182 



MUSEUM OF ANIMATED NATURE. 



[Armadillos. 



familiar even with strangers ; when running about 

 their enclosure, durins warm or sunny weather, they 

 turn up the turf rapidly with their noses apparently 

 in search of worms or insects ; bread and milk is the 

 diet on which thcvare fed : their actions are prompt 

 and rapid. The' Poyou measures about sixteen 

 inches in the leniflh of the head and body ; the tail 

 is about six or seven inches lonjr. 



Another example of this section is the Pichiy, or 

 Pichy {Dasypus minutus). It is extremely abundant 

 on the arid plains near the Sierra Ventana,and like- 

 wise in the neighbourhood of the Rio Negro. " At 

 Bahia HIanca," says Mr. Darwin, " I found in the 

 stomach of this Armadillo, coleoptera. iarvie, roots 

 of plants, and even a small snake of the genus 

 AmphisbiEna. 



"The Pichy prefers a dry soil ; and the sand- 

 dunes near the coast, where for many months it can 

 never taste water, are its favourite resort. In the 

 course of a day's ride near Bahia Blanca several 

 were generally met with. The instant one was 

 observed, it was necessary, in order to catch it, 

 almost to tumble off one's horse; for if the soil was 

 soft, the animal burrowed so quickly, that its hinder 

 quarters almost disappeared before one could alight. 

 The Pichy likewise often tries to escape notice by 

 squatting close to the ground. It appears almost a 

 pity to kilt such nice little animals; for, as a Gaucho 

 said while sharpening his knife on the back of one 

 * Son tan mansos' (They are so quiet)." 



The Pichiy measures only ten inches In the length 

 of the head and body, and about four inches in that 

 of the tail. It is diurnal in its habits. 



793.— The Tatouay 



(Dasypus Tatouay, Desm.). This species is an ex- 

 ample for Ciivier's section Cabassous. The Tatouay, 

 or Wounded Armadillo, is so called by the Indians 

 in allusion to its tail, which is naked, or as it were 

 rudely deprived of the crust or bony tube which 

 covers this organ in all the other species. The 

 whole length of the tatouay, as given by Azara, 

 is twenty-six inches and a half, including the tail, 

 which is seven inches and a half, round, pointed, 

 and naked, with the exception of a few round scales 

 or crusts on the under surface of the third nearest 

 to the extremity, which frequently trails along the 

 ground when the animal walks : the rest is covered 

 with soft brown fur, interspersed with a few stiff 

 short hairs on the superior surface. The head is 

 longer, narrower, and more attenuated than that of 

 the poyou, though considerably less so than in the 

 peba and mule armadillo ; the ears are unusually 

 large, being nearly two inches long, and in figure 

 forming a segment of a circle ; the body is round ; 

 the claws of the fore-l'eet, particularly that of the 

 middle toe, are excessively large. The bucklers of 

 the croup and shoulders are composed of ten and 

 seven rows of scales respectively, each scale forming 

 an oblong rectangle ; the moveable bands are thirteen 

 in number, composed of scales much smaller than 

 those of the bucklers, and of a nearly square figure. 

 The habits of this species are altogether unknown. 

 It inhabits Guiana and Brazil, and is rarely found 

 so far south as Paraguay. 



794. The Great Armadillo 



(Dasypus Gigas). This Armadillo is an example 

 of Cuvier's group Priodontes. The Great Arma- 

 dillo measures nearly three feet three inches in 

 length, from the nose to the origin of the tail ; the 

 head is seven inches and a half long, the ears an 

 inch and three-quarters, and the tail one foot five 

 inches. Its superior size is alone sufficient to dis- 

 tinguish this species from all the other known arma- 

 dillos, but it possesses numerous other characters 

 not less remarkable. Its head is proportionately 

 smaller than in the other species, the forehead is 

 more protuberant, and the face, from the eyes down- 

 wards, assumes a tubular cylindrical form, like that 

 of the peba; the ears are of a moderate size, 



Cointed and habitually crouched backwards ; the 

 ucklers of the shoulders and croup are composed of 

 nine «nd eighteen rows of plates respectively, and 

 separated by moveable bands to the number of 

 twelve or thirteen, formed of rectangular scales, 

 about half an inch square. The tail is thick at the 

 root, being upwards often inches in circumference: 

 it is gradually attenuated towards the tip, covered 

 with plates disposed in rings at the base, and form- 

 ing spiral or crescent-shaped lines throughout the 

 rest of its length. The claws are large and power- 

 ful, but in their relative form and dimensions 

 differ little from those of the tatouay already de- 

 scribed. 



This species inhabits Brazil and the northern parts 

 of Paraguay. It is never found in the open country, 

 but keeps close to the great forests, and burrows 

 with surprising facility. Those who are employed in 

 collecting the Jesuits' bark frequently meet with it 

 in the woods, and report that when any of their 

 companions happen to die at a distance from the 

 settlements, they are obliged to surround the body 



with a double row of stout planks, to prevent it 

 from being scratched up and devoured by the Great 

 Armadillo. 



