484 



ANIMAL LIFE-HISTORIES 



a tree or else in a convenient fork of the branches. The frame- 

 work of this " drey ", which is of rounded shape, consists of 

 interwoven twigs, while moss, lichen, and leaves are used as 

 packing and lining materials. The opening is on one side, 

 and, unless a hole has been selected for a residence, its position 

 may be altered from time to time in accordance with the exi- 

 gencies of the weather. The blind and helpless young are born 

 within this snug habitation, their number being usually three or 

 four, though sometimes there is a much larger family. 



Insect-eating Mammals 





(Insectivora). — The animals 

 of this large order are usually 

 small and defenceless. Like 

 Rodents they are extremely 

 prolific, and their young are 

 born blind and naked. Several 

 pairs of milk-glands are pre- 

 sent. It will perhaps suffice 

 to deal with two of our na- 

 tive forms, the Hedgehog 

 (Erinaceus EuropcBus) and 

 the Mole {Talpa Ettropced). 

 The Hedgehog constructs 

 a snug nest of dried leaves 

 under a hedge or in some 

 other sheltered situation, and 

 here the young are born, to the number of five or six as a 

 general rule. They are at first blind, practically bare, and devoid 

 of the power of rolling themselves up. Growth is rapid, and 

 these defects are soon remedied. 



The Mole is remarkable for the ingenuity and skill it displays 

 in the construction of a comfortable dwelling or "fortress", to 

 which it is said to repair four times in the twenty-four hours, 

 for the purpose of resting after its very considerable labours by 

 way of tunnelling in search of food. This retreat is placed at 

 a distance from the hunting-ground, in some inaccessible place, 

 as under the roots of a tree, in the shelter of a thick hedge, or 

 below a wall. As will be gathered from fig. looi, it is of decidedly 

 elaborate nature. What we may perhaps call the "home-road" 

 leads into a rounded chamber, cosily lined with moss and dry 



Fig. looi. — Fortress of Mole {Talpa Europaa) in vertical 

 section (above) and plan (below), reduced. N., nest : i.e., inner 

 circular passage ; o.c, outer circular passage ; s.r., side-roads. 



