MUSQUASH. 259 



the tail, which is another 8 inches. This appendage is 

 dark, scaly, and almost destitute of fur, having only a 

 few short hairs, which are ranged chiefly along the 

 edges ; it is not rounded like a rat's tail, but is blunt 

 and flat. The general colour is brown, but the back is, 

 as a rule, darker ; the cheeks are lighter, and the belly, 

 although sometimes of a chestnut brown in the Canadian 

 districts, is almost white in others, but in the majority 

 grey, and speckled. The ears are very short, and hidden 

 in the fur. The whiskers are long, black, and few in 

 number. The fore-feet are short, but the hind legs are 

 long, and the feet slightly webbed. The female has ten 

 teats, six of which are situated near the fore-legs, and 

 the others near the hind legs. In the Northern districts 

 the skin is thin, but in the Southern States the pelt is 

 very thick, like that of most other aquatic animals. The 

 fur on the back is rather short and soft, and covered 

 with longer hairs, called water-hairs; on the belly the 

 fur is very much shorter. The ground-colour of the fur 

 is generally blue, but in some cases it is whitish. 

 Situated near the tail are two glands, containmg the 

 musk-like secretion. 



The Musk-rat is aquatic, or rather amphibious, in its 

 habits, living in the water, and diving with great quick- 

 ness as soon as it is observed. It erects circular huts, 

 somewhat after the style of a Beaver. Its food, like the 

 Water Vole of Europe, is vegetarian. Musk-rats bite 

 each other to a great degree, and in times of famine it 

 is said that they will devour one another. 



The Musk-rat is found throughout the Dominion of 

 Canada, with the exception of the Barren Lands, and it 

 attains its largest size in the province of Canada. A 

 certain quantity are found in Alaska, and a few in 

 Labrador and Nova Scotia. It is most abundaiit in 



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