Volume 5, No. 10, pp. 119-202, 68 figures in text December 15, 1951

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS Lawrence, Kansas

PRINTED BY FERD VOILAND, JR., STATE PRINTER TOPEKA, KANSAS 1951

23-7988

A Synopsis of the North American Lagomorpha

BY

E. RAYMOND HALL

The most popular small game mammal in nearly every part of North America is one or another of the species of rabbits or hares. The rabbit is one of the few species of wild game that still is hunted commercially and sold for food on the open market. The close association and repeated contact of man with these animals has resulted in his contracting such of their diseases as are transmissible to him. Consequently the rabbits and hares have figured in many investigations concerned with public health and medicine. Because the number of such investigations is increasing, there has been an increasing number of specimens of these animals submitted to mammalogists for identification; also, inquiries are received as to the degree of relationship between two or more of the named kinds of rabbits in which identical, or closely related, disease organisms have been found; other inquiries have to do with the degree of relationship of named kinds of rabbits and hares in widely separated parts of the continent.

The monographs to which the investigator could turn to obtain answers to some of these questions are Arthur H. Howell's "Revision of the American Pikas" (1924), and Edward H. Nelson's "The Rabbits of North America" (1909) published 27 and 42 years ago, respectively. These monographs are still excellent sources of detailed information, as, of course, also is Marcus Ward Lyon's "Classification of the Hares and their Allies" (1904). The acquisition of additional study specimens in recent years, however, has provided new data on the geographic occurrence of several species, and study of these specimens has given basis for a different arrangement of several named kinds of the lagomorphs. Two principal aims of the present synopsis, therefore, are to combine in one publication the current taxonomic arrangement and as much as is known of the geographic distribution of the several species and subspecies.

The maps herewith and listings of marginal localities are the means chosen to present the information on geographic distribution. The artificial key is supplemented by line drawings of skulls of certain species and by a minimum of text to aid the user of the key. The skulls are necessary for the identification of some species of the genus _Sylvilagus_. The skins, on the contrary, are essential for the identification of the species of the genus _Lepus_ in central Mexico and in the Great Basin of the western United States. Consequently, it has been impossible to construct a key based on external characters only or on cranial features only. Furthermore, the only apparent differences between a given pair of species in one region may not be apparent in another region where the same two species occur together. A case in point is provided by _Sylvilagus floridanus_ and _Sylvilagus nuttallii_ where the Great Plains meet the eastern flank of the Rocky Mountains and where the Sonoran desert meets the southwestern flank of these mountains. The details are described by Hall and Kelson (1951:52, 53) and are indicated in the part of the accompanying artificial key that takes out the species _Sylvilagus nuttallii_. Because of this geographic change in specific characters and because of the slight amount of difference between certain species of leporids, I have frequently resorted to geography, instead of to morphology alone, in constructing the artificial key. Despite this fault of the key to the lagomorphs, it, and the accompanying account, I hope, will aid workers who need to identify kinds of lagomorphs and to know about their geographic distribution.

Another reason for presenting a synopsis of the lagomorphs at this time is that the presentation may bring suggestions for improvement in the arrangement of the kind of information presented here; an account along similar lines for all of the kinds of mammals native to North America is in prospect. Corrections of, and additions to, the material presented here will be welcomed and I shall be especially grateful for suggestions as to a more useful arrangement of the data.

In arranging the families, genera and species the aim has been, in each category, to list the most primitive members first and to list last the one which presents the highest total of specialization. The term _total of specialization_ is used here, as Miller (1924:2) used it, to denote the sum of the physical modifications which any mammal, or taxonomic category of mammals, is supposed by the author to have undergone during the course of its development away from its original or generalized mammalian stock.

Subspecies of any one species are arranged alphabetically. On the maps, of course, the subspecies are shown in their correct geographic positions.

For each subspecies, or species if it has not been divided into subspecies, there is given (1) the accepted scientific name (selected in accordance with the rules of the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature); (2) a citation to the account in which the terminal part of the name was first proposed (the original description of zoological parlance) followed by a statement of the type locality; (3) a citation to the account in which the combination of names (generic, specific and subspecific) used in the present account first was employed unless the name combination used here is the same as that in the original description; (4) synonyms arranged in chronological order, and (5) marginal record stations of occurrence.

These marginal records are arranged in clockwise order beginning with the northernmost locality. If more than one of the marginal localities lies on the line of latitude that is northernmost for a given kind of mammal, the westernmost of these is recorded first. The marginal localities that are represented by symbols on the corresponding distribution map are in Roman type. Italic type is used for those marginal localities that could not be represented by symbols on the map because undue crowding, or overlapping, of the symbols would have occurred. An understanding of how these localities are arranged and knowledge as to which of these localities are shown on the map will permit a person to associate any symbol on a map with its corresponding place name.

Measurements are in millimeters unless otherwise indicated. Capitalized color terms are after Ridgway (Color Standards and Color Nomenclature, Washington, D. C., 1912), and uncapitalized terms refer to no particular color standard. Several of the drawings of skulls were reproduced originally in the "Mammals of Nevada" (Hall, 1946) and I am grateful to the University of California Press for permission to use them here. Those drawings were made by Miss Viola Memmler. The other drawings are the work of Mrs. Frieda Abernathy, Mrs. Diane (Danley) Sandidge, and Mrs. Virginia (Cassel) Unruh. Initials on the drawings identify the individual's work. The study here reported upon was aided by a contract between the Office of Naval Research, Department of the Navy, and the University of Kansas (NR 161-791). Also, assistance with some of the field work was given by the Kansas University Endowment Association and by Dr. Curt von Wedel. For the corrected dates on several publications I am indebted to Dr. A. Remington Kellogg. For assistance with the organization of the data for the present account I am grateful to several persons, especially to my wife, Mary F. Hall, and to Dr. Keith R. Kelson.

Order LAGOMORPHA--Hares, Rabbits and Pikas

Families and genera revised by Lyon, Smithsonian Miscl. Coll., 45:321-447, June 15, 1904. For taxonomic status of group see Gidley, Science, n. s., 36:285-286, August 30, 1912.

The order Lagomorpha is old in the geological sense; fossilized bones and teeth of both pikas and rabbits are known from deposits of Oligocene age and even at that early time the structural features distinguishing these animals from other orders were well developed.

A noteworthy character of the order is the presence of four upper incisor teeth (instead of only two as in the Rodentia); also, the fibula is ankylosed to the tibia and articulates with the calcaneum. Each of the first upper incisors has a longitudinal groove on its anterior face.

All lagomorphs are herbivorous. They eat principally leaves and non-woody stems although the bark of sprouts and bushes is taken as second choice by rabbits and hares.

Correlation of structure and function is well illustrated among the lagomorphs by the means which the different species employ to detect and escape from their enemies. A gradient series is evident in which the pikas and jack rabbits are the extremes. The black-tailed jack rabbit, for example, in relation to size of the entire animal, has the longest ears and longest hind legs. This kind of lagomorph takes alarm when an enemy, for example, a coyote, is yet a long way off. The jack rabbit seeks safety in running; even when being overtaken by a pursuer that is close behind, the jack rabbit still relies on its running ability instead of entering thick brush or a hole in the ground where its larger-sized pursuer would be unable to follow. A cottontail has shorter ears and shorter hind legs. It allows the enemy to approach more closely than the jack rabbit does before running, and then, although relying in some measure on its running ability for escape, flees to a burrow or thicket for safety from its pursuer. The brush rabbit with ears and hind legs shorter than those of the cottontail seldom if ever ventures farther than 45 feet away from the edge of dense cover. After an enemy is near, the brush rabbit has merely to scamper back into the brush. Still shorter of ear and hind leg is the pigmy rabbit which ventures outside its burrow to feed only among the tall and closely-spaced bushes of sagebrush among which its burrow is dug. Detection of the slightest movement of an enemy on the opposite side of the bush sends the pigmy rabbit, in one or a few jumps, into the mouth of its burrow and, if need be, below ground. The pika, with the shortest ears and legs of all, lives in the rock slides and has to do little more than drop off the top of a rock into a space between the broken rocks when an enemy is detected near enough to the pika to have a chance of seizing it.

The number of molts in a year, depending on the kind of lagomorph, varies in adults from one (according to Nelson, 1909:31) in the cottontails (genus _Sylvilagus_) to as many as three (according to Lyman, 1943, and Severaid, 1945) in the varying hare (_Lepus americanus_). Difficulties that I have experienced in attempting to account for the variations in color and wear of the pelage of the pika, _Ochotona princeps_, on the basis of two molts per year, make me wonder if it, too, has three molts. _Lepus townsendii_ certainly has at least two molts per year.

KEY TO FAMILIES AND GENERA OF LAGOMORPHA

1. Hind legs scarcely larger than forelegs; hind foot less than 40; nasals widest anteriorly; no supraorbital process on frontal; five cheek teeth on each side above Family Ochotonidae, Genus _Ochotona_, p. 125

1'. Hind legs notably larger than forelegs; hind foot more than 40; nasals widest posteriorly; supraorbital process on frontal; six cheek teeth on each side above Family Leporidae, p. 134

2. Interparietal fused with parietals (see fig. 49); hind foot usually more than 105 Genus _Lepus_, p. 170

2'. Interparietal not fused with parietals (see fig. 10); hind foot usually less than 105 Genera _Romerolagus_ and _Sylvilagus_, pp. 137, 138

Family OCHOTONIDAE--Pikas

Certain characters in which this family differs from the Leporidae (hares and rabbits) are: hind legs scarcely longer than forelegs; ears short, approximately as wide as high; no postorbital process on frontal; rostrum slender; nasals widest anteriorly; maxilla not conspicuously fenestrated; jugal long and projecting far posteriorly to zygomatic arm of squamosal; no pubic symphysis; one less cheek-tooth above, the dental formula being i. 2/1, c. 0/0, p. 3/2, m. 2/3; second upper maxillary tooth unlike third in form; last lower molar simple (not double) or absent (in the extinct genus _Oreolagus_); cutting edge of first upper incisor V-shaped; mental foramen situated under last lower molar.

