184 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



life. This plan has been successfully adopted with the Wombats 

 at the Amsterdam Zoological Gardens, and I have also seen it 

 employed for Marmots. If, however, the owner is afraid that 

 the material supplied may cave in and smother the workers, a 

 more convenient plan is to place a large box well filled with hay 

 in the centre of the enclosure. Holes are cut in the sides of 

 the box for ingress and egress, and a few drain-pipes are substi- 

 tuted for the burrows, the whole being artistically concealed by 

 rockwork. This method allows the owner to inspect the inside 

 of the box at any time by removing a stone or two and raising 

 the lid ; it has, however, the disadvantage of hardly being a 

 natural arrangement. Care must be taken that the central 

 dwelling-place is kept dry and warm, and that the surroundings 

 do not harbour damp in wet weather. 



Muscardinus avellanarius (Dormouse). — The Common Dor- 

 mouse is one of the few British mammals regularly kept in 

 captivity, and with its large beady eyes, tawny fur, and almost 

 Squirrel-like tail is deservedly a favourite. I have several times 

 found mine dying without any obvious cause. These invalids 

 for a day or two before death would lie semi-torpid on the floor 

 of the cage, scarcely breathing at all, and hardly indeed to be 

 induced by any means to quicken their respiration. One, in 

 fact, was semi-paralysed, dragging itself across the floor with 

 great difficulty, and only lived a few days after the disease became 

 marked. Perhaps some epidemic affects these animals in the 

 autumn, as is the case with the Common Shrew. Remarks on 

 the treatment of these well-known pets will be scarcely necessary. 

 I would point out that by introducing a small branch of a tree 

 into their cage, the clasping action of the foot-pads may be 

 studied. Mine were fed on apples and bread. They do not 

 gnaw woodwork like most rodents, neither do they bite. 



Dipusjaculus (Egyptian Jerboa). — A quaint little furry figure, 

 running like a wee sprite in the moonlight and continually 

 stopping to examine objects in its path with busy inquisitive- 

 ness — such is the Egyptian Jerboa. Rat-like in body, bird-like 

 in movements, its tiny person is supported on an absurd pair of 

 stilt legs and a Kangaroo tail. In the daytime the Jerboa is a 

 soft ball of fur asleep in its box ; at night its activity is a 

 remarkable contrast to its diurnal lethargy, as it flits like a 



