Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections
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SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOLUME 61, NUMBER 7 NEW RACES OF ANTELOPES FROM BRITISH EAST AFRICA BY EDMUND HELLER Naturalist, Smithsonian African Expedition (Publication 2231) CITY OF WASHINGTON PUBLISHED BY THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION JULY 31, 1913 Z2>t Boxi> Q0aftimore (press BALTIMORE, Ml)., B. S. A. V NEW RACES OF ANTELOPES FROM BRITISH EAST AFRICA By EDMUND HELLER NATURALIST SMITHSONIAN AFRICAN EXPEDITION The present paper deals with mammal material in the United States National Museum from collections made by the Smithsonian African Expedition under the direction of Col. Theodore Roosevelt, the Paul J. Rainey African Expedition, and the Abbott Expedition to Kilimanjaro. In addition to this material the Field Museum of Chicago has loaned the National Museum the collection of antelopes gathered by Carl E. Akeley in British East Africa. The writer is indebted to the Field Museum for the privilege of describing from their material the new race of pygmy antelope from Mt. Kenia. NESOTRAGUS MOSCHATUS AKELEYI, new subspecies Kenia Pygmy Antelope Type from the southeast slope of Mt. Kenia, altitude 7,000 feet, British East Africa; adult female, Cat. No. 17824, Field Museum of Chicago ; collected by Carl E. Akeley ; date not known ; original number, 342. Characters. —Body color much darker than Nesotragus moschatus, the dorsal region chestnut brown, the white of the throat separated medially for half its length by a fulvous band ; legs darker with black pasterns and stripe in front to knee ; pelage long, hair on rump 30 mm. long. Coloration.—Median dorsal area of body chestnut brown, changing on lower sides to vinaceous-tawny ; legs ochraceous-tawny, the past- erns fuscous, a black stripe in front to the knees ; tail fuscous, some- what darker than the body, below marked by a narrow white line. Crown of head bay, the snout with a broad streak of fuscous, a small white spot above the eye ; cheeks vinaceous-tawny in contrast to the white lips, chin and throat ; back of ears fuscous ; inner side and base whitish. Middle throat with a broad band four inches long, of vina- ceous-tawny separating the white of the upper and lower throat. Under parts white with a streak of white down the inside of each leg to the knee. Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections,Vol. 61, No. 7 ;;; 2 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 6l Measurements.—Tanned skin: head and body, 625 mm.; tail, 50; hindfoot, 145; ear, 50. Skull : condylo-basal length, 109; zygomatic 1 breadth, 51 ; upper tooth row, 38 ; PM to muzzle, 31 ; nasals, 43 x 16 diameter of orbit, 24; length of premaxillse, 38; orbit to muzzle, 55. Premolars unworn, the milk teeth only recently shed. Remarks.—Five specimens of this race belonging to the Field Museum of Chicago have been examined. Four of these specimens were collected in the Kenya Forest by Carl E. Akeley for whom the race has been named. The other specimen is from the Kijabe Forest. Unfortunately no adult male is in the collection, the two males being immature individuals, unsuitable for a type with half-grown horns and with their milk teeth still in use, so that it has been necessary to select an adult female as the type. This pygmy or suni antelope is strictly an inhabitant of forests in the interior highlands. The race here described is confined to the highland forest covering Kenia, the Aberdare Range and the Kikuyu Escarpment. NESOTRAGUS MOSCHATUS DESERTICOLA, new subspecies Desert Pygmy Antelope Type from Maji-ya-chumvi, British East Africa; aged female, Cat. No. 182261 U. S. National Museum; collected December 9, 191 1, by Edmund Heller; original number, 2574. Characters.—Color much lighter than Nesotragus moschatus, cin- namon-rufous, only slightly darker on median dorsal region; white of throat almost continuous, only broken by a narrow hand of fulvous one inch wide ; legs light colored, fulvous, but pasterns dark, fuscous tail very light, whitish, only the median dorsal line dusky brown; pelage short, hair on rump 20 mm. long ; body size as in moschatus. Coloration.—Dorsal color bright cinnamon-rufous, the median area only slightly darker, hazel ; sides cinnamon-buff contrasting very little with the white underparts ; legs ochraceous-buff lighter and brighter than sides pasterns fuscous ; tail greyish in effect, sides and the ; under surface white, the tip and dorsal stripe fuscous. Crown of head cinnamon-rufous bordered below by a whitish supraocular stripe midline of snout dusky ; orbital ring dusky, cheeks and sides of head cinnamon-rufous ; upper lips, chin and throat white ; middle of throat with white areas separated by a narrow band of fulvous one inch wide ; ears on back dusky like snout, the inner side and base whitish. Underparts silky white with a white stripe extending down the innei side of each leg to the knee. ; NO. 7 ANTELOPES FROM BRITISH EAST AFRICA—HELLER 3 Measurements.