246 BULLETIN NO. VII. 



(jenus Erethizon F. CUVIER. 



This genus may be distinguished from other American por- 

 cupines at once by its having five toes armed with strong claws 

 behind. The body is thick and bulky, the limbs being short and 

 oddly shaped, adapted for climbing and hanging. The tail is 

 short and covered all over with spines and bristles. The ana- 

 tomical details are given beyond and it may be simply noticed 

 that the facial part of the skull is greatly elevated and the malars 

 are expanded anteriorly. The molars converge anteriorly; the 

 bullse are very large and inflated, the infraorbital foramina 

 are of great size. The palate is ridged and ends opposite the 

 third molar. Although there is but a single species, two 

 marked geographical varieties are known, the first of these, 

 the Canada porcupine, once ranged over all suitable woody 

 districts from the Atlantic westward to the Saskatchewan and 

 southward into Virginia. Northward it is restricted by food 

 supply rather than the rigors of the climate and seems to be 

 co-extensive in its range with the timber belt. Toward the 

 west it does not extend so far south as eastwardly and occurred 

 in Ohio, Northern Michigan and Wisconsin and Northern Min- 

 nesota. Although well protected from the attacks of wild 

 animals, the porcupine falls an easy victim to man and has 

 neither the skill nor means to evade him. Thus it is that the 

 species is rapidly becoming extinct in settled parts of the 

 country. The western variety extends from the Pacific to 

 meet the Canada porcupine and southward along the moun- 

 tains to the Mexican line. 



Erethizon dorsatus L. 



CANADA PORCUPINE. 



This animal seems to be less common within the limits of 

 our state than in portions of Wisconsin. Lumbermen of ex- 

 perience state that upon the Chippewa river it is a frequent and 

 annoying visitor to the lumber camps, where its swine-like 

 inquisitiveness leads it to break open and destroy provisions 

 which it can not eat. In Minnesota its distribution may 

 roughly correspond with that of the pine forests, yet nowhere 

 does it become more than locally frequent and, even where 

 measureably common, it is less frequently encountered than 



