102 jmr. olditeld thomas on [Feb. ('<, 



Further examples of this interesting species are very welcome. 

 The adults of this series are quite similar to the type, although 

 taken in the autumn, while that was captured in spring. 



17. Gerbillus FAMULUS Yerb. & Thos. 



a-i (skins). El Khaur, 29th Sept, to 10th Oct. 1899. 



j, Jc (in ah). Ditto, ditto. 



This species, described from a specimen with an imperfect tail, 

 proves to have one of the longest and handsomest tails found 

 among the Gerbilles. 



The following are the measurements of a pair of the El Khaur 

 specimens measured in the Mesh : — 



o" . Head and body 105 mm. ; tail 150 ; hind foot 27; ear 19. 

 $. _ „ 100 mm.; „ 145; _ „ 28; „ 17. 



Eor its terminal three inches the tail is prominently crested 

 with black, the sides and under surface being short-haired and white ; 

 the crest-hairs forming the terminal pencil attain a length of 15 

 or 10 mm. 



The type-specimen had only 4 plantar pads, but one of the two 

 spirit-specimens from El Khaur has 5 and the other 6, thus 

 giving further evidence of the unreliability of this character in the 

 present group. At the same time the difference between the 

 specimens in this respect is not really so great as it appears, for the 

 pads are surrounded by granulations, and it is only a slight 

 increase in size over its fellows which makes a " granule" worthy 

 of the name of a " pad." 



18. Gerbillus sp. 



a, b. Sheikh Othman, 23rd-24th September. 

 c (in ah). Abyan Hill country, E. of Aden. Taken from the 

 stomach of Cerastes cornutus. 



Allied to G. nanus Blanf. and G. dasyurus Wagn. Not 



certainly determinable with the materials at present available. 



19. Gerbillus gerbillus Oliv. 



a (in spirit). El Khaur. 



This is the first recorded occurrence of one of the hairy-footed 

 group of Gerbilles (subgenus Gerbillus) in Arabia, bur their 

 presence was quite to be expected, Gerbillus gerbillus occurring in 

 Egypt, and G. gleadowi in Sind. 



" Picked up dead in the Desert." 



20. Meriones rex Terb. & Thos. 



a-d. Shaka, about 15 miles N.W. of Lehej, 30th-31st August, 

 Quite similar to the original series collected by Col. Yerbury at 

 Lahej . 



"Large Tuft-tail Hat. — These Rats were common in the wadis 

 near Shaka, but I never saw them elsewhere. They live in large 

 colonies of 40 or 50 holes, are arboreal feeders, all we got being 

 shot in the bushes feeding on shoots : thev come out in evening: 



