INSECTIVORA. 25 



on fruit, and are the only Insectivores which habitually seek their [Case 27.] 

 food by day. There are about twelve brightly-coloured, bushy- 

 tailed species belonging to the family. 



The Elephant- Shrews (Macroscelididae) are long-nosed and long- 

 legged little animals, natives of Africa, which use their long hind 

 legs for leaping about over the sand 5 like kangaroos or jerboas, 

 seldom putting their fore feet to the ground. This modification 

 for leaping is very common in animals living in tracts of desert 

 country, as it facilitates progress over deep loose sand. 



The Erinaceidte contain three genera Erinaceus, the Hedge- 

 hogs, of which there are nineteen species, all extremely similar to 

 our English Hedgehog, both in appearance and habits, and distri- 

 buted over Europe, Africa, and Asia ; Gymnura, a long-tailed 

 animal, closely related to the Hedgehogs, but looking externally 

 much more like a large rat ; and Hylomys, also rat-like, but with 

 a very short tail ; the two latter are natives of Malacca, Sumatra, 

 and Borneo. 



Of the Mole family (Talpidae) there are two well-marked groups : 

 (1) The long-tailed Myogale, one species of which lives in the 

 neighbourhood of the Caspian Sea, and the second in the Pyre- 

 nees. They are entirely aquatic in their habits, living on water- 

 insects and crustaceans, which they obtain by the help of their 

 long and peculiarly formed snouts. Their feet are edged with stiff 



A 



A, Fore foot of Mole (Talpa). B, Fore foot of the Golden Mole 



( Chrysochloris). 



The digits are distinguished by numerals, the fifth being absent in 

 ChrysoMoris. 



bristles to assist them in ' swimming, and> for the same purpose, 

 their powerful tail is flattened from side to side. (2) The group 

 of true Moles (Talpidce), which comprises a considerable number 



