AN'IMAI.S. S37 



there are also three distinctions, as of the former ; the ondatra. 

 the DESMAN, and the pilori. The ondatra is a native of Canada, 

 the desman of Lapland, and the pilori of the West India islands. 

 The ondatra differs from all others of its kind, in having the tail 

 flatted and carried edge-ways. The desman has a long extended 

 snout, like the shi"evv-mouse ; and the pilori a short tail, as thick 

 at one end as the other. They all resemble each other in being 

 fond of the water, but particularly in that musky odour from 

 whence they have taken their name. 



Of these the ondatra is the most remarkable, and has beei\ 

 the most minutely described.' This animal is about the size cf 

 a small rabbit, but has the hair, the colour, and the tail of a rat, 

 except that it is flatted on the sides, as mentioned above. But it 

 is still more extraordinary upon other accounts, and different 

 from all other animals whatever. It is so formed that it can 

 contract and enlarge its body at pleasure. It has a muscle like 

 that of horses, by which they move their hides, lying immediately 

 under the skin, and that furnished with such a power of contrac- 

 tion, together with such an elasticity in the false ribs, that this 

 animal can creep into a hole where others, seemingly much less, 

 cannot follow. The female is remarkable also for two distinct 

 apertures, one for urine, the other for propagation. The male is 

 equally observable for a peculiarity of conformation ; the musky 

 smell is much stronger at one particular season of the year than 

 any other ; and the marks of the sex seem to appear and disap- 

 pear in the same manner. 



The ondatra in some measure resembles the beaver in its na- 

 ture^and disposition. They both live in society during winter . 

 they both form houses of two feet and a half wide, in which they 

 reside several families together. In these they do not assemble 

 to sleep as the marmout, but purely to shelter themselves from 

 the rigour of the season. However, they do not lay up maga- 

 zines of provision like the beaver ; they only form a kind of 

 covert-way to and round their dwelling, from whence they issue 

 to procure water and roots, upon which they subsist. During 

 winter their houses are covered under a depth of eight or ten feet 

 of snow ; so that they must lead out a cold, gloomy, and neces- 

 fiitous life, during its continuance. During summer they sepa- 



1 Buffon, vol XX. p. 4. 

 2f 



I 



