152 



CALIFORNIA MAMMALS. 



acorn was found to slip easily into a cheek pouch, the tip of the 

 acorn projecting outside. The partly eaten acorns were com- 

 menced from the base, probably because that part of the shell 

 covered by the cup was thinner and more easily bitten through. 

 There was no pile of earth at either entrance and the upper 

 entrance, under the plant, was closed with earth. The absence 

 of a pile of earth at the entrance was not unusual, but more 

 often the pile of earth is present. The entrances of burrows are 

 most frequently closed in the daytime. This burrow was longer 



Gambel Pocket Rat. Nearly one-half life size. 



than usual, and probably contained a greater amount of food 

 than is usual. 



The gait is a series of leaps ; if hurried these are very rapid 

 and' three or four .feet in length. As they can turn very abruptly, 

 it is very difficult for a dog to catch one. In leaping from a 

 position of rest they can go off as if a spring in them' had been 

 suddenly released. They cannot continue a rapid run far ; the 

 longest that I remember seeing in the daytime was about fifty 

 yards, when the animal entered its burrow. I have several 

 times seen Pocket-Rats abroad in the daytime, but this is not 

 a common habit. 



