PORCUPINE 



behind, all with strong, curved claws; eais short; tibia and 

 fibula distinct; mammse four; molar crown pattern complex. 



Genus Erethizon 



Dentition: Incisors, {; Canines, ^; Premolars, {; Molars, f =20. 



Porcupine. — Erethizon dorsatum 



and related forms 

 Names.- — Porcupine; Hedgehog (a misnomer, for the true 

 Hedgehog is an insectivore) ; Quill-pig. Plates XXVII and 

 XXXV. 



Fig. 97. Porcupine 



General Description. — A large, clumsy rodent with long, 

 sharp spines in its pelage. Head proportionally small; 

 muzzle blunt; lips hairy; body thick and heavy; limbs rather 

 short; four claws on forefeet, five on hind feet; tail short, 

 thick, muscular; pelage composed of fairly long, soft, woolly 



465 



