SCIURID.*:. MAMMALIA. MYOXID.E. 



133 



Limitation of space prevents our giving full details 

 of the Marmots. Those of our readers, therefore, who 

 desire further information on this head should consult 

 Sir John Richardson's "Fauna Boreali Americana," 

 where they will find a detailed account of the following 

 species of American marmots, unavoidably omitted 

 in this work: The American Souslik (Spermophilus 

 guttcitiis) ; the Tawny Marmot (Arctomys Richard- 

 sonii) ; the Leopard Marmot (A . Hoodii) ; Say's Mar- 

 mot (A. lateralis) ; Douglas's Marmot (A. Douglasii) ; 

 Beechey's Marmot (A . Beecheyi) ; Franklin's Marmot 

 (A. Franlclinii} ; Parry's Marmot (A. Parryi). 



In regard to the Squirrels possessing flying mem- 

 branes, we can only offer the following particulars : 



THE EUROPEAN FLYING SQUIRREL (Sciuropterus 

 volans) is only found in the north-eastern parts of our 

 continent, being more abundant in the forests and wild 

 wastes of Siberia. Its habits are similar to those of the 

 common squirrel, feeding, as it does, on the buds of 

 beech-trees and on the seeds contained in fir-cones. 

 During its flying leaps so much increased in power by 

 membranous expansions of the skin between the fore 

 and hind limbs the tail is stretched out to aid in 

 steering the body. In a state of repose, this organ is, 

 as usual, gracefully curved over the back. 



NIETJHOFFS FLYING SQUIRREL (Sciuropterus 

 sagitta}. This very rare animal concerning the spe- 

 cific distinctness of which there can be no reasonable 

 doubt has been carefully described by Pennant. It 

 is a native of Java and other Indian islands, and mea- 

 sures eighteen inches in length, exclusive of the tail, 

 which would give us other fifteen inches. The fur is 

 of a bright bay colour, inclining to orange. During its 

 flying leaps, it is said to employ the tail as a prehensile 

 organ. 



THE KECHUBU (Sciuroplerus genibarbis) is another 

 form of Javanese flying squirrel, measuring, with the 

 tail, about fourteen inches. According to Horsfield it is 

 comparatively rare, and infests the forests of Pugar, one 

 of the most sequestered districts of the eastern portion 

 of Java. Its habits are nocturnal. Xhe fur has a 

 tawny-grey colour generally, the inferior parts being 

 lighter ; the texture of the hair is particularly soft and 

 downy. 



HORSFIELD'S FLYING SQUIRREL (Sciuropterus 

 lepidus) very closely resembles the above, and the dis- 

 tinctions given by Horsfield scarcely seem to warrant 

 its being regarded as a separate species. " It is only 

 found in the closest forests of Java, where the height 

 of the trees and the luxuriance of the foliage effectu- 

 ally conceal it. It is with great difficulty pursued or 

 seized." 



THE GREATER FLYING SQUIRREL (Sciuropterus 

 Sabrinus) Plate 14, fig. 43 of North America, is 

 about a foot long, including the tail. The fur has a 

 pale reddish-brown colour generally, being also of very 

 delicate texture. The Rocky Mountain variety so 

 closely resembles it, that, in the opinion of Sir John 

 Richardson, the two kinds ought to be regarded as 

 identical. 



THE ASSAPAN (Pteromys volucellci) is a compara- 

 tively small species of flying squirrel. It is very 

 abundant in the United States, infesting the prairies 



in large troops. Its tail is about one-fourth shorter 

 than the body, and, as in other allied forms, is flat and 

 distichous. 



FAMILY II. MYOXID^B. 



The Dormice represent a group intermediate between 

 the squirrels and the mice. The molars are sixteen in 

 number, furnished with fangs, and have their crowns 

 marked with transverse ridges of enamel. The feet 

 are pentadactylous, but the fifth toe of the fore-foot is 

 merely represented by a rudimentary tubercle or warty 

 excrescence. The ears are rounded and oval, and the 

 whiskers well developed. The fur is particularly soft 

 and fine. The tail is very long, hairy, and more or less 

 tufted at the extremity. The food of the Dormice con- 

 sists principally of vegetable matters; but they also 

 devour beetles, and have been known, in a state of 

 confinement, to eat bats, and even their own young. 



THE COMMON DORMOUSE (Myoxus avellanarius] 

 Plate 15, fig. 47. This well-known little animal, 

 with its ruddy yellow fur, is a great favourite with those 

 who delight in domesticated animals in which condi- 

 tion it is particularly gentle and docile. It is tolerably 

 common throughout Europe, and dwells in the seques- 

 tered parts of dense thickets and plantations. During 

 the summer it lays up a store against the winter, when 

 it falls into a drowsy and torpid state ; but on warm 

 sun-shiny days it sometimes emerges from its snug 

 retreat or dormitory. Its habits are nocturnal. In 

 the spring the female usually produces four young, 

 which are blind at the time of birth. According to 

 Mr. Bell, a second brood is occasionally brought forth 

 in the early part of autumn. 



THE GREAT DORMOUSE (Myoxus Glis) is an inha- 

 bitant of Southern Europe, being also found in Georgia 

 and on the borders of the Wolga. It is about the size 

 of our common rat, and has a pale ash-coloured fur, 

 which is white underneath the belly, and at the inner 

 sides of the limbs ; the eyes being surrounded by a 

 dark-brown circle. This animal was, in early times, 

 highly prized as a dainty, and was kept by the ancients 

 and fattened in separate hutches expressly for the table. 

 It is still eaten by the Italians. It nestles in holes of 

 trees and rocks, and sometimes attacks small birds. 



FAMILY III. DIPODnXffi. 



The Jerboas are at once recognized by their re- 

 markably developed hinder extremities, although this 

 peculiarity is also seen in a less striking degree in the 

 marsupial kangaroos. The elongation of the hind 

 limbs eminently fits the members of this family for 

 dwelling amongst wild wastes and open plains ; and it 

 is therefore in such localities that they are found. Their 

 molar teeth are complex, and in some instances desti- 

 tute of roots. The hind feet are tridactylous in the true 

 Jerboas, and tetradactylous in aberrant forms. The 

 clavicles are well developed. The eyes are large ; the 

 tail is very long, hairy, and frequently tufted at the tip. 



THE .EGYPTIAN JERBOA (Dipus jEgyptius') 

 Plate 14, fig. 45 is extremely common in the country 

 from whence its name is derived. According to Swain- 



