Part 32

Only 2 of 25 adults examined for malformation of the frontal sinuses by parasites showed evidence of disease.

_Specimens examined._--Total number, 138, arranged alphabetically by provinces and states and further by districts or counties from north to south except as otherwise indicated. Unless otherwise indicated specimens are in the collection of the United States National Museum.

=Alberta.= St. Albert, 1; S. Edmonton, 3; Islay, 4[77]; Battle River, south of Camrose, 1[77]; Daysland, 1[77]; Moose Pass, 1; Blindman River, 2 (1[75], 1[2]); Red Deer, 3 (2[2], 1[60]); Bearberry Creek near Sundre, 1[77]; Canad. Nat. Park, N.W. Territory, 1[60]; Red Deer River, Didsbury, 1; Canmore, 1; Calgary, 11 (6[60], 2[1], 1[86]); Red Deer River, 3[2]; Little Sandhill Creek, Red Deer River, 1[77]; Waterton Lake Park, 2[77]; Sweetgrass Hills, 1[77]; Alberta, 1[14].

=Colorado.= _Yuma County_: Wray 4 (1[88], 3[74]).

=Kansas.= _Rawlins County_: 7 mi. N, 3 mi. W Beardsley, 1[74]; 6 mi. S and 2 mi. E Atwood, 1[74]; 15 mi. SE Atwood, 1[74]. _Thomas County_: near Brewster, 2[93]; no locality more definite than county, 2[93]. _Trego County_, 2 (1[2]). _Cloud County_: Glasco, 1[67].

=Manitoba.= Portage la Prairie, 3[75]; Carberry, 2 (1[2], 1[1]); Carman, 1[60]; Max Lake, Turtle Mt., 1[77].

=Montana.= _Glacier County_: St. Marys Lake, 1; Blackfoot, 1: Blackfoot Agency, 1. _Blaine County_: 6 mi. east Chinook, 1[74]. _Pondera County_: 1/2 mi. SE Conrad, 1[74]. _Toole County_: Shelby Junction, 1. _Hill County_: Havre, 1. _Fergus County_: Moccasin Mts., 5 mi. NW Hilger, 1; 7 mi. NE Hilger, 1. _Rosebud County_: 3/4 mi. N Ingomar, 1. _County_ in question, Milk River, 2.

=Nebraska.= _Dawes County_: Chadron, 2[35]. _Cherry County_: Kennedy, 1; no locality more definite than county, 1. _Brown County_: Long Pine, 1[68]. _Antelope County_: Neligh, 1[35]. _Adams County_: Hastings, 2[2]. _Clay County_: Inland, 4[35].

=North Dakota= (arranged by counties from west to east). _Divide County_: Crosby, 1. _Mountrail County_: Lostwood, 1. Little Missouri River, 1. _Golden Valley County_: Sentinel Butte, 1. _Billings County_: Medora, 1[60]. _McLean County_: 3 mi. W Elbowoods, 1. _Oliver County_: Ft. Clark, 2. _Morton County_: Mandan, 1. _Sioux County_: 3 mi. N Cannonball, 1. _Logan County_: 6 mi. SW Napoleon, 1. _Rolette County_: Turtle Mts., 1[76]; Fish Lake, 1. _Benson County_: Ft. Totten, 3[14]; Sully Hill Nat. Park, 1. _Ramsey County_: Devils Lake, 2. Stump Lake or Turtle Mts., 2[2]. _Nelson County_: Stump Lake, 1. _Grand County_: Larimore, 1. _Walsh County_: Grafton, 11 (4[76], 3[74], 2[2]). _Stutsman County_: Jamestown, 1. _Barnes County_: Valley City, 1.

=Saskatchewan.= Wingard, 5; Osier, 2[75]; Simpson, 1[2]; Touchwood Hills, 4[7]; South arm Last Mountain Lake, 1[77]; Rush Lake (Assiniboia, N.W.T.), 2[75].

=South Dakota.= _Pennington County_: Rapid City, 1.

=Wyoming.= _Goshen County_: Fort Laramie, 2.

=Mustela frenata oribasus= (Bangs)

Long-tailed Weasel

Plates 16, 17, 18, 31, 32, 33 and 40

_Putorius (Arctogale) longicauda oribasus_ Bangs, Proc. New England Zoöl. Club, 1:81, December 27, 1899.

_Putorius longicauda_, Coues, Fur-bearing animals, p. 136, 1877 (part).

_Mustela longicauda oribasus_, Miller, U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull., 79:98, December 31, 1912.

