specimens from two localities in Coahuila. Since his report, Dalquest
(Louisiana State Univ. Studies, Biol. Sci. Ser. No. 1:162, December
28, 1953) extended the known distribution of this species
approximately 225 miles southward into San Luis Potosi, where he
reported animals from five localities. Field workers from the Museum
of Natural History at the University of Kansas recently have taken
_goldmani_ in the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango,
Zacatecas and San Luis Potosi, and now we can define, with greater
accuracy, the geographic range of this species (see fig. 1 and list
of specimens examined).

Goldman (_loc. cit._), relying chiefly on external appearance, placed
_goldmani_ in the _desertorum_ group, now known as the _lepida_ group
(Goldman, Jour. Mamm., 13:67, February 9, 1932). Blossom (Occ. Papers
Mus. Zool., Univ. Michigan, 315:3, May 29, 1935) thought that
_goldmani_ might be a subspecies of _lepida_ but that intergradation
between the two had not been demonstrated. Our newly acquired
material, instead of confirming the opinions of Goldman and Blossom,
shows that _goldmani_ is more closely related to _Neotoma albigula_.

Externally _goldmani_ resembles _Neotoma lepida_ (examples from
California, Utah, and Colorado) in having long, silky pelage;
ochraceous buffy coloring, especially along sides; and underparts
basally plumbeous except for a small throat patch where the hairs are
entirely white in some individuals. In _albigula_ this patch of white
hairs usually is much larger and more conspicuous. Cranially, instead
of resembling the _lepida_ group (including _Neotoma stephensi_),
_goldmani_ looks more nearly like a miniature _albigula_ (specimens of
_albigula_ from Coahuila). The auditory bullae, in relation to the
length of the skull, are of comparable size in _goldmani_ and
_albigula_ whereas those of the _lepida_ group are proportionately
much larger. Moreover, the posterior margin of the palatal bridge is
concave in _goldmani_ and _albigula_ instead of truncate as in the
_lepida_ group. _Neotoma goldmani_ differs from both _albigula_ and
_lepida_ in: ascending branches of premaxillaries broader posteriorly;
supraorbital ridges less pronounced; rostrum less massive;
interparietal broader in relation to width of cranium; interorbital
space, relative to length of skull, wider; and upper molar teeth
broader in relation to their length.

[Illustration: FIGURE 1. Distribution of the pigm