140 INSECTIVORA. 



than on any other part of the body, and they correspond exactly to the white-tipped 

 hairs of Nectogale. The under surface is greyish with a silvery sheen, washed with 

 rusty on the throat and the middle of the belly. The whiskers are blackish or 

 even white. The hind feet are large, but much smaller than in Nectogale; the fore 

 limb is clothed to the wrist, the hind limb in the lower half of the tibia is scaly and 

 partially clad with short hairs. The upper surface of the feet is naked, with the 

 exception of that portion over the metacarpals and metatarsals, which is sparsely 

 covered with short, flattened, stiff, adpressed, almost white hairs. The upper surface 

 of the toes is scaly, and bare, except that from one to six broad, stiff, rather long hairs 

 occur at the base of the claws. The toes are ciliated along each of their sides 

 with a line of broad stiff hairs of equal length forming a dense short fringe. The 

 line along the entire margin of the internal and external toes is continued along 

 the sides of the feet as a strongly ciliated fringe of white hairs ; the claws are 

 yellowish, moderately long and curved. From the vent to the tip of the tail equals 

 from the vent to nearly the eye. The tail is long, and quadrangular in transverse 

 section. The under surface and sides are densely covered with longish, adpressed, 

 broadish, coarse, rigid hairs of the same character as those on the sides of the toes 

 and feet, but longer. The upper surface of the tail, for two-thirds, is only sparsely 

 covered with short, strong, blackish hairs, not obscuring the scaly rings as in the 

 last third, where it is clad much as on the under surface and sides. The hairs 

 on the under surface of the tail are white, and on the sides and upper surface dark 

 brown. 



The eye is small, almost hidden ; the ear is all but completely concealed in the 

 fur. It is a transversely oval sHt 0'26 of an inch long, distinctly valvular ; the lower 

 posterior half, fleshy, irregularly oval, bare on its internal surface, except at its margin, 

 which has a fine covering of very minute, short, almost microscopic, white hairs. 

 The portion immediately above the fleshy antitragus is thin and membranous, and 

 covered on its inner surface with ordinary fur, except at a small spot at its upper 

 extremity, which is quite bare. The antitragus, when applied to the front surface of 

 the ear, which is quite bare, effectually closes the orifice; and from the circumstance 

 that when this happens the membranous portion is folded upon itself, the orifice is 

 even still more certainly shut against the entrance of water. The orifice of the 

 nostrils is completely hidden from sight below an almost cartilaginous valve formed 

 by the external angle of the bare fleshy portion of the nose, and which can evidently 

 be pressed against the orifice; and from the fact that the valve is anterior to the 

 opening of the nostril, the pressure of the water when the animal takes to a moun- 

 tain stream must tend to keep the valve closely appHed. Even although the aquatic 

 habits of this shrew had not been observed, its economy, as I have described it, 

 would have indicated what its habits truly were. 



Measurements of Cliimarrogale himalaica, Gray. 



Inches. 



Tip of snout to vent 3-83 



Vent to tip of tail 3-00 



Snout to anterior margin of external meatus l-04i 



