I 68 MAMMALIA. 



fifteen minutes after the death of the mouse. As soon as he had 

 finished eating I again placed him upon the scales and found that he 

 weighed exactly 12. grammes an increase of .80 gramme. 



The Shrew was half an hour in tiring the mouse, and another half 

 hour in killing him. But it must be remembered that he was not 



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fully grown, and was doubtless, on this account, longer in capturing 

 and killino- his victim than would have been the case had he been an 



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adult. Still, it is clear that a Shrew could never catch mice on open 

 ground. His small size, however, enables him readily to enter their 

 holes and to follow them to their nests and the remotest ramifications 

 of their burrows, where, having no escape, he can slay them with 

 fearful certainty. 



The eagerness with which my Shrew pursued the mouse placed in 

 his box, and the persistency and success with which he directed his 

 attempts to destroy the latter by eating into its head, clearly shows 

 that this was not his first exploit in that direction. And the fact that 

 Mr. Morden's Shrews, in Ontario, Canada, acted in the same manner 

 proves that the habit is not of local origin. Therefore, it is 

 reasonable to infer that the Short-tailed Shrew preys largely upon 

 mice, and is, consequently, of great economic value to the farmer. 

 Indeed, after the skunk, I am inclined to assign him the first place 

 amongst those of our mammals that are beneficial to the agriculturist. 



The Shrews that I have had in confinement have been kept in a 

 large box, the bottom of which was well covered with earth and 

 dead leaves, fresh from the woods. Water was given them in a 

 saucer, which they soon discovered and drank freely. They were 

 exceedingly active, but always moved on a walk or trot, or by short 

 springs, never proceeding in a series of leaps. Whenever I ap- 

 proached the box they would run about with their heads thrown up, 

 sniffing the air in various directions, and starting spasmodically at the 

 slightest noise. When angry, they utter a shrill, chattering cry. 



I have one alive at the present time. When first put in the box 

 he eathered all the leaves and rootlets into one corner, constructing 



