196 FAMILY TALPIDjE; MOLE. 



by having the body covered with spines, instead of with hair ; 

 and by being for the most part capable of rolling the body 

 into a ball, so as to present nothing but spines on every side, 

 to their enemies. 4. The TUPAID.E, or Banxrings, which 

 live n trees, and climb them with the agility of a Monkey 

 or a Squirrel ; these are evidently allied to the insectivorous 

 Quadrumana. 



175. Of the TALPID^E we may take the common Talpa, or 

 Mole, of this country for an example. The general form and 



aspect of this ani- 

 mal are wellknown, 

 and the remarkable 

 conformation of its 

 anteriorextremities, 

 by which it is ena- 

 bled to dig its 

 extensive subter- 



98.-COMMON MOL. ranean excavations, 



has been already 



noticed ( 90). It here only remains, therefore, to describe certain 

 other peculiarities, in its structure and habits, which are of great 

 interest. The head is much prolonged, especially the muzzle, 

 which projects far beyond the jaws, and is very flexible, serving 

 to seize and convey food to the mouth ; it is furnished with a 

 little bone at its extremity, which renders it a very efficient 

 borer. The portion of the bones of the face appropriated to the 

 organ of smell is very large ; and that sense appears to be very 

 acute. On the other hand, there is scarcely any hollow for the 

 reception of the eyes ; which organs are but little developed, and 

 do not receive a true optic nerve. There is good reason to be- 

 lieve, however, that the common Mole possesses some degree of 

 sight ; although the Mole of Italy and Greece, which is a dif- 

 ferent species, is completely blind. The apparatus of hearing 

 is very highly developed ; so that, although there is no external 

 ear, the sense is probably very acute. Thus the deficiency of 

 sight, which could very seldom be of use to an animal that 

 rarely shows itself above the surface of the ground, is compen- 



