OF THE CLASS MAMMALIA. 



257 



or nails, which are not retractile during walking. The tail 

 is short and pendant, and underneath the anus is a pouch 

 which secretes a disagreeably-smelling viscous matter. Their 

 gait is odd, and they 

 carry their hind quarters 

 much lower than the fore. 

 They are nocturnal ani- 

 mals, preying on what- 

 ever they can venture to 

 attack ; cowardly ; they 

 disinter the dead, and de- 

 spise no kind of food. 

 They resort to caverns du- 

 ring the day-time. Their 

 reputation i'or ferocity is 

 not borne out by the fact. 

 The common hysena be- 

 longed originally to Asiatic Turkey, Syria, 

 countries of Africa. 



The carnivora called putorius or polecat, mustelaor common 

 marten, otter or lutra, and some others, are remarkable for 

 the length of their bodies and shortness of their limbs. They 

 are all small, but extremely sanguinary. 



The genus putorius comprises the common polecat, the 

 ferret, marten, the ermine, and several other species, which 

 all have the head rounded, the fur brilliant and soft, the 

 tail long, and anal glands which secrete a foetid matter. 



Fig. 195. The Hyaena. 



and to some 



Fig. 196. The Belette. 



The martens differ but little from the polecats, and are 

 equally sought after for their fur. The polecat, which does 

 such damage to the poultry, belongs to this genus. 



The otter (lutra) has the head depressed and the feet palmated. 

 Otters are aquatic nocturnal animals, inhabiting the margins 

 of rivers and lakes, and subsisting mostly on fishes. 