Genus OCHOTONA Link--Pikas

Revised by A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:1-57, August 21, 1924.

1795. _Ochotona_ Link, Beytr[:a]ge zur Naturgesch, I (pt. 2):74. Type, _Lepus ogotona_ Pallas.

_Characters_.--Five teeth (excluding incisor) in lower jaw; first cheek-tooth (p3) with more than one re-entrant angle; columns of lower molars angular internally; transverse width of any one column of a lower molariform tooth more than double the width of the neck connecting it to the other column.

Subgenus PIKA Lac['e]p[e']de

1799. _Pika_ Lac['e]p[e']de, Tableau des Divisions &c., Mamm., p. 9. Type, _Lepus alpinus_ Pallas.

1904. _Pika_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:438, June 15.

_Characters._--Skull flattened; interorbital region wide; maxillary orifice roundly triangular; palatal foramina separate from anterior palatine foramina.

All of the living members of the family Ochotonidae belong to this genus. American pikas all belong to the subgenus _Pika_, which occurs also in Eurasia.

The distribution is boreal and the animals live in talus. This broken rock at the foot of a cliff provides interstices in which the animals live and store grass and herbs. These plant materials are cut for food and stacked in piles to dry in the sun, often beneath slabs of rock which protect the hay-piles from rain. Pikas are diurnal, active throughout the year, and have a characteristic call, "chickck-chickck." Young number two to five per litter.

KEY TO NOMINAL SPECIES OF OCHOTONA

1. North of 58[deg] N latitude; underparts creamy white, without buffy wash; an indistinct grayish "collar" on shoulders _collaris_, p. 126

1'. South of 58[deg] N latitude; underparts washed with buff; no grayish "collar" on shoulders _princeps_, p. 127

=Ochotona collaris= (Nelson)

Collared Pika

1893. _Lagomys collaris_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 8:117, December 21, type from near head of Tanana River, Alaska.

1897. [_Ochotona_] _collaris_, Trouessart, Catalogus Mammalium ..., p. 648

_Marginal records._--Alaska: Mt. McKinley (A. H. Howell, 1924:36). Yukon: head of Coal Creek, Ogilvie Mountains (_ibid._). Mackenzie: mile 63E on Little Keel River, Canol Road (Anderson, 1947:94). Yukon: _Macmillan Pass, mile 282, Canol Road_ (_ibid._); Ross River, mile 96, Canol Road (_ibid._); vic. Teslin Lake (A. H. Howell, 1924:36). British Columbia: Tagish Lake (_ibid._); Stonehouse Creek, 5-1/2 mi. W jct. Stonehouse Creek and Kelsall River (29088 KU). Alaska: Tanana River (A. H. Howell, 1924:36).

Upper parts Drab to Light Drab; underparts creamy white; grayish patch on nape and shoulders; skull broad; tympanic bullae large; total length 189; hind foot, 30.

=Ochotona princeps=

Pika

Total length, 162-216; hind foot, 25-35; weight of _O. p. tulelata_, 6 [MALE] 121 (108-128), 2 [FEMALE] 121 and 129 grams. Upper parts varying from grayish to Cinnamon-Buff depending on the subspecies; underparts with wash of buff. Eight Nevadan females had an average of 3.1 (2-4) embryos. The mode was 3.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS ALBATA Grinnell.

1912. _Ochotona albatus_ Grinnell, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 10:125, January 31, type from 11,000 ft., near Cottonwood Lakes, Sierra Nevada, Inyo County, California.

_Marginal records_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:45).--California: Bullfrog Lake; 10,000 ft., Independence Creek; type locality; Mineral King, E. Fork Kaweah River.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS BROOKSI A. H. Howell.

1924. _Ochotona princeps brooksi_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:30, August 21, type from Sicamous, British Columbia.

_Marginal records_.--British Columbia: Mountains E Shuswap Lake (Anderson, 1947:95); type locality; McGillivary Creek, Lillooet Dist. (A. H. Howell, 1924:31).

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS BRUNNESCENS A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona fenisex brunnescens_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:108, May 20, type from Keechelus, Kittitas County, Washington.

1924. _Ochotona princeps brunnescens_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:31, September 23.

_Marginal records_.--British Columbia: Alta Lake (Anderson, 1947:95); Hope, Lake House (A. H. Howell, 1924:33). Washington: _Whatcom Pass_ (Dalquest, 1948:380); Stevens Pass (A. H. Howell, 1924:33); _Cowlitz Pass_ (Dalquest, 1948:380). Oregon: Mt. Hood (A. H. Howell, 1924:33); Crater Lake (_ibid._); Mt. McLoughlin (V. Bailey, 1936:116); Diamond Lake (A. H. Howell, 1924:33). Washington: Tumtum Mtn. (Dalquest, 1948:380); Mt. Index (A. H. Howell, 1924:33). British Columbia: Chilliwack (ibid.); Vancouver (_ibid._).

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS CINNAMOMEA J. A. Allen.

1905. _Ochotona cinnamomea_ J. A. Allen, Mus. Brooklyn Inst. Arts and Sci., Sci. Bull., 1:121, March 31, type from 11,000 ft., Briggs [=Britts] Meadows, Beaver Range, Beaver County, Utah (5 mi. by road W Puffer Lake, according to Hardy, Jour. Mamm., 26:432, February 12, 1946). Known from type locality only.

1934. _Ochotona princeps cinnamomea_, Hall, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 47:103, June 13.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS CLAMOSA Hall and Bowlus.

1938. _Ochotona princeps clamosa_ Hall and Bowlus, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 42:335, October 12, type from 8400 ft., north rim Copenhagen Basin, Bear Lake County, Idaho.

_Marginal records._--Idaho: type locality; _Deep Lake, Bear River Mts._ (Hall and Bowlus, 1938:336) _2 mi. E Strawberry Creek Ranger Station, Wasatch Mts._ (Davis, 1939:352).

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS CUPPES Bangs.

1899. _Ochotona cuppes_ Bangs, Proc. New England Zool. Club, 1:40, June 5, type from 4000 ft., Monashee Divide, Gold Range, British Columbia.

1924. _Ochotona princeps cuppes_, A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:27, September 23.

_Marginal records._--British Columbia: Glacier (A. H. Howell, 1924:28); Nelson (Anderson, 1947:95). Idaho: Cabinet Mts. (Davis, 1939:348). Washington: Sullivan Lake (A. H. Howell, 1924:28). British Columbia: Rossland (_ibid._); type locality.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS FENISEX Osgood.

1913. _Ochotona fenisex_ Osgood, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 26:80, March 22 (substitute for _minimus_ Lord, type from 7000 ft., Ptarmigan Hill, near head of Ashnola River, Cascade Range, British Columbia).

1924. _Ochotona princeps fenisex_, A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:28, September 23.

1863. _Lagomys minimus_ Lord, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, p. 98. (Not of Schinz, 1821.)

1899. _Ochotona minimus_, Bangs, Proc. New England Zool. Club, 1:39, June 5.

_Marginal records._--British Columbia: Okanagan (A. H. Howell, 1924:30). Washington: Horseshoe Basin, "near" Mt. Chopaka (_ibid._); mts. near Wenatchee (_ibid._); Steamboat Mtn. (Dalquest, 1948:380); Easton (_ibid._); Lyman Lake (_ibid._); Barron (A. H. Howell, 1924:30). British Columbia: Tulameen (_ibid._); 2500 ft., mts. W Okanagan Lake (_ibid._).

_Ochotona princeps figginsi_ J. A. Allen.

1912. _Ochotona figginsi_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 31:103, May 28, type from Pagoda Peak, Rio Blanco County, Colorado.

1924. _Ochotona princeps figginsi_, A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:21, September 23.

_Marginal records_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:22).--Wyoming: Bridger Peak, Sierra Madre. Colorado: Mt. Zirkel; Trappers Lake; _Crested Butte_; Irwin; type locality; Sand Mtn., 9 mi. SW Hahns Peak P. O.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS FUMOSA A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona fenisex fumosa_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:109, May 20, type from Permilia Lake, W base Mt. Jefferson, Linn County, Oregon.

1924. _Ochotona princeps fumosa_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:33, September 23.

_Marginal records_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:34).--Oregon: About 900 ft., 15 mi. above Estacada; Paulina Lake; _Three Sisters_; Lost Creek Ranger Station, 10 mi. SE McKenzie Bridge.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS FUSCIPES A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona schisticeps fuscipes_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:110, May 20, type from Brian Head, Parowan Mts., Iron County, Utah.

1941. _O[chotona]. p[rinceps]. fuscipes_, Hall and Hayward, The Great Basin Naturalist, 2:108, July 20.

_Marginal records._--Utah: type locality; 9000 ft., Duck Creek (Durrant, MS).