Gemu Chlamypltorus : 



795, 796. — The Pichiciauo 

 (CMamyphorus truncatus). This extraordinary 

 little creature, though scarcely six inches in length, 

 is formed on the plan of the utmost strength and 

 solidity, being destined for burrowing habits. It isa 

 native of Chili, where, like a mole, it works out galle- 

 ries in the rich soil of the valleys, living for the most 

 part underground in quiet seclusion. So rare is 

 this animal, that it is regarded by the natives as a 

 curiosity. Its food, so far as we are assured by its 

 ! dentition and the imperfect accounts collected, con- 

 sists of insects and larvae : night probably is the sea- 

 son of its activity, and of its unfrequent visits to the 

 "upper world." 



The appearance of the pichiciago reminds lis of 

 the armadillos, for it is covered above by a shell, 

 not however of very hard consistence, nor very thick, 

 but of a texture between horn and leather. This 

 shield-like plate commences on the head and ex- 

 tends over the back and haunches, over which 

 latter it dips down quite abruptly and perpendicu- 

 larly, so as to make it seem as if the bo<iy was cut 

 off abruptly at its hinder part. It is divided by 

 intersecting furrows into a series of bands or strips, 

 each strip being itself made up of fifteen or twenty 

 plates of a square form, except on the head, which 

 IS covered with a single plate composed of a mosaic- 

 work of rounded and irregular portions, and the 

 perpendicular haunch-plate, which is also tessellated 

 (Fig. 797). This horny covering or shield is not 

 fixed by the whole of its inferior surface to the 

 integuments beneath, as is the case with the arraa- ! 

 dillo ; but merely rests on the back, free throughout, 

 " excepting along the spine of the back and top of 

 the head; being attached to the back, immediately 

 above the spine, by a loose cuticular production, 

 and by two remarkable bony processes on the top 

 of the OS frontis (bone of forehead), by means of 

 two large plates which are nearly incorporated with 

 the bone beneath ; but for this attachment, and the 

 tail being firmly curved beneath the belly, the 

 covering would be very easily detached." The ex- 

 tremity of the tail is formed like a paddle. " The 

 whole surface of the body and under-side of the 

 shield are covered with fine silk-like hair (of a 

 delicate straw colour), longer and finer than that 

 of the mole, but not so thick. The anterior of the 

 chest is large, full, and strong : the anterior extre- 

 mities short, clumsy, and powerful." The hand, 

 which is amazingly thick and compact, is furnished 

 with five powerful but compressed nails, which 

 arranged together in their natural situation, consti- 

 tute one of the most efficient scrapers or shovels 

 which can be possibly imagined ; and expressly 

 adapted for progression underground, but in an 

 equal ratio ill-fitted for celerity on the surface. 

 The hind-legs are comparatively weak, the feet 

 being long and plantigrade, the toes being furnished 

 with small flattened nails. Sight is but a secondary 

 sense as regards its importance in the economy of 

 an animal living in darkness beneath the ground. 

 The organs of vision, therefore, are very minute, 

 and buried in the silky fur by which the circular 

 orifices of the ears are completely concealed. The 

 head is almost conical in figure, going off from a 

 broad base to a pointed muzzle furnished with an 

 enlarged cartilage, somewhat as in the hog, and 

 doubtless for the purpose of grubbing and burrowing 

 for food. 



In accordance with the details of external confi- 

 guration, the skeleton is equally indicative of the 

 animal's habits. The skull is firm, and prevented 

 from being pressed upon by the shield which rests 

 on the two projections. The bones of the fore-limbs 

 are short, thick, and angular; the scapulae broad 

 and strong: the ribs thick, and capable of re- || 

 sisting great pressure. The hip-bones are of ! 

 singular construction, and admirably formed for 

 protecting the internal organs from injury. Such i 

 IS an outline of the structure and habits of the 

 chlamyphorus, an animal which, though bearing in 

 some points a resemblance to the armadillos, yet 

 possesses characters so exclusively its own as to ' 

 render it one of the most interesting discoveries in i 

 zoology. Of this rare animal two specimens alone i 

 exist, one in the Museum of Philadelphia, the 

 other, with its skeleton, in the Museum of the Zoo- 

 logical Society, London. 



For an account of the structure of this animal, 

 see Mr. Yarrell's paper in the 'Zoological Journal.' 

 Fig. 798 represents a lateral view of the skqll of the 

 pichiciago ; Fig. 799, an upper view ; Fig. 8<X), 

 a basal view of the same ; Fig. 801, lower jaw ; Fig. 

 802, the cervical vertebra;, and first bone of the 

 sternum, with parts of the first and second ribs seen 

 from below. Fig. 802*, the skeleton; Fig. 803, 

 pelvis seen from behind; Fig. 804, same seen from 

 below ; Fig. 805, vertebrse of tail. 



