354 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
jaw. It is separated by a small space from the last of the smaller anterior teeth, and is followed by 
three true molars, two of which are large, and furnished with four or five sharp tubercles, while the 
third is small, and shows only one strong point. 
In the Common Hedgehog, as in most species of the genus Erinaceus, the feet are all composed of 
five toes ; the legs are short, so that the animal runs along with its belly nearly touching the ground ; 
the spines, with which the whole upper surface is covered, are hard, sharp, round, about an inch in 
length, of a dirty-wliite colour, with a dark-brown or nearly black ring a little above the middle ; the 
nose is black, and the unspined parts of the body are clothed with coarse yellowish-white hair. The 
ears are small and rounded. The total length of the adult Hedgehog is usually about ten inches. 
The Hedgehog inhabits the whole of Europe except Scandinavia and the north of Eussia. It is 
found in the Caucasus, but does not appear to extend further into Asia. It lives both in the low 
country and in the mountains, ascending, in the Alps and Carpathians, to an elevation of above 6,000 
feet. It may be met with in almost all situations, in forests, woods, fields, gardens, and orchards, 
THE HEDGEHOG. 
where it takes up its abode in thickets, in hedge-bottoms, and even in holes in walls. In such 
situations it passes its days in sleep, for it is, strictly speaking, a nocturnal animal, although on rare 
occasions it may be seen abroad in the day-time. In similar situations it passes the whole winter in a 
profound slumber, forming a nest for itself of moss or leaves, sometimes under the smaller growth of 
woods and gardens, sometimes in a hedge-bank, in the hollows and among the bare roots of trees, and 
in holes among rocks or in walls. The nest most commonly consists in whole or in part of withered 
leaves, which appear to be useful in keeping out the wet, and as the innermost leaves are impaled upon 
the animal’s spines, it retains a thin coat of leaves when turned out of its winter-nest. 
As the spring advances, the Hedgehog rouses itself from its long sleep, and proceeds to make up 
for the enforced abstinence from food which it has undergone for so many weeks. It comes forth in 
the evening, and runs about pretty quickly, but with a curious shuffling gait, in search of the insects 
and other small animals which constitute its usual prey. Insects, and particularly Beetles, appear to 
form the greater part of its diet, and its teeth are admirably adapted for pounding up the hard skins of 
these creatures. In consequence of their predilection for insect food, great numbers of Hedgehogs are 
brought to London and other great towns, to be kept in houses for the purpose of destroying the Cock- 
roaches (Blackbeetles, as they are commonly called) which are such disagreeable inmates of most 
kitchens. In the pursuit of these insects the Hedgehog shows much activity, and Mr. Bell says that 
he has “ seen a Hedgehog, in a London kitchen, push its way beneath a piece of carpet in all directions, 
and heard it at intervals crushing up the Cockroaches which it met with. In a short time it freed the 
place of these pests.” Sometimes, however, this consummation is not quite so easily attained, and we 
