MOLES AND SHREWS. 



587 



Order 3. Insectivora. — In the moles the incisors, the 

 ■canines, and molars are well developed, and the molars have 

 the crown surmounted by conical projections called cusps. 

 The fore feet are plantigrade, with large claws, and the en- 

 tire limb is short, thick, mus- 

 cular, and fossorial,t.e., adapted 

 for burrowing in the soil (Fig. 

 508). The shrews comprise 

 the smallest mammals. Nearly 

 all are nocturnal, burrowing 

 under the surface, and never 

 seen by day ; consequently, 

 their eyes are small, and most- 

 ly hid under the fur ; while the 

 ■ears are small and concealed by 

 the liair. 



The shrews are mouse-like, 

 having feet of the normal form, 

 and a long nose. In our com- 

 mon shrew {Sorex platyrhi7ius "Wagner, Fig. 509), the nose 

 is long, and the tail shorter than the head and body. 



The genuine moles are the characteristic forms of the 

 -order ; the most peculiar being the star-nosed mole, Condy- 



rig. 508.— Bones of fore leg of a 

 Mole. 52, the cubital scapula; 53, 

 liumenis ; 54, ulna ; 55, radius.— Af- 

 ter Owen. 



MJUUCHOL&SC 



Fig. 509.-Common Shrew.-After Cones. 



■lura cristata Linn. , which occurs from the Atlantic to the 

 Pacific Ocean, while the common mole (Fig 510) is abundant 

 in the Eastern United States. 



A flying form with a superficial resemblance to the bat, and 



