WEST eOAST HAIBEJ FIW«JfC'''SftPW^ FORTHE PEOPLE FOR EDVCATION FOR SCIENCE LIBRARY OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY I \f Califomisk Mammals Press of the SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PRINTING COMPANY Los Angeles, Cal. California iHammafe By FRANK STEPHENS Illustrated by "W. J. Ferxxx from studies in tKe field Publiskoa br 6>ie VTest Coast Poblisbin^ Co . San Dietfo, California 190G frank giupjjcns Contents: Introduction .-.-...- t Mammalia ----.... H Order Cete 11 Family Balsenidse ---.... 12 Physeteridsd - -.-..- 26 Delphinidse - 32 Order Ungulata ...... - 45 Family Cervidss -..-.. 46 Antilocapridse . 55 Bovidvd 57 Order 6^itVes ........ 62 Family Sciuridm ....... 62 Aplodontidse ....... 23 Castondse "---.- - - 96 Muridsd ........ 99 Geomyidis ........ 134 Heteromyidse ....... 149 Zapodidve ........ 174 Erethizontidfii ....... 178 Ochotonidva 180 Leporidse - . - - - - - - 180 Order i^erje 196 Family Phocidve ....... 197 Otarid^ 201 FelidsB 207 CanidsB 213 Procyonidsd ....... 224 Vrsidis 229 Mustelid'x 232 . - - 249 Order Insedivora - - - ^^^ Family Sorecides Talpid^ 256 - 261 Order Chiroptera Family Vespertilionidai ------ 262 Mollossidis ^^^ Phyllastomatidse ------ 276 Order Primates - - - - - - - 278 - -"^^ HominidsB - - - - - Fa)inly . - - - - - - 283 Life Areas of California . List of California Mammals - - " - -^- - - - - - - ^^^ Parts of a Skull - . Glossary - - 208 - Index - - - - - - 311 INTRODUCTION Introdudlion The area treated of in this volume is strictly California and that part of the Pacific Ocean properly belonging to California. All the mammals described are known to have been found with- in the State or within sight of its shores. The number of species and subspecies proves to be very large. This is accounted for partly by the large extent and great latitudinal length of the State, but more by the very great variety of climate within the State, greater than occurs in any other State of the Union ; grading all the way from the subtropical region of the Colorado Valley and Desert to the arctic climate of the eternal snows on the summits of the Sierra Nevada. No general work covering the mammals of this State has been published since 1857, when Bairds Vol. VIII of the Pacific Railroad Reports was issued. This did not contain the marine mammals, the bats nor man. A great advance in our knowledge of the land mammals has occurred within the last fifteen years, and some of the material obtained in this time has not yet been critically examined by systematic experts, hence we may expect further additions to the present known species, as well as more or less revision of the nomenclature. The distribution of species herein given has been checked in 8 CALIFORNIA MAMMALS. the majority of species from personal obsen'ation. I have clone no field work in the northwestern part of California and but little in the northeastern part. I have had exceptionally good opp-or- tunities for observation for many years in the southern' part of the State and I believe the statements of distribution for this part will bear close inspection. There is nO' "royal road to knowledge." This saying is true of all the natural sciences and mammalogy is no exception. The beginner will find it difficult to get a start, but when one be- comes a little familiar with the general characters of the larger groups it is a comparatively easy matter to trace out a species and learn its name, which should be but a preliminary step to further study of the species, and not the end as is but too- often the case. Of necessity the division into orders, families and genera are made on technical characters, and it is better for the student tO' master these and begin aright. I have used technical terms as little as practicable. Their moderate use admits of much greater con- ciseness of description. To avoid the use of technical terms would necessitate the use of cumbersome expressions that would greatly increase the size of this volume. For the explanation of the technical terms refer to the glossary, in front of the index. The full description of a mammal includes not only the char- acters given under the specific name, but also the characters pre- viously given under its genus, family and order; to add these each time in the specific description w?ould be confusing as well as cumbersome. After becoming a little familiar with the sub- ject it will not be necessary to refer to these higher characters each time. A departure from recognized usage in the use of names of authorities is made for the sake of simplicity. The authority for a specific or subspecific name is given without reference to generic changes made later. The words in parentheses after the technical name are intended to be a translation of the Latin or Greek name. This translation is sometimes a