On Chinese Mammals

PROCEEDINGS OF TIIB SCIENTIFIC l\fEETINGS OF THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF LONDON FOR TIIE YE.AR 1870. PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY, AND SOLD AT THEIR HOUSE IN HANOVER SQUARE. LONDO�: :MESSRS. LO.NG�IANS, GREEN, READER. AND DYER, PATETIXOSTF.n now. I 1870.J MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS, Gl5 9. Catalogue of the Mammals of China (south of the River Yangtsze) and of the Island of Formosa. By RonERT SwrnHoE, F.Z.S. PRIMATES, 1. l.:IYLOBATES, sp. (Gibbon.) A species of black Gibbon is said by the Chinese to exist in the conntry west of Canton. It may be the same as the animal found in Hninan, which I have attempted to identify with the I-I. pi leatus, Gray (see ante?,, p. 224). The British Museum has a young specimen of Presbytes maurus (Schreber), and an adult Silenus veter (Linn.), both presented by Mr. John Reeves, who brought them with him from China (see List of l\Iamm. Brit. l\ius. 18-13). But it is very doubtful indeed whether either of these species occurs within our limits; they were probably procured at Canton, whither merchant ships or junks had brought them. The evidence is not sufficient to justify onr admitting them into the Chinese list of mam mals. Friends who have travelled through forests in the mountains of the Fokieu province have informed me that they have seen troops of monkeys in some places; but I have never had the good fortune to meet with any of these tree-monkeys. 2. l\iACACUS SANCTJ-.TOHANNJS. (St. John's l\Ionkey.) lnuus srmcti-johannis, Swinh. P. Z. S. 1866, p. 556. This rock-monkey is found on most of the small islands ahont Hongkong, and is like a Rhesus with a very short tail. The young specimen taken alive by Commander St. John, R.N., on North Lena Island, did not live to maturity in the Gardens of the Society ; and therefore it was not determined at home whether the species is really a valid one. Dried bodies of this animal split in two arc often exhibited, hanging from the ceiling, in druggists' shops, in Canton and Hongkong; and its bones are used for medicinal purposes. Its closest ally is the Pig-tailed 1'1onkcy (lllacacus nemestrinus, Is. Geoffr.) of Tenasserim ; but it seems to me to be a distinct race. 3. MAcAcus CYCLOPIS. (Formosan Rock-monkey.) llf acacus cyclopis, Swinh. P. Z. S. 1862, p. 350, pl. xlii. ; 1864, p. 380; Sclater, P. Z. S. 1864, p.711 (woodcut). The specimens that were living in the Society's Gardens have died, and are now monnted in the British l\Iusenm. These adults are strongly tinged on the upper parts with olive-green, freckled with darker colour. The Rock-monkey of Hainan appears to be the ordinary Macacus erythrceu�. (See anteu, p. 226.) 4. NYCTICEBUS TARDIGRAnus (Linn.). (Slow-paced Lemur.) Has been brought alive from Canton, and presented to this Society PRoc. ZooL. Soc.-1870, No. XLII. 616 MR. R. SWJNHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [June 23, (P. Z. S. 1863, p. 37fi); is called in Chinese llfe-slmy, and said to come from the south-west part of Kwangtung Proviuce. CHIROPTERA. 'l'he Bats I procured during my last residence in China I sub mitted to Prof. W. Peters of Berlin, who has kindly supplied me with the names of those known, and with descriptions of the new species. In the following list Dr. Peters's notes are placed within inverted commas. 5. "CYNONYCTERIS AMPLEXICAUDATA, Geoffroy." (Flying Fox.) A female of this frugivorons Bat was brought to me at Amoy in May 1866. It was dead, but hau a live young one still fastened to its breast. The young animal was more than a third the size' of the mother, covered with soft fine hair on the upper parts, and nearly naked below; its colour was brown, like that of its parent, but did not show the nuchal band. I never saw but these two specimens. 6. MEGADERMA LYRA, Geoffr. (Lyre-nosed Bat.) A pair of this fne species were captured in an outhouse at Amoy. I have seen them of a summer's evening flying very high over the town of Amoy. 7. "PHYLLORHINA AURITA, Tomes;" P. Z. S. 1859, p. 7G. (Large-eared Leaf-nose.) This Large-eared Leaf-nose is common at Amoy in _May; and I have a good series of them. A smaller short-eared species I pro cured two of in the celebrated cave at Kelung (N. Formosa ), and sent home in spirits (P. Z. S. 18G4, p. 381). 8. "PHYLLORHTNA SWINHOH, Peters, n. sp." (Swinhoe's Leaf. nose.) -::: R cvh--�•-•�Q..,,J��6,. "Ph. maxima, auriculis acuminatis, aperturafrontali parva, prosthe mate fen-o-equino multo angustiore, foveis quatuor insigni ,· cauda crure longiore; supra fusca vel fuliginosa, co/lo gastrr,eoque pal lidioribus. "'l'his species is of the same size as, or still larger than Ph. dia dema, Gcoffr. ( =Pit. insignis, Horsf.), but easily to be distinguished by the form of its upper nose-leat� which is much narrower than the horseshoe and the middle nose-leaf. "Antibrachium ....•... ......••.... Tibia ......................... . Foot .. . . . . . . . . . • ....••..•.....• millirus. 84-90 30-3G 20" A large number of these were taken in summer in a cave near Amoy. 9. "M1NIOPTRRUS BLEPOTIS, Temminck ;" Tomes, P. Z. S. 1858, p. 12 l. (Red-and-black Bat.) A very abundant species in summer at Amoy, found in numbers l8i0.] MR. R, SWINIIOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS, Gl7 hidden in caverns. The females and young are retldish-brown, the aJult males black. 10. "VESPERTILIO Fil\IBRIATUS, Peters, n. sp." (Fringed Bat.) "Closely allied to V. emarginatus, Geoffr. Ears rather more emar gi11ate and more pointed; tragus straight and shorter; wings extenJ i11g to the middle of the metatarsus; margins of interfemoral and lumbar membranes ciliated. "Third lower incisor horizontally half as long as the canine. Upper canine and third premolar closer together than in V. emargi natus or V. daubentonii, the second small premolar being situated at the inner side of the third. " Above light brown, below ash-coloured, all the hair at the base slate-coloured. " Total length about ............... . Head ......................... . Total length of ear ............... . Anterior margin of ear ........... . Tragus .. ....................... . Forearn1 ......................•• Tibia ............ ............. . Foot ............••........•..•.. millims. 85 IS 15 13 7 39 16-17 11-12" A common species at Amoy. Several examples procnred; some are plain brown on the upper parts, others rufescent brown. 11. "V ESPERTILIO LANIGER, Peters, n. sp." ("T oolly-faeed Bat.) "Ears, tragus, and faee very similar to those of V. rnystacinus ; wings extending to the middle of metatarsus ; point of tail exserted. "Teeth sinilar to those of the same species, third lower incisor larger, and lower canines with much shorter points. "Above dark brown, beneath greyish white. The greater basal part of the hair slate-coloured. "Total length about .•.................. Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...... . Ear .. ............................. . millims. 80 IS 13 1'ragus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . G Forearm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . 35 Tibia . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . •• . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 :Foot .. . . .. . . . . .. .. . .. . .. .. .. . .. . .. 10" This little woolly Ilat is comparatively rare at Amoy ; I only procured three specimens. 12. VESPERTILIO RUFO-NIGER. (Black-and-Orange Ilat.) Vespe1·tilio rufo-niger, Tomes, P. Z. S. 1858, p. 85, pl. lx. This Bat was described (l. c.) by l\Ir. Tomes from a specimen pro cured by l\Ir. Fortune at Shanghai. I have seen it at Tamsuy, N.W. Formosa (see P. Z. S. 1864, p. 381, Pteropus ?). At Takow (S.W. Fo1·mosa ) I proenred a specimen, a note on the habits of which will 618 MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [June 23, be found in P. Z. S. 1862, p. 356 (species allied to Kerivoulafor mosa). At Takow, where Bats are very scarce, T was walking on the 5th July, l 865, uuder a grove of trees. One tree had large leaves and lilac-like flowers. Close to a bunch of fowers, between some big leaves, I observed a cluster of some roundish things which I took at frst for fruit or some kind of gall-nuts. One of the clusters moved, and I saw that they were the heads of Bats. They were hanging head downwards from the stem of a leaf in a bunch one against the other, their heads only showing, their bodies being hidden by the leaves. There were about ten of both sexes,-one female with a young one at her breast, and her breasts much swollen. Their colour was light yellow, the wings being variegated with orange and brown. I procured several specimens, aud sent them to England. Some of them came into Prof. l1eters's possession; and he has iden tifed the species as that described by .Mr. Tomes. But surely the habits of this species would show that it is not a typical Ves pertilio ! 