INDICATION OF A 



The following are the detailed dimensions of our animal — 



Feet. Inch, 



Tip of snout to base of tail, 2 8 



Tail only, , 5 



Tail and hair, 6| 



Carpus (inclusively) to longest finger, 4^ 



Heel to longest toe, . . 4^ 



Length of the head, 6| 



Nose to fore-corner of eye, 2 



Thence to opening of ear, 3^ 



Girth of body, behind shoulder, 2 5 



Longest fore-nail, 1^ 



Ditto hind ditto, . . , 0| 



The skull is 5| inches long, 3^ wide and 2| high. The width is taken, 

 not between the zygomatic arches but between the alse of the transverse 

 crista. There the lateral dimensions are largest owing to the great deve- 

 lopment of the transverse or lambdoidal ridge of the skull before it sweeps 

 upwards to join the zygomatic arches. The skull bears, upon the whole, 

 so great a similitude to that of the Otter, that it may be very well illustrated 

 by pointing out the differences merely between the two. These consist in 

 the slight arcuation of the outline along the parietal portion of the skull in 

 Ursitaxus ; the greater development of the frontal, nasal, and malar, bones ; 

 the diminished length of the zygomatic arches ; the rather more incomplete 

 and less advanced orbits ; the very small size of the infra orbitar foramina 

 — which are besides two on either side — and, lastly, the larger development 

 more) of the tympanal bones. In respect to the teeth of the two animals 

 there is no very noticeable difference in the incisors and canines which 



