386 



MAMMALIA 



dragged in the dirt. Wolverines resemble a cross between the 

 badger and the bear. 



The common skunk. Mephitis mephitica, is a native of North 

 America, found from Hudson's Bay to Guatemala. An allied form, 





V^ 



^.d.^ 



Fig. 217. /^, ferrets. 5, wolverine. (From L. A. Fuertes. Courtesy of Sllngerland- 



Comstock Publishing Co.) 



the conepatl, is found in South America. Preeminently an insect 

 eater, the skunk destroys more beetles, grasshoppers, and grubs 

 than all of the other mammals together, and also devours vast 

 quantities of mice in addition. The skunk is also partial to sala- 



