A HISTORY OF SUSSEX 23. Common Seal. Phoca vltuUna, Linn A not infrequent visitant to Sussex waters, but unfortunately it seems to have been no one's business to place on permanent record precise particulars of the occurrences. A specimen was shot in the river Arun about seven miles from the sea, and examined by Mr. Percy E. Coombe {Zookght, 1897, p. 571). A fine specimen was shot by Mr. Chas. Cook on Pett Levels, January 11, 1 90 1, and brought to the Hastings fishmarket to be sold by Mr. W. M. Adams. Whilst bathing one day near Brighton Mr. E. Molyneux of St. Leonards found a large seal, presumably of this species, floating in an exhausted condi- tion. He took it to the Brighton Aquarium, but it only survived for a few days. RODENTIA 24. Squirrel. Sciurus /fucourus, Kerr. Bell — Sciurus vulgaris. Abundant throughout the county, especially where the various species of firs are cultivated. 25. Dormouse. Muscardinus avellanarius, Linn. Bell — Myoxus avellanarius. Although perhaps nowhere very common, the dormouse is pretty generally distributed in Sussex. Holes in banks or in trees are mostly selected as hybernacula, but the period of tor- pidity is sometimes passed in a nest built in a bush like the ordinary summer nest. 26. Brown Rat. Mus decumanus, Pallas. In the autumn of 1 900 a great migration of brown rats took place into north-west Sussex. All the banks in the neighbourhood of Rusper, Horsham, Slinfold and Southwater were riddled with the roadways of these pests, and they are still in such numbers that they will come forth into the open fields to feed in broad daylight. Apparently they have not as yet invaded the buildings in force, and will probably move on to new grounds as soon as the food supply becomes scarce. A male killed at Warnham Court in 1900 was meas- ured by Mr. Millais. It taped 19^ inches, and is the largest specimen we have ever seen. Albinos are extremely rare, but pied varieties are comparatively common. The late Mr. William Borrer has recorded an adult female and two young of the ' black variety ' of M. decumanus taken early in May, 1877, near Rottingdean {Zoologist., 1877, p. 292). 27. Black Rat. Mus rattus, Linn. Mr. R. M. Christy found a black rat lying dead on the mud at Shoreham Harbour in April, 1880, and about two months later another under similar circumstances nearer to Brighton (Harting, Essays on Sport and Natural History, p. 161). Upon investiga- tion it does not appear that the species sur- vives in any part of the county. [Examples of the form M. alexandrinus (readily distinguished from the common brown rat by its large ears and very long tail) are sometimes caught near the harbour at Shoreham. Two of these caught in 1898 are in the possession of Mr. Daniel Francis. These rats have probably been brought into the harbour by ships.] 28. House Mouse. Mus musculus, Linn. Abundant. 29. Long-tailed Field Mouse. Mus sylvaticus, Linn. Abundant. 30. Yellow-necked Mouse. Mus flavicollis, Melchior. This mouse, first recognized as British in 1894 by Mr. W. E. de Winton,' will prob- ably prove to be by no means infrequent in the county. Specimens have been trapped by Mr. Ruskin Butterfield on the railway em- bankment near Crowhurst, June 13, 1899, and April 8, 1901. Through the kindness of Mr. de Winton these have been compared with a specimen from Herefordshire. Others have also been taken in 1900 at Balcombe, and two of these were sent to Mr. Millais by Mr. de Winton. Mr. Millais has also trapped in his garden at Horsham a specimen with a pale yellow throat, and there is little doubt that M. flavicoUis interbreeds with true M. sylvaticus. In fact the dentition of the two forms is similar and their habits identical. 31. Harvest Mouse. Mus minutus, Pallas. Apparently the harvest mouse always had a somewhat restricted range in Sussex, seldom being found further east than Brighton, west of Worthing or north of Henfield and Pul- bo rough. Fifty years ago it was extremely plentiful both in the corn and grass fields be- tween Henfield and Brighton, and Knox men- tions having often found remains in the pellets and crops of the kestrel ; but it is now a scarce Zoologist, 1894, p. 441. 304