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS GOLDMANI A. H. Howell.

1924. _Ochotona schisticeps goldmani_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:40, September 23, type from Echo Crater, Snake River Desert, 20 mi. SW Arco, Idaho.

1938. _Ochotona princeps goldmani_, Hall and Bowlus, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 42:337, October 12.

_Marginal records._--Idaho: _S base Grassy Cone_ (Davis, 1939:350); type locality; _Fissure Crater_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:41); _Great Owl Cavern_ (Davis, 1939:350).

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS HOWELLI Borell.

1931. _Ochotona princeps howelli_ Borell, Jour. Mamm., 12:306, August 24, type from 7500 ft., near head of Bear Creek, summit of Smith Mtn., S end Seven Devils Mts., Adams County, Idaho.

_Marginal records._--Idaho: _1/2 mi. E Black Lake_ (Davis, 1939:350); type locality.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS INCANA A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona saxatilis incana_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:107, May 20, type from 12,000 ft., Pecos Baldy, Santa Fe County, New Mexico.

1924. _Ochotona princeps incana_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:25, September 23.

_Marginal records._--Colorado: Medano Creek (A. H. Howell, 1924:25). New Mexico: Wheeler Peak (V. Bailey, 1932:64); type locality.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS JEWETTI A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona schisticeps jewetti_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:109, May 20, type from head of Pine Creek, near Cornucopia, S slope Wallowa Mts., Baker County, Oregon.

_Marginal records_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:42).--Oregon: Wallowa Lake; Cornucopia, near head East Pine Creek; _Anthony_; Strawberry Butte; Austin.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS LEMHI A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona uinta lemhi_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:106, May 20, type from Lemhi Mountains, 10 mi. W Junction, Lemhi County, Idaho.

1924. _Ochotona princeps lemhi_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:16, September 23.

_Marginal records._--Idaho: Elk Summit, about 15 mi. SE Warren (A. H. Howell, 1924:18); mts. E of Leadore (_ibid._); mts. E of Birch Creek (_ibid._); Ketchum (_ibid._); _Stanley Lake_ (_ibid._); 5 mi. W Cape Horn (Davis, 1939:348).

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS LEVIS Hollister.

1912. _Ochotona levis_ Hollister, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 25:57, April 13, type from Chief Mountain [= Waterton] Lake, Alberta.

1924. _Ochotona princeps levis_, A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:16, September 23.

_Marginal records_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:16).--Alberta: type locality. Montana: Little Belt Mts.; Belt Mts.; Chief Mountain Lake.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS LUTESCENS A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona princeps lutescens_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:105, May 20, type from approximately 8000 ft., Mount Inglismaldie, near Banff, Alberta.

_Marginal records._--Alberta: Mistaya Creek, Banff-Jasper Highway (Anderson, 1947:96); Canmore (A. H. Howell, 1924:15); Mt. Forget-me-not, 50 to 75 mi. SW Calgary (_ibid._).

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS MOOREI Gardner.

1950. _Ochotona princeps moorei_ Gardner, Jour. Washington Acad. Sci., 40:344, October 23, 1950, type from 10,000 ft., 1 mi. NE Baldy Ranger Station, Manti Nat'l Forest, Sanpete County, Utah. Known from type locality only.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS MUIRI Grinnell and Storer.

1916. _Ochotona schisticeps muiri_ Grinnell and Storer, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 17:6, August 23, type from 9300 ft., Ten Lakes, Yosemite Nat'l Park, California.

1934. _Ochotona princeps muiri_, Hall, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 47:103, June 13.

_Marginal records._--Nevada (Hall, 1946:593): 8500 ft., 3 mi. S Mt. Rose, California (A. H. Howell, 1924:44): Markleeville; mts. W Bishop Creek; Washburn Lake; Latitude 39[deg], summit of Sierra.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS NEVADENSIS A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona uinta nevadensis_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:107, May 20, type from 10,500 ft., Ruby Mts., SW Ruby Valley P. O., Elko County, Nevada.

1924. _Ochotona princeps nevadensis_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:21, September 23.

_Marginal records._--Nevada: 7830 ft., Long Creek (Hall, 1946:590); type locality.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS NIGRESCENS V. Bailey.

1913. _Ochotona nigrescens_ V. Bailey, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 26:133, May 21, type from 10,000 ft., Jemez Mountains, Bernalillo County, New Mexico.

1924. _Ochotona princeps nigrescens_, A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:26, September 23.

_Marginal records_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:26).--Colorado: Upper Navajo River; Osier. New Mexico: type locality. Colorado: Navajo Peaks.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS PRINCEPS (Richardson).

1828. _Lepus_ (_Lagomys_) _princeps_ Richardson, Zool. Jour., 3:520, type from headwaters of Athabaska River, near Athabaska Pass, Alberta.

1897. [_Ochotona_] _princeps_, Trouessart, Catalogus Mammalium, p. 648.

_Marginal records._--British Columbia: headwaters South Pine River (Anderson, 1947:95). Alberta: Muskeg Creek "about" 60 mi. N Jasper House (_ibid._). British Columbia: Morrissey (_ibid._). Montana: mts. near St. Marys Lake (A. H. Howell, 1924:14); mts. 15 mi. E Corvallis (_ibid._); Lake Como, Bitterroot Mts. (_ibid._). Idaho: Coeur d' Alene Nat'l Forest (Rust, 1946:322). British Columbia: Mt. Evans, "near" Cranbrook (A. H. Howell, 1924:14); Spillamacheen River (_ibid._)

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS SAXATILIS Bangs.

1899. _Ochotona saxatilis_ Bangs, Proc. New England Zool. Club, 1:41, June 5, type from Montgomery, "near" Mt. Lincoln, Park County, Colorado.

1924. _Ochotona princeps saxatilis_, A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:23, September 23.

_Marginal records_ (A. H. Howell, 1924:24, except as otherwise noted).--Wyoming: Medicine Bow Mts.; just above Centennial in mts. (Martin, 1943:394). Colorado: Estes Park; Pikes Peak; Silverton. Utah: La Sal Mts. Colorado: Crystal Lake, 5 mi. W Lake City; Middle Brush Creek; Ten Mile Creek; Berthoud Pass; _Irwin Lakes_ (A. H. Howell, _loc. cit._) not found.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS SCHISTICEPS (Merriam).

1889. _Lagomys schisticeps_ Merriam, N. Amer. Fauna, 2:11, October 30, type from Donner, Placer County, California.

1936. _Ochotona princeps schisticeps_, A. H. Miller, Jour. Mamm., 17:174, May 18.

1897. _Ochotona schisticeps_ Merriam, Mazama, 1:223, October.

_Marginal records._--Nevada (Hall, 1946:590): 12 mi. E and 3 mi. N Ft. Bidwell, 5700 ft.; 8400-8600 ft., Duffer Peak, Pine Forest Mts. California (A. H. Howell, 1924:39): Tahoe; _Donner Pass_; 12 mi. NE Prattville; Lassen Peak; Mt. Shasta.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS SEPTENTRIONALIS Cowan and Racey.

1947. _Ochotona princeps septentrionalis_ Cowan and Racey, Canadian Field-Nat., 60:102, March 17, type from 6500 ft., Itcha Mountains, 52[deg] 45' N lat., 125[deg] W long., British Columbia. Known from type locality only.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS SHELTONI Grinnell.

1918. _Ochotona schisticeps sheltoni_ Grinnell, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 17:429, April 25, type from 11,000 ft., "near" Big Prospector Meadow, White Mountains, Mono County, California.

1946. _Ochotona princeps sheltoni_, Hall, Mammals of Nevada, p. 593, July 1.

_Marginal records._--Nevada: 8700 ft., Pinchot Creek (Hall, 1946:593). California: type locality.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS TAYLORI Grinnell.

1912. _Ochotona taylori_ Grinnell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 25:129, July 31, type from 9000 ft., Warren Peak, Warner Mts., Modoc Co., Calif.

_Marginal records_ (V. Bailey, 1936:113, unless otherwise noted).--Oregon: N end of Steens Mts.; Guano Valley; Jack Lake, 20 mi. NE Adel; Adel. California (A. H. Howell, 1924:40): type locality; 5400 ft., "near" Termo, Madeline Plains; nr. head Little Shasta Riv. Oregon: Lower Klamath Lake.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS TUTELATA Hall.

1934. _Ochotona princeps tutelata_ Hall, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 47:103, June 13, type from 8150 ft., Greenmonster Canyon, Monitor Mts., Nye County, Nevada.

_Marginal records_ (Hall, 1946:591).--Nevada: 7500 ft., Smiths Creek, Desatoya Mts.; 8600 ft., type locality; 8700-11,000 ft., SW and W slopes Mt. Jefferson, Toquima Range; South Twin River; _Arc Dome_.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS UINTA Hollister.

1912. _Ochotona uinta_ Hollister, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 25:58, April 13, type from "near" head E. Fork Bear River, Uinta Mts., Utah.

1924. _Ochotona princeps uinta_, A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:19, September 23.

_Marginal records._--Utah: type locality; Elk Park (Hall and Bowlus, 1938:337); _11,000 to 11,500 ft., The Nipple_ (_ibid._); 10,500 ft., SW slope Bald Mtn. (_op. cit._:336); Mt. Timpanogos (_op. cit._:337); 8500 ft., Morehouse Canyon, 5 mi. above Weber River (_op. cit._:337); _Spirit Lake_ (_op. cit._:336) not found.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS UTAHENSIS Hall and Hayward.