_Mustela longicauda oribasa_, Hall, Univ. California Publ. Zoöl., 40:368, November 5, 1934.

_Mustela frenata oribasa_, Hall, Carnegie Instit. Washington Publ. 437:105, November 20, 1936.

_Type._--Female, adult, skull and skin; no. 9058, collection of E. A. and O. Bangs, but now in collection of Mus. Comp. Zoöl.; source of Kettle River, 7500 feet [the summit between middle fork of Kettle River and Cherry Creek at Pinnacles--oral information from the collector, Feb. 12, 1936], British Columbia; September 10, 1898; obtained by Allan Brooks; original no. 1368.

The skull (plate 40) is complete and unbroken. The teeth all are present and entire except right I^3 which has the anterior half broken away. The skin is complete, fairly well made, and in summer pelage.

_Range._--Canadian and Hudsonian life-zones from near 56°N in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia and Alberta and Ootsa Lake along the Fraser and Chilcotin rivers south to Alta Lake, in the Caribou and Monashee mountains, probably in the Selkirks and Rockies, and through the Rockies of Montana into extreme northern Wyoming. See figure 29 on page 221.

_Characters for ready recognition._--Differs from _M. f. longicauda_ by near (14 _n_) Brussels Brown rather than near (_h_) Clay Color of upper parts and in males by relatively shallower occiput in which the depth of the skull, exclusive of the sagittal crest and taken at the anterior border of the basioccipital, amounts to less than 59 per cent of the mastoid breadth; from _M. f. nevadensis_ by greater average size, see measurements.

_Description._--_Size._--Male: Two adults from Florence, Montana, measure as follows: Total length, 440, 440; length of tail, 165, 161; length of hind foot, 47, 49. Corresponding measurements of an adult male from Quesnel, British Columbia, are: 443; 168; 55. Tail amounts to 60, 58, and 61 per cent as long as head and body. Length of hind foot averages more than basal length.

Female: The type specimen, the only typical adult or subadult specimen of this sex of which external measurements are available, measures: Total length, 392, length of tail, 150, length of hind foot, 46. Tail is 63 per cent as long as head and body. Length of hind foot amounts to more than basal length.

The differences in external measurements, between the one female and the average of the three males are: Total length, 49; length of tail, 15; length of hind foot, 4.

_Externals._--Longest facial vibrissae brown or white (often both colors in same specimen) and extending beyond ear; carpal vibrissae same color as underparts and extending to or beyond apical pad of fifth digit; hairiness of foot-soles (in summer pelage) slightly less than shown in figure 19.

_Color._--Upper parts, in summer, near (14 _n_) Brussels Brown, more blackish and less reddish than tone 4 of Burnt Umber of Oberthür and Dauthenay, pl. 304; in type near tone 4, pl. 301 of Oberthür and Dauthenay. Underparts, in summer, Buff Yellow or near (20 _c_) Amber Yellow. In winter, all white except tip of tail which is at all times black. Upper parts of uniform color except for occasional slight darkening of top of head and along mid-dorsal line of back. Color of underparts extends distally on posterior sides of forelegs over feet, on medial sides of hind limbs over antiplantar faces of toes and over proximal two-thirds of ventral side of tail. Least width of color of underparts amounting to 43 per cent of greatest width of color of upper parts, 75 per cent in male from 4 miles northeast of Quesnel, British Columbia, and 52 (33-66) in four males from Montana. Black tip of tail in four males from Montana averaging 50 (44-60) mm. long. Thus averaging approximately as long as hind foot and 33 per cent of length of tail-vertebrae.

Color not different than in many specimens of _M. f. nevadensis_. Color comparison with _M. f. longicauda_ has been made in the account of that subspecies.

_Skull and teeth._--Male (based on 5 adults and 2 subadults from British Columbia and 4 adults from Montana): See measurements and plates 16-18. As described in _Mustela frenata longicauda_ except that: Weight, 5.0 (3.8-6.0) grams; basilar length, 46.7 (43.6-48.8); postorbital breadth in one of nine instances less than width of basioccipital measured from medial margin of one foramen lacerum posterior to its opposite; interorbital breadth more or less than distance between foramen opticum and anterior margin of tympanic bulla; breadth of rostrum less than length of tympanic bulla; anterior margin of tympanic bulla as far posterior to foramen ovale as width of 2-1/2 to 5 upper incisors; length of tympanic bulla not less than length of lower molar and premolar tooth-row and shorter than rostrum.

