PRAIRIE POCKET-GOPHERS 



put away in his store-room the contents of his 

 pouches. 



In the course of time a number of these 

 four-footed miners staked their claims upon 

 the same long hillside that gradually sloped into 

 a broad, level stretch of prairie. They were 

 solitary, vicious hermits and never entered one 

 another's homes, or in any way exchanged 

 friendly greetings. If by accident they chanced 

 to meet their only recognition was to angrily 

 spring at each other and bite. If unfortunately 

 they both were males, there at once ensued a 

 deadly combat in which one, or more often both 

 of them, suffered death. 



Each hermit stakes his or her underground 

 claim by digging a tunnel and throwing out the 

 dirt in low mounds on the surface at frequent 

 intervals. This is accomplished by the little 

 animal loosening the dirt with his nose. At 

 the same time he eats any roots he may find 

 pushing their way through the earth in search 

 of nourishment and a foundation for the parent 

 plant above. 



It is only for roots and tubers that these en- 

 ergetic four-footed hermits mine. As fast as 

 [207] 