Geuui Orycteropus:— 



80C. — ^The Aard-vase 



(Orycleropus Capensii). This animal, known to the 

 colonists of the Cape of Good Hope by the name 

 ofaard-vark, or earth-hog, is the sole example, as 

 far as ascertained, of the genus Orycteropus. The 

 aard-vark is essentially burrowing in its habits, and 

 insectivorous in its diet. Its proportions are thick 

 and strong, though the general contour is elongated 

 and the limbs short. It is neither protected by 

 plates nor scales, but the skin is thick, tough, and 

 coarse, and covered with stiff hair, resembling bris- 

 tles in quality, and somewhat scantily disposed, 

 especially on the head. The muzzle is elongated, 

 narrow, and hog-like at its apex ; the mouth small, 

 and the tongue extensible ; the eyes are rather 

 small ; the ears large, long, and pointed ; the tail 

 tapering from a very stout base; the limbs are 

 short, thick, and very muscular ; the fore-feet have 

 lour stout toes armed with large solid nails, re- 

 sembling hoofs in appearance, and admirably 

 adapted as scrapers of the dry hard ground of an 

 Afiican desert. The hind-feet are long and planti- 

 grade, having five toes armed with nails of the 

 same character as those of the fore-feet. 



The teeth consi:>t of seven molars on each side 

 above, of which the first is minute and distinct from 

 the rest, and six on each side below. Fig. 807 gives 

 the teeth of the upper jaw in two views ; Fig. 808, 

 those of the lower jaw; Fig. 80J, the teeth of both 

 jaws together. 



The aard-vark attains to a considerable size, mea- 

 suring, when fully grown, upwards of five feet in 

 total length, of which the tail is one foot eight or nine 

 inches. Its food consists exclusively of ants, which 

 it takes by means of its long glutinous tongue, after 

 effecting a breach in the dome-like houses of solid 

 indurated mud-work which those insects construct, 

 and which are very abundant in certain districts. 

 These hillocks are from two to three feet high, and 

 their structure is irregularly cellular, not unlike 

 volcanic honeycomb stone, exhibiting a maze of 

 passages opening into each other. In demolishing 

 these buildings for the sake of their multitudinous 

 inmates, which are devoured by wholesale, the aard- 

 vark employs the active portion of its existence. 

 The dwelling of the aard-vark itself is at a~burrowat 

 a little distance beneath the surface of the ground, 

 out of which it comes forth only during the night, 

 for in its habits it is entirely nocturnal ; hence 

 during the day it is seldom seen, but may be ob- 

 served as the dusk approaches creeping from its 

 hole intent upon its prey. These burrows, where 

 numerous (as they are in some districts, where also 

 innumerable ant-hills cover the plain), are dan- 

 gerous to waggons travelling over the country ; and 

 cattle and horses occasionally break through the 

 surface of the ground into them, and thus suddenly 

 stumble or fall. They are often very extensive, and 

 it is incredible with what despatch the animal 

 makes them, and with what rapidity it mines on- 

 wards when endeavouring to elude the search of 

 persons attempting to dig it out of its retreat : hence 

 it is not captured without difficulty. The flesh of 

 the aard-vark, and especially the hind quarters when 

 made into hams, are accounted excellent. 



The aard-vark is a connecting link between the 

 armadillos and the next section. 



Family Toothless Akt-katers : — 



Genus Myrmecopliaga. — The genus Myrmeco- 

 phaga, as established by Linnaeus and retained by 

 Desmarest and others, is not strictly natural. Per- 

 haps we should hardly be justified in separatinz the 

 Tamandua from the Tamanoir (Great Ant-bear, or 

 Ant-eater) ; but with respect to the little two-clawed 

 ant-eater it certainly forms the type of a distinct 

 genus. 



810.— The Great Ant-eater, or Ant-bear 



(Myrmecophagajubata). The Tamanoir of Buffon. 

 This species, a native of Guiana, Brazil, and Para- 

 guay, IS characterized by the total absence of teeth, 

 a narrow head with an extremely slender elongated 

 snout, contrasting strangely with the clumsy mas- 

 sive contour of the limbs and body. The mouth is 

 a small slit at the extremity of the snout ; the eyes 

 are small, and the tongue long, cylindrical, and pro- 

 tractile, constituting an organ for obtaining insect 

 food, and is lubricated by a gummy saliva; the 

 limbs are short, but of great thickness, furnished 

 with huge hook-like claws well adapted for making 

 forcible entrance into the solid dwellings of the 

 Termite ants. The claws of the fore-feet aie four 

 in number, the inner one being the smallest ; of the 

 hind feet, five. Those of the fore-feet, in a state 

 of repose or when the animal is walking, are doubled 

 inwards on a rough callous pad, and the outer por- 

 tion only of the fore-feet is applied to the ground. 

 The claws of the hind-feet are snort, and the sole is 

 a naked protuberant pad. The ears are short and 

 round ; the tail is of great thickness at the base, 



