90 RODENTS. 



supported in front by a cartilage attached to the outer side of the wrist. There 

 is also another membrane connecting the sides of the neck with the fore-limb ; and 

 there may be likewise one between the hind-legs and the root of the tail. The 

 molar teeth are of a very complex type, and as their skulls differ considerably 

 from those of all the preceding genera, the flying squirrels are now regarded as 

 indicating a distinct subfamily. Moreover, as the group is known to be of consider- 

 able antiquity, it is not improbable that it has no generic affinity with any of the 

 foregoing genera but that it traces its descent to some totally extinct group of 

 the family. With the exception of one North American species, and a second from 

 Siberia and Eastern Europe, the flying squirrels are confined to the Indian and 

 Malayan regions. They are all exclusively nocturnal in their habits, and mainly 

 inhabit forest regions, although one may frequent rocks alone. Their mode of 

 flight and general habits appear to be very similar to those of the flying lemur ; 

 and when leaping from tree to tree they utter sharp piercing cries which are 

 familiar to all who have travelled in regions where flying squirrels are to be found. 

 Lesser Flying The lesser flying squirrels, constituting the genus Sciuropterus, 



squirrels. are those which have the lowest crowned molar teeth in the group, 

 although there is considerable variation in the structure of these teeth. All the 

 members of the genus are distinguished by the parachute-like membrane along 

 the sides being of moderate width; and by the rudimentary condition of the 

 membrane between the hind-legs, which does not include any portion of the tail. 

 The fur, as in all other members of the group, is very thick and soft ; but the 

 tail differs from that of the other flying squirrels in being broad, and flattened 

 from above downwards, in order, probably, to act as an aid in flight. In size these 

 animals vary from 5 to 12 inches in length. The large size of their expressive 

 eyes, and the beautiful silky softness of their fur, render them exceedingly 

 attractive creatures. The North American species (S. volucella), which is the 

 one represented in our illustration, has the fur of an ashy brown above, and 

 creamy-white below. 



Distribution and The lesser flying squirrels include a considerable number of 

 Habits. species, one of which is an inhabitant of North America, and a second 

 of Siberia and North-Eastern Europe, while all the others are confined to the 

 Indian and Malayan regions, extending as far northwards as Afghanistan and 

 Kashmir. The following notes refer mainly to the habits of the North American 

 species, of which an excellent account is given by Dr. Hart Merriam. Like ordinary 

 squirrels, these animals subsist mainly on nuts, seeds, and buds, but the American 

 species also eats beetles, and probably other insects, and may be taken in traps 

 baited with meat, while in confinement it will but seldom refuse flesh. The American 

 flying squirrels construct nests in the hollow trees they haunt, and in the cold 

 winters of the Adirondack region near New York they retire to these nests, and 

 probably hibernate. The same habits will doubtless hold good for the species 

 inhabiting Kashmir and Afghanistan, but those inhabiting India proper and the 

 warm Malayan region remain active at all seasons. The Kashmir flying squirrel 

 (S. fimbriatus), in some cases at least, produces four young at a birth. 



In the daytime these squirrels remain concealed in hollow trees> and only 

 issue forth at sunset in quest of food. Numbers frequently associate in one tree ; 



