54 
The specimens of the Mammalia comprised : — 
Vulpes decussatus, Geoff, (The American Cross, or Tawny Fox. ) With 
respect to this animal, Mr. Leipner remarked : 
This Fox is very variable in the colour and markings of its fur, some 
specimens are of a pale yellow, some are blackish in the general tinting, 
while others are of a reddish fawn, and others again, like the one before us, 
are remarkable for the manner in which the black, the white, the yellow, 
and the fawn are dispersed over the body and limbs. In almost all specimens 
there is a darkish transverse stripe over the shoulders, hence the name of the 
Cross Fox. 
As the Fox belongs to the same family of Carnivora as the Dog, the 
formula representing the normal dentition of that animal will hold good also 
with regard to the Fox. It is as follows:— In. |=| Can. j=L P.M. g 
M. S = 42, 
Martes Americana. (The American Sable.) With regard to this animal 
Mr. Leipner remarked : — 
This species seems to resemble greatly the Asiatic Sable ; Dr. J. E. Gray, 
mentions that the great point of difference is that the upper tubercular 
grinder is smaller in this species than in the Asiatic. The fur is not so 
valuable as in the Eastern species ; it is however much sought after, and 
bears a high price. 
Putorius fo&tidus. (The Polecat. ) White variety. 
This animal, Mr. Leipner said, I have with some doubt called a white 
variety of the Polecat, better known as the Ferret ; for Dr. Gray observes 
that the Ferret is strictly an African form, being an albino caused by the 
heat. It is therefore quite clear, if my determination is right, and I am at 
a loss to what other species I can refer the specimen, that there must be an 
American albino variety also. 
The dental formula of the genus Putorius is, according to Professor Owen, 
In. §5§ Can. jEr M. ~~- M. ; Dr. Gray gives — In. f^f Can. ^ 
P. M. 2 ~ M. 2 ~ The number is, of course, the same in both cases, thirty 
four, the difference in the formula being caused by the view taken by the 
respective authors as to the character of certain of the teeth. 
The Polecats, and consequently the Ferrets, may, with the Stoats and 
Weasels, be called the most predacious and bloodthirsty of all Carnivora. 
