NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



ground at night to feed. They generally choose 

 an old hollow tree, Into which a great quantity of 

 dry grass is packed, sometimes as much as 20 feet 

 from the ground. By setting fire to the nest they 

 are easily smoked out, but not so easily caught, as 

 they are very expert climbers, and jump from the 

 ends of a bough into a bush and so to the ground 

 and escape in the grass." 



DARLING'S RAT 



(Rattus chrysophilus) 



Darling's Rat is an inhabitant of the northern 

 parts of South Africa occurring in the Transvaal 

 and Rhodesia. Beyond the Zambesi it ranges to 

 Nyassaland. This Rat is known to the Mashonas 

 as the "Mache." 



Darling's Rat attains a length of about 6 inches ; 

 the tail is longer than the head and body. Bright 

 reddish-fawn on the back, the fur being intermixed 

 with black hairs ; sides lighter ; under parts white, 

 the fur slaty at the base. This serves at once to 

 distinguish it from the Black-tailed Rat, for the fur 

 on the under parts of the latter is white from base 

 to tip. 



There are two sub-species or local races of 

 Darling's Rat, viz. : 



Rattus chrysophilus ineptus. 

 ,, ,, acticola. 



122 



