MOLES. 
337 
resemble the common European mole, with which they also agree in that, during 
the late autumn, when the surface of the ground becomes frozen, they follow the 
worms downwards until a plane is reached where the frost has not penetrated. By 
following the ridge of loose earth which marks the progress of one of these moles 
in a garden, and quickly sinking a spade in the creature’s path, a few inches in 
advance of the moving earth, it is frequently possible to turn a specimen out upon 
the surface. So quickly, however, do these animals pass through the soft soil of a 
garden, that the spade, although aimed several inches in front of the moving earth, 
will not unfrequently cut them in two. 
Although the precise function of the peculiar disc of tentacles round the muzzle 
is not yet definitely ascertained, it appears highly probable that it acts as a sensitive 
organ of touch to aid its owner in discovering the whereabouts of the worms and 
insects encountered during its subterranean wanderings. In the newly-born young 
these tentacles are so small as to be scarcely perceptible. A nest examined by Dr. 
Merriam contained three young ones. 
The True Moles. 
Genus Talpa. 
The Old World moles may be at once distinguished from all their North 
American cousins by having the first upper incisor tooth scarcely larger than the 
second. With the exception of a single species from Eastern Tibet, the whole of 
the Old World moles are included in the genus Talpa, of which the typical 
representative is the common European mole (T. europcea). The members of this 
genus, nine in number, are distributed over temperate Europe and Asia, two of the 
Asiatic species being found to the south of the 
Himalaya. As a rule, there is the typical number 
of forty-four teeth, but a few of the species have 
not quite so many, owing to the loss either of the 
lower canine tooth or of the first upper premolar; 
while in one species the first premolar is wanting 
in both jaws. All are characterised by the width 
of the fore-foot. 
As we entered at considerable length into 
the structure and habits of some of the American moles, our remarks on those 
of the Old World may be comparatively brief, as there is a great similarity 
between the two. It is remarkable that, as the European hedgehog differs from 
all the other species of its genus, so the European mole is distinguished from all its 
congeners by the absence of a membrane covering the eyes. Nearly or all the 
moles are normally black in colour, with a more or less pronounced greyish lustre 
when viewed in certain lights \ but pied, buff, or white varieties are not very 
uncommon. The naked feet are flesh-coloured. The different species of moles show 
considerable variation as regards the relative length of the tail. Thus, whereas in 
the European mole the length of the head and body is about 5 inches and that of 
the tail 1 inch, in the Himalayan short-tailed mole (T. micrura ) the naked tail is 
UPPER AND LOWER SURFACE OF RIGHT 
FORE-FOOT OF MOLE. 
VOL. I. 2 2 