13. VESPERTILIO CHINENSJs, Tomes, P. Z. S. 1857, p. 53. Brought from South China by Mr. Fortune. "VESPERTILIO DAVIDII, Peters." (David's Bat.) Dr. Peters had this species for examination from the Museum at Paris. It was sent home by Pere David. It has not yet occurred in South China, and therefore I do not number it. 14. "VESPERUGO ADRAM.us(et AKAKOMULI), Temmiuck." (Chi nese House-bat.) The female is a rich brown, with lighter and dusky underparts; the male is black. I procured the former in Haiuan, and the latter in Canton. They were common in the settlement at Canton of an evening in April. 15. "VESPERUGO PIPISTRELLUS, Daub.?" (Small House-bat.) Dr. Peters marks my specimen from Formosa with a query. This is a very common species at Taiwan ( capital of Formosa), and thou sands may be found clustered together in the old Dutch fort within the walls of the city. I have 1io specimen from South China; but it doubtless must occur there also. 16. "VEsPERUGO JMBRICATus, Temminck." House-bat.) (Imbricated A common species at Amoy. 17. "VESPERUGO PULVERATUs, Peters, n. sp." (Grizzled House bat.) " In form of ear and tragns similar to V. maurus of Europe, bnt the tragus apparently not double-toothed. Wings extending to the 1870.] MR, R, SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS, 6 I!) base of the toes; point of tail cxserted. Base of intcrfemoral mem brane very sparingly furnished with hair. "Form of teeth similar to those of V. pipistrellus, the first upper premolar being much larger than in V. maurus. " Hair black, on the upperside with very short, beneath with longer brownish-grey tips. -11mi 1ms. "Total length about. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Ear ........................... , . . . . 12·5 1'ragus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Forearm ............................ 34 Tibia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . 13 Foot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 8" I have specimens from Amoy taken in August and September. It is not a common species. 18. "VESPERUGO MOLOssus, Temminck." (Molossus Bat.) Dr. Peters has this species from Hongkong. "VESPER US SEROTINus, Schreber." (Evening Bat.) A very common species iu summer evenings about the city of Peking. I do not number it, as I do not know of its occurrence in South China. 19. ScoTOPHILUS PUMILOIDEs, Tomes, P. Z S. 1857, p. 52. Brought from South China. 20. "ScoTOPHILUS HEATHll, Horsfield." (Heath's Bat.) About five inches in length, with snuff-brown npper and snuffyellow underparts; very common in Canton in April and May, fly ing about in large numbers over the Foreign Settlement. 21. " ScoTOPHILUS TEMMINCKII, Horsfield." (Ternminck's Bat.) Smaller than the last, brown above, much paler below ; occurred in numbers in company with the last, in the same place. 22. DvsoPES (MoLossus ) RUEPPELII, (Large-eared Tailed Bat?) Dysopes (Molossus) riippelii, Temm. Monogr. de Mammalogie, i. pl. xviii. I procured a specimen of a Bat some years ago at Amoy which greatly resembled Temminck's figure, though it could hardly be the same as that species, which is from Egypt. My specimen was sent to England, and, I believe, is now in the collection of Mr. R. Tomes. Somes notes will be found on its peculiarities in P. Z. S. 1862, p. 11. The animal I speak of was brought to me alive on the 25th Nov. 1859. It was an adult male, and measured from snout to root of tail 4·3 inches; tail l ·2; expanse 15·5; ears l · I, protruding beyond snout; breadth across the ears 2. Its skin was G20 MR. R, SWINHOE ON CHINF.SE l\1AM1\1ALS. [June 23, soft and mole-like, of a deep brown, with a madder-tint, lighter 011 the nn<lerparts. The membrane extending from the tail to the le�s was wrinkled, and covered the tail like a glove, so as to slip up or down as the creature wished to expau<l or contract its in tcrfemoral wing, or, in nautical language, to shake out or take in reefs. The toes on each hind foot were five in number, of nearlv equal lengtl1, the outer one thicker, all with longish pale hair�, chiefy at their tips; sides of the npper lip and npper surface of ear furrowed or grooved. Eyes smnll, and nearly hidden in the recess formed by the protruding ears. The living animal carried two species of parasites, one winged and the other wingless. These have been described and figured by l\1r. H. Giglioli, in the 'Proceedings of the l\ficroscopical Society' for l 8G3, as Streb/a moloss(t and Poly ctenes molossus. I have oft.en, on a cloudless evening, at Amoy, seen these Bats flying along high in the air, being easily distinguished by the 1ur rowncss of their win!!;s. \\'hen irritated, the creature has a habit of exposing its tail Ii/the process above described, aud of sinking its eye into the socket, and thrusting it out again. lNSECTJVORA, 23. TALPA tNSULARIS. (Formosan Blind l\fole.) Talpa insularis, Swinboe, P. Z. S. l 8(i2, p. l 0. Found in the l1ills of the north end of Formosa. A Mole occurs about Peking which l\L Alphonse M.-E<lwards has distinguished as the Scaptocliirus davidianus (A11nalcs des Sciences Nat. 5c scrie, t. 7), anteu, p. 450. 24. TALPA, sp. I have a Mole from Foochow, China, which resembles the Szechnen species; but, owing to the present troubled slate of Paris, I have not been able to compare it. 25. SoREX l\IURINUS, Linn. (Mnsk-rat.) S01·ex myosurus, Pall. S. swinlwei, Blvth, J. A. S. xxviii. 285. S. albinus, Blyth. J. A. S. xxix. !)0 ( the young). '11he Common "l\lnsk-rat" is found throug·hout Cl1i11a, Formosa, nnd Hainan, in houses in large towns. llas an unpleasm,t musky odour, nnd a peculiar chatter, like the chinking of money (Swinh. ' Zoologist,' 1858, p. G224 ; P. Z. S. 1864, p. 382; P. Z. S. l 870, p. 231). 26. SoREX --? (Small Shrew.) S01·e.r: --?, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. l 8G4, p. 382. The two little Shrews I took under decayed dung on a bill nt Tamsuy, Formosa, and meutioncd before (l. c.), I sent in spirits to Paris, but <lo not at all know what bas since become of them. 18i0.] MR. R, SWINHO� ON CHINES� MAMMALS, 621 27. ERINACEUS --? (Hedgehog.) I have heard of Hedgehogs occurring at Taiwan (Formosa), at Amoy (P. Z. S. 186--1, p. 378), and in Hainan (antec't, p. 237), but I have never been so fortunate as to procure a specimen from any of these localities. They are common about Peking; and l have lately brought to the notice of this Society the Peking species, and proposed to name it E. dealbatus (antet'1, p. 450). CARNIVORA. 28. URsus TIBETANUs, F. Cuvier. (Black Bear.) Helarctos tibetanus, Swinl1oe, P. Z. S. 1862, p. 351. Ursusformosanus, Swinh. P. Z. S. 1864, p. 380. The Tibetan Black Bear is found in the mountains of the Shan tung promontory; and I procured thence a living specimen, which is now in the Gardens of the Society. But the Black Bear of For mosa I long suspected to be distinct ; and a young animal I procured at Taiwan seemed to confirm my view. It had the face as black as the rest of the body, instead of brown as iu the individual from Chefoo. The animal from Taiwan also reached England alive, and may be now seen alongside of the other black Bears. l\Ir. Bartlett tells me be can see no distinction between it and the true Tibetan form. At Taiwan I obtained two flat skins of the Formosan Bear in the adult state; and these would show that the animal attains a very large size, fully equal to the biggest specimens from the Himalayas ; but my skins exhibit, in addition to the crescentic white patch on the breast, a lar�e round white spot on the belly. This Mr. Bart lett tells me be has also seen in the Bears from India. I procured a good series of the skull of our Bear from the aboriginal tribes of the central mountains, who dedicate them to the Great Spirit of the Chase ; and in these I cannot find any noticeable difference from the skulls of the Himalayan species in the British :Museum. We must allow, then, that the Formosan Black Bear is simply the Ti betan Bear, which appears also to occur in Hainan, and probably throughout the mountains of China generally. I extract a note on the Formosan Bear from the 'Taiwanfoo Gazetteer':-" Bears have hair stiff as bristles, and their coat is thick and shaggy; the arrow's head cannot pierce the body. Their feet are strong, and with their claws they can climb trees, on the summits of which they will sit cross-legged, or they will burrow into the earth and dwell there. }leople capture them by stratagem. Before they have carried yonng their bellies contain much suet that is eatable; their paws, however, are the tit-bits (lit. the one of eight pearls). Hashed and roasted, t hesc afford a true relish; but it is no very easy matter to cook them properly." lhown Dears, or "l\Ien Bears," as the Chinese call them, are said by the natives to occnr in the mountains of South China; but I ha\'e 1;ever seen any. In North China, I have been informed by friends, Brown Bears are taken about by showmen, and made to dance aud 622 l\l R. