222 ADAPTATION OF MAMMALS 



legged rabbit it is an entirely different question : it can 

 run only a short distance and then dashes into its hole 

 — a long burrow. 



The rabbit, California ground squirrel, prairie dog, jer- 

 boa, weasel, the armadillo, and many others live a part 

 of the time under ground. Then we have another class, 

 as the California gopher, the mole, and some others, 

 which may be said to be entirely subterranean in their 

 habit. The CaHfornia gopher never leaves its home if 

 it can avoid it, and when dire necessity drives it out, it 

 leaves the hole but a few inches, then dashes back, tail 

 first, at the slightest alarm. It feeds on roots which it 

 hunts for under ground, or comes to the surface in tall 

 alfalfa or weeds. Its eyes have become small and its 

 sight is poor, but it is a very wide-awake fellow com- 

 pared to the mole, which rarely if ever comes out into 

 the broad sunlight of its own volition. 



Here we have an almost perfect adaptation to a sub- 

 terranean life. The fore paws are developed to an 

 enormous extent, and the mole is a digger capable of 

 progressing through the soil at a very rapid pace. Its 

 eyes, from long disuse, are mere beads, and doubtless of 

 no use, the animal's scent as well as hearing being marvel- 

 ously developed, enabling it to reach worms or grubs in 

 its travels beneath the surface. 



The mole is really a beautiful animal. Its fur is as fine 

 as the finest silk. Mark the difference between it and the 

 skin of those other diggers and subterranean dwellers, the 

 armadillos of South America. Here is an animal that 

 might well be called an underground turtle, as it has an 

 extraordinary armor that covers it. Its feet are provided 



