86 BINAR LONNBBEG, MAMMALS COLLECTED BY THE SWEDISH ZOOLOGICAL EXPEDITION ETC. 



surroundings of Nairobi which thus must represent the latter subspecies. It is a 

 little doubtful which exact locality is meant with »Kikuyu». Nairobi is also situated 

 in the typical Kikuyu country. A little to the northwest of Nairobi a railroad station 

 is named »Kikuyu», and somewhat still further northwest Escarpment station is 

 situated which sometimes is called Kikuyu Escarpment, Nairobi lies at an altitude 

 of a little more than 5000 feet, and Escarpment at about 8000 feet. At the labter 

 place I collected two specimens of similar Squirrels. If there was any difference 

 between the Scrub Squirrels of Nairobi and those of Kikuyu this difference ought to 

 be still more pronounced in the corresponding animals from Escarpment, as Kikuyu 

 with regard to geographical situation and altitude is intermediate between the two 

 other places. 



According to Thomas P. j. capitis shall be paler on the body than P. jachsoni 

 sand on the extremities ochraceous replaced by buffy, and buff by whitish*. In the 

 subspecies the under surface is said to be » soiled whitish or creamy white, the cor- 

 responding part in true jachsoni cream-buff or buff». 



When comparing my specimens from Nairobi and those from Escarpment, I 

 cannot find any perceptible difference in the colour of the upper parts of the darkest 

 specimens from Nairobi and those from Escarpment, and in a similar way the ex- 

 tremities are just as richly coloured in some of the Nairobi specimens as in the 

 others. The lower surface of the Nairobi specimens is, as a rule, paler and more 

 whitish than corresponding parts of the Escarpment specimens but in some of the 

 former it is distinctly buffy, and the difference from the latter in colour is then very 

 slight if any at all. Considering the great variation in colour among Squirrels and 

 the considerable bleaching of the fur to which they are subjected, as also is pointed 

 out by Thomas (1. c. p. 106), I do not believe it possible to maintain P. j. capitis 

 as a different race on account of any difference in colour. It remains then to see 

 if any other distinguishing characteristic can be found. De Winton states the length 

 of the tail of P. jachsoni to be 155 mm., while Thomas gives the same measurement 

 of P. j. capitis as 187 mm. The longest tail of my two Escarpment specimens is 

 about 15 cm., but in some of the Nairobi specimens it is very little more, and it 

 seems hardly possible to base a subspecies on such small differences in length of such 

 a variable organ. 



From a geographical and topographical point of vicAV there is no reason to 

 suspect the presence of different Scrub Squirrels at Nairobi and any other place in 

 the Kikuyu country. 



These little Squirrels are on the move even in the middle of the day. They 

 were usually found in bush, sometimes outside, sometimes in the middle of the thick 

 and dark forest. Seldom they were observed in trees and then not in very high 

 trees. At Escarpment station I shot my specimens among the remaining dry tops 

 and branches of big cedars which had been cut down. When moving among the 

 green foliage these Squirrels look quite greenish and are not easily seen. Their colour 

 can certainly be called protective. When they are quietly running along a branch 



