THE COMMON WEASEL. 



Varieties of the hedgehog. 



edged with brown, and the nostrils are crested 

 The Malacca hedgehog is distinguished by its 

 long spines, and long pendulous ears. TbeTen- 

 drac is about the size of a rat, covered with short 

 small spines, except on the nose and belly, which 

 are clothed with a kind of fine hair, of a whitish 

 colour. And the Tanrec of Madagascar has five 

 longitudinal bands of black and white on the 

 body; the black parts being covered with bristly 

 hair, and the white parts with spines. The Ten- 

 drac and the Tanrec are generally very fat, and 

 their flesh, though stringy and insipid, is often 

 eaten by the Indians. 



THE COMMON WEASEL. 



THE length of this active little animal is about 

 .seven inches, from the nose to the insertion of 

 the tail, and its height, not above two inches 

 and a half. The prevailing colour on the back, 

 aides, and legs, is a pale reddish-brown; but the 

 breast and belly are white ; and on each side, 

 below the corners of the mouth, is a brown spot. 

 The ears are small and rounded, and the mouth 

 is furnished with whiskers, like those of a cat. 

 When asleep, the muscles are in such a state of 

 flaccidity, that the animal may be taken up by 

 the head, and swung backwards and forwards 

 like a pendulum, before it will awake. It lives 

 chiefly in cavities under the roots of trees, and 

 2 o 2 



