i 4 6 RODENTS. 



their young to maturity. He describes them as charming little pets, allowing 

 themselves to be handled without making any attempts to bite, and readily taking 

 food from the hand. 



The only other species of the genus Mus that can be noticed here 

 are two, one of which is remarkable for its coloration, and the other 

 on account of its habits. The Barbary striped mouse (M. bo^rbarus) is the most 

 strikingly coloured member of the group, the ground-colour of the fur of the upper- 

 parts being a yellowish brown, upon which are a number of longitudinal blackish 

 brown stripes ; the under-parts being pure white. This mouse inhabits Northern 

 and Central Africa, being especially common in the Atlas Mountains, and also occurs 

 in the desert regions of the interior as far as, Kordofan. There appears to be 

 nothing worthy of special note in its habits. 



The Australian brown-footed rat (M. fuadpes) is remarkable as being nearly 

 or quite as aquatic in its habits as the water-vole. 



THE BANDICOOT-RATS 

 Genus Nesocia. 



The bandicoot-rats of Southern Asia differ from ordinary rats in the much 

 greater width of their incisor and molar teeth, and also by the tubercles on the 

 crowns of the latter being so completely connected as to form transverse ridges. 

 Members of the genus extend from Palestine to Formosa, and from Ceylon to Central 

 Asia ; but they are most abundant in India and the adjacent regions. The great 

 Indian bandicoot-rat (Nesocia bandicota) is the largest member of the subfamily, 

 measuring from 12 to 15 inches from the tip of the snout to the root of the tail, 

 and weighing between 2J and 3 Ibs. It is common in cultivated districts and near 

 human dwellings in most parts of India, although unknown in Lower Bengal. It 

 is a burrower, like other species of the same genus, some of which turn up mounds 

 of earth like mole-hills. When disturbed, this rat utters grunts like a pig; but it 

 has far less pluck than the brown rat, and makes but a poor fight against a dog. 



OTHER GENERA. 



There are about eleven other genera belonging to this family, of which a few 

 of the more interesting may be briefly noticed. 



The bush-rats (Golunda) are represented by one Indian and one 



African species, and are distinguished by the presence of a groove on 



the front of the upper incisor teeth. The length of the head and body in the 



Indian species (G. ellioti) is about 4J inches, and that of the tail half an inch less. 



The spiny mice (Acomys), of which there are several species of 



the approximate size of the house-mouse, are peculiar in having the 



hinder portion of the back covered with thick, rigid, grooved spines in lieu of hair, 



and thus look almost like minute hedgehogs. They are desert-loving creatures, 



ranging from Syria to Eastern Africa as far south as Mozambique, while a single 



example of one of the species has been found in Sind. 



