110 MONOGRAPH OF THE GENUS SCIURUS. 



of the planter, consuming great quantities of grain, and, by 

 tearing off' the husks, exposing an immense number of ears to 

 the mouldering influence of the dews and rain. 



The usual note emitted by this genus is a kind of tremu- 

 lous querulous bark, not very unlike the quacking voice of a 

 duck. Although all our larger squirrels have shades of differ- 

 ence in their notes, which will enable the practised ear to de- 

 signate the species even before they are seen, yet this differ- 

 ence cannot easily be described by words. Their bark seems 

 to be the repetition of a syllable five or six times, — quack- 

 quack-quack-quack-qua, — commencing low, and gradually 

 raising its voice, and ending with a drawl on the la&t letter in 

 the syllable. The notes however of the smaller Hudson's 

 Bay squirrel, and its kindred species existing on the Rocky 

 Mountains, differ considerably from those of the larger squir- 

 rels ; they are sharper, more rapidly uttered, and of longer 

 continuance ; seeming intermediate between the bark of the 

 larger squirrels and the chipping calls of the ground squir- 

 rels (Tamias). The bark of the squirrel may be heard occa- 

 sionally in the forest during all hours of the day, but is more 

 common in the morning and afternoon. Any sudden noise, 

 or the distant report of a gun, is almost certain, during favor- 

 able weather, to be succeeded by the barking of the squirrel. 

 This is either a note of playfulness or of love. During such 

 times it seats itself for a few moments on the limb of a tree, 

 — elevates its tail over its back towards the head, and bend- 

 ing the point backwards continues to jerk its body and elevate 

 and depress the tail at the repetition of each successive 

 note. Like the mocking bird and the nightingale, however, 

 the squirrel no sooner begins to sing, (for to his own ear at 

 least his voice must be musical), than he also commences 

 skipping and dancing. He leaps playfully from limb to limb, 

 sometimes pursuing his rival or his mate for a few moments, 

 and then reiterating with renewed vigour his querulous and 

 monotonous notes. 



One of the most common habits of the squirrel, with which 

 a mysterious instinct has favoured it to conceal itself from the 

 prying eyes of its enemies, is that of circling around the tree 

 on the opposite side, so as completely to evade the sight ; 

 hence it is almost essential to the sportsman's success, that 

 he should be accompanied by a second person, who, in walk- 

 ing slowly round the tree on which the squirrel has been seen, 

 causes him to move to the side where the gunner is silently 

 stationed. When the squirrel has been seated on a limb at 

 the approach of man, and fancies himself undiscovered, he 

 immediately depresses his tail, and extending it along the 



