KEY TO LAND MAMMALS OF NORTHEASTERN NORTH AMERICA II9 



1899 Lepus floridanus mearnsi Allen, Bull. Am. mus. nat. hist. 

 4 Mar. 1899. 12 : 13. 



Hair long, full and soft; color pale, chiefly wood brown and gray; back not 

 heavily sprinkled with black-tipped hairs; rump very noticeably paler than hack; 

 no hlacJc spots hetiveen ears; ears thinly farred and without distinct black margins. 

 Length, 475 (18|); tail, 65 (2^); bind foot, 100 (4). (mearnsi; name from 

 that of Kdgar A. Mearns) 



The eastern prairie cottontail is a member of the eastern prairie fauna 

 of the transition and upper austral zones. It would therefore not come 

 within the scope of the present paper had it not recently extended its 

 range as far as Toronto, 'Ontario and central New York. 



Lepus floridanus mallurus (Thomas) Southeastern cottontail 



1837 Lepus sylvaticus Bachman, Jour. acad. nat. sci. Philadelphia. 7: 

 403. Eastern United States. (Not Lepus borealis sylvaticus 

 Nilsson, 1832) 



1895 Lepus sylvaticus Bangs, Proc. Boston soc. nat. hist. 26 : 405. 



1898 Lepus nuttalli mallurus Thomas, Ann. and mag. nat. hist. ser. 7, 



2: 320. (Raleigh N. C.) 



1899 Lepus floridanus mallurus Allen, Bull. Am. mus. nat. hist. 4 



Mar. 1899. 12 : 13. 



Hair short and coarse ; color dull, chiefly wood brown and cinnamon ; back 

 not heavily spriokled with black-tipped hairs ; rump not noticeably paler than 

 back; no black spot between ears ; ears rather thinly furred, and without distinct 

 dark margins. Length, 430 (17) ; tail, 55 (2^) ; hind foot, 95 (3f). (mallurus; 

 Gk., wool tail) 



The southeastern cottontail is abundant through the austral zones of 



the eastern United States. Its northern limit reaches the lower Hudson 



valley. 



Order Ferae Flesh-eaters or carnivores 



Canine teeth well developed ; cheek teeth formed for cutting ; front teeth 

 small, in a row between the canines; toes provided with claws ; brain large, well 

 developed; species occurring within our limits large or medium sized, the small- 

 est (weasels) about 300 (1 ft) in length ; eyes well developed ; fur not modified 

 for an underground life. (F 6 r a e ; Lat., wild beasts) 



The order Ferae, containing the cats, dogs, bears, weasels, racoons, 

 etc., is distinguished among the groups of mammals occurring in North 

 America by the high development of the teeth for flesh-cutting. The 

 order is very generally distributed in the new world and in the old world 

 outside of Australia. It contains about a dozen families, six of which 

 are found in northeastern North America, 



