Horváth Géza (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 23. (Budapest 1926)
Ognev, S. I.: A systematic review of the mammals of Russia
XXIII. ANNALES MUSEI NATIONALIS HUNGARICI. 1926. A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE MAMMALS OF- RUSSIA. BY S. I. OGNEV, Zoological Museum of Moscow University. (Plates V—IX.) I. On foxes living in Russia. During these last years 1 had the occasion to get acquainted with an enormous quantity of material in literature and collections over Mammals, who inhabit the vast lands of the former Russian Empire and the adjacent countries. The lack of exact and whatever founded science as to the classification and geographical distribution of the representatives of the highest class of Vertebrates makes if only a short review of the principal results I acquired most timely. Under the general heading of „ Systematic Review" I intend to publish a certain number of articles, summing up the whole, and these articles, each of which is to be in itself entire and complete, will not be issued in a strictly consecutive system, but merely when a review of classification of any given species or kind is completed. I shall begin with a short description of the systematic peculiarities and geographical distribution of foxes, living in Russia. Up to now, all one knows about them is more than unsatisfactory. So, in the year 1914 in his „ Conspectus Mammalium Imperii Rossici", K. A. SATUNIN justly remarks (p. 137): „the classification of foxes of our region presents until now a complete chaos, where it is absolutely impossible to see clear for a person, who has no access to the collections of the Zoological Museum of the Academy" .. . One may say, that a number of forms have been described but accidentally, and that the whole lot of foxes of our region has never yet been systematically described. Thanks to the unvarying kindness of the Director of the Zoolog. Museum of the Russian Academy of Sciences, A. A. BJALINICKI-BIEULA I have had the possibility to get acquainted with the beautiful collections of foxes, belonging to this Museum (about 300 skulls and 132 skins). I have been also able to carefully study several scores of skins and over
