THE HARVEST MOUSE 561 



more than twice as long as wide. The tail is about equal to the head 

 and body in length ; it is thinly clothed with short hairs below, and 

 still more sparsely above, the terminal portion of the upper surface 

 being bare ; there is no true pencil, though an inconspicuous tuft usually 

 projects beyond the under-side of the tip ; it has about 1 30 scaly rings 

 which are more distinct below than above throughout, and on the 

 dorsal surface of the prehensile terminal portion these rings are 

 completely broken up. The tip of the tail for about three-quarters of 

 an inch is distinctly prehensile, having the power of twisting on itself 

 for about two turns, the upper portion being also capable of a half 

 turn. The tip instinctively curls round and grasps anything that 

 it touches, and thus affords a sense of security to its owner, but it 

 cannot be used like a monkey's tail, to support the mouse's body or 

 to swing by. It is thus slightly more differentiated than the tail of 

 the Dormouse, which simply tends to twine round anything it may 

 touch, and is far more advanced as a fifth hand, and in a slightly 

 different manner, than the tail of a true mouse or rat, the function 

 of which is balancing or sometimes delaying. The glands of Tyson 

 are well developed (de I'lsle, 181). 



Pelage: — The soft fur is comparatively thick and bristling. The 

 hairs of the upper parts have slaty bases and bright-coloured tips, 

 while those of the belly are white throughout for the most part, although 

 some of them may have slaty bases also. The longer hairs of the 

 back show but a slight tendency to assume the form of bristles. 

 Winter specimens have the upper parts of an almost uniform reddish- 

 brown colour, approaching but rather brighter than the " tawny " of 

 Ridgway ; although the tint on the sides of the neck and on the head is 

 occasionally less bright than on the back, the difference is never great 

 enough to produce any marked contrast. On the flanks and the outer 

 surfaces of the legs the colour becomes gradually paler, fading towards 

 ochraceous buff; the darker colour of the back is due in part to the 

 black-tipped hairs with which it is inconspicuously sprinkled. The ears 

 are lighter than the back, approximately matching the sides in colour. 

 The under parts of the body and limbs are dull white. The line of 

 demarcation along each side is regular and well defined, although (in a 

 close view) the contrast between the lower flank colour and that of the 

 belly is not a particularly striking one. The feet are of a pale yellowish- 

 brown colour. The tail is obscurely bicoloured, the hairs of the dorsal 

 surface being a light yellowish-brown, while those of the ventral surface 

 are a little paler, the skin being light brown below and dusky above. 

 According to Blasius, the winter colour is less pure red and more mixed 

 with grey than is that of the summer pelage. Miller describes summer 

 specimens from Germany (compared with winter skins from England 

 and Switzerland) as having the upper parts noticeably darker and 



