BEAR— DESMAN 443 



native cautiousness, their hearing being as acute as ever. Some bears, ind 1, 



wake up every fortnight or so during the winter — even in deep snow and intense 

 cold — to wander to another lair; but these are mostly old and extremely cunning 

 animals, accustomed to walk in several directions before retiring, and to take to 

 flight at the slightest suspicious sound. 



In Transylvania bears leave their winter resorts towards the middle or end 

 of February, more rarely not till Mai*ch, when the thaw begins in earnest. On 

 leaving their lairs they stretch and lick themselves, and after yawning a few times, 

 place themselves with their fore-paws against a tree, which they scratch vigorously 

 once or twice, finally rolling themselves in the snow or sand, and shaking out their 

 dishevelled fur. Their first thought is food, which, as already said, usually consists at 

 this time of the berries which grow in profusion in the Rokitno marsh. Crouching 

 and gliding along on their haunches, the bears collect with their paws the berries 

 preserved beneath the mantle of snow, or covering the ground as with a red 

 carpet after the thaw. In winter-quarters they feed only under certain circum- 

 stances, such as a sudden thaw, generally fasting during the period immediately 

 preceding the retirement. 



On the approach of winter female bears retire earlier than the males, and 

 devote more care in pi - epai-ing the lair, which is lined with a soft warm bed of 

 twigs, leaves, moss, grass, and other dry materials. They put on more fat than 

 the males, and in mid-winter give birth to two cubs in the first year, later on to 

 three or sometimes even four, but when aged never produce more than one at a 

 time. Unlike the males, the females, when suckling their young, frequently 

 change their haunts; and they also play with their cubs on the snow. They 

 leave their winter-quarters only when the cubs can follow them ; and even then 

 undertake no distant expeditions, but remain for weeks or months in the neigh- 

 bourhood diligently teaching the cubs to climb and search for food. When the 

 cubs can stand hardship the family begins to wander, and then the mother 

 suspiciously scrutinises every object, and is specially anxious about any indica- 

 tions of the presence of man. 



Bears are still to be met with in the Asturias, the Pyrenees, the Alps, 



Scandinavia, and northern Russia, but none are now seen in most parts of Germany. 



In the Bavarian Alps a few are occasionally reported. 



All the other Carnivora, such as the lynx and the wolf, which 

 Desman. ... . ... 



have inhabited Europe since the prehistoric period, are met with in its 



eastern division ; but of much more interest than these is the small insectivorous 

 mammal locally known as the desman, and technically as Myogale moschata. This 

 curious animal, which is peculiar to eastern Europe, is about 16 inches in total 

 length, with a tail of about 65 inches. Clothed in a thick rough otter-like coat of 

 stiff bristles and woolly under-fur, it is reddish brown and ashy grey above, but 

 looks silvery in certain lights. From its smaller cousin of the Pj'renees it is dis- 

 tinguished by the laterally compressed tail. Inhabiting the banks of the rivers 

 and lakes of a great j:>art of the south-east Russian steppes, these creatures live in 

 holes like a water-rat, and are as thoroughly aquatic as otters, passing most of their 

 time in the water, and resorting to their burrows — which are dug by themselves 

 and terminate in a chamber above water-level — principally to rest and look after 



