194 THE OBSERVER. 



i 1 



like the wild cherry^ sassafras, sycamore, butternut, locust, and nu- 

 merous shrubs assist in ' forming the scattered groves and roadside 

 thickets. I 



As might be expected with all the protection afforded by rocky 

 ledges, forests, undergrowth, briers, and other retreats of nature, the 

 smaller mammals are well represented in the region. 



The following list of mammals is based on observations extend- 

 ing over a considerable number of years, and made for the most part 

 prior to the year 1885. 



Didelphis virginianus. Opossum. — Strictly speaking this animal 

 should not be included in the present list, because as far as known it 

 has never been taken in Westchester County. Nevertheless it is toler- 

 ably common in Rockland and Orange Counties, two or three miles to 

 the westward, and is only prevented from entering our domain by that 

 ideal but insuperable barrier, the Hudson River. This broad, deep, 

 powerful stream so dreaded by the old Dutch sailors of New Amster- 

 dam, seems likewise to be feared and avoided by the equally slow-going 

 opossum. 



Sorex personatus. Common Shrew. — The common shrew is rather 

 rare and is the only one of the long-tailed species found in the neigh- 

 borhood. Its scarcity however may be only apparent, and due wholly 

 or in part to our lack of skill in former days, in trapping it success- 

 fully. The majority of specimens were secured from birds of prey. 

 On one occasion, April 18, 1885, two were found in the stomach of a 

 red-tailed hawk. It is probable that the little animal dwells usually in 

 cool boggy or sphagnum swamps, though it has been taken in dry up- 

 land thickets in other localities. 



Blarhia brevicauda. Short-tailed Shrew. — A common species. 

 Almost anywhere in the woods its tunnels may be found running hither 

 and thither under the matting of dry leaves or old decayed logs. In 

 the open meadows it is less common though occasionally found, at- 

 tracted there no doubt by the meadow mice or other favorite food. 



Scalops aquaticus. Common Mole. — Common in the meadows and 

 lawns. It is when inhabiting the latter localities that we hear the most 

 complaint about the mole. This is especially true where the soil is so 

 light that the upheaved grass roots along the tops of the wandering 

 tunnels are endangered from lack of moisture. As far as known the 

 mole is wholly insectivorous and does not mqlest vegetables of tubers 

 of any kind, though it may indirectly injure young plants by burrowing 

 near them. As soon as the frost leaves the ground in the spring the 

 moles follow the earth worms towards the surface, and seem more ac- 

 tive in extending their galleries than at any other time of year. 