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [June 23, do various tricks at fairs. These will probably be of the species acquired by the Society in I 86 7, and figured in woodcut as Ursus piscator, Pucheran (P. Z. S. 1867, p. 817). 29. MELES LEPTORHYNCHUS, Alph. M.-Edwards. (Chinese Badger.) M. chinensis, Gray, P. Z. S. 1868, p. 207 (fgures of skull). Of this species "the skull," remarks Dr. J. E. Gray, "is so like that of llleles leucurus from Thibet that I shonld have regarded them as the same, if there were not so much difference in the length, and flaccidness and coloration of the fur, and the abnndance of the under-fur. This may depend on the climate. The shortness and peculiar colour of the fur are exactly alike in the specimens sent by Dr. Harland from Hongkong, and by l\Ir. Consul Swinhoe from Amoy. I may observe that when Dr. Harland's specimen was sent it was regarded as a young Arctonyx collaris." (Cat. Mamm. l 8{i9, p. 127.) The first of this species was brought to me at Amoy on the 17th July, 1867, in so badly wounded a state that it soon died. It was a male, and measured from the snout to the root of the tail 22 inches: tail 6; from carpal joint of fore leg to tips of claws 4·75; from shoulder to carpal joint 8·25; sole of fore foot 2·2 long, l · l broad, longest claw ·6; hind foot 2·8. Length of head 5·1 ; tip of nose to corner of eve I ·7; from ear to ear across head 2·45; breadth of ear l ·5; edge of upper lip to base of projecti11g nose ·75. Hair of upper body coarse, about l ·5 inch long. Nose and nails brownish flesh-colour. Soles of feet pale flesh-colour. Band under 11ose brown, with a narrow side border of same to lower lip. A band of black about an inch wide runs along either side of the head, from near the snout across the eyes, and terminates broader just behind the ear. A broad stripe of buff-white runs from the nose to the occipnt, and another of the same colour on either side of the face (including angle of month, with a narrow strip round chin) to below and beyond the ear; ear black, with a huff-white border to its upper half. Underparts and limbs black; upper parts some what densely clothed with short pale buff woolly under-for; the upper-fm long and coarse, aud also pale buff with dark centres, giving a grizzly appearance to the coat. 'fail plain light buff. Teeth somewhat worn. The fur had many lice, but I only detected one flea. Ou the 19th July a male aml female were brought to me, the latter very large and very old, with few teeth remaining, and these quite worn down. They were both fresh killed. The female had four teats on the belly, and two on the abdomen, just between the fore part of the thighs. She measured 31 · 5 inches, with a tail of 7·25 to its bony tip, aud hairs·extending 2·25 beyond; between ears across l1ead 2·75. Her hair was much longer, especially on the tail; and she was much more tawny on the upper parts. Neither of them had the black and white face-markings so distinct as in the younger animal of the 18th June. 1870.] MR. R, SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS, G2!J 40. FELIS cmNENSIS. (Chinese Tiger-cat.) Pelis cltinensis, Gray, l\lag. Nat. Hist. vol. i. p. f,7i (1837); P. Z. S. 1867, pp. 274, 400. Leopardus reevesii, Gray, List of Mamm. Ill'it. Mus. 1843, p. 44. Pelisjavensis, Scl. Cat. of Vert. p. 22 (1866). This little Tiger-cat is the commonest wild cat in Formosa and South China. I procured a good skin and skull of an adult and of a young one in Formosa, and sent thence to the Society a living ex ample in 1866, which, however, unfortunately Jied in the Gardeus soon after landing. I have also flat skins of it from the Fokie11 hills nnJ from Shanghai. The British Museum has specimens bronght from Canton by l\Ir. J. It. Reeves many years ago. It is a forest species, antl is extremely wild and irritable in confinement. The skull of the :Formosan adult female is of a long oval form, measuring in length 3·4 inches, breadth across malar arches 2·2:i, breadth behind orbital spine I· I ; greatest breadth of brain-case, below, I ·4 ; orbits imperfect. Head brownish grey, with more or less rust colour ; a line over and under the eye, a patch on each side of nose, cheeks, and chin pure white. From the white line over the eye runs a black line on each side over the crown and down the back of the neck; between thege are two other longitudinal black lines, with an indistinct short one between them; the muzzle is spotted with black, surrounded by rusty chestnut, and an irregular line of the same runs from the pos terior angle of the eye to under the ears, breaking into spots; another runs along the cheek, a third shorter one further down, and a fourth like a long spot on each side of the throat. Moustache-bristles brown and white. Ear pale in front, black behind, with a white spot. A black streak of grey marks each side of the hind neck. Underparts, inner surface of fore legs and of thighs, white, with large brownish black oval spots. Upper parts brownish grey, washed between the shoulders, and less richly along the back, with chestnut-brown; shoulders spotted and marked with rich deep chestnut-brown, with streaks between them of the same colour mixed with black; further along the back the streaks break up into long oval or oblong black spots. The spots on the sides of the hody and on the legs are browner. Fur short aud somewhat soft; under-fur dusky grey. Fore feet light yellowish brown, speckled on the outer surface with chestnut; under foot dusky. Hind feet the same, without spots. Tail with longt-r and woollier hair than the body, more dully coloured, with large spots of dingy brown. Head long and narrow, about 4·25 inches; ears short and angular, l ·6 long. Length of body I 7, of tail I 0· 5. Fore leg about 9 ; . hind leg about 9·7. Fore foot, from carpal joint, 2·8; greatest breadth I ·2. Hind foot, from tarsal joint, 4; greatest breadth l ·4. 'fhe Formosan kitten, apparently about six weeks old, is sirnilarlv marked on the face, but has the spaces above the nose and under the eyes much richer chestnut. Its hair is longer and softer, of a dingy chestnut-brown, with the spots and marks fainter. Tail 630 MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [June 23, thinner and less woolly than in the a<lult. Underparts white, with the spots also faint; legs more washed with chestnut. 4 I. V1vERRA ZIBETHA, Linn. (Indian Civet.) Viverra zibetha, Gray, P. Z. S. 1864, p. 512. TT. aslitoni, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1864, p. 379. Common in the bamboo-covered hills of South China, from Canton to near Shanghai, and in the Chnsan Islands ; occnrs also in Hainan (see anted, p. 227). I have never detected it in Formosa. 42. V1vERRICULA MALACCENSIS, Gmelin. (Little Spotted Civet.) Viverricula malaccensis, Gray, l. c. p. 5 I 3. Viverra pallida, Gray; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1862, p. 7. Common in South China, Hainan, and Formosa. 43. PAGUMA LARVATA. (Gem-faced Ch·et.) Paguma larvata, Gray, P. Z. S. 1864, p. 359; Swinhoe, Zoologist� 1858, p. G223; P. Z. S. 18G4, p. 381. P. lm·vata, var. taivana, P. Z. S. 1862, p. 8. This tree-loving species is found in the hills of the K wangtung aud Fokien Provinces and in Formosa. I kept one alive for some months in I 856, chained in my verandah at Amoy. It fed on cooked meat in preference to raw, and did not seem to care much for either fowl's eggs or small birds. A stuffed snake threw it at once on its guard, and with a spring it seized it by the head and shook it. A shrimp was offered to it ; tl1is it smelt, and then rubbed its head over, first one side and then the other, as dogs do over carrion ; it refused to eat it. ,vhen let loose it usetl to climb up the doors and legs of tables and chairs, p11tting one foot on each side, and pushing up with the hind legs. It walked backwards and forwards at the length of its chain, shaking the lower jaw, and would suddenly stand up on its hind legs, giving utterance ton shaking cry. It snapped at all dogs, and kept them at a distance. It slept during a great part of the day, but continued lively for the greater part of the night. The heat affected it a good deal, and made it pant. The Society's Gardens have two live specimens of this species received from Formosa. 