THE STORY OF THE PRAIRIE DOG . 
203 
extends from the mountains of Yarkand and other parts of Turkestan to 
Ladak and Eastern Thibet, where it is usually found at elevations of from 
twelve thousand to thirteen thousand feet. The largest and handsomest 
of the Old World group is, however, the long-tailed red marmot, in which 
the length of the head and body is about twenty-four inches, and that of 
the tail fully half as much. The Alpine marmot is twenty inches, and the 
bobac fifteen. The Himalayan marmot may be met with on the mountain- 
A FAMILY OF BOBACS. 
ranges to the north of the valley of Kashmir, and thence to Gilgit in one 
direction, and parts of Ladak in the other, while it is also said to extend 
far into Central Asia. Other kindred but smaller species are the Cabul 
marmot from Northern Afghanistan, and the golden marmot from the 
mountains to the west of Yarkand. 
The districts inhabited by all the marmots of the Old World are desolate 
