68 



CARNIVORES. 



afforded by the partial webbing of the toes, which are also peculiar in possessing 

 no long hair between their naked pads. 



The European and North- American minks are such closely-allied animals that 

 they cannot be even distinguished from one another externally ; and in our own 

 opinion it would be better to regard them as mere local varieties of a single 

 species. The European mink has, however, very generally a white upper lip, which 

 is but rarely exhibited in its American relative. When the skulls of the two forms 

 are compared together it will be found that in the American form the upper molar 

 tooth is invariably decidedly larger than in the European ; and it is on account of 

 this difference that the two are regarded as specifically distinct from one another. 



Like the martens, the minks have a uniformly long and somewhat bushy 



THE EUROPEAN MINK (^ uat. size). 



tail, differing markedly from that of the weasels ; its whole length being approxi- 

 mately equal to half that of the head and body. The ears are smaller than 

 in any of the allied forms, and scarcely appear above the general level of the fur. 

 The pelage consists of a dense, soft, and matted under-fur, mixed with long, stiff, 

 and glossy hairs ; the gloss being most marked in the fur of the upper-parts, while 

 the hairs of the tail are more bristly than elsewhere. In colour the mink, accord- 

 ing to Dr. Coues, varies from a light dull yellowish brown to a rich black chocolate- 

 brown ; the ordinary tint being a rich dark brown, scarcely, if at all, paler below 

 than above. The tail is always decidedly blackish. Our illustration exhibits the 

 white upper lip usually distinctive of the European mink. In both the eastern 

 and western forms the chin is always white, although the extent of the white area 

 is subject to individual variation. In addition to the white on the chin, there may 

 also be small irregular patches of the same colour on the under-parts, while, as a 

 rare abnormality, the tail may also be tipped with white. 



