226 



A COURSE ON ZOOLOGY. 



than a mouse. It lives in the fields, where in its burrows 

 it lays up prodigious stores of nuts and grain ; a single 

 individual will sometimes collect more than a bushel. 



FIG. 155 



BEAVERS AND BEAVER-LODGE. 



The dwarf field-rat makes its home in the stubble-fields, 

 and cuts off the stalks in order to obtain the spikes. 



Mice originated in Europe, whence they have been 

 distributed by ships to all parts of the world. They 

 prefer the interior of dwellings, in which their omniv- 

 orous appetite and their odor render them a nuisance. 



The dormouse is analogous to both the rat and the 

 squirrel. It lives on trees, and often does much injury 

 in orchards by its propensity for fruit-eating. 



The following species have short tails, and are called 

 voles : The field- or meadow-mice, a number of species, 

 all more or less destructive to agriculture. The common 



