336 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



summits of East Kill, Plateau and Hunter mountains, descending at 

 times along belts of coniferous trees nearly to Schoharie creek. In the 

 lowest country it is said to be almost wholly replaced by the cottontail " 

 ('98b, p. 346). 



I have found the southern varying hare locally common at Peterboro, 

 Madison co. and abundant at Elizabethtown, Essex co. Of the 

 occurence of this species near Buffalo, Mr Savage writes : " The varying 

 hare is becoming rare or local. On December 8, 1897 I saw four on 

 R. & P. r. r. train that were shot at West Valley, Cattaraugus co. 

 Also heard of their being taken near Java, Wyoming co. in the autumn 

 of 1897. On January 29, 1898, one was shot near Cherry creek, 

 Chautauqua co. 



Remarks, The northern varying hare Lepus americanus americanus 

 Erxleben was formely supposed to occur in New York (see Merriam, 

 84d, p. 207) but Bangs has recently shown that the southern boundary 

 of its range does not reach the northern edge of the United States 

 ('98, p. 78). 



Felis oregonensis hippolestes (Merriam) Northeastern panther 



1842 Felis concolor De Kay, Zoology of New York, Mammalia, p. 47. 

 1882 Felis concolor Merriam, Linn. soc. New York. Trans, p. 1 : 29. 

 1897 Felis hippolestes Merriam, Biolog. soc. Washington. Proc. n : 219. 

 15 July 1897. 



1899 Felis oregonensis hippolestes Stone, Science, N. S. 9:35. 

 6 Jan. 1899. 



Type locality. Wind River mountains, Wyoming. 



Faunal position. The northeastern panther was formerly an inhabitant 

 of the Canadian, transition and upper austral zones. It is now exter- 

 minated in all but the first named. 



Habitat. Forests. 



Distribution in New York. This animal still exists in the wilder por- 

 tions of the Adirondacks. Elsewhere it is extinct within the limits of the 

 state. 



• Principal records. DeKay: "In this state the panther is most nu- 

 merous in the rocky northern districts and particularly in the counties of 

 Herkimer, Hamilton and St Lawrence. They are occasionally seen 

 among the Kaaterskill mountains, and the specimen in the New York 

 museum . . . was obtained from this locality " ( '42, p. 48). Merriam : 

 " It is not many years since the cougar or panther, second largest of 

 American Felidaz, was a common inhabitant of the primeval forests of 

 the Adirondacks; but since the state offered a bounty [in 1871] for their 

 destruction so many more have been killed than born that they are now 



