486 
APPENDIX C 
many in nooses ingeniously placed in the runs that were opened and closed 
after the trap was set. While digging into the burrows, several times I found 
bulky nests of dried grass in side pockets just off the main runway. Most of 
them were empty, but one was filled with the animal’s droppings. 
Kapiti Blesmol (Myoscalops kapiti). This mole rat, which proved to be new to 
science, was first encountered at Potha on Kapiti Plains and it was again met 
with at Ulukenia Hills. I was shown several skins that were taken about fif¬ 
teen miles east of Nairobi. They were the most difficult of all mole rats to catch 
because they lived in the very sandy soil and almost invariably covered the 
trap with sand without themselves getting into it. I found a number of their 
skulls in the pellets of barn and other species of owls. 
Springhaas {Pedetes surdaster). Very common at Naivasha station where their 
burrows were numerous on a sandy fiat practically in the town, and many 
were taken within a hundred yards of the station. They are nocturnal, although 
one instance came under my observation where a springhaas was seen on a 
dark day to run from one burrow to another. By hunting them on dark nights, 
with the aid of an acetylene light we were able to secure a good series of skins. 
When the light was flashed on them, their eyes shone like balls of fire the size 
of a penny, and it was not uncommon to see from two to five and six within the 
radius of the light at one time. They were usually flashed at a distance of 
about a hundred yards, and as the light drew near they would watch it, fre¬ 
quently bobbing up and down. Often they hopped away to right or to left, 
but very seldom did their fright carry them-into their burrows unless a shot 
was fired; in fact even then we sometimes followed up one of their companions 
and secured it. Some allowed us to approach within ten feet before moving, 
and then off they would go in great bounds, but I was never able in the dim 
light to see whether or not their tails aided them in jumping. I once shot a 
fox from a cluster of eyes that I am positive were those of springhaas; this 
together with the fact that the stomachs of all of the foxes killed contained ter¬ 
mites and insects, leads me to believe that these two animals are more or less 
congenial. Doctor Mearns saw a springhaas sitting with its tail curled around 
to one side of its body, similar to the position often assumed by a house cat. 
Several small colonies of springhaas were discovered on sandy flats near 
Ulukenia Hills. Two females taken from the same burrow showed great vari¬ 
ation in size, one having a tail several inches longer and ears larger than the 
other. Although I never discovered a burrow that was completely blocked 
with sand, in the morning one could find quantities of fresh sand that had 
been thrown out of the entrance during the night. 
Great-eared Fox {Otocyon virgartus). This new species of fox we discovered at Nai¬ 
vasha and found it very common there. All of the seven specimens secured were 
taken by “jacking” at night, although while travelling over the Uganda Railroad 
we frequently saw them singly or in pairs in broad daylight. The white people 
knew nothing of a fox in this country and had always called them “jackals.” 
They seemed to live in pairs and groups of three to six. On dark nights it 
was usually easy to shine their eyes and approach within shooting range. We 
would shine a fox, then suddenly the glare of its eyes would disappear and we 
would walk about casting the light in all directions until we again saw the two 
balls of fire glaring some fifty or a hundred yards away. Often the foxes would 
slink about for some time before we got within gunshot range. Frequently we 
