SUSLIKS. 79 



his tail, out pops his head, his keen dark eyes gazing intently at the source of 

 alarm. If not pursued farther, he is very apt to advance towards the supposed 

 enemy, betraying his excitement by a series of nervous starts and precipitous 

 retreats, till finally, making a bold rush, he dashes by the object of his dread, and 

 in another instant is peering out from a hole beneath the roots of a neighbouring 

 tree." The chipmunk does not appear to make an agreeable pet, as it is apt to be 

 sulky and morose, and disposed to bite the fingers of any one who offers it food. 



THE SUSLIKS, OR GOPHERS. 

 Genus Spermophilus. 



The suslik or sisel of North-Eastern Europe and Northern Asia, and the 

 striped gopher of North America are the best known representatives of the fourth 

 genus of the Squirrel family. Both in this and the two following genera the 

 incisor teeth are not compressed, while the form of the body is generally stout, 

 and the tail either short or of moderate length ; the molar teeth being of a simple 

 type. The whole of the species are confined to Europe, Asia Minor, Asia north 

 of the southern flanks of the Himalaya, and North America. 



The susliks, as the members of the genus Spermophilus may be collectively 

 termed, are characterised by their somewhat slender and squirrel-like form, and 

 the presence of large cheek-pouches. The external ears may be very small, or 

 comparatively large and tufted ; and the tail varies from a mere stump to 8 or 9 

 inches in length. In the fore-feet the first toe is rudimentary, but its nail is 

 sometimes present. The skull approximates to that of the squirrels, but the 

 first upper premolar is relatively larger ; and the two rows of upper cheek-teeth 

 are nearly parallel to one another. The coloration may be either uniform or 

 striped, but never resembles that of the chipmunks. 



The susliks are mainly confined to the colder regions of the 

 Northern Hemisphere, and have very nearly the same distribution 

 as the chipmunks, although there is no species common to the Old and the New 

 World. With the exception of Eversmann's suslik (S. eversmanni) of North- 

 Eastern Asia, all the Old World species have short tails, while those of the New 

 World are nearly all long-tailed, and approach more closely in form to the 

 chipmunks. In North America no representatives of the genus occur to the east- 

 ward of the plains and prairies forming the centre of the continent, but they 

 range westwards to the coast of the Pacific. In latitude the range of the genus 

 extends from the shores of the Arctic Sea to the plains of Northern Mexico. 



The common suslik (S. citillus), which is the species depicted in our illustra- 

 tion, is common in Central and Eastern Europe and Siberia, and is a uniformly- 

 coloured animal, scarcely as large as the European squirrel, with a very short tail, 

 and minute external ears. In America the commonest representative of the genus 

 is the striped gopher (S. tridecemlineatus), which is some 7 or 8 inches in length, 

 with a tail of about two-thirds that length, and small ears. In colour it is typically 

 dark reddish brown above, with six to eight longitudinal light stripes, alternating 

 with from five to seven rows of light spots ; the under-parts being yellowish brown 



