50 
U. S. P. R. R. EXP. AND SURVEYS-ZOOLOGY—GENERAL REPORT. 
A very good specimen in alcohol, from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, agrees in the main with the 
South Carolina specimen, as will he seen by the following description: 
Body small and rather slender ; head not very acutely pointed. Eyes small, scarcely visible. 
Ears with the auricle directed forward entirely, the helix not as prominent as the highly 
developed antitragus and antihelix, which are naked, with a ciliation of hairs on the edges only; 
the anterior face of the ear naked ; the posterior covered with hair. 
The feet are rather broad and full; the anterior large in proportion, longer than the distance 
from heel to end of metatarsus. The fore and hind claws are of nearly the same size. The heel, 
for about half the length of the metatarsus beneath, is entirely hairy, the hairs reaching to the 
first pair of tubercles, hut not between and beyond them. There are six large tubercles in all, 
with smaller ones interspersed. 
The tail (exclusive of the hairs) is shorter than the head. It is rather thickened and obtuse 
to the tip ; well covered with short hairs and terminated by a pencil. 
The upper parts are of a cinereous or dark ash, mixed and tipped with a dark wood-brown, 
the ash showing through. The lower half of the sides and the under parts, generally, are of a 
rather light ash-gray. The feet are white ; the tail bicolor. The skull has 30 teeth. The an¬ 
terior upper incisor has a basal pointed lobe about as long, but thicker than the third premolar. 
The second and first premolars are long, the former largest; they extend almost as far down as 
the tip of the anterior incisor. There is a slight diastema between the third premolar and the 
first molar. The fourth premolar is very rudimentary. The lower anterior incisor is long and 
has two serrated lobes in its upper edge. It extends backwards as far as the second premolar 
does, and to the first molar. 
The teeth of this specimen differ in some respects from the specimens of Sorex cinereus from 
South Carolina ; they are much more deeply colored ; the upper anterior incisor longer and more 
curved; its basal lobe more distinct. The two anterior upper premolars are longer, more ver¬ 
tical, and pointed, more canine in appearance. The true molars are narrower. The lower an¬ 
terior incisors are larger, deeper, more curved, and more lobed ; the remaining teeth are 
larger and higher. 
The measurement of this specimen will be found with that from Indian river. 
I do not feel sure that the Sorex cinereus of Bachman may not be the true S. parvus of Say, 
as I am unable to appreciate the differences between the two, as described by Bachman and Say. 
Perhaps the specimen from Carlisle is different from more southern ones—may be the true 
parvus. The solution of this question, however, as of many others in reference to the American 
shrews, must be left until a greater number of specimens of different ages and seasons can be 
brought together from many localities; 
List of specimens. 
Catalogue 
number. 
Corresponding 
No. of skull. 
Locality. 
Whence obtained. 
Nature of specimen. 
320 
1808 
Liberty county, Ga_ 
Major John L. Leconte_ 
Skin_ 
1669 
.do. 
_ _do. 
1670 
..do...- 
94 
1771 
South Carolina__ 
Dr. Bachman__ 
2155 
3110 
Indian river, Fla_ 
G. Wurdeman_ 
In alcohol__ 
2156 
3103 
Carlisle, Penn 
D Wller, jr - . 
