THE COAST RAT. 



97 



are excessively voracious, and they are very destructive 

 to beets, carrots, and similar vegetables. They live 

 almost exclusively under g:round, working their way 

 like a mole, and are said to fill their cheek-pouches with 

 the earth by means of their paws, and to empty them 

 of their contents at the mouth of the burrow. 



58.— Teeth of Coast Rat. 



The Coast-Rat {Bathiergus maritimus). 



The dental form of Bathiergus (Ori/cterus,'F. Cuv.) 



4—4 

 is as follows : Molars (see Fig. 58). In this genus 



