30 MOLES AND THEIR LIKE. 



coiiclis, and thus departing more widely from the mole type. 

 In the sandy soil of Egypt the mole-rat constructs tunnels 

 of great length in search of bulbs. In South Africa these 

 forms are replaced by the huge sand-mole (Bathyergus) , 

 which attains a length of about ten inches ; and also by 

 certain smaller animals known as Georychus and Myoscalops, 

 differing from the former by the absence of grooves in 

 their incisor teeth. The sand-mole is commonly met with 

 in the flats near the shore, while the smaller forms 

 generally frequent land at a higher elevation. Sometimes, 

 however, both are found together, and the country is then 

 covered in all directions with hillocks precisely resembling 

 those made by our English mole. Although the sand-mole 

 has uncovered eyes, these are not bigger than the heads 

 of large pins, and can have but little visual power. Still, 

 however, their presence serves to indicate that these 

 animals have not become so completely adapted to a 

 subterranean life as is the common mole, and this is 

 confirmed by the fact that if their barrows are opened, 

 the sand-moles after a few minutes usually protrude their 

 noses from the aperture with a view to discover the cause 

 of the disturbance, whereas an ordinary mole would under 

 similar circumstances remain below. 



All the foregoing belong to one family of rodents ; but 

 in addition to these certain members of the vole group 

 (a sub-division of iheMuridiv) have also taken to a subter- 

 ranean burrowing life, with the assumption of a mole-like 

 bodily form. These may be termed mole-voles, and range 

 from Russia to central and northern Asia, where they are 

 represented by the two genera Ellobius and Siphneus. They 

 all have mole-like heads and bodies, short limbs and tails, 

 rudimental external ears, very minute eyes, and powerful 

 fore-paws. In the Russian, mole-vole {Ellobius) and the 

 allied Quetta mole from Afghanistan the claws of the front 

 paws are short ; but, as shown in our figure, they become 

 greatly elongated in the members of the genus Siphneus. 

 All of them agree with the ordinary voles in the peculiar 

 structure of their molar teeth, which consist of a number 

 of triangular prisms placed edge to edge ; and all are 

 described as driving subterranean tunnels and throwing 