Female (based on the type, specimen): See measurements and plates 31-33, 40. As described in _Mustela frenata longicauda_ except that: Weight, 3.5 grams; basilar length, 41.6 mm.; zygomatic breadth more than distance between anterior palatine foramen and anterior margin of tympanic bulla; postorbital breadth more than width of basioccipital measured from medial margin of one foramen lacerum posterior to its opposite; least width of palate more than outside length of P^{4}; tympanic bulla as far posterior to foramen ovale as width of 4-1/2 upper incisors; height of tympanic bulla less than distance from anterior margin of tympanic bulla to foramen ovale; length of tympanic bulla less than length of rostrum. If more than one skull were available of the female of _oribasus_ it is believed that the description would agree with that of _longicauda_ in nearly all features.

The skull of the female is 30 per cent lighter than that of the average male.

Comparison with _longicauda_ reveals that, on the average, skulls of males are larger, relative to the basilar length broader across the mastoids, shallower through the braincase as measured at the anterior end of the basioccipital exclusive of the sagittal crest, with longer rostrum. Compared with _nevadensis_, the skull averages larger in all measurements taken, and has a relatively broader rostrum, relatively greater mastoid breadth and a braincase which is shallower relative to the basilar length. By weight, the skull of _nevadensis_ is a fourth lighter, and in linear measurements 5 to 18 per cent smaller.

_Remarks._--Some of the specimens from Montana, which here are referred to _oribasus_, more than half a century ago were listed by Coues (1877:138) under the name _longicauda_. It was not until 1899 that this race was given a name by Bangs, who at that time (1899B:81) accurately made out the distinctive color features. Distinctive cranial characters cannot be described with assurance even now because there still are too few specimens.

The type specimen, at one time examined by the present writer, has on the stuffed skin no well-developed mammae, scrotal pouch, or other visible sexual part. Probably the collector's sex mark for female is correct.

As judged by the two skulls of subadult males from the Barkerville region, individuals of this race attain larger size than do those of _longicauda_. On the basis of larger size than either _longicauda_ or _nevadensis_, the specimens from the Rocky Mountains of Montana and two from northern Wyoming are referred to this race. The short, wide, flat, tympanic bullae, relatively great mastoidal breadth, and some other features of the specimen from Donovan, Montana, point toward _oribasus_, whereas nearly as many more cranial features, in this instance mainly differences in size, are indicative of _nevadensis_ to which race the specimen might almost equally well be referred. Another male from Darby, in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana, has a slightly longer hind foot than those from Florence, but a female from Hamilton, agrees more nearly with _nevadensis_. The average of all the specimens from the Bitterroot Valley is a little nearer _oribasus_. Four skulls from Buffalo, Wyoming, here referred to _nevadensis_ show approach to _oribasus_ in size of skull. The specimens from Big Snowy Mountains, and the Highwood Mountains of Montana are too young clearly to show size of the adult skull, but are distinctly darker colored than _longicauda_ of the plains country proper. Of two subadult females from Tacy, Montana, the color of the one in summer pelage is distinctly nearer that of _oribasus_ and _nevadensis_ than it is to that of _longicauda_ to which some approach in color might be expected. The reduced size of both of the specimens is further suggestive of _nevadensis_ and it may be that adult specimens from these more eastern mountainous areas in Montana will show that _nevadensis_ is the name proper to apply to animals of this region.

Intergradation with _nevadensis_ is suggested by specimens collected from along the upper reaches of Okanagan Lake, British Columbia, by Major Allan Brooks and Mr. J. A. Munro and by a series of skulls from Ione, Pend Orielle County, Washington, lent me by Mr. Walter Dalquest. At each place, the average of all specimens is nearest to that of _nevadensis_.

Specimens from near Waterton Lake show several steps in the transition from the light-colored _longicauda_ type of coloration to the darker coloration characterizing _oribasus_. One taken here, at a time when the body of water referred to seems to have been known as Chief Mountain Lake, is barely dark enough to be placed with _oribasus_. Two other specimens from across the Canadian Border labeled as "Waterton Lake Park" are slightly lighter colored above, and on this account are placed with _longicauda_.

The two adult males from Lillooet, British Columbia, are referable to _oribasus_ although neither is quite typical. One has a saturated coloration suggestive of that of _altifrontalis_ and the skull is shorter and broader than in other specimens of _oribasus_. The female from Lillooet, skin alone, no. 916, Prov. Mus., B. C. is small for _oribasus_. The female, no. 1539, collection of Kenneth Racey, from Alta Lake, in brown winter pelage, in almost every measurement falls nearly midway between _altifrontalis_ and _oribasus_ but slightly nearer the latter. The skull from Chezacut and 3 animals from Wistaria, British Columbia, probably are females and show a greater average size than specimens from farther to the southeast. For example, the basilar length of the skull, 44.8 (44.3 to 45.1), exceeds that of the type specimen. The animals from Wistaria on Ootsa Lake furnish the northwesternmost station of occurrence of which I have record for this subspecies.

