1849.] Note on the Sciuri inhabiting Ceylon. 601 



of the Bay of Bengal, except that the caudal hairs are always largely 

 tipped with white, save at the base and the extreme tip of the tail, — 

 there is no black moustachial mark nor black border beueath the eye, 

 but a large triangular patch of black behind it and reaching upward to 

 the ear, — also a rusty spot at the base of the ear posteriorly, and the 

 auricle is well fringed with hair, though less copiously than in Sc. pur- 

 pureus, — finally there is much more fulvous-white upon the limbs, 

 leaving only the toes of the fore and hind limbs black. In the com- 

 mon Sc. bicolor, the posterior limbs are wholly black externally, and 

 the anterior are wholly black behind, and more or less so externally. In 

 the Ceylon animal, both fore and hind limbs are fulvous-white all 

 round for the lower half, the extremities or toes alone being black. 

 This race has accordingly quite as good a claim to be distinguished by a 

 separate name as either of the other large races of S. E. Asia ; and it is 

 interesting to know that it co-exists in Ceylon with Sc. macrourus* 

 though in a different region, the two (as Mr. Layard assures me) never 

 infringing on each other's territory. It also attains a much larger size 

 than Sc. macrourus, being that of Sc. purpureus and Sc. bicolor : and 

 it is wholly confined in its range to the Kandian country and the more 

 elevated districts generally of the island. 



2. Sc. macrourus, Forster (described J. A. S. XVI, 869). The 

 common large Squirrel of the western districts of Ceylon, to which it 

 would appear to be wholly peculiar.* It does not attain above § the 

 size of the last. Mr. Layard favoured me with a living specimen, 

 which was extremely tame, and is chiefly perhaps remarkable for 

 its singularly loud and harsh voice. Indeed, the voice would seem 

 to be an excellent criterion of specifical distinction among the Sciu- 

 ridce. This animal carries its tail in the same peculiar manner, curled 

 round on one side, as is observable in Sc. purpureus and Sc. bicolor, 

 and doubtless all others of the same group. 



3. Sc. tristriatus, Waterhouse (J. A. S. XVI, 874, 1001). This 

 would appear to be the most common species of Palmist Squirrel in Cey- 

 lon (vide Elliot, in note to J. A. S. XVI, 1272) ; and I can discover no 

 difference between Cinghalese specimens and examples procured in the 



* That is, in the island ; for it is also met with in Travancore, and other neigh- 

 bouring districts of continental India. 



4 i 



