Lyon, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 45:438, June 15.
Characters.—Skull flattened; interorbital region wide; maxillary orifice roundly triangular; palatal foramina separate from anterior palatine foramina.
All of the living members of the family Ochotonidae belong to this genus. American pikas all belong to the subgenus Pika, which occurs also in Eurasia.
The distribution is boreal and the animals live in talus. This broken rock at the foot of a cliff provides interstices in which the animals live and store grass and herbs. These plant materials are cut for food and stacked in piles to dry in the sun, often beneath slabs of rock which protect the hay-piles from rain. Pikas are diurnal, active throughout the year, and have a characteristic call, "chickck-chickck." Young number two to five per litter.
Key to Nominal Species of Ochotona
1. North of 58° N latitude; underparts creamy white, without buffy wash; an indistinct grayish "collar" on shoulders
collaris, p. 126
1´. South of 58° N latitude; underparts washed with buff; no grayish "collar" on shoulders
princeps, p. 127
Ochotona collaris (Nelson) Collared Pika
1893. Lagomys collaris Nelson, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 8:117, December 21, type from near head of Tanana River, Alaska.
1897. [Ochotona] collaris, Trouessart, Catalogus Mammalium … , p. 648
Marginal records.—Alaska: Mt. McKinley (A. H. Howell, 1924:36). Yukon: head of Coal Creek, Ogilvie Mountains (ibid.). Mackenzie: mile 63E on Little Keel River, Canol Road (Anderson, 1947:94). Yukon: Macmillan Pass, mile 282, Canol Road (ibid.); Ross River, mile 96, Canol Road (ibid.); vic. Teslin Lake (A. H. Howell, 1924:36). British Columbia: Tagish Lake (ibid.); Stonehouse Creek, 5–½ mi. W jct. Stonehouse Creek and Kelsall River (29088 KU). Alaska: Tanana River (A. H. Howell, 1924:36).
Upper parts Drab to Light Drab; underparts creamy white; grayish patch on nape and shoulders; skull broad; tympanic bullae large; total length 189; hind foot, 30.
Ochotona princeps Pika
Total length, 162–216; hind foot, 25–35; weight of O. p. tulelata, 6 ♂ 121 (108–128), 2 ♀ 121 and 129 grams. Upper parts varying from grayish to Cinnamon-Buff depending on the subspecies; underparts with wash of buff. Eight Nevadan females had an average of 3.1 (2–4) embryos. The mode was 3.
Ochotona princeps albata Grinnell.
1912. Ochotona albatus Grinnell, Univ. California Publ. Zool., 10:125, January 31, type from 11,000 ft., near Cottonwood Lakes, Sierra Nevada, Inyo County, California.
Marginal records (A. H. Howell, 1924:45).—California: Bullfrog Lake; 10,000 ft., Independence Creek; type locality; Mineral King, E. Fork Kaweah River.
Ochotona princeps brooksi A. H. Howell.
1924. Ochotona princeps brooksi A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:30, August 21, type from Sicamous, British Columbia.
Marginal records.—British Columbia: Mountains E Shuswap Lake (Anderson, 1947:95); type locality; McGillivary Creek, Lillooet Dist. (A. H. Howell, 1924:31).
Ochotona princeps brunnescens A. H. Howell.
1919. Ochotona fenisex brunnescens A. H. Howell, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, 32:108, May 20, type from Keechelus, Kittitas County, Washington.
1924. Ochotona princeps brunnescens A. H. Howell, N. Amer. Fauna, 47:31, September 23.
Marginal records.—British Columbia: Alta Lake (Anderson, 1947:95); Hope, Lake House (A. H. Howell, 1924:33). Washington: Whatcom Pass (Dalquest, 1948:380); Stevens Pass (A. H. Howell, 1924:33); Cowlitz Pass (Dalquest, 1948:380). Oregon: Mt. Hood (A. H. Howell, 1924:33); Crater Lake (ibid.); Mt. McLoughlin (V. Bailey, 1936:116); Diamond Lake (A. H. Howell, 1924:33). Washington: Tumtum Mtn. (Dalquest, 1948:380); Mt. Index (A. H. Howell, 1924:33). British Columbia: Chilliwack (ibid.); Vancouver (ibid.).
1 O. collaris
2 O. p. princeps
3 O. p. lutescens
4 O. p. septentrionalis
5 O. p. brooksi
6 O. p. cuppes
7 O. p. brunnescens
8 O. p. fenisex
9 O. p. fumosa
10 O. p. jewetti
11 O. p. taylori
12 O. p. schisticeps
13 O. p. muiri
14 O. p. albatus
15 O. p. sheltoni
16 O. p. tutelata
17 O. p. nevadensis
18 O. p. uinta
19 O. p. moorei
20 O. p. cinnamomea
21 O. p. fuscipes
22 O. p. utahensis
23 O. p. howelli
24 O. p. lemhi
25 O. p. goldmani
26 O. p. clamosa
27 O. p. ventorum
28 O. p. levis
29 O. p. figginsi
30 O. p. saxatilis
31 O. p. nigrescens
32 O. p. incana
Ochotona princeps cinnamomea J. A. Allen.
1905. Ochotona cinnamomea J. A. Allen, Mus. Brooklyn Inst. Arts and Sci., Sci. Bull., 1:121, March 31, type from 11,000 ft., Briggs [=Britts] Meadows, Beaver Range, Beaver County, Utah (5 mi. by road W Puffer Lake, according to Hardy, Jour. Mamm., 26:432, February 12, 1946). Known from type locality only.
1934.
