146 
RODENTS. 
their young to maturity. He describes them as charming little pets, allowing 
themselves to be handled without making any attempts to bite, and readily taking 
food from the hand. 
The only other species of the genus Mus that can be noticed here 
other Species. ^wo, 0 ne of which is remarkable for its coloration, and the other 
on account of its habits. The Barbary striped mouse (if. barbarus ) is the most 
strikingly coloured member of the group, the ground-colour of the fur of the upper- 
parts being a yellowish brown, upon which are a number of longitudinal blackish 
brown stripes; the under-parts being pure white. This mouse inhabits Northern 
and Central Africa, being especially common in the Atlas Mountains, and also occurs 
in the desert regions of the interior as far as Kordofan. There appears to be 
nothing worthy of special note in its habits. 
The Australian brown-footed rat (if. fuscipes ) is remarkable as being nearly 
or quite as aquatic in its habits as the water-vole. 
The Bandicoot-Rats 
Genus Nesocia. 
The bandicoot-rats of Southern Asia differ from ordinary rats in the much 
greater width of their incisor and molar teeth, and also by the tubercles on the 
crowns of the latter being so completely connected as to form transverse ridges. 
Members of the genus extend from Palestine to Formosa, and from Ceylon to Central 
Asia; but they are most abundant in India and the adjacent regions. The great 
Indian bandicoot-rat {Nesocia banclicota) is the largest member of the subfamily, 
measuring from 12 to 15 inches from the tip of the snout to the root of the tail, 
and weighing between 2J and 3 lbs. It is common in cultivated districts and near 
human dwellings in most parts of India, although unknown in Lower Bengal. It 
is a burrower, like other species of the same genus, some of which turn up mounds 
of earth like mole-hills. When disturbed, this rat utters grunts like a pig; but it 
has far less pluck than the brown rat, and makes but a poor fight against a dog. 
Other Genera. 
There are about eleven other genera belonging to this family, of which a few 
of the more interesting may be briefly noticed. 
The bush-rats ( Golunda) are represented by one Indian and one 
Bush-Rats. . . v . / . 1 J 
African species, and are distinguished by the presence of a groove on 
the front of the upper incisor teeth. The length of the head and body in the 
Indian species {G. ellioti ) is about 41 inches, and that of the tail half an inch less. 
spiny Mice The s P n y m i ce (Acomys), of which there are several species of 
the approximate size of the house-mouse, are peculiar in having the 
hinder portion of the back covered with thick, rigid, grooved spines in lieu of hair, 
and thus look almost like minute hedgehogs. They are desert-loving creatures, 
ranging from Syria to Eastern Africa as far south as Mozambique, while a single 
example of one of the species has been found in Sind. 
