276 HANDBOOK OF NATURE STUDY 



A farmer who lives near a small stream and a few acres of 

 timber or brush is likely to have a large number of chickens 

 killed by this marauder, which will make its home in the 

 crevices of rocks or under stone and wood piles, from where 

 it makes regular excursions to its hunting-ground, the farm- 

 yard and outbuildings. Minks are, however, not as bad as 

 weasels, for the latter often kill ten times as many chickens 

 as they can eat. In the woods minks live on eggs, birds, 

 rabbits, mice, and other small animals; and as they are 

 good swimmers, they also catch fish. 



The mink is one of our fur-bearing animals ; it is found 

 over the whole of North America, and thousands of skins 

 are annually used in this country and in Europe. 



It belongs to the Weasel family ; its near relatives, the 

 Pine Marten, the Weasels, and the European Ermine, all 

 have long, slim bodies and emit an unpleasant odor. 



67. The Red Fox. 



MATERIAL : Mounted specimen ; skin, picture, skull. 



This fox inhabits the whole of North America as far 

 south as Texas. The Cross Fox and the Black Fox are 

 considered as varieties of the Red Fox. 



Every boy who has ever seen a fox will tell you that he 

 looks like a rather small dog with a bushy tail. The gen- 

 eral color of this fox is a reddish-gray, the feet and ears are 

 black, the tail is tipped with white, and there is a narrow 

 line of dull white on the belly. The whole length of the 

 animal is about forty-five inches; the tail alone measures 

 about fifteen inches. 



Habits and food. This species, like all foxes, digs holes 

 in which its young are reared and to which they occasion- 

 ally retreat when hard pressed by pursuing men or dogs. 



Observations. It you cannot see the animals themselves, learn to dis- 

 tinguish them on pictures, or examine mounted specimens. 



