5 I 8 AMERICAN MOLES 



Their principal food consists of earthworms, and it may not be 

 out of place to quote Topsell's quaint account of their pursuit of 

 tlie annelids : " When the wormes are followed by molds (for by 

 digging and heaving they foreknow their owne perdition) they 

 fly to the superficies and very toppe of the earth, the silly beast 

 knowing that the molde, their adversary, dare not followe them 

 into the light, so that their wit in flying their enemy is greater 

 than in turning againe when they are troade upon." It has 

 lately been said ^ that Moles store up earthworms for consump- 

 tion during the winter, biting off their heads to prevent tlieir 

 crawling away. 



Scalops, an American genus, is a Mole-like creature of largely 

 aquatic habits, as its webbed hind-feet show ; it has a short, naked 

 tail. Apparently, like the Shrews, it has no lower canines. 



Condylura, another American genus, is called the Star-nosed 

 Mole on account of a curious radiating structure at the end of 

 the snout. 



'3fi/LH/ale, the Desman, is still more aquatic in habit, and 

 connects the Moles with the Shrews, though, as in many of the 

 former, it has low^er canines. It has webbed hind-feet and a long- 

 tail. One species occurs in the Pyrenees, the other in Eussia. A 

 few other genera {Urotriehiis, Urupsilus, ^^captonyx, Dymecodon, 

 Scapasius, Perascalops) belong to the same family. 



Fam. 9, Soricidae. — The true Shrews have a much wider 

 range- than otlier fandlies of tlie present order. In the I'alaearctic 

 region are found Sorex, Crossojms, Crocidura, Nectogalc, Cldmar- 

 rogale. The first is also Nearctic, and reaches Central America. 

 In the Ethiopian region is the single peculiar genus Myosorex, but 

 Crocidura occurs there also. Blarina and Notiosorex are " Sonoran" 

 in range ; Soriculus Oriental. Crocidura, Anurosorex, and Cliimar- 

 rogale also enter this region. Sorex has teeth tipped with reddish 

 colour, its dental formula being, according to Mr. Woodward's 



recent researches, 1-2-^^5 ^h Tm ^ M i| = 32 or 34. 



As compared with other Insectivores, therefore, tlie most 

 remarkal)le fact found tlirougliout tlie family is tlie absence of the 

 lower canines. In addition to this the genus may l)e known — 

 the family indeed — by the large size of tlie first pair of incisors. 

 In tlie above formula it is possible, thinks Mr. Woodward, that 

 there may be errors ; he is not certain whether tlie supposed 



' Ritseiiia Bos, Biol. Centralbl. xviii. 1898, p. 63. 