1941. _Ochotona princeps utahensis_ Hall and Hayward, Great Basin Nat., 2:107, July 20, type from 2 mi. W Deer Lake, Garfield County, Utah.

_Marginal records._--Utah: 9000 ft., Donkey Lake, Boulder Mtn. (Durrant, MS); type locality.

OCHOTONA PRINCEPS VENTORUM A. H. Howell.

1919. _Ochotona uinta ventorum_ A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:106, May 20, type from Fremont Peak, Wind River Mts., Fremont County, Wyoming.

1924. _Ochotona princeps ventorum_ A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:18, September 23.

_Marginal records._--Montana: Emigrant Peak (A. H. Howell, 1924:19); Beartooth Mts. (_ibid._). Wyoming: 9600 ft., 19-1/2 mi. E and 4-1/2 mi. S Shell (20882 KU); head of Trappers Creek (A. H. Howell, 1924:19); Medicine Wheel Ranch, 28 mi. E Lovell (32919 KU); Needle Mtn. (A. H. Howell, 1924:19); Lake Fork (_ibid._); 8450 ft., 17-1/2 mi. S and 6-1/2 mi. W Lander (37994 KU); Middle Piney Lake, "near" Stanley (A. H. Howell, 1924:19); Salt River, 16 mi. S Afton (Hall and Bowlus, 1938:337); Teton Pass (A. H. Howell, 1924:19). Idaho: Teton Canyon (Davis, 1939:349).

Family LEPORIDAE--Rabbits and Hares

Hind legs longer than forelegs; ears longer than wide; frontal bone carrying supraorbital process consisting always of posterior arm and sometimes of anterior arm; rostrum wide; nasals not wider anteriorly than posteriorly; maxillae conspicuously fenestrated; jugal projecting less than half way from zygomatic root of squamosal to external auditory meatus (except in _Romerolagus_); pubic symphysis well marked; dental formula, i. 2/1, c. 0/0, p. 3/2, m. 3/3 (but m. 2/3 in _Pentalagus_ of Liu Kiu Islands south of Japan); second upper maxillary tooth like third in form; last lower molar double; cutting edge of first upper incisor straight; mental foramen of mandible situated under first lower cheek-tooth. Females average larger than males in all members of this family. (See Orr, 1940:20.) The reverse is true in most other families of mammals.

Hare is a name applied to any lagomorph whose young are born fully haired, with the eyes open, and able to run about a few minutes after birth. The young are born in the open, not in a nest. All of the species of the genus _Lepus_ are hares. The species of leporids of all genera other than _Lepus_, in North America at least, are rabbits. Their young are born naked, blind, and helpless, in a nest especially built for them and lined with fur. Considering the degree of development of the young at birth, the gestation periods are about what a person would expect: 26 to 30 days in _Sylvilagus_ and 36 to 47 days in _Lepus_ (see Severaid, 1950:356-357). Vernacular names are misleading because the names jack rabbit and snowshoe rabbit are applied to hares; also, Belgian hare is a name applied to a rabbit (genus _Oryctolagus_) that is commonly bred in captivity. There are many domestic strains and varieties of _Oryctolagus_ and the animals are second only to poultry in some areas as a protein food for man. Also, the pelts are sold as a source of felt and many of the skins are dyed and processed for making fur coats and other fur-pieces that appear on the market under names not readily associated with rabbit.

Rabbits and hares are crepuscular and possibly more nocturnal than diurnal. So far as I know they do not store food as do their diurnal relatives, the pikas. Some leporids, however, have an unusual, and possibly unique, method of processing food: Two types of vegetable pellets are expelled from the anal opening of the digestive tract; the dark brownish pellets, from which the nutriments have been extracted, are feces, but the greenish pellets seem to be only slightly predigested foods which are re-eaten. Southern (1942:553), among others, has written about this. This system functionally resembles that in the ruminants where a cud of vegetation is returned to the mouth, from one part of the stomach, to be re-chewed and finally swallowed.

Because the causative organism of a disease that decimates dense populations of small mammals, and some other kinds of vertebrates, was isolated first in leporids, this disease, tularemia, is more associated in the popular mind with rabbits than with other kinds of mammals. Actually, many kinds of mammals are quite as likely to have tularemia as are rabbits. Now that streptomycin is available, cases of tularemia in persons are easily cured.

KEY TO SPECIES OF THE GENERA SYLVILAGUS AND ROMEROLAGUS

1. Antorbital extension of supraorbital process more than 1/2 length of posterior extension; first upper cheek-tooth with only one re-entrant angle on anterior face; re-entrant angle of second upper cheek-tooth not crenate _Sylvilagus idahoensis_, p. 139

1'. Antorbital extension of supraorbital process less than 1/2 of posterior extension or entirely absent; first upper cheek-tooth with more than one (usually 3) re-entrant angles on anterior face; re-entrant angle of second upper cheek-tooth crenate.

2. Anterior extension of supraorbital process absent (or if a point is barely indicated, then 5/6 or all of posterior process fused to braincase).

3. Tympanic bulla smaller than foramen magnum; hind foot more than 74; geographic range wholly in United States.

4. Ear more than 58 from notch in dried skin; basilar length of skull more than 63 _Sylvilagus aquaticus_, p. 166

4'. Ear less than 58 from notch in dried skin; basilar length of skull less than 63.

5. Underside of tail white; posterior extension of supraorbital process tapering to a slender point, this point free of braincase or barely touching it and leaving a slit or long foramen _Sylvilagus transitionalis_, p. 160

5'. Underside of tail brown or gray; posterior extension of supraorbital process always fused to skull, usually for entire length but in occasional specimens there is small foramen at middle of posterior extension of supraorbital process _Sylvilagus palustris_, p. 147

3'. Tympanic bulla as large as foramen magnum; hind foot less than 74; geographic range limited to southern edge of Mexican tableland at high elevations _Romerolagus diazi_, p. 138

2'. Anterior extension of supraorbital process present, and posterior extension free of braincase or leaving a slit between the process and braincase.

6. Tympanic bullae large (see fig. 26). _Sylvilagus audubonii_, p. 162

6'. Tympanic bullae small (see figs. 23, 25 and 27).

7. Restricted to Pacific coastal strip from Columbia River south to tip of Baja California, west of Sierra Nevada-Cascade Mountain Chain; hind foot less than 81. _Sylvilagus bachmani_ and _S. mansuetus_, pp. 143, 147

7'. East of the Pacific coastal strip mentioned in 7; hind foot usually more than 81.

8. If north of United States-Mexican boundary:

9. In Arizona, New Mexico and southern Colorado posterior extension of supraorbital process free of braincase, and supraoccipital shield posteriorly pointed; from central Colorado north into Canada diameter of external auditory meatus more than crown length of last three cheek-teeth _Sylvilagus nuttallii_, p. 161

9'. In Arizona, New Mexico and southeastern Colorado posterior extension of supraorbital process of frontal with its tip against, or fused to, braincase, and supraoccipital shield posteriorly truncate or notched; from central Colorado north into Canada, diameter of external auditory meatus less than crown length of last three cheek-teeth _Sylvilagus floridanus_, p. 154

8'. If south of United States-Mexican boundary:

10. Geographic range restricted to Tres Marias Islands _Sylvilagus graysoni_, p. 169

10'. Geographic range not including Tres Marias Islands.

11. Underside of tail dingy gray or buffy (not white).

12. Tail short (less than 30) and brown like rump; ear from notch (dry) less than 53; interorbital breadth less than 16. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis_, p. 141

12'. Tail of moderate length (more than 30) and dingy gray; ear from notch (dry) more than 53; interorbital breadth more than 16 _Sylvilagus insonus_, p. 168

11'. Underside of tail distinctly white.

13. Total length more than 476; ear from notch (dry) more than 64; interorbital breadth usually more than 19.3; geographic range, southwestern Mexico north of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. _Sylvilagus cunicularius_, p. 169

13'. Total length less than 476; ear from notch (dry) less than 64; interorbital breadth usually less than 19.3; geographic range, Canada to Panam['a] _Sylvilagus floridanus_, p. 154

Genus ROMEROLAGUS Merriam--Volcano Rabbit

1896. _Romerolagus_ Merriam, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 10:173, December 29. Type, _Romerolagus nelsoni_ Merriam = _Lepus diazi_ Diaz.

Total length 300 to 311; tail rudimentary; hind foot, 52; ear from notch (dry), 36; upper parts grizzled buffy brown or dull cinnamon brown; underparts dingy gray; anterior projection of supraorbital process absent; jugal projecting posteriorly past squamosal root of zygomatic arch more than half way to external auditory meatus. The two cranial characters mentioned are resemblances to pikas although the skull otherwise resembles that of the true rabbits. The genus contains only the one living species.

Living in well defined runways in the dense sacoton grass, these small rabbits are mainly nocturnal and crepuscular, but sometimes are active by day, especially in cloudy weather in the period of mating.

=Romerolagus diazi= (Diaz)

Volcano Rabbit

1893. _Lepus diazi_ Diaz, Catal. Com. Geogr['a]f.-Expl. Repub. Mex. Expos. Internac. Columb. Chicago, pl. 42, March, 1893, type from eastern slope of Mount Ixtaccihuatl, Puebla.

1911. _Romerolagus diazi_ Miller, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 24:228, October 31, 1911.

