WILD MICE AND RATS 
83 
the spur roots, standing on their hind legs while 
they work. Then, with their huge, chisel-like 
incisors they cut out chips, circling round the 
trunk all the while, until only the heart of the 
trunk remains, and the tree falls. 
THE FAMILY OF MICE AND RATS. 
Muridae. 
When their groups and relationships are fairly 
understood, the wild mice and rats will be found 
quite interesting. They are so widely distrib- 
uted it is very desirable that country-dwellers 
should know something about them, and ap- 
preciate their good points as well as their bad 
ones. A moderate effort, properly aided and 
encouraged, will give anyone a fair conception 
of the grand divisions of this great group ; and 
there the general student can stop, if lie so elects. 
In approaching this assemblage of North 
American mammals, the first thought is that its 
members are difficult to deal with. In some 
respects they are, but they are by no means as 
difficult as might be supposed. Like many other 
new subjects, they yield to a little old-fashioned 
study. It is not necessary for the general student 
to enter into the study of a large number of spe- 
cies. Lay the foundation first by becoming ac- 
quainted with each genus, and one typical species. 
Observe the following injunctions: 
1. Treat this bit of study with serious atten- 
tion. 
2. Learn first the names of the Families, and 
the approximate size of each Family. 
3. Next learn by rote, in regular order, the 
common names of the typical examples given. 
4. Learn some of the distinguishing characters 
of each example. 
5. Study the comparative sizes of the various 
types. 
6. Finally, in determining the name of a 
strange species, do not fed that you must name it 
instantly, or be disgraced! Take time to think 
over it, and to “look it up.” Snap judgments 
on small creatures have a most annoying habit 
of proving to be wrong. It is a wise judge who 
knows when to hand down a decision. 
In order to make the genera of North American 
rats and mice clear to the student, I have pro- 
cured from Dr. C. Hart Merriam, the highest 
living authority on these creatures, a fine, per- 
fect, ,adult specimen of the best known (or most 
typical) species of each genus. Figures of these 
skins are here reproduced to show their relative 
sizes, and a life-like illustration of each of these 
types is also given. In the text, the most strik- 
ing distinguishing characters are printed in italics. 
With these aids to the text, it should be possi- 
ble for a clear-headed, keen-eyed student to refer 
any adult North American rat or mouse to its 
proper genus. But beware of young specimens! 
Often they are so puzzling that Solomon himself 
could not place them with any degree of certainty. 
In determining the species of mice and rats, 
mammalogists depend largely upon the charac- 
ters of the teeth; but that is a subject too intri- 
cate for the general student. 
The table on page 84 shows the various Fam- 
ilies of rats and mice, the North American gen- 
era, and the typical species of each. It is not 
necessary for young students to memorize the 
Latin names of the genera and species ; but those 
who become specially interested in natural his- 
tory will very soon desire to know them. 
The Muskrat , 1 which received its name from 
its very pronounced musky odor, is the largest 
native representative of the Mouse and Rat 
Family. It is readily recognized by its flat, 
hairless tail, carried on its edge. It is of large 
size, measuring about 21 inches in length. It is 
of aggressive habit, an admirable diver and 
swimmer, an industrious and intelligent house- 
builder, and the only native rat whose fur is val- 
uable. It is found from Labrador and New- 
foundland to Alaska, and southward to Arizona 
and Louisiana. 
It is very shrewd in preserving its own life, 
and even in the large forest parks of New York 
City, it refuses to be exterminated. When three 
bogs in the New York Zoological Park were dug 
out and converted into ponds, the wild Muskrats 
in the Bronx River found them as soon as they 
were completed, immediately took possession 
of them, and there they still remain. Being very 
destructive to lily bulbs, and most other aquatic 
plants, their presence in ornamental ponds is 
very objectionable. 
Muskrats are rarely, if ever, found away from 
ponds or good-sized streams. They are quite as 
much at home in the water as beavers, and their 
1 Fiber zibethicus. 
