THE ANIMATE ENEMIES OF THE FOREST. 73 



ous to be more than merely mentioned. The 

 following are among some of the more important : 



Domestic animals, which, when allowed to range 

 freely through the woods, often cause much 

 damage by gnawing at the bark of trees, or, in 

 some cases, by the destruction of the foliage. 



Among wild animals, the rodents effect the 

 greatest destruction by devouring the bark, and 

 often completely girdling the trees. Among the 

 worst of the rodents may be mentioned rabbits 

 and mice, which gnaw the bark, or gophers, which 

 eat the roots. Beavers, too, destroy forests, not 

 only by the actual cutting down of the trees, but 

 especially by building dams, and thus, by causing 

 the overflow of the intervale, destroying all its 

 growing timber. 



Goats and other animals live largely on the 

 bark of trees. In certain parts of the earth, such, 

 for example, as Assyria, Greece, Italy, Spain, and 

 Morocco, the extensive forests which once covered 

 them have been completely destroyed by the 

 ravages of goats. 



In general, insects damage trees by feeding on 

 the parts necessary for growth and reproduc- 

 tion. Some insects damage trees by boring the 

 trunks and branches in order to deposit their 



D 7 



