44 



NORTH AMERICAN FAUNA. 



[No. 38. 



ill 1842, under the iiame Scalops argentatus; although Michigan speci- 

 mens of Scalopus average shghtly smaller than tj-pical S. a. machrinus, 

 and possibly also slightly paler, the difference is insufficient for sub- 

 specific recognition. Le Conte ^ in 1854 described a mole under the 

 name of Talpa pennantii which he seemed to beheve was the yeUow 

 mole of Pennant; Pennant's yellow mole, however, received Latin 

 binomial designation as early as 1777 - and is purely a synonym of 

 S. a. aquaticus. Le Conte states in his description of T. pennantii 

 that it ^'differs from S. aquaticus in being much larger (equal m size 

 to Talpa europxa) and in having much larger anterior feet."^ It is 

 evident, therefore, that the specimen he had in hand was probably 

 8. a. macJirinus. 



This large mole retains its characters with remarkable regularity 

 throughout its range. Specimens from the Mississippi Basin in 

 western Wisconsin, as far north as Prescott, Pierce County, are 

 as large as specimens from the type region, if not sUghtly larger; 

 specimens from eastern Iowa are indistinguishable from specimens 

 from Kentucky. The color tends to become more grayish in northern 

 and western IRinois and in western Wisconsin, possibly indicating an 

 approach toward S. a, machrinoides. Moles from Big Sandy and 

 NashviUe, Tenn., have somewhat weaker dentition than typical 

 machrinus but do not differ essentially in other respects. 



Specimens examined. — ^Total number, 159, as follows: 



Illinois: Alton, 2; Belleville, 1; Calhoun, 3;^^ Chicago, 9;^ Fremont, 1; Hamilton, 

 1; Joliet, 1;^ Olive Branch, 1;^ Olney, 5; Ozark, 1;^ Parkersburg, 2; Ravens- 

 wood, 1;^ Richland County, 7; Riehl Station, 1; Rosiclare, 1;^ "Southern 

 Illinois," 3; Union County, 2; Warsaw, 18. 



Indiana: Denver, 2;* Effner, Newton County, 1; Fort WajTie, 1; Lake Maxin- 

 kuckee, 3; Madison, 1; New Lebanon, 1; Waterloo, 2; West Baden, 2;^ \\Tieat- 

 land, 2. 



Iowa: Hillsboro, 1; Knoxville, l."' 



Kentucky: Eubanks, 1; Lexington (type locality), 1; Midway, 3. 



Michigan: Ann Arbor, 2;* Chelsea, 1;^ Denton, 2;"* Flushing, 3;' Greenfield, l;^ 



Holland, 1;^ Lansing, 1;^ Manchester, 1; Milan, Portage Lake, 11;'* 



Saline, 1. 



Ohio: Cleveland, 1; Fairfield County, 1; Madisomdlle, 3; Salem, 1. 

 Ontario: Point Pelee, 25.8» ^ 



Tennessee: Big Sandy, 1; Clarksville, 1; Nashville, 3;^ Tennessee River, 1. 

 Wisconsin: Camp Douglas, 2; Dui-and, 1; Fountain City, 4;^ Maiden Rock, 3;^ 

 Prescott, 1;^ Wyalusing, 4.^ 



1 Le Conte, Joseph, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Philadelphia, vol. 6, 1853, p. 327, 1854. 



2 Talpa europsea flavescem Erxleben (Syst. Reg. Anim., p. 118 )and Talpa flava Zimmermaim (Spec. Zool. 

 Geog. p. 497). 



3 Le Conte, loo. cit. 



* Collection Univ. Michigan Mus. 

 6 CoUection Field Mus. Nat. Hist. 



6 Collection Milwaukee Public Mus. 



7 CoUection of Hartley H. T. Jackson. 



8 Collection Victoria Mem, Mus. 



9 Collection of W. E. Saunders, T^ondon, Ontario. 



