RESEMBLANCES AMONG- ANIMALS. 51 



American polar hare, inhabiting regions of almost 

 perpetual snow, is white all the year round. Other 

 animals inhabiting the same Northern regions do 

 not, however, change colour. The sable is a good 

 example, for throughout the severity of a Siberian 

 winter it retains its rich brown fur. But its habits 

 are such that it does not need the protection of 

 colour, for it is said to be able to subsist on fruits 

 and berries in winter, and to be so active upon the 

 trees as to catch small birds among the branches. 

 So also the woodchuck of Canada has a dark-brown 

 fur ; but then it lives in burrows and frequents river 

 banks, catching fish and small animals that live in 

 or near the water. 



Among birds, the ptarmigan is a fine example of 

 protective colouring. Its summer plumage so exactly 

 harmonizes with the lichen-coloured stones among 

 which it delights to sit, that a person may walk 

 through a flock of them without seeing a single 

 bird; while in winter its white plumage is an 

 almost equal protection. The snow-bunting, the jer- 

 falcon, and the snowy owl are also white-coloured 

 birds inhabiting the arctic regions, and there can 

 be little doubt but that their colouring is to some 

 extent protective. 



Nocturnal animals supply us with equally good illus- 

 trations. Mice, rats, bats, and moles possess the least 

 conspicuous of hues, and must be quite invisible at 

 times when any light colour would be instantly seen. 

 Owls and goatsuckers are of those dark mottled tints 



E 2 



