The Fur Animals of Louisiana 213 



period of the year, when these animals are not breeding 

 at their heaviest, for furs taken during August and Sep- 

 tember are unprime, destitute of fur and guard hairs — 

 "barebacks" the trappers call such animals. "Trash" would 

 be a better word. 



Counts of females containing embryos have run as 

 high as 37 % during cold winters to 26 % during mild win- 

 ters, and the catch of kits has been in ratio to the early or 

 late fall the state experienced. 



It is evident that being born blind (but not hairless) 

 is a wise provision of nature to keep the young with the 

 mother until they may venture from the nest site prepared, 

 in a measure, to protect themselves by scampering away 

 from such natural enemies as hawks by day and owls by 

 night. Just how long the little "musk mice" (to quote an 

 enthusiastic but unscientific correspondent from Cleveland) 

 remain blind has not as yet been satisfactorily determined. 

 It is a mistake to refer to the house rat, by way of analogy 

 in this or any other regard when considering the muskrat, 

 but, as the muskrat is so closely related to the meadow 

 mouse, it may not be out of place to compare this period 

 in the muskrat to that of Microtus. Vernon Bailey shows 

 this to be "approximately 21 days," and his bulletin 32 on 

 this member of the rodent family is a most valuable and 

 interesting contribution to our knowledge of this tiny in- 

 habitant of the marshlands. 



That the young of the Louisiana muskrat does not open 

 its eyes before the twelfth day seems to be amply proved. 

 One specimen, fed on artificial milk, and kept alive for 17 

 days, never opened its eyes. The specimen was possibly 

 one, two, or more days old when taken. This unnatural 

 feeding was undoubtedly responsible for the failure of the 

 eyes to open. It seems quite definitely established that 

 parental care devolves on the mother wholly, but the exact 

 duration of the suckling period is as great a mystery as 

 that of the time of gestation. It is quite probable, however, 

 that the young are a month old, at least, before they begin 



3 -Vernon Bailey: Breeding. Feeding and Other Life Habits of Meadow 

 Mice, Journal of Agricultural Research, vol. xxvii, p. 528. 