1896. _Romerolagus nelsoni_ Merriam, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 10:173, December 29, 1896, type from west slope Mount Popocatepetl, 11,000 feet, M['e]xico.

_Range._--Canadian Life-zone of the mountains bounding the eastern, southern and western sides of the Valley of Mexico. _Marginal records._--M['e]xico: Monte R['i]o Fr['i]o, 45 km. ESE Mexico City (Davis, 1944:401). Puebla: type locality. M['e]xico: Mt. Popocatepetl (Nelson, 1909:280). Distrito Federal: 31 km. S Mexico City (30815 KU). M['e]xico: Llano Grande, 3 km. W Tlalmanalco (28278 KU).

Genus SYLVILAGUS Gray--Cottontails and Allies

Revised by Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, 29:58-158, August 31, 1909.

1867. _Sylvilagus_ Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 20 (ser. 3):221. Type, _Lepus sylvaticus_ Bachman, _Lepus nuttalli mallurus_ Thomas.

Total length, 291-538; tail, 18-73; hind foot, 71-110; ear from notch (dry) 41-74. Grayish to dark brownish above and lighter below; sutures of interparietal bone distinct throughout life; second to fourth cervical vertebrae broader than long with dorsal surface flattened and without carination.

The delectable flesh of members of this genus, the large numbers that occur on a small area, even in thickly settled rural areas, and the wariness that rabbits soon develop when much hunted, give them top ranking among small game mammals. Tens of thousands of cottontails in Kansas and Missouri (_Sylvilagus floridanus_ and some _S. audubonii_) are captured alive, transported to the eastern United States and released there to bolster the local supply of game. Considering that certain ectoparasites are limited to certain hosts and that some ectoparasites transmit such diseases as Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever whereas other ectoparasites do not, this transplantation of rabbits is dangerous. Also, expenditure of $100.00 on improving the habitat for _Sylvilagus_ in a given area in the eastern United States would produce more cottontails than the expenditure of the same sum for live animals, from the Middlewest, that are to be released (see Langenbach and Beule, 1942:14, 15 and 30).

Different species venture different distances from cover to feed. The Audubon cottontail of west-central California ventures a hundred feet and more from cover but the brush rabbit was never seen (Orr, 1940:182) farther than 42 feet from cover. In the thirties, when a gladiolus farmer from the chaparral belt of Santa Clara County, California, visited the University of California seeking advice on how to prevent damage by "cottontails" to his gladioli plantings, we asked the farmer if brush rabbits or cottontails were responsible and suggested to the farmer, who was unable to distinguish between the two, that an animal be killed and submitted for identification. When this was done, the brush rabbit (_Sylvilagus bachmani_) was found to be responsible for the damage. Robert T. Orr's recommendation that the chaparral (brush) be cut back 45 feet from the gladioli plantings was reluctantly followed and proved to be effective. A letter from a Santa Clara County agricultural official a couple of years later expressed thanks for the recommendation made by Orr, and estimated that adoption of his recommendations saved farmers of that one county $40,000 annually. This incident illustrates how detailed knowledge of the life history of a given kind of animal and control of its environment, rather than direct "control" of the animal, is sometimes of value to man.

The genus _Sylvilagus_ is restricted to the New World; the two species _Sylvilagus brasiliensis_ and _S. floridanus_ are the only two which occur in South America and they occur also in North America.

Subgenus BRACHYLAGUS Miller--Pigmy Rabbit

1900. _Brachylagus_ Miller, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 13:157, June 13. Type, _Lepus idahoensis_ Merriam. For characters see subgenus _Sylvilagus_.

Sylvilagus idahoensis (Merriam)

Pigmy Rabbit

1891. _Lepus idahoensis_ Merriam, N. Amer. Fauna, 5:76, July 30, type from head of Pahsimeroi Valley, near Goldburg, Custer County, Idaho (Davis, Recent Mammals of Idaho, p. 363, April 9, 1939).

1930. _Sylvilagus idahoensis_, Grinnell, Dixon and Linsdale, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 35:553, October 10.

_Marginal records._--In southeastern Washington: Ritzville (Taylor and Shaw, 1929:29); Lind (243344 USBS); Warden (Taylor and Shaw, 1929:29). In remainder of range: Montana: Bannack (Davis, 1937:27). Idaho: Trail Creek near Pocatello (Davis, 1939:366). Utah: 3 mi. NE Clarkson (Durrant, MS); W side Utah Lake (_ibid._); 20 mi. W Parowan (_ibid._); 10 mi. SW Cedar City (_ibid._). Nevada: 8-1/2 mi. NE Sharp (Hall, 1946:618); Fallon (Schantz, 1947:187). California: Bodie (Severaid, 1950:2); 5000 ft., 3 mi. S Ravendale (Orr, 1940:194). Oregon: Silver Lake (Bailey, 1936:110, fig. 17, 206518 USBS); Fremont (_ibid._, 205005 USBS); Redmond (_ibid._, 242302 USBS); 10 mi. N Baker (Dice, 1926:27). Idaho: type locality; Junction (Davis, 1939:366).

Total length, 250-290; tail, 20-30; hind foot, 65-72; ear from notch (dry), 36-48; weight, 6 [MALE] 409(375-435), 9 [FEMALE] 398(246-458) grams. Upper parts pinkish to blackish or dark grayish depending on amount of wear. The pigmy rabbit lives in burrows, mostly dug by itself, preferably where tall sagebrush grows densely. This species feeds extensively on sagebrush, at least in winter. Six young seem to be the rule and they are born any time from late in May until early in August.

Subgenus SYLVILAGUS Gray--Cottontails and Allies

1867. _Sylvilagus_ Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 20 (ser. 3):221. Type, _Lepus sylvaticus_ Bachman [= _Lepus nuttalli mallurus_ Thomas].

1867. _Tapeti_ Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 20 (ser. 3):224, September. Type _Lepus brasiliensis_ Linnaeus.

1897. _Microlagus_ Trouessart, Catalogus Mammalium ..., p. 660. Type, _Lepus cinerascens_ J. A. Allen.

1897. _Limnolagus_ Mearns, Science, n. s., 5:393, March 5. Type _Lepus aquaticus_ Bachman.

1950. _Paludilagus_ Hershkovitz, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 100:333, May 26. Type _Lepus palustris_ Bachman.

Characters of subgeneric worth, in contrast to those of the subgenus _Brachylagus_, are: First premolar, in upper jaw and in lower jaw, with more than one fold in the enamel; infolded enamel, which divides each molar tooth into two parts, crenate.

The many nominal species of the subgenus _Sylvilagus_ belong to no more than 12 and perhaps to only ten full species. The now more abundant specimens than were available a half century ago reveal also that there are less trenchant differences between some of the species than were supposed to exist when the five names for genera or subgenera listed immediately above were proposed. Some species can be placed in each of two subgenera with almost equal propriety. If used, four of the five subgeneric names mentioned above would contain only one species each. It seems that no useful purpose is served by attempting to fit the several species of the genus _Sylvilagus_ into more than the two subgenera _Brachylagus_ and _Sylvilagus_; the other names, _Tapeti_ Gray, _Microlagus_ Trouessart, _Limnolagus_ Mearns, and _Paludilagus_ Hershkovitz, are here arranged as synonyms of the subgeneric name _Sylvilagus_ Gray.

Sylvilagus brasiliensis

Forest Rabbit

Total length, 380-420; tail, 20-21; hind foot, 77-80; ear from notch (dry), 39-46. The principal characters of this species are small size, dark color, short tail, and dingy buffy (not white) undersurface of the tail. These rabbits rest in forests or other thick vegetative cover and do not venture far from such cover to feed.

SYLVILAGUS BRASILIENSIS CONSOBRINUS Anthony.

1917. _Sylvilagus gabbi consobrinus_ Anthony, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 37:335, May 28, type from Old Panam['a], Panam['a]. Known from type locality only.

1950. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis consobrinus_, Hershkovitz, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 100:353, May 26.

SYLVILAGUS BRASILIENSIS DICEI Harris.

1932. _Sylvilagus dicei_ Harris, Occas. Papers Univ. Michigan, Mus. Zool., 248:1, August 4, type from 6000 ft., El Copey de Dota, in the Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica.

1950. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis dicei_, Hershkovitz, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 100:352, May 26.

_Marginal records._--Costa Rica (Goodwin, 1946:359); Rancho de R['i]o Jimenez; Juan Vi[~n]as; type locality; _San Jos['e]_.

SYLVILAGUS BRASILIENSIS GABBI (J. A. Allen).

1877. _Lepus brasiliensis_ var. _gabbi_ J. A. Allen, Monogr. N. Amer. Rodentia, p. 349, August, type locality Costa Rica and Chiriqu['i]; restricted by Nelson (N. Amer. Fauna, 29:259, August 31, 1909), by designation of type specimen, to Talamanca [= Sipurio, R['i]o Sixaola, near Caribbean Coast], Costa Rica.

1950. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis gabbi_, Hershkovitz, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 100:351, May 26.

1908. _Lepus gabbi tumacus_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 24:649, October 13, type from Tuma, Nicaragua.

