LEMUR 159 



II, 1890, pis. CLXVII, CLXXII ; Forbes, Handb. Primates, 



I, 1894, p. 77; Elliot, Cat. Mamm. Field Columb. Mus., VIII, 



1806, p. 545, fig. LXXVI; Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 



1906, p. 124, fig. 48. 

 Prosimia catta Bodd., Elench. Anim., 1784, p. 65 ; Less., Spec. 



Mamm., 1840, p. 223; Thos., Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1911, 



p. 129. 

 Le mococo F. Cuv., Hist. Mamm., 1824, Vme Livr. pi. 2me ed., 



1833, pi. XVII. 



RING-TAILED LEMUR. 



Type locality. Madagascar. 



Geogr. Distr. South, and southwestern borders of Betsileo Prov- 

 ince, Central Madagascar. Province Anossi, (Schlegel and Pollen). 



Genl. Char. Prominent spur in old males on forearm above wrist ; 

 comb-like growth, in females and young, continuous with palm of hand 

 by a hairless skin ; near this is a gland surrounded by stiff hairs ; tail 

 long, conspicuously banded. 



Color. Top of head grizzled white and black ; neck, shoulders and 

 back to rump and sides of body fawn, hairs tipped with white ; a black 

 band from cheeks to shoulders; outer side of limbs and rump pearl 

 gray; inner side of limbs, and under part of body white; hands gray 

 like arms ; feet white ; ears white ; tail banded with numerous rings 

 alternately black and white, tip black. 



Measurements. Skull : occipito-nasal length, 75 ; Hensel, 70 ; zygo- 

 matic width, 45.5; intertemporal width, 15; width of braincase, 39; 

 palatal length, 35 ; median length of nasals, 21 ; length of upper molar, 

 series, 27 ; length of mandible, 53 ; length of lower molar series, 30. 



This is the most beautiful of all the Lemurs, the soft, delicate color- 

 ing of the body, with the strongly contrasted rings on the long tail, 

 easily enabling the species to exceed all others in the attractiveness of 

 its appearance. Of course it would be a conspicuous object anywhere, 

 and when met with in the localities it frequents, the traveller's attention 

 would be at once arrested, and the following statement of its habits was 

 given by one of its fortunate observers, Mr. George A. Shaw in the 

 Proceedings of the London Zoological Society (1. c). He says that 

 in his seven years' experience of the species the animals were found only 

 in the south and south western part of Betsileo Province. This province 

 is on the center table land from 100 to 250 miles south of Antananarivo, 

 the capital, and extends for 150 miles with a width of 50 to 60 miles. 

 The eastern side is covered with forest, fringing the table land, and 

 covering the slopes into the lowland bordering the sea. The Lemurs 