—In the flesh: head and body, 580 mm.; tail, 80; hindfoot, 163; ear, 67. Skull: condylo-basal length, 105; zygomatic 1 ; to muzzle, breadth, 51 upper tooth row, 35 ; PM 30; nasals, 43 x 16 diameter of orbit, 23 ; length of premaxillge, 35 ; orbit to muzzle, 55. Aged, the premolars greatly worn ; nasals notched for 5 mm. at tips. Remarks.—Besides the type, a male topotype is in the collection which is fully mature but with a damaged skull. The horns in this specimen are 2^ inches long and heavily ringed for two-thirds of their length. Horns parallel and extending backward in line with profile of snout. The male specimen is somewhat darker than the female, but the white areas are the same in extent as in the type. This race inhabits the edge of the desert tract or nyikae, living in the dense thickets of acacias, euphorbias, aloes and sanseveria growth. It is the lightest of all the races. Compared to specimens of kirchenpaueri from Kilimanjaro, collected by Dr. Abbott, deserticola is much lighter and less rufous with lighter crown patch and darker pasterns or hoof bands. RHYNCHOTRAGUS KIRKI NYIK^, new subspecies Nyika Dik-dik Type from Ndi, near Voi, British East Africa; adult male, Cat. No. 182228, U. S. National Museum; collected by Edmund Heller, November 1, 191 1 ; original number, 2541. Characters.—Resembling Rhynchotragus kirki most closely, but in size decidedly larger, equalling that of R. hindei from which it differs by lighter coloration. Coloration. —Dorsal region ochraceous-tawny changing gradually on sides to buff ; whole dorsal region vermiculated by dusky annula- tions of hair ; underparts sharply defined against this vermiculated area by a wide band of light ochraceous-buff succeeded by the pure white of the median ventral area. Legs uniform ochraceous-tawny ; tail buffy-grey vermiculated by dusky; posterior border of thighs clothed by long white hair in sharp contrast to the buffy grey rump and sides. Head with coronal crest ochraceous-tawny vermiculated only in central part by dusky ; snout lighter, cinnamon-buff ; orbital area white with a blackish diagonal streak through the eye to the anteorbital gland; sides of head buffy faintly vermiculated with dusky ; back of ears buffy, inner side white ; chin and lips white, fore throat pure ochraceous-buff; middle throat vermiculated heavily with dusky like nape. ; 4 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 6l Measurements.—Flesh: head and body 600 mm.; tail, 42; hind foot, 193; ear, 70. Skull: greatest length. 116; condylo-basal length, ; nasals, length greatest breadth, 19x18; of premaxillae, ; 107 ; 57 41 nasals, to orbit, 1 gnathion to 39; gnathion 58; gnathion to PM , 28; length of upper tooth row, 37.5. Fully adult, the premolars showing some wear ; length of horns, straight, 53. Remarks.—Four specimens are in the collection representing this race; one adult male from Voi, and a mated pair from Maji-ya- Chumvi. This is a light colored desert race which occupies the low desert area south of the Tana River as far as the slopes of Kiliman- jaro. North of the Tana River we have the typical kirki occupying the coast region, while inland we find the lightest and smallest of the races, Rhynchotragus kirki minor. There is a large series of the latter race in the Rainey collection from the Marsabit district. GAZELLA GRANTI ROOSEVELTI, new subspecies Roosevelt Grant Gazelle Type from Kitanga Farm, Athi Plains, British East Africa; adult male, Cat. No. 162009, U. S. National Museum ; shot by Theodore Roosevelt, April 26, 1909; original number, 8. Characters.—Nearest typical Gazella granti of Ugogo, German East Africa in color, but differing by its darker coloration, smaller and narrower horns. From Gasclla granti robertsi it differs by decidedly less widely spread horns and somewhat darker color in the males and further by the female being marked by a distinct dark flank band. From G. g. sercngctee it differs by the wider and undivided white rump patch and considerably lighter body coloration. Coloration.—Dorsal color vinaceous-cinnamon paling toward head and on sides where it becomes pinkish-buff ; top of rump and hinder border of thighs marked by a wide area of pure white which is con- tinuous with the white basal portion of tail, terminal half of tail black rump area bordered in front by a broad clove-brown pygal stripe two inches wide; flanks with a very slight indication of the flank band, consisting of a lighter band of light buff bordering the broad band of pinkish-buff above along middle of sides of body; outside of legs pinkish-buff like the sides ; hoofs in front bordered by hair brown. Underparts, inside of legs and lower throat silky white ; top of head and median line of snout cinnamon-rufous, .the middle of snout marked by a large clove-brown blotch greyish hair about horn bases ; and a blackish area above the eyes; the sides of face marked by broad white band above eye extending forward to dark snout spot, NO.