44. URVA CANCRIVORA, Hodgs. (Crab-eating Mountain-mun goos.) Urva cancrivora, Gray, P. Z. S. l8G4, p. 568. A specimen brought from the Fokien hills, near Amoy, agrees with Hodgson's specimens in the British l\Iuseum, from Nepaul. Face long and pointed, with the nasal portion recurved; nose and upper lip with a deep vertical groove. Ears short, broad, and rounded. Soles of feet and underside of toes quite bare ; claws strong. Fore foot :-first toe very short, second longer than the l8i0.J .MIL R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE l\lAl\11\IALS. 631 fifth, the third and fourth subequal; a basal membrane attaches the second and third, and a membrane reaching to end of first joint the third and fourth. Hind foot: first toe diminutive, and placed well he hind; third toe longer tha11 the fourth, and united to it by a mem brane to the first joiut; second attached to the third, an<l fourth to the fifth, by short membranes. Head and feet clothed with short hair; rest of the body with long coarse and thick woolly under-fo1·; tail long and bushy, with long very coarse hair. Nose and edge of lips brownish flesh-colour; iris deep hrow11. Hair of muzzle brown ; upper lips, chin, throat, and a ridge of longish hairs extending from under the ears to the shonl<ler white. Head with light reddish-brown under-for, the short hairs of· the upper-fur being individually banded with black and white. Ear with short close-set whitey-brown hair, partly hidden by the hair of the cheeks. Upper parts of bodyi with the under-fur brown at roots, buff above, the long hairs of the upper-fur haYing each a broad central black Land and white tip, giving a hoary appearance to the coat; underparts with less black. Fore and hind legs blackish brown, sprinkled about humeral and femoral parts with buff specks. Tail buff white, with a few black-Landed hairs intermingled. Length from snout to root of tail 20 inches; tail 12, with an extra inch of hair at tip. Head 4·75; between ears 2. Palm to nail-tips 2·50; breadth of palm ·i5. Sole to nail-tips 2·50; breadth of sole ·80. This SJJecies has an extensive range in India, being found from Afghanistan through the Himalayas to Aracan ; and we find it also occurring in South Chinr. No typical Herpestes seems to occur in China north of Haina11. 4f>. NYCTEREUTES PROCYoNorni,;s. (The Raccoon-like ,villi Dog.) Nyctereutes procyonoides, Gray, P. Z. S. 1868, p. 522. Canis (Nyctereutes) viverrinus, Temm. Faun. Jap.; v. Schren('k, A.moorland, i. p. 63. The "Raccoon or Civet Dog" ranges from Canton into A moor land, and is also found in Japan. I have specimens of it from the Fokien hills, from Hankow, an<l from Shanghai; but I ha\'e not met with it in Formosa. 46. VuLPES HOOLE, sp. nov. (South-China Fox.) Vulpes vulgaris, Swinboe, Zoologist, 1858, p. 6223. The Fox of the plains and lower hills of South China is iu form and size very similar to that of Europe; but it is paler, wants the black spot on the sides of the snout, aud has the colours of its coat differently arranged. I have placed in the British :l\lnseum an adult female and two cubs; bnt as their skulls are within the skins, I have not been able to remark on them. Throat, along upper lip, and under neck white, washed with black on chin, with dusky-grey under-for. Moustache-bristles black. Pnoc. ZooL. Soc.-1870, No. XLIII. 632 l\lR. R. SWJNHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [Jnne 23, Ear ochreous in front, black behind, with yellowish chestnut at base. Round eye and on space in front bright rufous. Rest of head light rnfons, grizzled with whitr on the cheeks and crown. Upper parts dingy ochreous, with more or less rufous on the hind neck and shoulders, and brightening into chestnut on the back ; deep rust-colom near the tail, grizzled with white, the white in creasing on the sides of the buttocks; under-fur of the back dusky grey at hase, rust-colour above. Tail rusty chestnut on the' upper surface, with some of the hairs tipped with black ; its sides and undrr smface light dingy buff, with the apical half of each hair black; its end with a conspicuous white tip. Anterior smface of fore legs blackish grizzled with white, outer sides rusty grizzled with yellowish, inner sides buff, under surface and hair between toes clingy brown. The white on the chest continuous downward in a line to the middle of the belly. Belly from behind fore legs, on each side of the white line, chestnut buff. Abdomen whitish bnff, with a faint tinge of purple. Anterior surface of hind legs as of fore legs ; their sides and under tarsi bright rusty chestnut. Head 7 inches; neck to root of tail l !J; tail 13·5, with 3 inches of hair projecting beyond. Length of ear 3. Length of fore foot, from carpal joint to tip of nails 3·76; of hind foot 5·5. The cub about six weeks old is covered with thick downy hair, with a few long soft hairs intersprinkled. The rufons patch between the eye and nose is well marked. Upper lip and throat white, blackish ou chin. Chest dingy white. Ear yellowish in front, black behind. Paws and toes blackish on upper surface. Crown and upper back dingy rust-colour; shoulders and sides of the body whitish. Tail light dingy, with a rufous wash on the upper surface. Underparts light dingy rust-colour, with a purplish wash. This Fox is common on the bare granitic hills of Amoy ; and I have seen as many as six together at a time. ,vheu. pursued they spring with great agility from rock to rock, and soon outrun a Grey hound on such rough ground; but on the plains they are no match for the dog. They desceml to the plains at night, and rob the he11roosts. I have also seen them in Hongkong island. About Tient sin, in North China, Foxes are also common; but I have never hand.led a specimen from any northern locality. No Fox has been found in Formosa. 47. VuLPES LINEIVENTER, sp. nov. (South-China l\Iountain fox.) Two Foxes were hrought to me at Amoy in 18G7, from the higher mountains of F okien. They arc very like the Illack-bellird Fox of Europe, V. vu!gm·z'.s, var. melanogaster, Bp.; but are remarkable for having a fine line of chestnut on each side of the belly. They are very brightly coloured, and so differ conspicuously from the last described pale species, though in form and size very similar. Un fortnnately the skulls were not s�nd. Head grizzled with white and chestnut, round and under eye rich chestnut. A broad angular mark of brown from anterior corner of ISiO.J l\lR, R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE i\lA;\lMALS. eye to lip. Moustacheand face-bristles black. Snout, under level of nose, part of cheeks, an<l throat white. Throat, under neck, chest, and central underparts black, grizzled with white. Inside of ear well clothed ancl cf a livelv huff colour, which extends to the edges; back of ear brnwnish black. Upper parts buff, many of the hairs of the hi11cl neck and shoulders being broadly tipped with black. Crown ancl hind neck washed with chestnut, which brightens as it runs down the back in a broad line. Under-fur greyish brown. Fore legs clothed with reddish-brown under-fur, and covered with black and white hair, with a broad deep black line running down their anterior surface to the feet; under carpus and feet fine brownish chestnut, brown on the hair about the palms. A bright chestnut buff line ruus down each side of the belly, from the fore leg to the hind leg, and narrows as it advances down inner side of hind leg, where it is fanked inwardly with a white line. Thighs grizzled with black, white, and chestnut. Tail bushy, bright chestnut on the upper surface; with many of the hairs broadly tipped with black; under surface much paler, with more black ; tip white. Snout to root of tail 32 inches; tail 17, with 2·7.5 le11gth of hair beyond tip. Fore leg 11 inches, hind leg 12·5. Ear '2·75 long, I ·75 broad at base. 48. ? OTAR IA STELLER I. (Steller's Sea-bear.) Otarirt stelleri, Temm. & Schleg. Fau11. Japon. I have been informed by the European pilots at Shanghai that they have often seen Seals basking on some islands called "the Ruggeds," at the mouth of the Yangtsze. I have not been so for tunate as to get a specimen ; but it is not unlikely that they will turn out to be the same as the animal recorded from South J npan. RODENTIA, 4!). ScrnRus CASTANE0VENTRts. (Chestnut-bellied Squirrel.) Sciurus caslaneoventris, Gray, Ann. N. H. ser. 3. xx. p. 28:3; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. antei't, p. 23 l. Sciurus erythrceus, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. ISG2, p. I I. The Chestnut-bellied Squirrel is found in Hainan, the proYinces of Kwangtung and Fokien, and