SINO-MONGOLIAN FRONTIER 
asiaticus intercessor and E. a. ordinalis. Of these 
the latter is a pale desert form found on the borders 
of the Ordos, the former being intermediate in 
colour between E. a. ordinalis and E. a. senescens 
from Chihli. The chipmunks are beautiful little 
creatures, making lively and entertaining pets. 
They are to be found all over the hilly and moun- 
tainous districts of North China, in some places 
being extremely abundant. 
The sulphur-bellied rat (Epimys confucianus 
luticolor), secured near Yen-an Fu in Shensi, 
turned out to be a new subspecies. These rats 
are inhabitants of the rocky valley sides and ravines 
in the loess country. They are characterized 
by the pale sulphur yellow colour of their belly 
fur, their long white-tipped hairy tails and large 
ears. The chief subspecific characteristics of the 
Shensi form are its pale colour and delicate build, 
differing from true confucianus in the first respect 
and from the Shantung from E. c. sacer in the 
second. 
The next new subspecies is the giant hamster 
(Cricetulus triton incanus), which differs from the 
Chihli and Shantung species in being of a paler 
colour and of a less heavy build. This rodent 
is very common in certain districts. It lives in 
burrows, which go down into the earth in a straight, 
perpendicular, smooth, round shaft. Like all ham- 
sters, this animal has a predilection for storing 
grain, which it steals from the farmers’ fields. 
177 N 
