MAMMALIA CARNIVORA DIAGRAM 3. 37 



The pole-cat emits a very offensive odour: it hides itself in 

 winter in barns and granaries ; and in summer it is found in 

 hollow trees and rabbit-warrens. It is a very mischievous 

 animal; it kills rabbits, and sometimes poultry. It darts on 

 hares like an arrow, clinging to their neck, and never loosening 

 its hold, in spite of their flight. 



The ferret has long been domesticated in Africa, from whence 

 many are brought. It is a domestic animal like the dog, but be- 

 longs to the weasel family. It sleeps almost constantly, and 

 only rouses itself to eat. It is the most terrible enemy to rab- 

 bits ; it darts into their burrows and drives them out ; but for 

 this purpose it must be muzzled, for otherwise it would strangle 

 them, suck their blood, and then fall asleep in their burrow. 



The weasel is the smallest of this family, but not the least 

 voracious. It is scarcely larger than a rat, its fur is nut-brown 

 and the belly white. It also hides in out-houses in winter, and 

 in summer it lives in woods, and chases birds on the bushes. It 

 attacks young chickens, but fowls are too large for it. Sparrows 

 are sometimes seen to assemble in troops, and drive away a 

 weasel by flying and chirping round it. On the other hand, the 

 weasel destroys rats and mice, so that while it is disliked in 

 poultry-yards, it is liked in granaries, as its small size allows it 

 to chase the rats in their holes. 



The ermine is a little larger 

 than the weasel, and much re- 

 sembles it : it lives in northern 

 countries. The ermine is red- 

 dish brown in summer, and is 

 Ermine. then called the stoat, but becomes 



quite white in winter, when it is hunted to obtain the fur called 

 ermine. As the animal is very small, great numbers of skins 

 are required to make a single mantle. For this purpose the 

 ends of the tail of the animal, which remain black at all seasons, 

 are generally used. 

 The pine-marten, and the beech-marten are great destroyers of 