in Formosa. The finest Formosan skins are rather larger, with longer tails, are bright deep chestnut on the unclerparts, and have broaJ buff tips to the hair of the apical half of the tail. The chin and chest in these is for the most part not red, but of one colour with the back. As in the Hainan and Chinese skins, the redness of the underparts is very variable in ex tent and intensity ; • and so is the. yellowness of the tail. I have specimens from South Formosa of one colour throughout, and others with more or less red ; and with a serie.3 Lefore me I find it impos sible to divide the nnimals from the different localities even into races. A fine specimen from North Formosa measures from snout to root of tail about !) inches; its tail 9·5, including 2·5 inches of 634 MR. R. SWINH0E ON r,J-IJNESE MAMMALS. [Jm1e 2;�. hair beyond tip of tail-bone. Sciurus lokria/1, Hodgs., Sc. lokri oides, Ilodgs., and Sc. erytl1rogaster, Blyth, appear to be only three varieties of this Squirrel, the last very close to the Formosan. Sc. erytl1rCEus, Pall., has a fringed ear, and is distinct. The British Museum has a red-throated Squirrel, marked from China. It is black on the npper parts and tail, chestnut on the underparts, fore legs, and hind feet, white on the sides and thighs. It differs somewhat from an animal also there from Borneo, but is so mnch in character with it that it is difficult to believe that it is really from China. Dr. J.E. Gray has described it as Sciurus rufo gularis, in the Alln. & Mag. Nat. Hist. 1842. 50. ScrnRus GRISEIPECTUS. (Grey-breasted Squirrel.) Sciurus griseipectus, Gray, Ann. & l\1ag. Nat. Hist. ser. 3. xx. p. 282. China is given as the habitat of this plain-coloure<l species ; hut I have not had the good fortune to come across it in that country. 51. ScrnRus CHINENSIS. (Chinese Squirrel.) Sciurus chinensi-s, Gray, An11. N. H. ser. 3. xx. p. 282 (l8Gi). The Museum has two of this species from Shanghai, bronght home by Mr. John Reeves. They are hrown on the breast, upper parts, and tail ; rlusky wl dte below, from chin to tail. Length of body about 7 inches, tail bushy and rather longer than the body. On my jonrney from Ningpo to Shanghai, overlan<l, I saw many of this species in groves of trees. It is arboreal in habits. 52. ScrnRus M'CLELLANDI. (l\1'Clelland's Squirrel.) Sciurus m'clellandi, Horsfield, P. Z. S. 1839; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. I 862, p. 11. This small striped Himalayan Sqnirrel, with tufted ears, is found in Hainan, the provinces of Kwangtung and Fokien, and in Formosa. M. A. Milne-Edwards assures me that he has also received it from "r estem Szech uen. 53. SCIUROPTERUS KALEENSIS. (Small Formosan Flying Squirrel.) Sciuropterus lcalei:nsis, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. l 8G2, p. 359. l\1ountai n forests of North Formosa. I know no species of this form from South China. ficl. PTEROMYS GRANDIS. (Large Reel Flying Squirrel.) Pteromys grandis, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. I8G2, p. 3fi8, pl. xlv. Foun<l in the north and central mountain forests of Formosa. I have received it from yarious localities in the wilder parts of that islan<l. 5fi. PTEROMYS PECTORALIS, i,;p. nov. (White-breasted }?lying Sc1uirrel.) General colour a rich rnfo11s; tail liµ;hter, with brown at tip; l�iO.] MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. G35 breast and streak down the centre of the belly white. Length from snout to root of tail 20 inches; tail 15, soft and bushy. The red fur of the body is sparsely sprinkled with white hairs. The fur is soft, moderately long, and much in character with that of Pt. gran dis; in some lights it shows very brown. A specimen of tl1is fine species was brought to me at Takow, S. ,v. Formosa, in December 1865. It seems confined to the southern mountains of Formosa. /46. Mus BANDICOTA, Bechstein (Linn. Trans. viii. t. 18). (The Bandicoot Rat.) Jlfus nemorivagus, Hodgson. 111. setifer, Horst'. Zool. Res. in Java. I have never observed the Bandicoot in China ; but in Fonnosa, on the high road from Takow to the city of Taiwan, it was very abundant, living in holes at the foot of the hedges that line the way. I have not seen them in the towns. It would appear likely that this Rat was introduced into Formosa when the Dutch were in pos session, in A.D. l 630. lhave the skin and skull of an adnlt from Formosa; the former measnres from snout to root of tail l l · 5 inches, tail 6 · i 5 ; ear l · l in length. The skull agrees with specimens from India. �ii. Mus DECUMANUS, Pall. (Commercial Rat.) 11Ius decuma11us, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. l 8G4, p. 382. Abundant in all large towns in South China and Formosa. The white and pied varieties of lllus mtlus, L., are to be seen in cages in the towns; but these are imported. 58. Mus 1Nn1cus, Geoffroy. (Indian Rat.) Arvicola indica, Gray; Hardwicke, Ill. Ind. Zool. i. t. 11. My largest specimen from Formosa is 10· 7 5 in length, tail im per fect, ear ·6G. A smaller one, length 7, tail 5·25. Colour above light chestnut-brown ; most of the hairs broadly tipped with black, giving in the adult a streaky appearance to the back. Long fine moustaches on muzzle white, short ones black. Sides of muzzle, feet, and underparts dingy white, with a tinge of yellow. Tail sparsely covered with short spinous bristles, brown on the upper, white on the under surface of the tail. In the city of Taiwan, Formosa, this large Rat was nearly as common as the Commercial Rat, and seemed to associate with it. I have not noticed it in the towns of the Chinese main. 59. l\1us ALEXANDRINUS, Geoffroy. (South-European Rat.) Adult male measnres 8·(j, tail 6, ear ·7. This species is a good deal like the ordinary grey Rat, but has longer and richer-coloured pile, the ear is larger and more oval, the feet smaller, and the tail proportionately longer, and with much more short hair, especially near the tip. Upper parts dark yellowish brown, with many of the G3G MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE l\lA)UIALS. [June �3, hairs on the back and rump broadly tipped with black. Under parts din�S, tinged with ochreous. l\Ioustache-hairs long, fine, and dark. Identified by Dr. Peters. This Hat is found in country ,·illages and ontplaces about Amoy, and would seem to be an earlier introduction than the ill. decumanus, from the face of which it has probably retired. The latter is the only species one sees in the town. It is difficult now to discover what were the Honse rats of China before the introduction of the three last-named species. In villages and country towns, where the latter have not established a footing, Country-rats, which often scale trees, are found entering houses and running about the streets. In Formosa, where the Commercial Rats are not so widely extended, several species of these Country-rats occur; but in China I haYe as yet only noticed the ill. rufescens . ..liO. l\I us coxTNGA. (Spinous Country-rat.) Mus co,i:inga, Swinhoe (errore co1ii11ga), P. Z. S. I 864, pp. 185,382. �lost numerous in the north of Formosa, less so in the south west. I have not heard of it in China. Docs not appear to enter large towns, but is found abnndant in villages of the interior, to "hicl1 the bigger Rats have not reached. 61. l\lus RUFESCENS, Gray. (Chestnut Country rat.) ,Uusjlai•escens, Elliot. This species was determined by Dr. J. E. Gray from specimens I hrougl1t home in l 8G2. It nsed to occur in the gardens at A moy, and I have several times seen it rnnning up and down trees in the daytime. I jotted down the following note on a specimen I shot at Amoy on the 17th l\Iay 1859:-Length of body 4·3; tail 3·8; head I ·5; ear ·7, large and oval. Fur short and soft, with a few long soft hairs interspersed. Moustache formed of long, delicate, black and white hairs. Upper parts pale reddish brown, ochreous about the head; underparts whitish; all the nnder fur slaty grey. Tail sc,1led as usual, and set with many short pointed setre. This Hat is found also in many parts of India. I have not noticed it in Formosa. <'u2. l\Ius <..:ANNA, sp. nov. (Silken Country-rat.) Mus -- ?, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 18G4, p. 382. no. 26. o. Length 5· 5; tail 5·25; ear bare, ·6 high, oblong, rounded at tip. llind foot from tarsal joint I ·4. Hair short, soft, and monse like. Front teeth uarrow and slender, with orange surface. Upper parts aud legs brown, tinged with light chestn11t, more conspicuo11s on the head and along the sides; underparts dingy ochreous; tail light brown, nearly naked, with minute inconspicuous setre. Under fur light slaty. It resembles the immature of ill. indicus, but has smaller feet, and a soft silky pelage. A Rat affecting villages i11 the country near Tamsuy, Formosa, and ascending trees. IK70.J i\ln. n. sw1:-:woE o:-. ClllNESE i\lAi\11\IAJ.S . 