_Marginal records._--Honduras: San Pedro Sula (Nelson, 1909:261); to Gulf Coast and southward along coast to Panam['a] Canal, Panam['a]: Gatun (Goldman, 1920:146); Corozal (_ibid._); Gobernador Island (_ibid._); Divala (_ibid._); _Chiriqu['i]_ (Goodwin, 1946:358). Northward east of the range of _S. b. dicei_, thence westward in Costa Rica: Vijaqual, San Carlos (Goodwin, 1946:358). Nicaragua: Matagalpa (Allen, 1910:96); Ocotal (_ibid._). Honduras: San Jos['e], Santa Barbara (Goodwin, 1942:151).

SYLVILAGUS BRASILIENSIS INCITATUS (Bangs).

1901. _Lepus_ (_Tapeti_) _incitatus_ Bangs, Amer. Nat., 35:633, August, type from San Miguel Island, Bay of Panam['a]. Known from type locality only.

1950. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis incitatus_, Hershkovitz, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 100:352, May 26.

SYLVILAGUS BRASILIENSIS MESSORIUS Goldman.

1912. _Sylvilagus gabbi messorius_ Goldman, Smiths. Misc. Coll. 60 (no. 2):13, September 20, type from Cana, 1800 ft., mts. of eastern Panam['a].

1950. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis messorius_, Hershkovitz, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 100:352, May 26.

_Marginal records._--Panam['a] (Goldman, 1920:147): Boca de Cupe; _Tacarcuna_; _Tapalisa_; type locality.

SYLVILAGUS BRASILIENSIS TRUEI (J. A. Allen).

1890. _Lepus truei_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 3:192, December 10, type from Mirador, Veracruz.

1950. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis truei_, Hershkovitz, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 100:351, May 26.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:264, unless otherwise noted).--San Luis Potos['i]: Rancho Apetsco, Xilitla (Dalquest, 1950:4), thence down coast to Tabasco: Teapa. Chiapas: Huehuetan. Oaxaca: Santo Domingo. Veracruz: Buena Vista; Motzorongo. Puebla: Metlaltoyuca.

=Sylvilagus bachmani=

Brush Rabbit

Size small. Total length, 300-375; tail, 20-43; hind foot, 64-81; ear from notch (dry), 50-64; weight (topotypes of _S. b. macrorhinus_) 16 [MALE] 679 (561-832), 22 [FEMALE] 707 (517-843) grams. Body uniformly dark brown or brownish gray, but tail whitish beneath; hair on midventral part of body gray at base; only a slight crenulation of ridge of enamel which separates an individual molariform tooth into anterior and posterior sections. From _Sylvilagus audubonii_, the only other species of _Sylvilagus_ in the same geographic area, _S. bachmani_ differs in smaller size, less white on underparts (the hairs on the midventral part of the body being gray instead of white at base), shorter ears and legs, and a less crenulated ridge of enamel separating the anterior and posterior parts of a molariform tooth.

The brush rabbit is a Pacific Coastal species; as may be seen from figure 9 on the next page, this species occurs from the Columbia River on the north to the tip of Baja California on the south. Nowhere, so far as I can learn, does it occur as far east as the crest of the Cascade-Sierra Nevada Mountain Chain. Throughout its range the brush rabbit is closely associated with--in fact, lives in--the chaparral that is dense enough to afford protection from raptorial birds and the larger carnivorous mammals. The rabbit's reliance on protective cover is so great that, as pointed out on an earlier page, a person can turn this trait to advantage in protecting cultivated crops from inroads that the rabbits might make on them. The protection is afforded by clearing the brush from a strip forty-five feet wide so that the cleared strip intervenes between the cultivated crops and the brushy shelter. The rabbits will not risk crossing the open strip and hence do not reach the growing crops.

Brush rabbits use simple "forms" in the brush for resting. Only one observer (Orr, 1940: 173) has reported an individual entering a hole. In patches of chaparral in which the rabbits live they make runways that are especially well defined at the edges of the brush. The outer entrance to a runway is tunnellike and one to two feet from the outer entrance there is a special form that serves as a lookout post. A brush rabbit that is about to venture into the open ordinarily pauses in such a form for several minutes, presumably to satisfy itself that no enemy is in the open area whither the rabbit is bound.

The breeding season is from January to June, at least in California. There are 2 to 5 young, averaging 3.5 per litter. They are born in a nest.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI BACHMANI (Waterhouse).

1839. _Lepus bachmani_ Waterhouse, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, Pt. 6 (for 1838):103, February 7, type from California, probably between Monterey and Santa Barbara.

1904. _Sylvilagus_ (_microlagus_) _bachmani_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:336, June 15.

1855. _Lepus trowbridgei_ Baird, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, p. 333, type from Monterey County, California.

_Marginal records._--California (Orr, 1940:150): 2 mi. S mouth Salinas River; near Morro.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI CERROSENSIS (J. A. Allen).

1898. _Lepus cerrosensis_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 10:145, April 12, type from Cerros [=Cedros] Island, Baja California. Known from type locality only.

1909. _Sylvilagus bachmani cerrosensis_, Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, 29:255, August 31.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI CINERASCENS (J. A. Allen).

1890. _Lepus cinerascens_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 3:159, October 8, type from San Fernando, Los Angeles County, California.

1907. _Sylvilagus bachmani cinerascens_, Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 20:84, July 22.

_Marginal records._--California (Orr, 1940:168): 5700 ft., San Emigdio Canyon; 3 mi. E San Fernando; Reche Canyon (Orr, 1940:169); 3500 ft., Dos Palmas Springs, Santa Rosa Mts. Baja California (Nelson, 1909:253): La Huerta, thence northward up-coast to point of beginning.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI EXIGUUS Nelson.

1907. _Sylvilagus bachmani exiguus_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 20:84, July 22, type from Yubay, central Baja California.

_Marginal records._--Baja California (Nelson, 1909:254): Agua Dulce; Santana.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI HOWELLI Huey.

1927. _Sylvilagus bachmani howelli_ Huey, Trans. San Diego Soc. Nat. Hist., 5:67, July 6, type from 10 mi. SE Alamo, Baja California, lat. 31[deg] 35' N, long. 116[deg] 03' W.

_Marginal records._--Baja California (Huey, 1927:68): Laguna Hanson, Sierra Juarez; type locality.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI MACRORHINUS Orr.

1935. _Sylvilagus bachmani macrorhinus_ Orr, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 48:28, February 6, type from Alpine Creek Ranch, 3-1/2 mi. S and 2-1/3 mi. E Portola, 1700 ft., San Mateo County, California.

_Marginal records._--California (Orr, 1940:163): 10 mi. SW Suisun; W side Mt. Diablo; Summit Station, Santa Cruz Mts., thence north along coast to Golden Gate.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI MARIPOSAE Grinnell and Storer.

1916. _Sylvilagus bachmani mariposae_ Grinnell and Storer, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 17:7, August 23, type from McCauley Trail, 4000 ft., near El Portal, Mariposa County, California.

_Marginal records._--California (Orr, 1940): Carbondale (p. 158); French Gulch, 6700 ft., Piute Mtn. (p. 159).

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI PENINSULARIS (J. A. Allen).

1898. _Lepus peninsularis_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 10:144, April 12, type from Santa Anita, Baja California.

1909. _Sylvilagus bachmani peninsularis_, Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, 29:255, August 31.

_Marginal records._--Baja California (Nelson, 1909:255): type locality; Cape San Lucas.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI RIPARIUS Orr.

1935. _Sylvilagus bachmani riparius_ Orr, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 48:29, February 6, type from west side San Joaquin River, 2 mi. NE Vernalis, in Stanislaus County, California. Known from type locality only.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI ROSAPHAGUS Huey.

1940. _Sylvilagus bachmani rosaphagus_ Huey, Trans. San Diego Soc. Nat. Hist., 9:221, July 31, type from 2 mi. W Santo Domingo Mission, Baja California, M['e]xico, lat. 30[deg] 45' N, long. 115[deg] 58' W, or precisely, near the huge red cliff that marks the entrance of the Santo Domingo River Ca[~n]on from the coastal plain.

_Marginal records._--Baja California (Huey, 1940): San Quint['i]n (p. 223); El Rosario (p. 222).

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI TEHAMAE Orr.

1935. _Sylvilagus bachmani tehamae_ Orr, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 48:27, February 6, type from Dale's, on Paine's Creek, 600 ft., Tehama County, California.

_Marginal records._--Oregon (Orr, 1935:28): Prospect. California (Orr, 1940:156): Auburn; 7 mi. W and 14 mi. S Chico; Rumsey; Castle Springs; 3 mi. S Covelo; Mad River Bridge, S. Fork Mtn.

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI UBERICOLOR (Miller).

1899. _Lepus bachmani ubericolor_ Miller, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, p. 383, September 29, type from Beaverton, Washington County, Oregon.

1904. _Sylvilagus_ (_Microlagus_) _bachmani ubericolor_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:337, June 15.

_Range._--Columbia River, Oregon, south to San Francisco Bay, California, and from the Pacific Coast eastward to a line connecting the following marginal records.--Oregon (V. Bailey, 1936:109, unless otherwise noted): Portland (Nelson, 1909:251); Mackenzie Bridge; above Grants Pass. California (Orr, 1940:153): Laytonville; Maillard [=4 mi. E Lagunitas].

SYLVILAGUS BACHMANI VIRGULTI Dice.

1926. _Sylvilagus bachmani virgulti_ Dice, Occas. papers Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan, 166:24, February 11, Soledad, Monterey County, California.

_Marginal records._--California (Orr, 1940:166): The Pinnacles; Waltham Cr., 4-1/2 mi. SE Priest Valley; 2 mi. S San Miguel; Bryson.

