370 DR. ST. G. MIVART ON THE ARCTOIDEA. [Apr. 21, 



less complex in that it has the internal cingulum reduced. The 

 lower grinders are hke those of Arctonyx. 



The aual glands are large and their secretion approximates in 

 ofFensiveness to that of the Skunks. 



Mephitis^. — In this genus the muzzle is pointed, the nostrils lateral, 

 the feet narrow, with the palmar surfaces naked, the plantar surfaces 

 partially hairy, and a long and bushy tail. There are several, prohably 

 three, species, all either North or Central American (ranging from 

 Hudson's Bay and the Great Bear Lake to Guatemala) and extra- 

 ordinarily variable not only in the markings of the long loose fur and in 

 the degree of hairiness of the soles, but in the form of the cranium 

 also. Yet the coloration is very consistent ; black and white, the 

 normal arrangement of which is — general colour black with white 

 markings and for the most part more or less longitudinally disposed. 

 The Skunks are terrestrial and more or less fossorial, with strong 

 claws to the fore paws ; progression is semiplantigrade, and slow, and 

 the general form of the body stout and rather low. There is no 

 subcaudal pouch, hut the anal glands are extraordinarily developed, 

 invested hy a muscular tunic, and their contents can he ejected a 

 distance of fourteen feet, the tail heing held erect and the anus 

 everted. It does not ordinarily smell and may be eaten. The 

 Skunk is more or less thoroughly nocturnal and is easily trapped. 

 Its fur goes by the name of "Alaska sable." It does not become 

 rare in settled districts ^, and is very prolific, bringing forth 8 or 10 

 young. It is more gregarious than most creatures of the weasel 

 kind {Mustelidce), more than one family congregating in one burrow. 

 It eats worms, insects, birds' eggs, frogs, and mice, and sometimes 

 rabbits, as also roots and berries ; it occasionally robs the poultrj^-yard, 

 and is said to be fond of milk. It falls a prey to dogs and the Great 

 Horned Owl. Its bite sometimes produces "hydrophobia ; it can be 

 readily semidomesticated like a ferret, and it is said sometimes to 

 have had its anal glands successfully removed. 



The eye is small, nearer to the nose than to the ear ; ears short 

 and rounded. 



It has 1 6 dorsal, 6 lumbar, 2 sacral, and 2 1 caudal vertebrae. The 

 third phalanx of the third digit of the manus is relatively longer 

 than in any other Carnivore except Taxidea. The length of the 

 palate compared with that of the skull is less than that of any other 

 Arctoid except Putorius. 



1 Shaw, G. Zool. i. (1800) p. 390, pi. 94; Gmelin, Linn. siii. 1, p. 88; 

 Humboldt, Obs. de Zool. p. 350 ; Euffon, xiii. p. 287, pi. 39 ; and Supp]. vii. 

 p. 2.33, pi. 57 ; F. Cut. Mamm. ; Stev. U. S. Geol. Surv. for 1870, 1871, p. 461 ; 

 Parker, Am. Nat. v. 1871, p. 246; Coues, BuU. U. S. Geol. & Geogr. Surr. 

 Terr. 2nd series, no. 1 (1875), and Fur-bearing Andmals, p. 187 ; Allen, BuU. 

 r. S. Geol. Sui-vey, vol. ii. no. 4. 1876, p. 332 ; Licht. DarsteU. Saug. 1827-34, 

 pi. 45, and Abh. Akad. Wiss. Berl. 1836-38. p. 280 ; Maximilian, Eeise N. A. i. 

 1839, p. 250 ; Arch. f. Xaturg. 1861 : Wagner, Supp. ii. p. 198 ; Aud. & Bach. 

 Q. X. A. i. 1849, pi. 42 ; Eichardson, Zool. Beechev's Vov. 1839, p. 4 ; W.yman, 

 Pr. Boston Soc. 1844, p. 110; Warren, Pr. Boston Soe. 1849, p. 175 ; Baird, 

 N. Am. Mamm. p. 193 ; P. Gervais, Mamm. ii. p. 106 ; Biologia, p. 80. 



^ Being so much protected by its secretion, which enables it to live without 

 being able to run fast, climb trees, swim, or even burrow with great rapidity. 



