152 MARSH-HARE. 



thick, and of rather a clumsy shape ; hairs, rather long and much coarser 

 than those of the gray rabbit. Legs, short, and rather small ; feet so 

 thinly clothed with hair, that the nails in most of the specimens are not 

 covered, but project beyond the hair ; the feet leave a distinct impres- 

 sion of the toes and clavi's, on the mud, or in moist places where their 

 tracks can be seen. Heel, short, thinly covered with hair ; nails, long, 

 stout, and very acute ; tail, short ; scarcely visible vsrhilst the animal is 

 running. 



Teeth, yellowish-white ; eyes, dark-brown, appearing in certain lights, 

 quite black. Upper part of the head, brown, and grayish-ash. Around 

 the orbits of the eyes, slightly fawn-coloured ; whiskers, black ; ears, 

 dark grayish-brown. Back, whole upper-parts, and upper-surface of the 

 tail, yellowish-brown intermixed with many strong black hairs. The 

 hairs, when examined singly, are bluish-gray at the roots, then light- 

 brown, and are tipped with black. Throat, brownish-gray. Outer- 

 surface of fore-legs, and upper-surface of thighs, reddish-yellow. The 

 fur beneath, is light plumbeous ; under the chin, gray ; belly, and 

 under-surface of tail, light-gray ; the fur beneath, bluish, giving it a dark 

 yellovirish-brown appearance. Under-surface of the tail, ash-colour, 

 edged with bro^vn. During winter the upper surface becomes consider- 

 ably darker than in summer, and the under-parts of the tail in a few spe- 

 cimens become nearly white. 



DIMENSIQNS. 



A specimen in the flesh. 



Length from point of nose to insertion of tail 



do. of tail, (vertebrae) ..... 



do. do. do. including fur - - - - . 



Height from end of middle claw to top of shoulder 

 Length of head ....... 



do. ears ....... 



do. hind-foot ...--. 



Weight, 2 1 lb. 



13 : 



inches. 



1 





li 





7 





3i 





2i 





3 





The Marsh-Hare, chiefly confines itself to the maritime districts of the 

 southern States, and is generally found in low marshy grounds that are 

 sometimes partially inundated, near rivers subject to freshets that occa- 

 sionally overflow their banks, or near the large ponds called in Caroliua, 