637 . 63. ?\Ius LOSEA, sp. nov. (Brown Country-rat.) 0.Length G inches, tail 3·75. Teeth broader than in the last, and of the same coloar. General colcur of upper parts a rich brown, many of the hairs of the head and upper parts tipped with black, giYing a <lark appearauce in some lights; for soft and moderately long; under-fur dark slate-grey. Underparts dingy whitish; legs brown, with a streak of whitish on each edge of fore foot. Ears moderate, naked. Moustache rather short. Tail brown, with minute black seti:e scarcely visible. This is also a Country-rat at Tamsuy, Formosa. 64. l\Ius NINGPOENs1s, sp. noY. (Short-eared Field-mouse.) Length 3·2.1; tail 2·75. Lower incisors longo-triangular. Ear ·35, with short hair. Upper coat rich chestnut-brown, with deep slate coloured under-for; lower parts and feet white. l\Ioustache-bristles short and very fine. Fore foot minute ; hind foot ·7 from tarsal joint. Tail light brown aboYe, whitish below, with minute scattered white hairs. This little creature I picked up at Ningpo, in the consulate garden. It is a field-mouse; and "is," says Dr. Peters of Berlin, . "nearly related to the European short-eared mice, III. agrarius and III. minutus, being larger than the latter, and without the dark dorsal streak of the former." 65. ? i\lus BADJUS, Hodgson. (Long-tailed Field-mouse.) Mus -- ?, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1864, p. 382. no. 27. This long-tailed Field-mouse, with chestnut upper and whitish underparts, allied to 1.lf. sylvaticus, L., of Europe, appears to ha\·e a wide range in China, if I am right in identifying the one I got at Tamsuy with that I saw in Hainan. Unfort11nately both the specimens I picked up were too mangled to preserve. I have therefore not been able to identify it. 6G. i\lus ARGENTEUS, T. & S. Fann. Japan. (Yellow Housemouse.) 1\lr. S. Bligh, at Canton, gave me a small fawn-coloured monse, with light under parts and rather long tail, which answers well to the species described in the 'Fauna Japonica.' I have not seen it from other parts of China. -Gi. l\Ius l\lUSCULus, L. (Common House-mouse.) III us musculus, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1864, p. 382. Occasionally seen in houses both in South China and Formosa; probably introduced. Black and white varieties are often kept by the Chinese; these are brought from the Straits. 68. RmzOi\IYS cm NENSIS. (Chinese Bamboo-rat.) Rhi:omys chinensis, Gray, P. Z. S. 1831, p. 95; Ill. Ind. Zool. t. This large Bamboo-rat was procured by l\Ir. John Ree\·es at CRnton. I have not heard of it from other parts of South China. 638 MIL H. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MA\DIALS. [June 23, 6!). HYsTRIX SUBCRISTATA, sp. nov. (Subcrested Porcupine.) Hystri.r, sp., Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1864, p. 378. I had often heard of a Porcupine occurring both at Swatow (pro vince Kwangt1111g) and at Foochow (province Fokien), and knew that it was an animal well known to the Chinese as the "Bristly Pig" (Court dialect, llaochoo; Amoy, Ho-te); but it was not tiil May 1867 that I procured specimens. One of these was brought to me ali\"e, a11d I shipped it for the Society; but it got overfed by the passengers, and died before the vessel left the port. The other specimen, a skin with skull, I have brought home. The skull is very similar in form to the two of H. hodgsoni, Gray, in the British l\lnseum, and is like in form of teeth. It is the sknll•of an old animal, whereas the .Museum specimens have open sutures, and show juwnility. It is larger, and exhibits differences of detail; but it is questionable whether these may not be attri butable to advanced age. Judging from the skull alone, one might be inclined to identify ou1· animal with the N epaul species; but the external form of the Chinese Porcupine displays a conspicuous occi pital crest, which is entirely absent in the other. Hodgson and other zoologists lay great stress 011 the want of this crest (see ,vater house, l\Iammalia, iii. -lG I) ; and the mo1111ted skins in the Museum, both more than two-thirds the size of my specimens, bear no trace of it. :i\Iy specimens, on the contrary, differing in age, inter se, have each ·a crest. I follow, therefore, Dr. J. E. Gray's ach-ice, and separate the Chinese animal from its Nepanlese ally, though the ques t inn as to its distinctness will not be satisfactorily determined until we ascertain either that the H imalayan Porcnp0 ine has the crest when fully adult, or that the Chinese Porc11pine is destitute of it in its younger state. The following is a description from the lidng animal, corrected by help of the skin:- Snout to root of tail about 28 inches; tail about 5, eovered at its base by the protrll(1ing quills of the rnmp, and carrying a bunch of short white tnmc,,ted quills on pedicles on the apical third of its lrngth. Palm to end of nails 3 inches; sole to cud of nails 4. Head brow11, with rather bare brownish flesh-coloured cheeks, Iris cleep brown. A few short scattEl'ed hairs round eyes. Ears oval, flesh-brown, sparsely coYerecl with whitish hairs. Nose deep brown. :i\I uzzlc and lips with short brown hairs. General colour light purplish black, much derper on the legs; white on the long hairs of hind neck, with a crescent-shaped mark of the same colour across breast. Head, legs, and belly clothed with short stiff bristles; neck, anterior half of hack, and 1,ides with short furrowed black spines from I to 3 or more inches long, ending in sharp points, thicker on the back, a11d tipped with yellowish. From the occiput spring long stiff black bristles, white on the apical half; and along the hind neck runs a bushy ridge of the same from 2 to 5 inches long, black, with more or less white. Hind part of back with lung, thick, rigid quills, the longest about 9 inches, mostly white at base, with more or less white at tip; their central portions black, without 1870.] i\lR. R. S\VINHOJ<; ON CHINESE l<L\;\L\IALS. c;--15 the 'Transactions.' I haYe only a few notes to offel' on the ap pearance of some skins that were brought to me at Takow. 011e was a stuffed skin of a fawn about 19 inches in length. Its colour was rich yellowish brown, deeper on the hack, anJ paling 011 the sides and legs; face redder, with a blackish-brown forehead, aml dark brown behind the ears. Inside of ears, underparts, inner siJes of legs, and under tail pure white, the throat and neck aboYe being tinged with red; upper smface of tail red. Two rows of yellowish spots flank the back on either side, with a few irregular ones out lying on the shoulders and hind quarters. Three skins of adnlt animals are in different stages of coat :-the winter, when the hair is brown finely mottled, the list down the back showing itself in a deep brown line becoming black o,·er the tail, the underparts a dull white; hair not long ancl spots scarcdy visible. The autumn dress, evidently of a young male from its shagginess and coarseness; the list down the back much blacker, the brown tinged with a rich red, and the white spots beginning to fade. The third skin shows the appearance of the female in summer-of a rich orange buff, browner on the back, with a deep hlack dorsal ridge, the white spots pure and conspicuous with a wavy white liue of coalescing spots below from fore to hind leg, umler which the buff again appears, but very pale, and is succeeded by the white of the underparts. In all three skins the upper surface of the tail and the rump at its base are black, the lower surface of the tail and the inner side of buttocks pure white. The following Chinese notice on the Formosan Deer from the Taiwanfoo Gazetteer is perhaps worth recording:-" The Formosan hills have no Tigers; hence Deer are very numerous. In former years the whole island was given up to hunting-ground by the aborigines; now it is ploughed ancl sown by the Chinese settlers, so that fair fields extend as far as the eye can reach, and the Deer ha,e betaken themselves to the mountains. They are there hunted and captured; but the horns of the Formosan species are thin and soft at the base, and not equal to the plump liranchers from Leaotung Pro vince (North China). A hundred pairs when roasted will only pro <luce about twenty pounds of mediciual glue. Though Deer abound, you may seek a piece of venison in vain in the markets. At the winter and spring festiYities, howe\·er, the natiYes cut venison up into square blocks ,,eighing over a pound each, and, after steeping them in brine, forward them to the departmental an<l