THE DUCK-MOLES. 



599 



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character; yet they use the same expression in 

 speaking of the scratches inflicted by the animal 

 with the hinder feet, and they are not at all afraid 

 of seizing a living Duck-mole. When the queer 

 creature runs aloni; the ground, it produces an im- 

 pression of something unnatural, and its strange 

 shape easily startles a timid person. Cats instantly 

 take flight at its appearance, and even Dogs, which 

 are not specially trained, stare at it, prick their ears 

 and bark, but are afraid to touch it, so strongly are 

 they impressed by the strange appearance and oddi- 

 ties of this animal." 



Bennett had many burrows explored and thus had 

 the advantage of observing several Duck-moles in 

 captivity. " I had one burrow dug up," says he, " in 

 spite of all dissuasions of a lazy native, who could 

 not understand why I wished for Duck-moles, since 

 I possessed an abundance of Cattle and Sheep. The 

 entrance of the burrow was large in proportion to 

 the width of the tunnel, for the latter became nar- 

 rower as we advanced, until it only permitted the 

 passage of the animal. We had followed it to a 

 depth of nine feet, when suddenly the head of a 

 Duck -mole appeared be- 

 low, just as if it had been ^ « 

 awaked from sleep and = . 

 had come to see what we 

 wished. It seemed to rec- 

 ognize the fact that our 

 noisy work was not con- 

 ducive to its welfare; for it 

 retreated quite hurriedly. 

 As it turned around it was 

 seized by the hind leg and 

 pulled out. It seemed to 

 be very uneasy and aston- 

 ished at this treatment. 

 We placed our prisoner, 

 which was a full-grown fe- 

 male, in a barrel full of 

 grass, river-mud, water, etc. 

 It scratched all around the 

 sides of the barrel trying 

 to escape from its prison; 

 but as it found all its labor 

 vain, it became quiet, 

 curled up and seemed to 

 sleep. During the night it 

 was very restless and again 

 scratched with its fore 

 paws, as if it were intent 

 on burrowing a tunnel. In 



the morning" I found it fast asleep, the tail turned in, 

 head and beak under its chest, the body curled up. 

 When I disturbed its slumber it growled, somewhat 

 like a Dog, only a little more gently and perhaps 

 more harmoniously. During the day it was usually 

 quiet, but during the night it renewed its attempts to 

 escape and growled continuously. All Europeans 

 of the neighborhood, who had often seen the dead 

 animal, were glad of the opportunity to observe a 

 living specimen, and I believe that this was the first 

 time a European had taken a living Duck-mole and 

 had examined its burrow. 



"When I left I put my 'Mallangong' into a little 

 box lined with grass, and took it with me. To afford 

 it some recreation I woke it after a short time, tied a 

 long string to one of its hind legs and set it ashore. 

 It soon found its way into the water and swam up 

 the stream, evidently most delighted with such 

 spots as were thickly covered with aquatic plants. 



After the animal had enough of diving, it crept 

 ashore, lay down on the grass and gave itself up to 

 the luxury of scratching and combing itself. 



"A few days later I allowed it to take another 

 bath in a clear river, in the water of which I could 

 see its movements distinctly. It quickly dived to 

 the bottom, stayed there for a little while and then 

 rose again. It roved along the bank, guided by the 

 sense of touch in its beak, which seemed to be very 

 frequently used, and also to be a very sensitive organ 

 of touch. Its appetite was probably quite well sat- 

 isfied, for whenever it withdrew its beak from the 

 mud, something eatable was undoubtedly in it, as its 

 jaws were then working laterally with a movement 

 peculiar to its method of chewing. Various insects, 

 which hovered closely about it, were unmolested by 

 it, either because it did not see them or because it 

 preferred the food which the mud afforded it. 

 After its repasts it would sometimes lie down on the 

 grassy bank, half out of the water, or it would bend 

 backward, combing and cleaning its fur. It re- 

 turned to its prison very unwillingly, and this time it 

 did not quiet down at all. During the succeeding 



DUCK-MOLE. Last among the known mammals is the strange and aptly named Duck-mole. It is web- 

 footed and lays eggs, like a Duck, and burrows in river banks like a Mole or a Beaver, but spends most of its 

 waking moments in the water searching for the aquatic insects and Mollusks which constitute its food. (Ornitho- 

 rkynchus anatinus.) 



night I heard it scratching in the box which stood in 

 my bed-room, and lo! the next morning the box was 

 empty. The Duck-mole had succeeded in detach- 

 ing a lath and had effected its escape. Thus all my 

 hopes of further observations were foiled." 

 Bennett's Account On another voyage Bennett succeed- 

 of Young Duck- ed in discovering a burrow contain- 

 moles. j n g three young ones, upon which 



the hair had already grown, and which he could ob- 

 serve for some time. "When we found the nest 

 with the young ones," says he, "and placed them on 

 the ground, they ran to and fro but did not make 

 such savage attempts to escape as did the old ones. 

 The natives, whose mouths watered at sight of these 

 fat young animals, said that they were about eight 

 months old, and added that the young Duck-moles 

 were fed milk by their mother only during their 

 early infancy and later were given insects, small 

 shells and mud. 



