478 



REPORT OF STATE GEOLOGIST. 



which he was thus helping to destroy. They also eat some insects, 

 especially crickets and grasshoppers. 



However, experience in some of the other States has shown that 

 it is not desirable to allow them to become too numerous. Where 

 they injure crops at all they should be destroyed. They are really 

 taken in ''out o' sight" rat traps baited with dry oatmeal or a grain 

 of corn. They can often be drowned out by pouring a bucket or two 

 of water into their holes. 



CITELLUS FRANKLINII (Sabine). 



THE FRANKLIN SPERMOPHILE; GRAY GROUND SQUIRREL; PRAIRIE 



SQUIRREL. 

 Also called Gray Gopher. 



Arctomys franklinii Sabine, Trans. Linn. Soc, Vol. 13, p. 587, 

 1822. 



Spermophilus franklinii Baird, Mam. N. Amer., p. 314. Miller 

 and Rehn, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. 30, p. 49. Ever- 

 mann and Butler, Proc. Ind. Acad. Nat. Sci. for 1893, p. 129. 

 Stone and Cram, Amer. Animals, p. 162. 



Citellus [franklinii] Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., Vol. 

 16, p. 375, 1902. 



Diagnostic characters. — Color, dull grayish brown ; size some- 

 what larger than the striped spermophile. 



Description. — This spermophile is nearly equal to the gray 

 squirrel in size, but the tail is shorter and not so bushy. The color 

 is brownish gray above, with small, indistinct spots of lighter gray 

 and blackish. The neck and head are hoary and the throat whitish ; 

 rest of under parts somewhat tinged with buffy; tail gray; ears 

 small but somewhat larger than those of the striped spermophile. 



Measurements. — An adult female from Mountayr, Newton 

 County, measured 375 mm. (15 in.) in total length; tail, 120 mm. 

 (4 4/5 in.) ; hind foot^ 49 mm. (2 in.). 



Skull and teeth. — As compared with C. tridecemlineatns, the 

 skull (fig. 6) is heavier, flatter on top and more angular. Like that 

 species it has five cheek teeth. 



Range.— From Indiana to Kansas and north to Saskatchewan. 

 In Indiana it probably does not occur in more than five or six coun- 

 ties. The only records I have are Remington and Monticello, given 

 by Messrs. Evermann and Butler, and Mountayr and IIe])ron. 



Ilabifs. — At Mountayr I found this species living about a 

 stone i)ile in a field of oats, and they also had hoU^s, similar to 

 woodchuck holes, ])nt smaller, abcmt a rod from the stone-pile. In 



