Ochotona (Pika) argentata Howell 1928

Wilson, Don E. & Reeder, DeeAnn, 2005, Order Lagomorpha, Mammal Species of the World: a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3 rd Edition), Volume 1, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, pp. 185-211 : 186

Ochotona (Pika) argentata Howell 1928

Ochotona (Pika) argentata Howell 1928 , Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 41: 116.

Type Locality: " 15 miles [24 km] north-northwest of Ninghsia [Yinchuan], northern Kansu [Gansu, now Ningxia Auton. Reg.], China " .

Vernacular Names: Silver Pika.

Synonyms: Ochotona (Pika) helanshanensis Zheng 1987 .

Distribution: Restricted to the Helan Shan range, Ningxia, China ( Formozov, 1997; A. T. Smith et al., 1990).

Conservation: IUCN – Critically Endangered (see Formozov, 1997; A. T. Smith et al., 1990).

Discussion: Subgenus Pika . Formerly considered a subspecies of O. alpina (see comments therein). There is confusion as to whether argentata is the same as or different from O. helanshanensis . The two forms come from the same area, share similar pelage descriptions, and have similar body and skull measurements, thus appear to be synonyms (Formozov et al., In Press). See also O. pallasi .