=Sylvilagus mansuetus=

Brush Rabbit

1907. _Sylvilagus mansuetus_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 20:83, July 22, type from San Jos['e] Island, Gulf of California, Baja California. Known from San Jos['e] Island only.

This insular species is closely related to _Sylvilagus bachmani_ and is distinguished by paleness, proportionately longer and narrower skull, fusion to skull of anterior arm of supraorbital process, and larger jugal.

=Sylvilagus palustris=

Marsh Rabbit

(See figure 42)

Total length, 425-440; tail, 33-39; hind foot, 88-91; ear from notch (dry), 45-52. Upper parts blackish brown or reddish brown; underside of tail brownish or dingy gray (not white); ears, tail and hind feet short; posterior and anterior extensions of supraorbital processes joined to skull along most (or all) of their extent. The lack of white on the underside of the tail is a ready means of distinguishing this species from the other species of the genus which occur within its geographic range. The species occurs in the lowlands, possibly not above 500 feet altitude, of the Lower Austral and Tropical life-zones. In Florida, Blair (1936) found that the marsh rabbit ate 29 per cent of its bodily weight in green food each day and that the number of embryos in 3 females was 4, 4 and 3.

SYLVILAGUS PALUSTRIS PALUDICOLA (Miller and Bangs).

1894. _Lepus paludicola_ Miller and Bangs, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 9:105, June 9, type from Ft. Island, near Crystal Riv., Citrus Co., Fla.

1909. _Sylvilagus palustris paludicola_, Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, 29:269, August 31.

_Marginal records._--Florida (Nelson, 1909:270): Hibernia [= Green Cove Springs]; San Mateo; along Atlantic Coast at least to Micco; Kissimmee River; Cape Sable; northward along Gulf Coast and on coastal islands at least to Suwanee River.

SYLVILAGUS PALUSTRIS PALUSTRIS (Bachman).

1837. _Lepus palustris_ Bachman, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 7:194, type locality eastern South Carolina.

1909. _Sylvilagus palustris_, Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, 29:266, August 31.

_Marginal records._--Nansemond County (Handley and Patton, 1947:190), southward along Atlantic Coast to northern Florida: Anastasia Island (Nelson, 1909:269). West to Gulf Coast and along Coast to Alabama: Bon Secour (Nelson, 1909:269); Flomaton (Howell, 1921:74); Dothan (_ibid._). Georgia: Americus (Nelson, 1909:269). South Carolina: Society Hill (_ibid._).

FIG. 10. _Romerolagus diazi_, 31 km. S Mexico City, D. F. No. 30815 KU, [FEMALE].

FIG. 11. _Sylvilagus idahoensis_, Millett P. O., Nevada. No. 37275 MVZ, [MALE].

FIG. 12. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis truei_, 30 km. SSE Jesus Carranza, Veracruz. No. 32128 KU, [MALE].

FIG. 13. _Sylvilagus bachmani macrorhinus_, 1700 feet, Alpine Creek Ranch, San Mateo County, California. No. 53382 MVZ, [FEMALE].

FIG. 14. _Sylvilagus palustris palustris_, Riceboro, Georgia. No. 45502 USNM, [FEMALE]. (After Nelson, 1909: pl. 12, fig. 3.)

FIG. 15. _Sylvilagus nuttallii grangeri_, 1/2 mi. E. Jefferson, Nev. No. 58527, [FEMALE].

FIG. 16. _Sylvilagus audubonii minor_, 3290 ft., Neville Spring, Grapevine Mts., Big Bend, Brewster Co., Texas. No. 80519 MVZ, [MALE].

FIG. 17. _Sylvilagus floridanus mearnsi_, 4 mi. NE Lawrence, Douglas Co., Kansas. No. 3774 KU, [MALE].

FIG. 18. _Sylvilagus a. aquaticus_, Crawford Co., Kansas. No. 8544 KU. [MALE].

FIG. 19. _Sylvilagus cunicularius cunicularius_, 3 km. W Acultzingo, Veracruz. No. 30749 KU, [MALE].

FIG. 20. _Romerolagus diazi._

FIG. 21. _Sylvilagus idahoensis._

FIG. 22. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis truei._

FIG. 23. _Sylvilagus bachmani macrorhinus._

FIG. 24. _Sylvilagus palustris palustris_, Society Hill, South Carolina. No. 2089 USNM (after Lyon, 1904: pl. 76, fig. 6).

FIG. 25. _Sylvilagus nuttallii grangeri._

FIG. 26. _Sylvilagus audubonii minor._

FIG. 27. _Sylvilagus floridanus mearnsi._

FIG. 28. _Sylvilagus aquaticus aquaticus._

FIG. 29. _Sylvilagus cunicularius cunicularius._

FIG. 30. _Romerolagus diazi._

FIG. 31. _Sylvilagus idahoensis._

FIG. 32. _Sylvilagus brasiliensis truei._

FIG. 33. _Sylvilagus bachmani macrorhinus._

FIG. 34. _Sylvilagus nuttallii grangeri._

FIG. 35. _Sylvilagus audubonii minor._

FIG. 36. _Sylvilagus floridanus mearnsi._

FIG. 37. _Sylvilagus aquaticus aquaticus._

FIG. 38. _Sylvilagus cunicularius cunicularius._

=Sylvilagus floridanus=

Florida Cottontail

Total length, 375-463; tail, 39-65; hind foot, 87-104; ear from notch (dry), 49-68; upper parts brownish or grayish; underside of tail white; skull with transversely thick posterior extension of supraorbital process of frontal. The geographic range is the largest of all of the North American species of the genus _Sylvilagus_; from Canada the species occurs south at least to Costa Rica and it may occur in Panam['a] for the species is recorded also from South America.

In the western part of the Great Plains this species is confined to the riparian growth along streams and _Sylvilagus audubonii_ occupies the remainder of the terrain. In New Mexico and southwestern Texas _S. floridanus_ is confined to the boreal life-zones where timber provides denser cover than is found in the lower life-zones. The zonal range is from the Canadian Life-zone into the Tropical Life-zone. It is not surprising, therefore, that there is much geographic variation in the shape and size of the skull. There is so much geographic variation in the skull that it is impossible, at this writing at least, to frame a description that will enable the reader to distinguish the skull from those of all other species of the genus. In any given area, however, it is possible, easily and certainly, to distinguish the skulls of _S. floridanus_ from those of the other species which occur in that area.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS ALACER (Bangs).

1896. _Lepus sylvaticus alacer_ Bangs, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 10:136, December 28, type from Stilwell, Boston Mountains, Adair County, Oklahoma.

_Marginal records._--Missouri (Nelson, 1909:176): Columbia; St. Louis. Illinois: Ozark (Necker and Hatfield, 1941:56). Tennessee (Nelson, 1909:176): Samburg; Raleigh. Mississippi (Nelson, 1909:176): Michigan City; Bay St. Louis. Texas (Nelson, 1909:176): Port Lavaca; Brazos; Henrietta. Oklahoma: Norman (Blair, 1939:128). Kansas: _8 mi. NE Harper_ (12917 KU); Rago (12508 KU); Halstead (3110 KU); _4 mi. S_ and _14 mi. W Hamilton_ (13673 KU); 3 mi. N Chanute (22026 KU).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS AMMOPHILUS A. H. Howell.

1939. _Sylvilagus floridanus ammophilus_ A. H. Howell, Jour. Mamm., 20:365, August 14, type from "Oak Lodge", on peninsula opposite Micco, Florida. Known from type locality only.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS AZTECUS (J. A. Allen).

1890. _Lepus sylvaticus aztecus_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 3:188, December 10, type from Tehuantepec City, Oaxaca.

1904. _Sylvilagus_ (_Sylvilagus_) _floridanus aztecus_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:336, June 15.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:188, unless otherwise noted).--Oaxaca: Santa Maria Petapa; Santa Efigenia. Chiapas: Tonala, 50 M (Hooper, 1947:56). Oaxaca: Salina Cruz; _type locality_.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS CHAPMANI (J. A. Allen).

1899. _Lepus floridanus chapmani_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 12:12, March 4, type from Corpus Christi, Nueces County, Texas.

1904. _Sylvilagus_ (_Sylvilagus_) _floridanus chapmani_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:336, June 15.

1899. _Lepus floridanus caniclunis_ Miller, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, p. 388, October 5, type from Fort Clark, Kinney County, Texas.

1902. _Lepus simplicicanus_ Miller, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 15:81, April 25, type from Brownsville, Cameron County, Texas.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:178).--Texas: Clyde; Victoria County; _Rockport_. Tamaulipas: Soto la Marina; Juamave. Coahuila: Monclova; Sabinas. Texas: Comstock; Stanton.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS CHIAPENSIS (Nelson).

1904. _Lepus floridanus chiapensis_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 17:106, May 18, type from San Cristobal, Chiapas.

1909. _Sylvilagus floridanus chiapensis_, Lyon and Osgood, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 62:32, January 28.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:190, unless otherwise noted).--Chiapas: type locality; Comitan. Guatemala: Hacienda Chancol; Panajachel (Goodwin, 1934:56). Chiapas: Tuxtla.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS COGNATUS Nelson.

1907. _Sylvilagus cognatus_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 20:82, July 22, type from near summit of the Manzano Mountains, Valencia County, New Mexico.

