THE RODENTS, OR GNAWING ANIMALS 133 
are quite large animals, some being 
as large as a small cat. 
Mr. W. H. Adams says of PeEt’s 
FLYING-SQUIRREL, a West African 
species: “These squirrels come out 
of their holes in the trees some hours 
after sunset, and return long before 
daybreak. They are only visible on 
bright moonlight nights. The na- 
tives say that they do not come out 
of their holes at all in stormy weather, 
or on very dark nights; they live on 
berries and fruits, being especially 
fond of the palm-oil nut, which they © pjsis by scholastic Photo, Co] 
take to their nests to peel and eat. 
They pass from tree to tree with 
great rapidity, usually choosing to 
jump from a higher branch to a 
lower one, and then climbing up 
again to make a fresh start. . . . They litter about twice in a year, once in September. The 
young remain in the nest for about nine weeks, during which they are fed by the old ones on 
such food as shoots and kernels. They do not attempt to jump or ‘fly’ till the end of that 
period, extending the length of their jumps with their growth.” 
The Eru1op1an Spiny SQUIRRELS have coarse spiny fur; the little Inpran PALM-SQUIRREL 
is marked with longitudinal dark and light stripes on the back; others have light bands on 
their flanks. 
The Atpine Marmot is a much larger species than the prairie-dog. It lives on the Alps 
just below the line of perpetual snow. From five to fifteen marmots combine in colonies, dig 
very deep holes, and, like the prairie-dogs, carefully line them with grass; they also store up dry 
grass for food. In autumn they grow very fat, and are then dug out of the burrows by the 
mountaineers for food. Young marmots used to be tamed and carried about by the Savoyard 
boys, but this practice is now rare. The monkey is probably more attractive to the public than 
the fat and sleepy marmot. Marmots are about the size of a rabbit, and have close iron-gray fur. 
Tschudi, the naturalist of the Alps, says of the marmots that they are the only mammal 
which inhabits the region of the snows. No other warm-blooded quadrupeds live at such an 
altitude. In spring, when: the lower snows melt, there are generally small pieces of short turf 
near their holes, as well as great rocks, precipices, and stones. Here they make their burrows, 
outside which they feed, with a sentinel always posted to warn them of the approach of the eagle 
or lammergeir. The young marmots, from four to six in number, are born in June. When they 
first appear at the mouth of the holes, they are bluish gray; later the fur gains a brownish tint. 
The burrows are usually at a height of not less than 7,000 or 8,000 feet. Winter comes on 
apace. By the end of autumn the ground is already covered with snow, and the marmots retire 
to sleep through the long winter. As they do not become torpid for some time, they require 
food when there is none accessible; this they store up in the form of dried grass, which they cut 
in August, and leave outside their burrows for a time to be turned into hay. 
The Atp1ne Marmot is also found in the Carpathians and the Pyrenees. Another species, 
the Bozac, ranges eastward from the German frontier across Poland, Russia, and the steppes of 
Asia to Kamchatka. In Ladak and Western Tibet a short-tailed species, the HrmaLayan 
Marmot, is found, sometimes living at a height of nearly 17,000 feet. The GoLtp—EN Marmot 
is found in the Pamirs. 
[Parson's Green 
LONG-TAILED MARMOT 
The marmots live by preference on high and cold mountains just below the line 
of eternal snow in Europe. In Asia, where the snow-line is higher, they are found 
at altitudes of 12,000 feet 