The northernmost records of occurrence, at "Clearwater River, Peace River, B. C," and at Little Prairie, are furnished by a white skin without skull, no. 257450, U. S. Nat. Mus., purchased on August 2, 1932, at the place mentioned by W. H. Sheldon and Richard Borden, and a skull with white winter skin, no. 3585, Provincial Museum, British Columbia, respectively. The characters distinguishing _longicauda_ and _oribasus_ are not shown by white winter skins; the skull shows some features of _longicauda_, and the reference of these specimens to _oribasus_ rather than _longicauda_ is tentative.

Only the skull from Little Prairie shows evidence of infestation of the frontal sinuses by parasites. In the Barkerville area of British Columbia, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas T. McCabe obtained only 2 skulls of this subspecies from a total of 238 weasel skulls gathered by local trappers. The others were _Mustela erminea_.

_Specimens examined._--Total number, 46, listed by localities from north to south and unless otherwise indicated, in the United States National Museum.

=British Columbia.= West of Hudson Hope, 1[7]; Clearwater River, tributary to Peace River, 1; Little Prairie, a few miles south of Peace River and about 40 miles west of the main highway between Dawson Creek and Fort St. John, 1[85]; Wistaria, 3[85]; Four Mile Creek, 4 mi. NE Quesnel, 1[21]; Isaacs Lake, 3200 ft., 1[74]; Barkerville region, 1[74]; Clear River, 4800 ft., 1[74]; Chezacut, 1[31]; Lillooet 3 (2[77], 1[85]); Alta Lake, 1[31]; source of Kettle River, 7500 ft., 1[75]; E side Beaverfoot Range, 4000 to 4500 ft. between Fraser Creek and 6 mi. SE of Fraser Creek, 1[74]; Cranbrook, 1[86]; head of Cross River, 10 mi. below Assiniboine Pass, 1[7]; camp east of "Kootanie," 1[7]; camp east of Kootanie River, 1[7].

=Alberta.= Thoral Creek, 7000 ft., 50 mi. NE Jasper, 1[2].

=Montana.= _Glacier? County_: Chief Mt. Lake (= Waterton Lake), 1. _Flathead County_: Columbia Falls, 1. _Chouteau? County_: Highwood Mts., 1. _Fergus? County_: Big Snowy Mts., 1. _Wheatland County_: Harlowton, 1[74]. _Ravalli County_: Florence, 2; Hamilton, 1[56]; Darby, 1[56]; Carlos [= Charlos] Heights, 2[74]; Tin Cup District, 2[74]; no locality more definite than county, 2[74]. _Beaverhead County_: Donovan, 1. _Madison County_: Sheridan, 1[74]. _Gallatin County_: Ranch 7-11, Eldridge, 1[60]. _Stillwater County_: Tacy, 2[76]. _County_ in question: Gallatin Valley, 1; Yellowstone Park, 1[75].

=Wyoming.= Glen Creek, Mammoth Hot Springs, 1. _Park County_: Four Bears, 1[2].

=Mustela frenata alleni= (Merriam)

Long-tailed Weasel

Plates 18, 19, 20, 31, 32 and 33

_Putorius alleni_ Merriam, N. Amer. Fauna, 11:24, June 30, 1896.

_Mustela alleni_, Miller, U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull., 79:99, December 31, 1912.

_Mustela frenata alleni_, Hall, Carnegie Instit. Washington Publ. 473:106, November 20, 1936.

_Type._--Male, adult, skull and skin; no. 186451, U. S. Nat. Mus. (formerly 4485/5120, collection of Dr. C. Hart Merriam); Custer, South Dakota; obtained by Vernon Bailey; original no. 90.

The skull is complete and unbroken. The upper incisors are missing. All the other teeth are present although the premolars, and especially the canines, are much worn, possibly as the result of the animal's efforts to free itself from a trap. The skin is fairly well made, in a good state of preservation, and entire.

_Range._--Canadian, Transition and Upper Sonoran life-zones of the Black Hills of South Dakota and adjacent semi-bad-land territory of Wyoming and Nebraska southward to Mitchell, Scottsbluff County. See figure 29 on page 221.

