Descriptions of East Asiatic Mammals 35 
of 9 inches and the rat-like Gymnures may slightly exceed 
this. 
Fossil relatives of the Hedgehog family and of their nearest 
allies, the Elephant Shrews of Africa, are known far back in 
the geological record. This total assemblage, known as the 
Menotyphla, if traced back far enough, will be found to con- 
verge with another evolutionary stream, the Lipotyphla, which 
produced the Shrews and Moles. 
The family Erinaceidse divides naturally into subfamilies, 
the primitive Moonrats and Gymnures, Gymnurinse, and the 
specialized, spine-bearing Hedgehogs, Erinaceinae. 
SUBFAMILY GYMNURINSE 
The Gymnures, though they have a rat-like appearance, nearly 
bare tail, and are clothed with hair instead of the spines of the 
Hedgehogs, exhibit nevertheless the distinctive pointed front 
teeth of the insectivores and the squarish molar teeth of the 
Hedgehog family. They comprise three genera : Hylomys, Neo- 
tetrachus, and Echino-sorex. The last of these is commonly 
called the Moonrat or Raffle's Gymnure. The first two genera 
may be designated respectively the Lesser Gymnure and the 
Chinese Gymnure. 
The Moonrat or Raffle's Gymnure, Echino-sorex gymnura, 
is colored white and black; the head, neck, and back between 
the shoulder blades are white or brownish white, the rest of 
the body blackish ; there is a black streak above each eye uniting 
with a median black line on the crown of the head. The under- 
fur of the back of the neck is also black. The distal half of the 
tail is white. The length of the head and body is about 12 inches, 
of the tail 8 inches. 
Moonrats, with their almost naked, scaly tails look like pied 
rats with very pointed noses. They give off a peculiarly offen- 
sive, onion-like smell. They are creatures of the night, hiding 