district cities. The colour of the vension so preserved is black, and its taste changed; it is not fit to pick np with chop-sticks ; and yet its price is no tritle. " Deer by their horns recor<l tht>ir years, each fork on the antler signifying one year, much as the age of horses is recorded by their teeth. The aborigines shoot Deer for food ; but no one has erer met a buck carrying·seven or more forks on the antlers. It was declared in former days that Deer were fairy animals of great longevity; ancl it was stated that at the age of 500 they were white, and at l 000 black. Bnt these stories mn�t be fables ; for the nati\'es at Chuhtsan shot a small Deer of a pure white with only two forks to its antler. This albinism cannot, therefore, be otherwise than due to an acciJental 64G MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [Jnne 23, variation in the eolour of the hair. Three years after birth tire Deer commences to horn. At the end of the year the horns drop away as do the milk-teeth of infants. Other horns appear in their place, which are retained throughout the animal's lifetime; but every year an extra fork is added. "The teats appear in the doe at the age of four months. Just before they show she gets extremely fat. ,vhen big with young, her skin is soft, smooth, spotted, glossy, and very lo\'ely. As soon as the doe has finished suckling and observes her fawn getting to ma turity, she deserts it and repairs to other hills, fearing that her own issue might entertain an improper affection for herself. Animals do not confuse the ties of consanguinity, the horse excepted. The stallion, however, when he does commit incest with his mother, soon after dies. The doe deprives her offspring of the opportunity by setting a distauee between herself and fawn ; for she deserts it and betakes herself afar." I have lately examined the type specimens in the Paris Musenm of Cervus pse1�daxis, and I am convinced that they belong to the For mosan species. 76. CEnvus (RusA) SWINHOII. (Swinhoe's Deer.) Cervus(Rusa)swinhoii, Sclater, P.Z.S. 1862, p.152, pl. xvii.; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. I 86'.L, p. 3G4. In the central ranges of Formosa near .Mount Morrison this brown deer is very common ; and on a visit I paill to the wild tribes of these parts in February l 8G6 I found them hunting the Deer with dogs"'. A place is cleared in the forest, where a party of men hide armed with matchlocks; the dogs yelp after the deer and drive them into the open, where the hidden sportsmen get easy shots at them. The son of the chief with whom I was staying had just returned from a suc cessful battne with the robust antlers and flesh of a large buck. I induced him to return for the head, which he had thrown away on the field. I was thus enabled to secure a fine skull for the British Museum. The young of this species about half-grown is reddish brown, with the tail bushy and black, but reddish at its root. Sides of the hody paler, and the belly blackish brown. Legs pale towards the hoofs; the lntter black. Under surface of tail, abdomen, and inner sides of hind legs down to middle of shank yellowish white, the breast and belly being blackish brown. Under surface of head and neek mottled whitey brown. Crown of the head with many of the hairs tipped with black ; from the oceiput a dark line runs down to the base of the tail. Ears blacki�h brown, tipped and margined with ochreous white, and whitish on their insides. The adult, in summer, has its coarse hair deep brown, faintly mot tled, rufous on the rump ; between the fore legs and the thighs ochreous white ; tail bushy aml dark. In winter it becomes a deeper brown. The Society's Gardens haYe had two or three examples of *The Dogs in the possession of these aborigines were of the ordinary Chinese breed procured from the colonists. 648 MR, R, SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [June 23, 78 . .Bos CHINENSIS. (South-China Cattle.) The small Yellow Cow of South China is a peculiar race, combi ning, as it seems to do, the characters of Bos indicus of India and Bos taurus of Europe. It has the bead and dewlap in character with the former, with a small hump, the straight back, and hind quarters of the latter. Mr. Blyth maintains that it is a cross between the two; and this opinion may perhaps be borne out by the fact that the N ortb-Chinese large cattle are certainly like onr European ordinary breed. In the 'Taiwanfoo Gazetteer' I read this passage under the head "Yellow Cow":-" The neighbouring hills have this animal in Fig. 6. Bos chinensis. abundance. They are caught and tamed, and are trained for nse in the ploughing of fields and drawing of carts;" and further on, " Formosa has an abundance of wild cattle, occurring in herds of hundreds and thousands. When it is desired to capture them, a wooden stockade is erected with four sides, in one of which is left a door. The cattle are driven towards it until they all enter, when the gate is shut on them and they are barred in and left to starve. They are afterwards by degrees haltered and bridled, and treated to fodder and beans, nntil they become not different from domestic cattle." ,v ere these wild cattle indigenous to the island, or were they simply feral descendants of an introduced race? If the latter, who introduced them ? The Chinese, when they commenced to settle in Formosa, found enormons wilrl herds alrendy there. The 1870.J MR. R, SWINHOE ON CHINESE l\IAl\lMALS, 649 Fig. i. Top view of skull of Bos cliinensi.�. Fig. 8. Side view of skull of Bos chincnsis. 650 .MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE MAMMALS. [June 23, wild natfres did not use them except for food ; and it is not likely that they could have conveyed domestic cattle in the small canoes by which they straggled to Formosa. If they had, we should expect to find some peculiar breed, whereas, as our author tells us, they "were not different from (South-China) domestic cattle." To show that they were derived from the Chinese breed, we should have to believe that the Chinese had earlier communication with the island than their records declare. I take it, then, that the wild Formosan Cow was indigenous to Formosa, and of the same species that ranged throughout South China, from which the present domestic cattle of the south arc derived. I have not heard of its being found wild in the present day in China; and in Formosa the wild race has almost, if not quite, disappeared. In the central mountains they are kept in a semi-wild state, and from there I procured the skulls of an adult male and female and a live bull. The bull I had photographed and now exhibit its portrait (fig. 6, p. 648) ; and the skulls are deposited in the British Museum. The figure shows a better and stronger build than ordinary South-Chinn Cattle possess, and proves the two to be of the same race. The Chinese have done little to improve their breed of cattle ; and you may see this kind in the country from Canton to Ningpo unchanged in form or shape of horns, but, as a rule, a little smaller and more degenerate than the wilder animals from the Formosan mountains. The skull of the bull (figs. 7 & 8) measures 19· 5 inches in length ; the horns are somewhat conical, measure 8 ioches in length each, and stand outwards and backwards. The animal is a rich chestnut-brown with whitish underparts and feet. Its horns and hoofs are black. I have never heard of the Buffalo occurring wild in either China or Formosa. The domestic varirty, used as a beast of burden by the Chinesr, is short-horned and apparently the same breed as that found in Manilla. EDENTATA. 79. MANIS DALMANNI, Sundevall. (Scaly Ant-eater.) Jl,lanis (Pholidotus) dalmrmni, Gray, P. Z. S. 1865, p. 366; Swinhoe, Zoologist, 1858, p. 622..J; P. Z. S. 1864, p. 381. In June 1867, at Amoy, I purchased a family of Scaly Anteaters, consisting of the mother and father and three little ones. The old ones ha<l dim watery eyes and were rather slow in their movements, walking on the sides of the bind feet and on the tips of the claws of the fore feet. The young were brighter-eyed and active, running about the room in all directions, standing on their bind legs and as suming a variety of curious positions; but their habit of walking was essentially the same as in the adults. I kept them all alive for some days; but I never heard them utter any cry, not even a moan. The adult male measured in entire length 33·25 inches; tail 13· 5; tip of nose to upper corner of ear 3· I ; height of ear I· 1 ; across head from ear to ear 2 ; anterior corner of eye to tip of nose I ·9 ; breadth of eye ·5 ; breadth of gape ·9, of muzzle ·7, of nose ·5; length of sole of hind foot 2·4, greatest breadth 1 ·4; length of middle claw of fore foot 2· I. 1870.] Mll. