THE GOPHER. .-,,, :; 



Thri.iii.-h.. ut their length. The fore-feet are furnished with lom; and powerful claws, that of 

 the second toe being the largeMt. The eyes are excwdin-u -in:ill. the external ears are 



\v;inti!i_-. and tin- tail is extremeh >h..rt. 



-i Kat is an inhabiiant of the t ape of Oood Hope and the OOfUte of 8outli.ni 

 Africa, where it is found in toleraMe profusion, and dii\i-s such multitudes of shallow tunnels 

 that the ground which it frequents is nith.-i dangerous for horsemen, and not at all pl.-as.mi 

 .- \.-ii t.i a ma n "ii f""t. 'I'll'- I'll i i,m - a:.- mad.' a i s. , -Ii.,i! u distance from ' mfMi 'li.it 'I,. 

 earth _i\.-s ua> under tin- ireud of any moderately heavy iinimul. Mr. Hurchell, the well- 

 known African tnn.-ller. narrates that in traversing tin- great sand Hats of Southern Afhia. 

 li.- was ,,ft. !! endangered l\ his feet sinking into the burrows of the Coast Kat, which had 

 undermined tin- light soil in every direction. The animal is rather slow of foot upon the sur 

 face of the ground. Imt drives its subterranean tunnels with marvellous rapidity, throwing up 

 little sandy hillocks at intervals, like those of the common mole. On account of this |.ro|.en 

 sit \ it has received the name of Zand Moll, or Sand Mole, from the Dutch Boer* who inhabit 



III.- ( :i|- 



The color of the Sand Mole is a uniformly light grayish -brown, rather variable in tinting. 

 As it is \,-r\ s,,ft and full in texture, and can I*- obtained in great quantities, it might be profit - 

 atil\ regular article of inide. The Sand Mole is as large as our ordiiuiry wild ral>bit, 



being alxtut tifte-n inch..- in total length, the tail measuring about three inches. 



TIIKKK has been much confusion between the two Geomyd animals, which have been by 

 several authors considered to be identical with each other. They are, however, to be easily 



distinguished from each other by the deep longitudinal grooves which run along the up|-r 

 incisors ,,f t he present animal, and the smooth or slightly grooved incisors of the succeeding 



The FUR COUNTRY POUCHED H \ i is a native of Canada, and is remarkable for the enor- 

 mous size of the cheek-pouches. The color of this animal's fur is generally of a pale gray 

 washed with yellow, fading into a slaty-blue towards the base of each hair. The interior of 

 the pouches, the abdomen, and the tail, are covered with white hair, that which lines the 

 pouches l*ing very short and tine. A dusky spot is observable behind each ear. the teeth an- 

 yellow and the claws white. The central claw of the fore-feet is almost deserving of the Title 

 of talon, as it is powerfully made and nearly half an inch in length. The total length of this 

 animal is nearly ten inches, the tail measuring about two inches in length. 



It is rather gregarious in its habits, associating together in moderately large bands, and 

 undermining the ground in all directions. It is a vegetable feeder, pn-f. n in_ r The l>ull>on.s 

 roots of the quamash, or camas (Scilla w//AW//>, to any other diet, and is therefore called by 

 some writers, the Camas Kat. This title is, however, given to several allied animals. It aU,, 

 feeds on nuts, roots, grain, and seeds of various kinds. The burrow of this animal is not very 

 deep, hut runs for a considerable distance in a horizontal direction, and along its course occa- 

 sional hillocks are thrown up, by means of which it may l>e traced from the surface. 



Family Saccomyida includes a group of curiously formed animals, having pouches on the 

 exterior surface of The cheeks, which are lined with a furry integument, and OJH-II outside the 

 mouth. Under the common name Pocket Mouse, seven sj>ecies are known, mostly inhabiting 

 the Pacific slope, the great plains near- the Rocky Mountains, and Mexico. 



Two other allied animals are known ; one called the Kangaroo Hat i IHitofl<tmy phiUiptf) 

 has \,-r\ ]"H_' I.-L.-S. ],,ii- t:iil. and a sK-nd.-r. small 1>...|\. \\- /,.>',;/./' i- th.- I'a.-jii.- s|,,p,. \ n 

 allied species called Ord's Pocket Rat, inhabits the Rocky Mountains and southward to 

 M \ i 



Genus Thomomys includes four species, called Pocket Gophers ; each named according to 

 its place of abode, extending from the Pacific coast to the Rocky Mountains, and southward 

 to Mexico and California. 



Family Geomyida, Earth Rats literally, are distinguished by having extremely large fore- 

 feet and claws. The term Gopher (often appropriated for other animals) is the common name 

 of these creatures. 



