CHAPTER II. 



MOLE RATS, POUCHED RATS, AND BEAVERS. 



THE MOLE RAT — THE JERBOA — THE ALACTAGA — THE CAPE LEAPING HARE — THE HUDSON BAY 

 JUMPING MOUSE — THE FAT DORMOUSE — THE COMMON DORMOUSE — THE POUCHED RATS — THE 

 BEAVERS — THE AMERICAN BEAVER — THE EUROPEAN BEAVER. 



THE family SpalacidvE or Mole Rats have a straggling distri- 

 bution over the continents of the Old World. They are mis- 

 shaped, subterranean rodents, with all the unpleasant character- 

 istics of the mole. They inhabit dry sandy plains, and make burrows 

 which run for long distances. They do not form societies, but live 

 solitary in their dens ; they avoid the light, and seldom come above- 

 ground ; they dig with great rapidity, often in a perpendicular direction. 

 The family comprises seven genera. 



GENUS SPALAX. 



The Mole Rat, Spalax typldus (Plate LIV), the only species, is 

 known also by its Russian name, Slapush. The head is pointed and 

 large, the neck short, immovable, and as thick as the tailless body ; the 

 legs are short, with large paws armed with strong claws. The eyes are 

 two small, round black specks, which lie under the fur-covered skin ; so 

 that even if they were susceptible to light, the brightest rays of the sun 

 could not reach them. The ears are very large, and the animal's powers 

 of hearing are very acute. The fur is thick, close, and smooth, but some 

 stiff bristles grow on the cheeks. The color is generally a yellowish- 

 brown, the chin and paws being, however, of a dirty-white hue. The 

 total length is about ten inches. 



The Mole Rat abounds in the country adjacent to the Don and the 

 V^olga, and is especially numerous in the Ukraine. It frequents culti- 

 vated and fertile districts, where countless heaps mark its subterranean 



