were as follows, according to priority, 

 viz.f JE'. spatangus, Bennett,t E. grayi, Bennett J E. mentalis, Crray§ 

 (not described) and finally JE. nudiventris, Horsfield.|| The two first of 

 these were stated by Bennett to be from the Himalayas, w^hile Gray recorded 

 E. mentalis from India, and Horsfield E. nudiventris from Madras. 



Dr. Jerdon doubtfully considered E. grayi as identical with E. colla- 

 ris, and E. spatangus as the young of E. grayi, but he did not pass any 

 opinion on the undescribed E. mentalis. In 1841, Wagner described a 

 hedgehog under the name of E. alhiventris,^ and considered it as pro- 

 bably of Indian origin. On the strength of this opinion Jerdon was 

 disposed to regard it as possibly E. micropus. Dr. Peters, however, very 

 kindly arranged with the authorities of the Museum at Munich that the 

 type of E. alhiventer should be sent to him for comparison with a specimen 

 forwarded to him by me, and which I then believed to be E. micropus, but 

 which now proves to be a nearly allied species named by Stoliczka E. pie- 

 tus.^* This latter species, however, is so closely allied to E. micropus, in 

 the structure of its feet, that the comparison instituted between its feet and 

 those of E. alhiventer, conclusively proves that the latter is a perfectly dis- 

 tinct form from both, as it only possesses 4 toes in the hind feet, whereas 

 E. micropus and E. pictus, like all the other Indian species of hedgehogs, 

 have 5 toes in the hind feet. Dr. Peters is of the opinion that E. alhiven- 

 ter, is probably the young of E. heterodactylus, Sundvl. from Africa. 



* Mammals of India, 1867, p. 62. 

 t Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 1832, p. 123. 

 X 1. c. p. 124. 



§ List. Mamm. B. M. 1851, p. 81. 

 II Cat. Mamm. East. Ind. Co. Mus. 1851, p. 136. 

 U Schreber, Saugeth. Vol. (Supp.) 11, 1841, p. 22. 

 *• Stoliczka, Journ. As. Soc. Beng., Vol. XLI, 1872, p. 223. 



