110 ANIMAL COMPETITORS 



is light sand-color over the upper parts and 

 pure while below. The tail is white along the 

 sides and for an inch at the tip. The fur-lined 

 cheek-pouches are large enough to admit the tip 

 of the little finger. 



These, and the smaller kangaroo-rats, are 

 common, over the drier parts of the valley coun- 

 try, especially in the mellowest and sandiest 

 soil; and Ernest Thompson Seton has made 

 them the subject of one of his most accurate 

 and charming descriptions of animal life. They 

 are strictly nocturnal and are rarely seen alive, 

 but their round burrows are conspicuous, and 

 the paired tracks of their long hind feet may be 

 seen every morning on the naked sands. The 

 manner of traveling is by hops, or long leaps 

 on the hind feet, while the tail serves as a 

 balance and rudder, the tiny front paws being 

 used only as hands. The burrows usually en- 

 ter the side of a sandy hillock, dune, or embank- 

 ment, and often extend 10 or 20 feet. They do 

 not go deep into the ground, but if started at 

 the base of an embankment they may penetrate 

 through it below the water-level and tap the 

 ditches, mischief wholly accidental. Usually 



