128 SEX-LORE 



have solved the difficulty of transporting their tiny 

 offspring in a manner peculiar to themselves. They 

 have long prehensile tails; the little ones are borne 

 securely on the mother's back, clinging to her fur 

 and twisting their tails around hers (Fig. 49). 



There is nothing of special interest in the parental 

 care among hoofed animals. The period of gestation 

 is fairly long, and the young are born in a well- 

 developed condition. The number at birth is rarely 

 more than one or two, but the swine have as many 

 as ten at a time. The females make no preparation 

 for the advent of the young ; but they are very much 

 devoted to them. Nothing will induce the mother 

 to leave the young; Galton declared from his own 

 observation that a newly calved cow is almost more 

 than a match for a lion. In herds the bulls also 

 help the cows to defend the calves. Wild horses are 

 known, when attacked, to place the foals in the 

 middle, forming a ring round them and kicking out 

 savagely with their hind-hoofs against any aggressor. 

 Deer are rather more feeble at birth than most of 

 the other hoofed animals ; the mother, therefore, 

 keeps them hidden in a thicket for two or three days, 

 until they are able to follow her about. The female 

 elephant is very fond of her young, giving expression 

 to this feeling by constantly stroking it with her 

 trunk. She keeps it with her for several years, and 

 fiercely defends it against intruders. 



Most rodents prepare for their offspring before 

 birth takes place. Rabbits, for instance, live in 

 communities in burrows; the females dig circular 

 chambers off the main burrows, lining them with 

 leaves, soft grass, and fur plucked from their own 



