88 ETNAR LONNBERG, MAMMALS COLLECTED BY THE SWEDISH ZOOLOGICAL EXPEDITION ETC. 



between a dorsal area and the flanks. Such specimens agree very closely in colour 

 with Hbuglin's Xerus dabagala which, I suppose, is only a geograjjhic race of X. 

 rutilus as well, and, of course, closely related to this race, if different at all. Doll- 

 man states (1. c.) that the skull of his Xerus rufifrons is »similar to that of X. da- 

 bagala^, which makes the identity of these two still more plausible. The author 

 quoted points out, however, some differences between X. dabagala and X. d. rufifrons 

 which ought to be discussed. The first of these is that the back of the head of the 

 latter is » slightly darker than rest of dorsal surface and speckled with bright yellow 

 and orange-red », while according to Dollman the head of X. dabagala should be 

 » greyish brown ». But the latter colouration of the head of X. dabagala is not men- 

 tioned in VON Heuglin's original description, nor displayed in the coloured figure of 

 the type.^ » Muzzle and forehead bright orange-red (tan colour n:o 2, 'Repertoire 

 de Couleurs')!> — — Dollman writes about X. rufifrons, and then he adds: »The 

 orange-rufous tint is much brighter and more vivid than in X. dabagala, where the 

 muzzle is more the colour of the flanks*. In one of my specimens from Njoro the 

 colour of the muzzle and the forehead agrees perfectly with Dollman's description 

 and the colour-sample quoted, but in the others this is less apparent and the colour 

 of the parts mentioned is more brick-red, especially on the forehead, even if the 

 colour of the muzzle tends more or less to » orange rufous ». In some specimens the 

 general colour of the forehead is similar to that of the flanks, although the latter 

 are sprinkled with white and therefore look paler. The general ground colour of my 

 specimens lies between ^Salmon flesh» (Rep. de Couleurs N:o 138,4) and »Red ochre» 

 (1. c. N:o 332, i). In some specimens it is very close to the first, in some others to 

 the latter. This ground colour is modified by the white tips of the hairs. In some 

 specimens the colour of the median dorsal area, to different breadth in different 

 specimens, has another colour, viz. speckled or grizzled with blackish and yellow. 

 An examination of the hairs, which produce the colour of this dorsal area, proves that 

 they are coloured according to a different pattern than the salmon flesh — red ochre 

 and white-tipped hairs of the flanks of the same specimens. They are ringed in such 

 a way that the tip is black, or dark brown then follows an ocKre-yellow ring, and 

 then again a black or dark brown ring. The dark tip is of different length, often 

 quite short and it may then be broken or worn off and missing. 



As these black and yellow-ringed hairs occupy an area of different extension in 

 different specimens, and sometimes are absent, or at least mixed with the red ochre 

 and white-tipped hairs it appears probable that they are the remains of another 

 pelage which is to be shed, and has been fully shed in such specimens with uniform 

 red ochre and white-tipped pelage. 



Dollman says that the bright orange-yellow (maize-yellow) » sides of muzzle, 

 face and neck* of his X. rufifrons is » strikingly different from the white face and 



neck of X. dabagala k Heuglin says, however, about X. dabagala »rostri apice 



lateribusque guise in flavidum vergentibus » , and this is also displayed by the coloured 



1 Nov. Act. Acad. Leop. Car. Nat. Cur., Tom XXVIII, p. 4, Tab. 2, fig. 3. 



