424 Life-histories of Northern Animals 



had hidden. But how was it that we saw no traces of this hole 

 when digging ? When we left the ditch the place where this 

 hole was was a part of one continuous wall of sand, without 

 break or check to indicate that any hole was here."' 



More evidence was secured in another hole that he fol- 

 lowed September 30: "At 12 o'clock [he says], just one-half 

 hour after the digging began, we came upon a live, robust 

 Marmot, ready to do and die in his own defense. After reach- 

 ing him, we watched him while a party was sent for a canvas 

 bag. Meantime the fellow gave us a specimen of his ability 

 by filling up the hole in front of him and thus disappearing 

 from view. The time occupied in this operation was one 

 minute."* 



Conclusive evidence was furnished by an individual that 

 he dug out on October 10. This one was watched again and 

 again plugging the hole behind him when exposed by the 

 diggers. In half a minute he could completely close it with 

 earth so hard packed as almost to defy discovery of the tunnel. 

 In this we see the explanation of so many Woodchucks escaping 

 underground even from enemies that were able to follow them. 



NEST Most of the burrows opened by Hubbell had one enlarged 



nesting chamber more or less Hned. A few had none; one 

 only, the largest and longest (see H in Fig. 125), had six. This 

 is the home nest of the individual and the nursery of the young. 



sANiTA- As soon as an animal develops an elaborate home it must 



develop sanitation or suffer from disease. 



Some creatures that fear neither weather nor foes, go forth 

 into the air to drop their dung. There are many times when 

 the Woodchuck cannot well do this, and to meet the difficulty 

 it has invented a dry earth closet. Merriam points out that 

 the main gallery of the Woodchuck's burrow commonly 

 terminates in a little pocket, where its excrement is found buried. 



From time to time this is removed, and "the mounds in 

 front of the large holes frequently, if not generally, contain 



'' Loc. cit., p. 107. ^ Loc. cit., p. 115. 



