THE RODENTS, OR GNAWING ANIMALS 



133 



Photo b) Siholaitlt Photo. Co.] [Pjnon'i Gri-.-si 



LONG-TAILED MARMn I 



Tie marmots live by preference on high and cold mountains just below the line 

 if eternal snow in Europe. In Asia, where the snow-line is higher, they are found 

 Jf altitudes of jj,ooo feet 



are quite large animals, some being 

 as large as a small cat. 



Mr. W. 1 1. Adams says of Pi l's 

 Flying-squirrel, a West African 

 species: •'These squirrels come out 

 (il their holes in the trees some hours 

 alter sunset, and return long before 

 daybreak. They are only visible Oil 



bright moonlight nights. 'The na- 

 tives say that they do not come out 

 id" their holes at all in stormy weather. 

 or on very dark nights; they live on 

 berries and fruits, being especially 

 fond of the palm-oil nut. which they 

 lake to their nests to peel and eat. 

 They pass from tree to tree with 

 great rapidity, usually choosing to 

 jump from a higher branch to a 

 lower one, and then climbing up 

 again to make a fresh start. . . . They litter about twice in a year, once in September. The 

 young remain in the nest for about nine weeks, during which they are fed by the old ones on 

 such food as shoots ami kernels. They do not attempt to jump or 'fly' till the end of that 

 period, extending the length of their jumps with their growth." 



The Ethiopian Spiny Squirrels have coarse spiny fur; the little Indian Palm-soi-irki l 

 is marked with longitudinal dark and light stripes on the back; others have light hands on 

 their flanks. 



The Alpine Marmot is a much larger species than the prairie-dog. It lives on the Alps 

 just below the line of perpetual snow. From five to fifteen marmots combine in colonies, di°- 

 very deep holes, and. like the prairie-dogs, carefully line them with grass ; they also store up dry 

 grass for food. In autumn they grow very fat, and are then dug out of the burrows by the 

 mountaineers for food. Young marmots used to be tamed and carried about by the Savoyard 

 boys, 1ml this practice is now rare. The monkey is probably more attractive to the public than 

 the fat and sleepy marmot. Marmots are about the size of a rabbit, and have close iron-grav fur. 

 Tschudi, the naturalist of the Alps, says of the marmots that they are the only mammal 

 which inhabits the region of the snows. No other warm-blooded quadrupeds live at such an 

 altitude. In spring, when the lower snows melt, there are generally small pieces of short turf 

 near their holes, as well as great rocks, precipices, and stones. Here they make their burrows, 

 outside which they feed, with a sentinel always posted to warn them of the approach of the ea<de 

 or lammergeir. The young marmots, from four to six in number, are born in June. When they 

 first appear at the mouth of the holes, they are bluish gray; later the fur gains a brownish tint. 

 The burrows are usually at a height of not less than 7.000 or 8,000 feet. Winter comes on 

 apace. By the end of autumn the ground is already covered with snow, and the marmots retire 

 to sleep through the long winter. As they do not become torpid for some time, they require 

 food when there is none accessible ; this they store up in the form of dried grass, which thev cut 

 in August, and leave outside their burrows for a time to be turned into hay. 



The Alpine Marmot is also found in the Carpathians and the Pyrenees. Another species, 



the Bobac. ranges eastward from the German frontier across Poland, Russia, and the steppes of 



\sia to Kamchatka. In Ladak and Western Tibet a short-tailed species, the Himalai \.\ 



Marmot, is found, sometimes living at a height of nearly 17.000 feet. The Golden Marmot 



is found in the Pamirs. 



