186 MAMMALIA. EER2E. Bear.. 



tremely fond of human flefh, is very bold and fearlefs, attacking bands of armed men, and boarding 

 fhips ; and even diggs up human carcaffes. It has fometimes terrible combats with the Morfe or 

 Walrus, which is its greateft enemy. It is very impatient of heat, and when brought into the more 

 temperate regions, muft be frequently refrefhed by means of cold water tlirown over the body. The 

 ikfh is very white, and is reckoned to refemble mutton. 



370 3. American Bear. — 3. Urfus americanus. 6. 



Of a black colour, the throat and cheeks being of a rufty brown colour. Pallas, Spicel. 

 zool. xiv. 6. n. 26. Penn. hift. of quad. n. 174. /3.. 



Inhabits the whole of America, except Chili and Patagonia, and is found in Kamtfchatka. — This ■ 

 fpecies rejects animal food, though preffed by hunger, confining itfelf entirely to vegetables, and is 

 remarkably greedy of Maize and Potatoes ; Dr Gmelin fays that it feeds on fifh. The head is more 

 lengthened than in the European Bear, the ears are longer, the hair is more fmooth and gloffy, black- 

 er and fofter ; the whole body is much fmaller ; the nofe is longer and more pointed, and of a yel- 

 lowiih or rufty brown colour. It is very cowardly, and never attacks mankind unlefs when provoked, 

 or in defence of its young ; it fometimes bites the natives, of Kamtfchatka, when afleep, but never, 

 devours them. 



371 4. Sand Bear. — Urfus tetradaciylus.. 



Has only four toes on each foot. Bewick, Gen hift. of quad. ed. 1791, p. 257. and fig. 



This animal is rather lefs than the Common Badger : It is almoft deftitute of hair, extremely fen- 

 fible of cold, burrows in the ground, and is of a yellowifh white colour: The eyes are fmall ; the 

 legs are fhort ; the feet are armed with fharp white claws ; and the tail is confiderably longer in pro- 

 portion than in the three former fpecies, which have only a flump in place of a tail. The place of 

 this animal is uncertain : It is engraven by the ingenious Mr Bewick of Newcastle, on wood, from a 

 drawing of a fbecimen in the Tower of London. . 



■5 



372 5- Common Badger. — 4. Urfus Meks. 2. 



Has a fhort tail of the fame colour with the body, which is dark afh coloured on the 

 upper parts, and black below; the face is whitifh, with a pyramidal longitudinal 

 black band including the ears and eyes. Faun. Suec. 20. Schreber, iii. 516. t. cxlii. 



Meles, or Badger, having very long claws on the fore paws. Syft. nat. ed. vi. 6.— Meles, or 

 Badger, covered with a mixed black and dirty whitifh fur, having the head marked with alternate 

 white and black ftripes. Briff. quad. 183.— Meles, Taxus, Taffus, Bkrellus, Jazwiec, Borfuk. Rzac- 

 zinlki, Polon. 233. — Grey Coatr, Short-tailed Coati, Taxus, Meles, Tax. Klein, quad. 73.— Bad- 

 ger, Blaireau, or Taifibn. Sm. BufF. iv. 226. pi. lxvii. — Common Badger. Perm. hift. of quad. 

 n. 179. Erit. zool. i. 64. D°. illuft. tab. Iii. Weir's Muf. — Tachs. Ridinger, jagd. thier. t. 17. 

 Its Anatomy. E. N. C. d. 2. a. 5. obf. 32. and d. 3. a. 3. obf. 163. 



The two following varieties are mentioned by authors. 





