Hunters and Hunted 



trees to their swaying tops, and climbs up and down 

 among the branches ; now, again, it may be seen creeping 

 like a cat through the thick grass, inspecting every nook 

 and cranny, sniffing at the holes in the tree trunks, listen- 

 ing, peering now here, now there, in search of some sort of 

 prey or other, be it a sleeping bird, a young hare, a mouse 

 or the like. Now it has caught sight of a squirrel. Un- 

 observed it rapidly ascends the trunk of the tree on the 

 other side of the creature and mounts the branch on 

 which it is sitting. Brushing the branch with its belly, it 

 stealthily creeps up, cautiously placing one foot in front 

 of the other ; suddenly the squirrel catches sight of its 

 pursuer and now a mad chase begins. From branch to 

 branch leaps the frightened creature, hotly pursued by 

 the murderer. With one mighty leap it lands upon a 

 neighbouring tree ; the pursuer follows ; up and down the 

 trunk the race continues. It is only by taking a leap 

 downward, which its pursuer cannot imitate, and rapidly 

 gaining another tree, that the squirrel can hope to escape 

 with its life. Otherwise it is doomed to succumb 

 exhausted and yield up its life under the teeth of the 

 marauder." 



The closely related badger and otter are in their 

 respective ways admirably adapted for the capture of 

 the prey so necessary to their existence. The former is 

 a thick-set, clumsy fellow, who can neither climb like the 

 cats, nor, like them, stealthily stalk his prey ; nor can he 

 hunt after the manner of the dogs. His formidable claws, 

 his almost pig-like snout and powerful neck all point to 

 the fact that he is a digger. His prey, for the most part, 

 is captured without the display of any agility. The larvae 

 of various beetles, earthworms, mice, frogs and lizards 

 make up his principal fare, varied now and again with 

 a nestling or a young rabbit or hare. Many of these 

 creatures live below ground and the badger is not long in 

 unearthing them. 



The otter, on the other hand, though an expert 

 N 193 



