468 



KEPORT OF STATE GEOLOGIST. 



acorns and nuts in hollow trees and depends partially on thes*^ 

 stores for the winter supply of food. In the summer they feed to 

 a large extent on tender roots, bulbs and berries. I have found their 

 stomachs nearly full of blackberries. They begin quite early to eat 

 the unripe nuts and acorns and their lips are sometimes much 

 stained by the juices of acorns as earl}^ as August 20. 



So far as I am aware, the breeding habits of this species do 

 not differ greatly from those of the gray squirrel. Two litters are 

 produced a year. 



SCIURUS HUDSONICUS LOQUAX Band's. 

 RED SQUIRREL; PINE SQUIRREL; CHICKAREE. 



>S'cmnf5 hudsojiicns loquax Bangs, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 

 Vol. 10, p. 161. 



Sciurus hudsonicus Evermann and Butler, Proc. Ind. Acad. Sci., 

 for 1893, p. 130. 



Diagnostic characters. — Size much smaller than the other tree 

 squiri^els ; sides with a black stripe in summer ; back with a broad 

 rusty band down the middle; and ears with tufts of long hair in 

 winter. 



Description. — In winter the back is a bright, dee[) rusty red in 

 the middle and grayer or more olivaceous on the sides; the hairs 

 all ringed with black. The belly is white with the dark plumbeous 

 at the base of the hairs, sometimes showing through. The central 

 part of the tail is the same color as the middle of the back. Out- 

 side of this reddish color there is a band of black followed by a 

 band of lighter red at the tips of the hairs. In summer the red 

 band in the middle of the back is not so distinct and there is a 

 distinct blackish line along the flanks. The ears in winter have a 

 distinct tuft of long hairs which are not present in sunnner. 



Measurements. — An adult female from Porter County measured 

 in total length, 322 mm. (13 in.) ; tail, 141 mm. (5 11/16 in.) ; hind 

 foot, 43 mm. (1 12/16 in.). 



Skull and teeth. — The skull (fig. 4) is readily distinguished 

 from that of the other tree s(jnirrels hy its small size. Compared 

 with that of the ground squirrels it has <\ sliort. broad rostrum and 

 braincase. There are two premoUirs on vnAx side of the npper 

 jaw (five cheek teeth) but the first one is always small and occa- 

 sionally it is lacking. 



liange. — This subsixu-ies of the red s(|niri'el has a raiige ex- 

 tending from northwestern Indiana to sonlhern New Kngland 

 and south in the mountains to the (^arolinas. Olhei' forms are 



