93 NATURAL HISTORY. 



composing that part of the body. The eyes are small, have the pupil vertical, and are furnished with 

 a nictitating membrane ; the ears are small and short, and their antitragus can be so applied to the 

 head as almost entirely to close the auditory aperture ; and the nostrils are also so arranged as to 

 be capable of closing. 



The Beaver is usually about two feet and a half long, and is, therefore, one of the largest of the 

 Hodentia, except the Capybara. The tail, which is flattened above and below, and of an elongated oval 

 form, measures about ten inches. The muffle is naked ; the ears scaly ; the soles of all the feet are 



naked, and their upper surfaces clothed with hairs ; and the second toe of the hind feet is usually 

 furnished with a double claw, the additional one being placed beneath the other. The general colour 

 of the fur is reddish-brown on the upper surface, lighter and greyish below. The colour varies a little 

 in different individuals, and appears to become darker, or even blackish, in northern localities. "White 

 or pied individuals are not uncommon. The Beaver appears to increase in size for some years after 

 rfc has attained maturity. Mr. Allen says that in America " two-year-old Beavers generally weigh 

 about thirty-five to forty pounds, while very old ones occasionally attain a weight of upwards of sixty." 

 The size of the skull seems to increase throughout life ; the thickness and density of the bones also 

 increase, and the ridges for the attachment of the muscles become stronger in old individuals. 



The Beaver is, or has been, distributed generally over all the northern parts of the Northern 

 ftuemisphere, especially in the forest regions. Formerly it ranged over the whole of Europe, including 



