huts two or three feet high and from five to six feet in 

 diameter. These homes resembles, somewhat, those of 

 the beaver. The houses are placed in the water away 

 from the shore and are made of sticks and reeds. The 

 interior of the house has a floor above the water level 

 and is reached by diving from the outside. The musk- 

 rat does not hibernate but spends much of the winter 

 within its house, although it frequently goes on its ex- 

 cursions when the ponds are frozen and I have even 

 seen it swimming beneath the ice. It feeds upon water 

 plants, crayfish, mussels and, occasionally, fish. It also 

 stores up roots and other material for winter use and 

 sometimes invades gardens where it feeds upon culti- 

 vated plants. 



While the muskrat is chiefly nocturnal, it is often 

 active during the day, and it may occasionally be seen 

 sitting upon a stone or log, feeding. 



The young are born naked and helpless and there 

 may be from four to thirteen in a litter. Muskrat 

 tracks may be seen in the grassy regions along ponds 

 and streams where they have well-beaten trails. The 

 front feet have four toes and the hind feet have five. 



The creature has a total length of twenty-one 

 inches and the tail is almost one-half as long as the 

 head and body combined. The hind foot measures three 

 and one-half inches and the creature may weigh as 

 much as two and one-fourth pounds. 



The Porcupine: Hedgehog 



Erethizon dorsatuui Jorsatum 



The porcupine is one of the most spectacular of 

 our common mammals. The specialized development 

 of many of the hairs into sharp spines or quills from 



■■^>l 147 J<^ 