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE l\IAMl\lALS. 651 ·Head, ears, the under and all fleshy parts milk white, or the colour of cooked pork, the nose and muzzle having a tinge of purple. Cheeks, throat, and underparts sprinkled with shortish stiff coarse hairs of a light reddish sandy colour. A few lighter-coloured bris tles project from under the vertex of each scale from the ucciput to the tail. Scales short and broad, and usually purplish brown for two-thirds of their length, the tip portion yellowish-grey horn colour. On the sides of the body, and especially along the legs, the scales are placed far apart, exposing the white skin. The small scales on the sides of the fore legs are often sunk beneath the level of the bulging skin. Besides the basal vertical strire on the scales, there are often ( on the large scales chiefly) two or three transverse furrows near their bases. The large scales are held to the skin by a fleshy nipple-like pimple on each side of them adhering to their basal angles. Claws dingy yellowish. A young male measured 21 •i5 in entire length; tail 8·75. Head comparatively shorter and deeper than in the adult. Face pinkish white, washed about the muzzle and borders of ears with blackish grey; nose and lips purplish grey. Tungue about 2·i5 long, ·45 broad, narrowing to ·2, and rounded at tip ; composed of a vermi form centre with fleshy side-rims, gradually flattening towards tip. llare parts milky white. Heddish sandy hairs occur about the lower lobe of the ear (which is shaped something like the human ear), the throat, and underparts; in the first two longer and more numerous than in the adult. Longer and coarser whitey-brown hairs spring in tufts of five or so from under each scale. Scales more uniform and compact, even on the legs, than in the adult, more striated longitudinally and transversely, and much rarker in colom, resembling the side-piece::; of an acorn-barnacle (Balanus). Many of the lateral scales of the neck, body, and legs carinated; general colour of scales glossy blackish brown with a tinge of sea-green, sometimes tipped, edged, and marked along the keels with light horn-colour. The basal pimples that support the scales of the adnlt are not apparent in the young animal. The three young ones differed in size and in the proportional length of their tails, and, I do not think, were of the same birth. Only one of them was suckled by the mother. They seemed to be of different ages. A pregnant Manis that I once examined carried only one young one; and I do not think that they usually have more than one at a birth. An adult male from Formosa is about a third larger than the or dinary run of Amoy specimens. It has longer, narrower, and darker scales ; and those on the legs are compact and im bricated clown to the toes. I at first thought that this "Tayowan Devil," so called by the early Hollanders, was of another species; bnt I can detect no differences in its skull. The size and colour of the scales I find very variable. The dark colour of the Formosan specimen is like that of the young Amoy animal. This may be owing to the difference of the earth in which it lh·es. The Amoy and Formosan adult skulls both have complete malar arches ; but in the skulls of the Amoy young ones these gape apart, the unossified cartilage between having 652 MR, R. SWINH0E ON CHINESE MAMMALS. LJune 23, been cleaned away. The Formosan JJianis is constantly of a much larger size than the South-China animal ; and it is not unlikely that on further study it will be found to be distinct. The adult Amoy male above referred to I have placed in the Col lege-of-Surgeons, and the rest of my series are in the British 1\Iuseum. A note on the behaviour of this animal in confinement will be found in the 'Zoologist' for 1858 (l. s. c.). The JJ1anis is not uncommon in many parts of Formosa, is abundant in the neighbourhood of Amoy, Swatow, and southern parts of China, extending to Hainan. How far it ranges north I have not ascertained. CETACEA. 80. DELPHINUS (STENO) CHINENSIS, Osbeck. (South-China White Porpoise.) Delphinus (Steno) cltinensis, Flower, Trans. Z. S. vii. p;rt 2, p. 151; Swinhoe, Zoologist, 1858, p. G226. This white Porpoise, which Profesrnr Flower has so ably de scribed (l. c.), is to be seen in all the rivers of South China, and probably extends into the Yangtsze, where white Porpoises occur as far up as Hankow (750 miles from the sea). Above that port, and on to Ichang ( 1110 miles from the sea), we noticed a smaller and apparently different form, also white in colour. I have been told that black Porpoises occur at the mouth of the Shanghai river, and I have myself seen a school of small black Dolphins at sea north of Amoy (Swinhoe, 'North-China Campaign,' 1860, p. 10); but beyond their occurrence I know nothing more of them. I have never seen Porpoises of any kind off the coast or in the rivers of Formosa. 81. BALJENOPTERA SWINH0II. (Swinhoe's Fin-whale.) Balamoptera swinlioii, Gray, P. Z. S. 1!;65, p. 725. A large Finner-whale was cast on the sands of Formosa two miles below the port of Takow in 1862. In 1864 I collected all the bones of it that remained, and sent them to the British Museum. On view of these, Dr. J. E. Gray has established this species. Since then some more remains have been collected and sent home. This Whale resorts to the Hainan seas in winter, where the.Chinese pnrsue it for the oil it yields. In summer it occurs in the Namoa straits and off the Port of Swatow. A party of Americans thought to establish a fishery at Swatow, but after one or two captures they gave up the scheme. They found the Whale useless for their purposes. 82. ? MEGAPTERA KUZIRA (Temm. & Sehl.). (South-China Small Finner.) One day at Takow in March 1865 I was roused by the cry of "Hai-yang" (or Whale), and heard that one had just been stranded. I crossed the harbour and made for the spot. On the road I met several parties of Chinamen returning laden with portions of the poor monster. On arriving at the spot I found little left beside the jaw and a part of the back ; and even these were being hacked and 1870.J DR, ;J, E. GRAY ON NEW TORTOISES. 653 fought over. The creature must have been either sick or foolish; for it wandered close to the shore just round the rocks at the en trance of the small harbour. A l\Ianillaman observed it, and, getting a hammer, rushed into tbe watf'r and struck it a severe blow on the head. He then hailed some Chinese to assist in getting it ashore. It measured, I was told on tolerably good authority, about 20 feet, and bad no fin on its back. I saw parts of its belly, and observed that it was plaited across. Its colour was of a leaden black above, and whitish beneath. I saw one man carrying away its pectoral flippers, and two others its tail. I seized a piece of the baleen and sent it to the British Museum, but it unfortunately never reached its destination. Viewed exteriorly, it was like a high comb, the teeth (so to speak) being about 3 inches high and set about one-sixth of an inch apart, worn into bristles at their tips. Viewed from inside, you saw nothing but close-set whitish coarse hairs or bristles. Examined separately, each plate of baleen was shaped like a lob-sided triangle leaning outwards, coloured blackish blue like ordinary whalebone, and broken up at the top for about an inch, and to a less extent along the inner edge, into coarse whitish hair. The width of each plate at the base was l ·25 inch. There was a sheen of purple ·about the dark parts of the animal, especially on the flippers and tail. The gunboat 'Flamer' came into Takow a day or two after the occurrence above related; and her commander, Lieutenant Eaton, told me that he had met a large number of small Whales between our port and the Pescadores. He mistook them for a long line of breakers where the chart showed no shoal. He kept away, fearing that there might be some mistake in the chart, when some of the brutes began to throw their tails and cut antics in the water. He then saw that the danger was nothing more than a school of Whales. He said there must have been about fifty, most of them averaging 20 feet or more. He did not observe that they bad any fin on the back. They spouted water. From the nature of the baleen, our species must belong to the Balrenopteridre; and from the shape of its flippers and want of a conspicuous dorsal fin it must be a .Megaptera. It is probable that it will be found to be the same species that occurs in the seas of South Japan. 10. Notes on Tortoises in the British Museum, with Descrip tions of some New Species. By Dr. J. E. GRAY, F.R.S. &c.