C4 



Talpid,«.- 



-MAMJIALIA - 



-Talpid.e. 



very minute eyes. The ears are destitute of conspicu- 

 ous auricles ; tlie feet are pentadactylous or five-toed ; 



the tail is of moderate length, varying, however, in 



this respect with diflerent species, and only loosely 



clothed with hair. In the Thick-tailed 



Star-nose " the head is remarkably 



large ; the body is stout and short, 



and becomes narrower towards the 



tail, and the hind legs are conse- ^ 



quently nearer to each other than /^ 



the fore ones. The nose is rather ' 



thick, and projects beyond the 



mouth. It is naked towards its ' 



end, is marked with a furrow above, f 



and terminates in a flat smface, -. ^ 



which is surrounded by seventeen ~ "'-^ — ^^^=^ 



cartilaginous processes, with two 



more anterior ones situated above 



the nostrils, and a pair of forked ones immediately 



below the nostrils. The surfaces of these processes 



are minutely granulated. Some white whiskers spring 

 from tlie side of the nose, and reach about half the 



length of the head. There are others not so long on 

 the upper and under lips. The fur on the body is 

 very soft and fine, and has considerable lustre. It is 

 longer than the fur of the other two known species. 

 Its colo.ur l6 the dorsal aspect is dark amber brown, 

 apprp&ching to blackish-brown. On the belly it is 

 pale, liver brown. Wlien the fur is blown aside it 

 cxhifeits a shining blackish-grey colour towards its 

 root^ It is longer beliind the head and on the neck, 

 tlian on tlie belly. The tail is narrow at its origin ; 

 but it suddenly swells to an inch and a half in cir- 

 cumference. It then tapers gradually until it ends in 

 a fine point, formed by a pencil of hairs about half an 

 inch long. It is round, or very slightly compressed, 

 and is covered with scales about as large as those on 

 the feet, and with short, tapering, acute hairs which do 

 not conceal the scales. The hairs covering the upper 

 surface of the tail are nearly black ; those beneath are 

 of a browner hue. The extremities are shaped almost 

 precisely like those of C. longicauJata,' only the 

 palms and toes of the fore feet project beyond the 

 body. The palms are nearly circular, and are pro- 

 tected by a granulated skin, like shagi'een. The sides 

 of the feet are furnished with long white hairs which 

 curve in over the palms. The five toes are very short, 

 equal to each other in length, and, together with the 

 back of the hands, are covered with hexagonal scales. 

 The fore claws are white, nearly straiglit, broadly 

 linear and acute, convex above and flat beneath. 

 The palms turn obliquely outwards, which causes the 

 fourth claw to project rather farthest; but the third 

 one measures as much, the second is shorter, and the 

 first and fifth are equal to each other, and a little 

 shorter than the rest. The hind feet are also turned 

 obliquely outwards, and are scaly, with a few interposed 

 hairs above, and granulated underneath. The sides 

 are narrow, and present a conspicuous callous tubercle 

 posterior to the origin of the inner toe. The hind 

 legs are very short, and are clothed with soft brown 

 \iairs, a tuft of which curves over the heel. There 

 are no hairs on the sides of the hind feet, like those 



which form a margin to the fore ones. The hind 

 toes are longer than the fore ones, and are armed with 

 more slender claws, which are white, awl-shaped, 

 curved, and acute. They have a narrow groove towards 



Fie 18 



•■■»-'^ -irb^z^'--^''''"' . - ,., 



The Common Star-nose (Condylura cristata). 



their point underneath." The length of the body, not 

 including the tail, is four inches and a quarter. This 

 minute and accurate account is taken from Sir John 

 Richardson's description of a specimen captured on 

 the banks of the river Columbia, and all the examples 

 hitherto received have been brought from North 

 American districts. Fig. 18. represents a very closely- 

 allied form. The generic name Condylura was origin- 

 ally given to these moles by the naturalist lUiger, wdio 

 was misled by a figure which had been executed from 

 a dried specimen, and consequently showed a knotted 

 appearance of the tail. This irregularity of the tail 

 unfortunately suggested to him the generic title now 

 generally adopted ; but the term Rltinaster proposed 

 by Wagler, would have been, scientifically speaking, 

 more correct. 



THE LTJSTEOUS CAPE MOLE {Clirysocliloris ca- 

 pensis). — Tlie members of this small genus are also 

 pretty closely allied to the true moles. Tliey difl'er, 

 however, in some respects, and among the most 

 important distinctions are those which concern the 

 skeleton and teeth. Following the authority of De 

 Blainville, there appear to be twelve cutting teeth, six 

 above and six below, the two central teeth of the 

 lower jaw being very minute. Of the grinding series 

 there are probably twenty-eight, six of which come 

 under the category of false grinders or premolars, two 

 of them being superior and four inferior. The true 

 nrolars have Ae form of triangular prisms witli trans- 

 verse crowns, which in the lower set are divided by 

 corresponding grooves. All the species have the eyes 

 covered by the integument, while there is no appearance 

 of an external ear. The muzzle is short and broad, ter- 

 minating in a slightly pointed and projecting nose. The 

 fore foot or hand is apparently tetradactylous ; but 

 there are in reality five toes or fingers, the phalanges 

 of the third and fourth fingers having coalesced to form 

 a single gigantic digit. The latter is armed with a pro- 

 digiously strong claw, which is broad and arcuated, 

 forming a powerful weapon for digging and burrowing 

 in the earth ; tlie fifth digit is particularly small and 

 rudimentary. The hind feet are obviously pentadac- 

 tylous, the several toes presenting the ordinary dimen- 

 sions. The body is short and stout, and unprovided 

 with a tail. The skeleton offers numerous points of 