1951. _Sylvilagus floridanus cognatus_, Hall and Kelson, Univ. Kansas Publ., Mus. Nat. Hist., 5:55, October 1, 1951.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:193).--New Mexico: Santa Rosa, 35 mi. N on Conchas River; Capitan Mts.; Datil Mts.; type locality.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS CONNECTENS (Nelson).

1904. _Lepus floridanus connectens_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 17:105, May 18, type from Chichicaxtle, central Veracruz.

1909. _Sylvilagus floridanus connectens_, Lyon and Osgood, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 62:32, January 28.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:186).--Tamaulipas: Altamira. Veracruz: type locality. Oaxaca: Mt. Zempoaltepec. Veracruz: Orizaba (City of); Jico. Puebla: Metlaltoyuca. Queretaro: Pinal de Amoles. San Luis Potos['i]: Valles.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS COSTARICENSIS Harris.

1933. _Sylvilagus floridanus costaricensis_ Harris, Occas. Papers Mus. Zool., Univ. Michigan, 266:3, June 28, type from Hacienda Santa Maria, Province of Guanacaste, 3200 ft, Costa Rica.

_Marginal records_ (Goodwin, 1946:358).--Costa Rica: El Pel['o]n; type locality; Tenorio.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS FLORIDANUS (J. A. Allen).

1890. _Lepus sylvaticus floridanus_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 3:160, October 8, type from Sebastian River, Brevard County, Florida.

1904. _Sylvilagus floridanus_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:322, June 15.

_Marginal records._--Florida: San Mateo (Sherman, 1936:122); _Enterprise_ (_ibid._); Miakka Lake (230812 USBS); Blitches Ferry (Sherman, 1936:122).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS HITCHENSI Mearns.

1911. _Sylvilagus floridanus hitchensi_ Mearns, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 39:227, January 9, type from Smiths Island, Northampton County, Virginia.

_Marginal records._--Virginia: type locality; Fishermans Island (Handley and Patton, 1947:187).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS HOLZNERI (Mearns).

1896. _Lepus sylvaticus holzneri_ Mearns, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 18:554, June 24, type from Douglas spruce zone, near summit of Huachuca Mountains, Cochise County, Arizona.

1904. _Sylvilagus_ (_Sylvilagus_) _floridanus holzneri_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:336, June 15.

1896. [_Lepus sylvaticus_] subspecies _rigidus_ Mearns, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 18:555, June 24, type from Carrizalillo Mts., near monument No. 31, Mexican boundary line, Grant County, New Mexico.

1903. _Lepus_ (_Sylvilagus_) _durangae_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 19:609, November 12, type from Rancho Bailon, northwestern Durango.

_Marginal records._--Arizona: Pine Springs, 15 mi. S of Canyon of Colorado (Hall and Kelson, 1951:54); Reynolds Creek R. S., Sierra Ancha Mts. (_ibid._); W base Mt. Turnbull, 4500 ft. (_ibid._). New Mexico: Silver City (Nelson, 1909:180); _Animas Mts._ (_ibid._). Zacatecas: Valparaiso (_ibid._); Plateado (_ibid._). Chihuahua: Guadalupe y Calvo (_ibid._). Arizona: Thomas Ca[~n]on, 2 mi. E Baboquivari Mts. (Hall and Kelson, 1951:54), Hualapi Mts. (_ibid._).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS HONDURENSIS Goldman.

1932. _Sylvilagus floridanus hondurensis_ Goldman, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 45:122, July 30, type from Monte Redondo, approximately 30 mi. NW Tegucigalpa, 5100 ft., Honduras.

_Marginal records._--Honduras: Santa Barbara (Goodwin, 1942:150); Cedros (_ibid._). Nicaragua: Jinotega (Nelson, 1909:190); Chontales ["District" of] (_ibid._); Leon. Honduras: Ocotepeque (Goodwin, 1942:150).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS LLANENSIS Blair.

1938. _Sylvilagus floridanus llanensis_ Blair, Occas. Papers. Mus. Zool., Univ. Michigan, 380:1, June 21, type from Old "F" Ranch headquarters, Quitaque, Briscoe County, Texas.

_Marginal records._--Kansas: 15 mi. N and 3 mi. E Stafford (5547 KU); 1 mi. NE Aetna (12144 KU). Oklahoma: 3 mi SE Southard (10063 KU); _Fort Cobb_ (Blair, 1939:129); Mt. Scott (_ibid._). Texas: 6 mi. E Coahoma (Blair, 1938:3); 6 mi. southwest of Muleshoe (_ibid._). Kansas: Coolidge (18462 KU).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS MALLURUS (Thomas).

1898. _L[epus]. n[uttalli]. mallurus_ Thomas, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 2(ser. 7):320, October, type from Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina.

1904. _Sylvilagus floridanus mallurus_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:323, June 15.

1837. _Lepus sylvaticus_ Bachman, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 7:403, no type or type locality. Name given to the "common gray rabbit" of the eastern United States and probably with particular reference to the animal in South Carolina. Name preoccupied by _Lepus borealis sylvaticus_ Nilson, 1832, from Sweden.

_Marginal records._--Connecticut: Bear Mountain (Goodwin, 1935:163), south along coast to Florida: Lake Julian (Nelson, 1909:168); Rock Bluff (Sherman, 1936:122). Alabama: Bayou Labatre (A. H. Howell, 1921:71); Leighton (_ibid._). Tennessee (Kellogg, 1939:291): Arlington; Hornbeak; Highcliff; Watauga Valley. West Virginia: _Ernshaw_ (Kellogg, 1937:472). Pennsylvania (Nelson, 1909:169): Waynesburg; Potts Grove. New York: Palenville (_ibid._).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS MEARNSII (J. A. Allen).

1894. _Lepus sylvaticus mearnsii_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 6:171, May 31, type from Fort Snelling, Hennepin County, Minnesota.

1904. _Sylvilagus_ (_Sylvilagus_) _floridanus mearnsi_, Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:336, June 15.

_Marginal records._--Minnesota: Fertile (Swanson, Surber and Roberts, 1945:97); Duluth (_ibid._). Michigan: Marquette County (Burt, 1946:249). Ontario: Lake Simcoe (Miller, 1924:464). Quebec (Anderson, 1947): Montreal (p. 103); Quebec-side Ottawa River in Laurentian Hills (p. 104). New York: "eastern New York" (Hamilton, 1943:383). Pennsylvania: Lopez (Nelson, 1909:172). West Virginia: 7 mi. E Phillipi (Kellogg, 1937:473); Gilboa (_ibid._). Illinois: Sangamon (Nelson, 1909:172). Kansas: Neosho Falls (5104 KU); 1 mi. N and 1/2 mi. E Lincolnville (12964 KU); _6 mi. SW Clay Center_ (12398 KU); Strawberry (4510 KU). Minnesota: Otter Tail County (Surber, 1932:74).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS ORIZABAE (Merriam).

1893. _Lepus orizabae_ Merriam, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 8:143, December 29, type from Mt. Orizaba, 9500 ft., Puebla.

1909. _Sylvilagus floridanus orizabae_, Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, 29:183, August 31.

1903. _Lepus floridanus persultator_ Elliott, Field Columb. Mus., publ. 71, zool. ser., 3:147, March 20, type from Puebla, Puebla.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:185).--Coahuila: Sierra Encarnaci['o]n. Hidalgo: Encarnaci['o]n. Veracruz: _Las Vigas_; Mt. Orizaba. _Puebla: Chalchicomula_. M['e]xico: Mt. Popocatepetl; Volcano of Toluca. Guanajuato: Santa Rosa. San Luis Potos['i]: San Luis Potos['i].

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS RESTRICTUS Nelson.

1907. _Sylvilagus floridanus restrictus_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 20:82, July 22, type from Zapotlan, Jalisco.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:183).--Nayarit: Tepic; Ojo de Agua. Jalisco: _La Cienega_; _Atenguillo_. Michoac['a]n: Mt. Tanc['i]taro; P['a]tzcuaro. Jalisco: type locality; Las Canoas; La Laguna.

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS ROBUSTUS (V. Bailey).

1905. _Lepus pinetus robustus_ V. Bailey, N. Amer. Fauna, 25:159, October 24, type from 6000 ft., Davis Mts., Jeff Davis County, Texas.

1951. _Sylvilagus floridanus robustus_, Hall and Kelson, Univ. Kansas Publ., Mus. Nat. Hist., 5:56, October 1, 1951.

_Marginal records._--Texas: The Bowl, Guadalupe Mts. (Hall and Kelson, 1951:56); Chisos Mts. (Nelson, 1909:195); 35 mi. S Marfa (_ibid._).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS RUSSATUS (J. A. Allen).

1904. _Lepus_ (_Sylvilagus_) _russatus_ J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 20:31, February 29, type from Pasa Nueva, southern Veracruz.

1909. _Sylvilagus floridanus russatus_, Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, 29:186, August 31.

_Marginal records_ (Nelson, 1909:187).--Veracruz: Catemaco; Coatzacoalcos; _Minatitlan_; type locality; _Jimba_ (KU 19895).

SYLVILAGUS FLORIDANUS SIMILIS Nelson.

1907. _Sylvilagus floridanus similis_ Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 20:82, July 22, type from Valentine, Cherry County, Nebraska.

_Marginal records._--Manitoba: Dauphin (Anderson and Rand, 1943:24). Minnesota: Ten Mile Lake (Surber, 1932:74). Nebraska: Neligh (Nelson, 1909:174). Kansas: _Long Island_ (_ibid._); 3 mi. N and 2