26 THE ARCHITECTURE OP BIRDS. 



in form, with an opening at top capable of admitting 

 the finger; and the whole is so firmly compacted, 

 that it might, without injury, be rolled over the floor. 

 It is delightful, during the fine weather, to see these 

 lively little creatures sporting about the entrance of 

 their burrows, which are always kept in the neatest 

 repair, and are often inhabited by several individu- 

 als. When alarmed, they instantly take refuge in 

 their subterranean chambers ; or if the dreaded dan- 

 ger be not immediately impending, they stand near 

 the brink of the entrance, bravely barking and flour- 

 ishing their tails, or else sit erect to reconnoitre the 

 movements of the enemy. The mounds thrown up 

 by the marmot in the neighbourhood of the Rocky 

 Mountains have an appearance of greater antiquity 

 than those observed on the far-distant plains. They 

 sometimes extend to several yards in diameter, al- 

 though their elevation is trifling, and, except imme- 

 diately surrounding the entrance, are clothed with 

 a scanty herbage, which always distinguishes the 

 area of these villages. Sometimes several villages 

 have been observed almost entirely destitute of ve- 

 getation; and recollecting that the marmot feeds ex- 

 clusively on grasses and herbaceous plants, it seems 

 singular that this animal should always choose the 

 most barren spot for the place of his abode. How- 

 ever this may be accounted for, it at least affords an 

 opportunity of beholding the approach of his ene- 

 mies, and allows him to seek, within the bosom of 

 the earth, that security which he has neither strength 

 nor arms to command. 



"in all these prairie-dog villages, the burrowing 

 owl is seen moving briskly about, or else in small 

 flocks scattered among the mounds ; and, at a dis- 

 tance, it may be mistaken for the marmot itself when 

 sitting erect. They manifest but little timidity, and 

 allow themselves to be approached sufficiently close 

 for shooting ; but if alarmed, some or all of them 

 soar away, and settle down at a short distance. If 