free one, to give the sense of the name intended. INTRODUCTION 9 The measurements used are —"length," the distance from the tip of the nose to the end of the skin of the tail, taken with the animal laid on its back on the scale; "tail vertebrae," taken with the dividers with one point set on the rump at the base of the tail, the tail being held at right angles to the body, the other point being placed at the end of the skin of the tail, "hind foot," the distance from the end of the longest claw to the upper edge of the heel, the true heel being used, which in many mammals is not the termination of the sole, but in such animals as the cat, deer or dog what is popularly, but wrongly, called the knee; "ear from crown," taken with one point of the dividers set on the skull on the inner (convex) side of the eitr and the other at the tip of the ear. In the dental formula "I" means incisor teeth; "C" canine; "P" premolar; "M" molar. The number means the number of that class of teeth in one side of the upper or lower jaw, re- spectively; the last number being the total of all teeth. The standard used for the names of colors is Ridgways "Nomenclature of Colors." The measurements are given in millimeters as being bet- ter adapted for the use of naturalists ; they are practically dup- licated in inches and hundreths, in parentheses, for the use of those students who have no metric scale. The following table for the conversion of inches into millimeters and vice versa may be useful. Inch. Mm. Millimeter. Inch. !•• ••25-39 I 0393 2.... 5078 2 0787 3-^^^76.i8 3 1181 4... 101.57 4 1574 5... 126.97 5 1968 6. 152.36 6 2362 7- '^77-7^ 7 2755 8... 203. 15 8 3150 9... 228.55 9 3543 10... 253.94 TO.... 3937 10 CALIFORNIA MAMMALiS. This book is little more than a mere dry skeleton; if it aids the student in finding out for himself or herself some portions of the life histories of our mammals I shall be pleased. I have labored under the disadvantage of being out of reach of good reference libraries. Nearly all the v^orkers in this field have sent me copies of their papers as soon as published ; without this help this volume would have been of little real value. I have made free use of all such papers, but to save space I have seldom given the authority for statements made. In. many cases the facts have been condensed from several authorities into the brief- est possible statement. 1 would like to aclcnow ledge by name the aid received through this and other sources but the number is very great and to mention but part would be unfair to the re- mainder. The list would include the name of practically every one who has done field work among the mammals of California, or has written on material coming from this State; hence this volume is really a compilation of all the work done on Californian Mammals, and each author or collector may consider that he has a share in whatever merit it may possess. ; MAMMALIA California Mammals Class Mammalia. Mammals Young- born alive and nourished by milk secreted in mammae; lungs and heart contained in a thorax separated from the ab- dominal viscera by a diaphragm ; heart four chambered ; circula- tion complete; blood warm, with red non-nucleated corpuscles; body usually covered with hairs; mouth usually furnished with teeth ; never more than two pairs of limbs, both pairs always pres- ent except in some aquatic species. Sulxlass Monodelphia. Anterior cerebral commissure small; corpus callosum large; episternum wanting ; coracoid very feebly developed, not con- nected with a sternum ; urogenital and intestinal openings not combined ; a placenta young" well developed when born. ; Order Cete. WHALES, DOLPHINS, PORPOISES, ETC. Fore limbs fin-like, without distinct fingers and without nails ; hind limbs absent ; pelvis rudimentary ; no clavicles ; tail widened hori-zontally ; neck short, the vertebrae more or less fused nostrils opening on top of the head as spiracles ; eyes small ; no external ear; skin hairless; habitat marine. Cetaceans are mammals that are fishlike in form and adapted to life in oceans, seas and larg-e rivers. Like all mammals cet- aceans breathe by means of lungs and suckle their young-, which are born well developed. The only book containing full and accurate accounts of the habits of our species is the "Marine Mammals of the Northwest- ern Coast of North America," by Captain C. M. Scammon, pul> ) 12 CALIFORNIA MAMMALS. lished in 1874. As it is now veiy scarce and inaccessible to the general public I shall give considerable space to extracts from it. I have very little direct personal knowledge of this order. Suborder Mystacete. ( ^Mustache—whale. No teeth present after birth : upper jaws furnished with plates of baleen (whalebone;) rami of lower jaw connected by fibrous tissue and not by a suture; olfactory oigan developed; spiracle double.