_Characters for ready recognition._--Differs from _M. f. longicauda_ in smaller size, adult males having a total length of less than 400, hind foot less than 45, basilar length less than 43.5, and in adult females total length less than 375, and basilar length less than 40; from _M. f. nevadensis_ in near Clay Color rather than near (14 _n_ to _l_) Brussels Brown of upper parts in summer.

_Description._--_Size._--Male: External measurements of the type specimen are: Total length, 372; length of tail, 137; length of hind foot, 44. Tail is 58 per cent as long as head and body. Length of hind foot more than basal length.

Female: No external measurements for typical adults are available. No. M1 #41 from Mitchell, Scottsbluff Co., Nebraska, an adult female which is an intergrade with the larger _M. f. longicauda_, measures as follows: Total length, 367; length of tail, 120; length of hind foot, 41.

_Externals._--Longest facial vibrissae dark brown or white and extending beyond ear; carpal vibrissae same color as underparts and extending to apical pad of fifth digit; hairiness of foot-soles (in summer pelage) as shown in figure 20.

_Color._--Winter pelage unknown; probably white except, of course, tip of tail. Summer pelage as described in _Mustela frenata longicauda_ except that: Least width of color of underparts averaging, in 3 males from Black Hills, 54 (38-62) per cent of greatest width of color of upper parts. Black tip of tail averaging 43 (40-45) mm. long. Thus, averaging approximately same length as hind foot and in type specimen amounting to 33 per cent of length of tail-vertebrae.

_Skull and teeth._--Male (based on the type and no. 7440 Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., from Hill City, S. Dak.): See measurements and plates 18-20. As described in _Mustela frenata longicauda_ except that: Weight, 3.1 (3.0-3.2) grams; basilar length, 41.0 (40.9-41.0); mastoid breadth not less than postpalatal length; breadth of rostrum more than length of P4; anterior margin of tympanic bulla as far posterior to foramen ovale as width of 4 to 5 upper incisors; height of tympanic bulla more or less than distance from its anterior margin to foramen ovale.

Female (based on no. 7441, American Mus. Nat. Hist., from Black Hills, S. Dak.): See measurements and plates 31-33. As described in _Mustela frenata longicauda_ except that: Weight, 2.0 grams; basilar length 37.6. The skull of the female is 35 per cent lighter than the average for the two males.

Comparison with _M. f. longicauda_ and _M. f. nevadensis_ reveals that the tympanic bullae average more nearly flat and that the skull is smaller.

_Remarks._--Animals of this subspecies were described and named by Merriam in 1896 as a distinct species on the basis of two or possibly three specimens from the Black Hills of South Dakota and the name seems never to have been applied to specimens from other regions. Vernon Bailey obtained only the one specimen, the type, on his trip in 1888, but two more were obtained for the American Museum of Natural History by Walter Granger in 1894.

_Mustela frenata alleni_ combines the light coloration of _M. f. longicauda_ with the small size of _M. f. nevadensis_. Indeed, the size may average less than that of _nevadensis_. _M. f. alleni_ seems to reach its extreme of small size in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Specimens from Mitchell, Scottsbluff County, Nebraska, here referred to alleni are of larger size and in this respect are intermediate between the subspecies _alleni_ and _longicauda_. Of the two specimens available from Chadron, Nebraska, and here referred to as _longicauda_, the female, M1 #6, is almost exactly intermediate in size between _alleni_ and _longicauda_, whereas the male, Ml #11, is as large as the average-sized _longicauda_.

None of the nine skulls (5 adults) shows malformation resulting from the infestation of the frontal sinuses with parasites.

_Specimens examined._--Total number, 10, as follows.

=Wyoming.= _Crook County_: Sundance, 1[91].

=South Dakota.= _Pennington County_: Hill City, 1[2]; 20 mi. N Elk Mt, 1[91]. _County_ in question: Black Hills, 1[2]. _Custer County_: Custer, 2 (1[91], 1[2]).

=Nebraska.= _Scottsbluff County_: Mitchell, 4[35].

=Mustela frenata arizonensis= (Mearns)

Long-tailed Weasel

Plates 19, 20, 21, 31, 32 and 33

_Putorius arizonensis_ Mearns, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 3:234, June, 1891; Merriam, N. Amer. Fauna, 11:22, fig. 12, June 30, 1896.

_Mustela arizonensis_, Miller, U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull., 79:99, December 31, 1912.

_Mustela frenata arizonensis_, Hall, Carnegie Instit. Washington Publ. 473:106, November 20, 1936.

_Type._--Female, adult, skull and skin; no. 2490/1886, Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist.; San Francisco Forest [then (1886?), Yavapai County], Arizona; June 20, 1886; obtained by Edgar A. Mearns.