Order CARNIVORA 87 



from such predatlon is less than is commonly supposed, it has 

 made these animals unpopular in some areas and among certain 

 groups of Illinois residents. Destruction of game bird eggs and 

 young by rodents is sometimes attributed to carnivores. 



KEY TO SPECIES 

 Whole Animals 



1. Hind foot and front foot each with 5 toes, all of them with 



claws ; plantigrade 2 



Hind foot with 4 toes, front foot with 5 toes, all of them 

 with claws; the "thumb" situated well above the level of 

 the other toes ; digitigrade 13 



2. Tail with rings of butt and black; face with black mask 



across forehead and eyes, fig. 62 raccoon, Procyon lotor 



Tail without rings ; face with no dark mask 3 



3. Toes fully webbed ; tail long and thickened at base 



river otter, Lutra canadensis 



Toes not fully webbed ; tail not thickened at base 4 



4. Forehead with a median white stripe or square patch 5 



Forehead with no median white marking 7 



5. Body black or black with conspicuous white markings; tail 



about 1 2 length of head+body 6 



Body brownish or yellowish gray; tail about a sixth of 

 length of head+body badger, Taxidea taxus 



6. Upper side of body with 2 pairs of broken white stripes. . . . 



spotted skunk, Spilogale putorius* 



Upper side of body with 1 pair of white stripes or with a 

 prominent white patch on nape and back of head, fig. 67 

 striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis 



7. Over-all length of animal more than 1,000 mm. (39 in.) ; 



tail very short; last molar larger than preceding tooth. . 



black bear, Ursiis americanusf 



Over-all length of animal less than 1,000 mm. ; tail at least 

 a sixth of length of head+body; last molar smaller than 

 preceding tooth 8 



8. Cheek teeth 5 above, 6 below on each side of jaws 9 



Cheek teeth 4 above, 5 below on each side of jaws 10 



9. Skull less than 90 mm. (31/^ in.) long 



pine marten, Martes americanaif 



Skull more than 90 mm. long fisher, Martes pennantif 



10. Under parts of animal brown except occasionally for small 

 light patches on throat and belly; over-all length of ani- 

 mal more than 410 mm. (16 in.) mink, Mustela vison 



Under parts of animal white or yellow; over-all length of 

 animal less than 410 mm 11 



*This species may occur in Illinois, but there are no official records of it. 

 fThis species is no longer found in Illinois. 



