218 FAMILY MUSTELINE; BADGER. OTTER. 



consists of roots, earth-nuts, fruits, and eggs, as well as of small 

 mammals ; and it is said also to attack the nests of the wild-bee, 

 plundering the store of honey, and also devouring the larvee, 

 without dread of the stings of the enraged insects, which cannot 

 penetrate its tough skin. Its favourite haunts are obscure and 

 gloomy ; it retires to the deepest recesses of woods, or to thick 

 coppices on the side of hills ; and there, with its long and power- 

 ful claws, it digs for itself a deep and well-formed domicile, 

 consisting of several chambers, the inner one of which is of a cir- 

 cular form, and is comfortably lined with grass and hay. Here the 

 animal spends the day in repose, moving out only at night in 

 search of food. The Badger possesses great muscular power, 

 especially in the jaws ; and the firmness of the grasp which it 

 can take with its teeth is increased by a peculiar conformation 

 of the joint, the condyle, or articulating head of the lower jaw 

 being received deeply into the glenoid cavity, (ANIM. PHYSIOL., 

 623), which bends over it before and behind, so as to retain it 

 in its place, even when all the muscles and ligaments have been 

 removed. It may be easily tamed, if taken young ; and shows 

 great attachment to Man. The common species is still found in 

 some parts of England and Scotland,. and in almost every other 

 country in Europe, though it is nowhere very abundant ; it also 

 extends over Middle Asia, and is said to be very common in 

 China, where it is used as food. There is a distinct species in 

 India, and another in North America ; but their habits seem to 

 bear a close resemblance to those of the one best known. 



1 94. A still more aberrant form of the Weasel tribe, is the 

 Otter ', an aquatic animal, which conducts us, in its general con- 

 formation and habits, towards the Seals. Many of the true 

 Weasels resort occasionally to the water in quest of food ; and in 

 those species, the form of the body approaches that of the Otter. 

 In their dentition, the Otters differ but little from the Polecats, 

 Martens, and Skunks ; the false molars being ~, the carnivor- 

 ous teeth j~, and the tuberculated molars ~. The body is 

 elongated and flattened in its form ; the limbs short and stout ; 

 the toes (five on each foot) are webbed and spreading ; the soles 

 are naked. The tail is long, stout and muscular at its base, 



