134 THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD 
Tue DormIce. 
There are a considerable number of animals, even here, which hibernate. Most of these 
feed largely on insect food, which in winter is unobtainable in any great quantity. Conse- 
quently the hedgehog and the badger, which live largely on snails and worms, go to sleep in the 
famine months. So does the sleepiest of all—the Dormouse. This alone would show that this 
little rodent probably feeds on insects very largely, for if it only ate nuts and berries it could 
easily store these, and find a good supply also in the winter woods. It has been recently proved 
that dormice are insectivorous, and will eat aphides, weevils, and caterpillars. But a dormouse 
hibernates for so long a time that one might imagine its vitality entirely lost ; it sleeps for six 
months at a time, and becomes almost as cold as a dead animal, and breathes very slowly and 
almost imperceptibly. Mr. Trevor-Battye says that if warmed and made to awaken suddenly in 
the winter it would die in a minute or two, its 
heart beating very fast, “like a clock running 
down.” Before their hibernation dormice grow 
very fat. There is a large species, found in 
Southern Europe, which the Romans used to 
eat when in this fat stage. In winter dormice 
usually seek the nest of some small bird, and 
use it as a sleeping-place. They pull out, and 
renew the lining, or add a roof themselves. Into 
the interior they carry a fresh supply of moss, 
and sleep there in great comfort. Their great 
4 any at iis time is if weascl. There are two 
main groups :3f the dormice, divided by natural- 
ists in reference to the structure of their stomach. 
The South African GRAPHIURES have short tufted 
tails. The hibernating habit is confined to the 
more northern species. 
Tue Mouse TRIBE. 
This family, which includes the Mics, Rats, 
and VoLEs, contains more than a third of the 
number of the whole order of Rodents. Some are 
arboreal, others aquatic; but most are ground- 
: : living animals and burrowers. The number of 
Patty Ase Rud aa Ra known species has been estimated at 330. Among 
POC ET COPE _ the most marked types are the WaATER-MICE of 
The pocket-gophers are almost entirely subterranean, Their x r ‘ 
burrowing powers are remarkable. The teeth as well as claws Australia and New Guinea, and of the island 
are used to aid them of Luzon in the Philippines. The feet of the 
Australian species are webbed, though those of 
the Philippine form are not. The Gersits form another group, mainly inhabitants of desert 
districts. They have very large eyes, soft fur, and tails of various length and form in different 
species. They have greatly developed hind legs, and leap like jerboas, and are found.in Southern 
Europe, Asia, and Africa. The Purtippine Rats, large and long-haired, and the TREE-MICE of 
Africa south of the Sahara, form other groups. A very mischievous race of rodents is repre- 
sented in Europe by the Hamsters, and in America by a closely allied group, the WHITE- 
FOOTED MICcE. 
lls 
Tue Hamsters. 
The Hamster is a well-known European species, and represents the group of pouched rats. 
