Vol. 45, pp. 125-126 ' * • j^jy 3Q 1932 



PROCEEDINGS 



OF THE 



BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



DESCRIPTIONS OF TWO NEW HARVEST MICE 

 FROM HONDURAS. 



BY ARTHUR H. HOWELL. 



In a small collection of mammals recently acquired by the 

 United States National Museum from Honduras there are 

 three specimens of Reithrodontomys, representing two apparently 

 undescribed forms. These have been submitted to me for 

 identification and are herewith described. 



Reithrodontomys mexicanus lucifrons, subsp. nov. 



Type. — Female adult, skin and skull, No. 257086, United States National 

 Museum; collected at Cerro Cantoral, Honduras, February 7, 1932, by 

 C. F. Underwood; original number, 709. 



Suhspedfic characters. — Similar in size and cranial characters to mexi- 

 canus; hind foot smaller; coloration distinctly paler, especially on the fore- 

 head and sides of face. Compared with goldmani: coloration of body simi- 

 lar, but face paler; skull shorter with more globular braincase. 



Description of type. — Forehead and sides of face cinnamon-buff; eye-ring 

 black; dorsal area, from crown to rump, sayal brown, varied with fuscous; 

 sides pale sayal brown; ears fuscous; feet dull white, with a median stripe 

 of hair-brown; underparts pale pinkish cinnamon; tail fuscous, unieolor. 



Measurements. — Type: Head and body, 68 mm.; tail vertebrae, 112; 

 hind foot, 19; ear from notch (dry), 13.2. Topotype (female): 70; 114; 18; 

 13. Skull (type): Greatest length, 23.7; breadth of braincase, 11.7; length 

 of nasals, 8.5; width of outer wall of antorbital foramen, 1.7. 



Remarks. — The two specimens on which this race is based agree closely 

 in color, except that the topotype has the underparts whitish instead of 

 buffy. The new form is clearly related to R. mexicanus mexicanus, which 

 is known to range from Vera Cruz, Mexico, south to Guatemala. No 

 members of this genus have previously been described from Honduras. 



Reithrodontomys mexicanus minusculus, subsp. nov. 



Type. — Male adult, skin and skull. No. 257087, United States National 

 Museum; collected at Comayabuela (just south of Tegucigalpa), Honduras, 

 February 27, 1932, by C. F. Underwood; original number, 797. 



35— Pboo. Biol. Soc. Wash., Vol. 45, 1932. (126) 



