HEEPESTES. 183 



of the fur is the same as in that species, but the distinctive external features of 

 the animal are its slightly more rufous tint than the generality of the examples of 

 H. pallidus, and the end of the tail being entirely rather bright red. The mesial 

 nude line of the tarsus extends quite to the heel as in the former species. The type 

 was procured by Mr. Day at Larkhana in Sindh. 



Herpestes jerdonii, Gray. Plate VIII, figs. 7 & 8. 



Herpestes jerchnu, Graj, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 1864^ p. 550, et Cat. Carniv. Mamm, Brit. Mus. 



1869, p. 148. 

 Herpestes monticolus, Jerdon, Mamm. of Ind. 1867, p. 135. 

 Calogale thysanurus, Wagner, Munchen, gelehrt. Anzeig. ix. p. 449; Schreber, Saugeth. Suppl. 



vol. ii. 1841, p. 301 ; Sehinz, Syn. Mamm. 1844, vol. i. p. 564; Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 



1864, p. 564, et Cat. Carniv. Mamm. M. B. 1869, p. 161. 



The ty]3e of this species is iu the British Museum. The species belongs to 

 the same group as H. palUdus, H. fuscus, H. smithii, and S. maccarthice. It is 

 most nearly allied to the first of those, from which it is only distinguishable by its 

 slightly darker colour and less finely grizzled fur, and by the broad, black tip of 

 the tail, which is slightly rufous at its commencement : in these characters it 

 approaches S. icich'ingtonii and S. ichneumon. 



The hair is long, especially on the hinder parts of the body and tail, as in 

 S. pallidus and S. smithii. The underlying, woolly fur is pale-yeUowish. The 

 long hairs are broadly pale-brown tipjoed, darkest at the apex of the terminal ring, 

 biit paling towards its base. Tliis apical, dark ring is succeeded by a moderately 

 broad, nearly white band, followed by three brown bands, which are also pale 

 at their extremities, and each is separated from its fellow by a white band, the 

 base of the hair being broadly white. On the long hairs of the tail there is an 

 additional brown band, but the apices and bases preserve the same colours as the 

 body hairs. The head hairs are short and much more finely annulated than on 

 the body ; and on the muzzle, anterior to the eyes, the apical bands are rufous, 

 so that this area is more or less rufous. The upper surface of the fore and hind 

 feet is dark-brown, and its under surface is naked to the heel. The ears externally 

 are uniformly clad with very short, yellowish-grey hairs. On the flanks, the hahs 

 are about 1"75 inches long, and on the base of the tail 3 inches in length, but 

 they become much shorter towards the black tip, being barely 2 inches, which 

 is the character of K. smithii, whilst the black terminal hairs are 3 inches, so that 

 the tip of the tail is tufted. The under surface of the throat and chin is pale 

 yellowish- grey, and the inferior aspect of the neck is grizzled ; the belly being of 

 nearly the same colour as the sides. 



Length from tip of muzzle to root of tail 15"50; length of tail 14i"90 ; the terminal 

 hairs reaching 2-75 inches beyond this. 



The skull of this species is chiefly distinguished by the breadth of the frontal 

 region both across the post-orbital processes and between the anterior margins of 



