﻿June, 1896.] SYNOPSIS OF THE WEASELS OF NORTH AMERICA. 



9 



( (incliidiiig- the wliitisli supraorbital spot) and dips sliglitlj^ forAvard 

 before passing transversely across the fVice, so that its ])osterior border 

 is in front of tlie i)lane of the outer angles of the eyes. Its anterior 



i border sometimes extends forward almost to the nasal pad, but this is 

 unusual. The blac]-: of the feet reaches ni) and covers the fore leg to 

 the elbow, except along the outer side, and the hind leg to near the 

 knee, excei)t posteriorly. 



Measurements.^ — Average of 3 males: Total length, 570 j tail verte- 

 bra^, 133; hind foot, 00. Average of 2 females: Total length, 500; tail 

 vertebrjie, 120 ; hind foot, 55. 



Cranial measurements. — Average of 4 skulls of adult males: Basal 

 length, 64; basilar length of Hensei, G2, 5; zygomatic breadth, 43; mas- 

 toid breadth, 37; breadth across postorbital processes, 22.5; interor- 

 bital breadth, 18; breadth of constriction, 12.5; palatal length, 33; 

 postpalatal length, 31.5. Average of 2 skulls of adult females: 

 Basal length, 60.5; basilar length of Hensel, 58.5; zygomatic breadth, 

 39; mastoid breadth, 34.5; breadth across postorbital processes, 20; 

 interorbital breadth, 16.5; breadth of constriction, 12; palatal length, 

 31; postpalatal length, 29. 



Subgenus ICTIS Kaup, 1829. 



Ictis Kanp: Entwickelniigs-Geschiclite niul Naturliches System der Enropliisclien 



Tliierwelt, pp. 40-41, 1829. (Contains only a single species, Muslela vaJgaris.) 



Schulze: Fanu:e Saxouica^, Mammalia, p. 170, 1893. 

 Arctogale Kanp: Eiitwickelungs-Gescliichte und Naturlicbcs System der Europ-ii- 



sclien Thierwelt, p. 30, 1829. (Contains two species, cnninca and hoccameht.) 

 Gale Wagner : Supplement Sclireber's Siingtbiere, II, p., 234, 1841. (Contains four 



species, crminea, hoccamela, and v nig a )■ is.) 



The names Ictis and Arctogale were proposed simultaneously in the 

 same publication. Each is accompanied by a diagnosis and included spe- 

 cies. The two names, therefore, according to Canon 18 of the A. O. U. 

 Code of ^Nomenclature, are equally pertinent. In sequence of pagina- 

 tion Arctogale comes 10 pages ahead of Ictis. Ictis contains a single 

 species (vulgaris = nivalis Linn.), while Arctogale has two (erminea 

 and hoccamela). Tlie reasons for choosing Ictis instead of Arctogale are : 



(1) The type of Ictis is fixed beforehand, since it contained only a single 

 species, while in Arctogale the type must be established arbitrarily; 



(2) Arctogale is now in current use for another genus of small caruiv- 

 ora;2 to transfer it to a different group would lead to much confusion, 

 and would be a great and seemingly unnecessary calamity. Hence, 

 since there is no rule to the contrary, the better course seems to be to 

 adopt Ictis and allow Arctogale to fall into synonymy. 



' Tbe number of specimens of whicb reliable flesh measurements are available is 

 too small to afford satisfactory averages. 



"^Arctogale Peters, 1864, a genus of Viverrid;p ; Cray, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1864, 

 pp. 508, 542-543; Blanford, Fauna British India, Mammalia, p. 114, 1888; Flower and 

 Lydekker, Introduction to Study of Mammals, p. 533, 1891; Lydekker, Royal Nat. 

 Hist.,I, p. 461, 1893-94. 



