DESCRIPTION.—"General hue of the upper body pale buff, fulvous, with a very slight rufous tint, and tipped with dark brown; below whitish with translucent dusky blue."—Stoliczka, quoted by Blanford.
SIZE.—From 7 inches to 9 inches.
It is as yet doubtful whether this is not identical with the last. Mr. Blanford has separated it, and Dr. Günther, agreeing with him, named this species L. Ladacensis; but the skull characteristics of L. Curzoniæ have not as yet been compared with this, and the separation has been made on external characters only.
[NO. 421. LAGOMYS AURITUS.]
The Large-eared Pika.
HABITAT.—Lukong, on the Pankong lake.
DESCRIPTION.—General colour above smoky or wood brown; the head, shoulders and rump rather paler and more rufous; lower parts whitish, with the dark basal portion of the hair showing through; fur very soft, moderately long; ears large, round, clothed rather thinly inside near the margin with whitish-brown hairs, and outside with much longer hairs of the same colour; whiskers fine and long, the upper dark brown, the lower white; feet whitish. (See Blanford's 'Sc. Res. Second Yarkand Mission,' p. 75, plate vi. fig. 2.)
SIZE.—About 8 inches.
This seems to be a doubtful species; it may probably prove to be the same as the last, the skulls being similar. Mr. Blanford remarks: "I am strongly disposed to suspect, indeed, that L. auritus is the summer L. macrotis, the winter garb of the same species; but there are one or two differences which require explanation. The feet appear larger in L. macrotis, and the pads of the toes are black, whilst in L. auritus they are pale coloured. In the former the long hair of the forehead is lead black at the base, in the latter, pale grey; the feet and lower parts generally are white in L. macrotis, buffy white in L. auritus, but this may be seasonable."
[NO. 423. LAGOMYS GRISEUS.]
The Grey Pika.