Erethizon dorsatum (Linnaeus, 1758). Syst. Nat., 10th ed., 1:57.
TYPE LOCALITY: E Canada (= Quebec Prov.).
DISTRIBUTION: C Alaska (USA) to S Hudson Bay and Labrador (Canada), south to E Tennessee, C Iowa, and C Texas (USA), N Coahuila, Chihuahua, and Sonora (Mexico), and S California (USA).
STATUS: Common.
SYNONYMS: bruneri, couesi, doani, epixanthus, myops, nigrescens, picinum.
COMMENTS: Reviewed by Miller and Kellogg (1955:631), who restricted the type locality; also see Anderson and Rand (1943). Includes couesi; (see review by Woods, 1973, Mammalian Species, 29). There are six subspecies.