74 
CARNIVORES. 
of no possible use to it; and one instance is recorded where these animals removed 
and concealed the whole paraphernalia of an unoccupied hunter’s lodge, including 
such articles as guns, axes, knives, cooking vessels, and blankets. 
Dr. Coues states that the glutton “ may be captured in wooden 
capture. ^ ra p S s i m il ar to those used for martens, but of course made on a much 
larger scale, as the animal’s strength is enormous, even for its size. The traps are 
sometimes built with two doors; but so great is the cunning and sagacity of the 
beast, that the contrivance for its destruction must be very perfect. The traps 
should be covered up with pine-brush, and made to resemble a cache as much as 
possible, as the wolverene is then likely to break in and get caught. The bait, 
ordinarily the conspicuous feature of a trap, must in this instance be concealed, or 
the animal will either break in from behind or, failing in this, will pass on his way. 
It is sometimes also taken in steel traps, or by means of a set gun, but both these 
methods are uncertain.” 
The Skunks. 
Genera Mephitis and Conepatus. 
The handsome but ill-savoured skunks introduce us to the second great group 
of the present family, which includes the skunks, badgers, and their allies, and 
is characterised as follows. The feet are long, with straight toes, and the claws 
are blunt, but slightly curved and compressed, and quite incapable of retraction; 
those of the fore-feet being remarkable for their large size. The form of the 
molar tooth of the upper jaw is somewhat variable. Most of the members of this 
group are terrestrial and fossorial in their habits. 
The skunks, of which there are several species, are an exclusively American 
group, of which all but one are referred to the genus Mephitis; our example on 
page 76 being the exception, and forming the genus Conepatus. 
The typical forms have 34 teeth, of which |\ are incisors, y canines, premolars, 
and | molars; and the whole of them are easily recognised by their large bushy 
tails, usually carried over the back, and their general black colour variegated with 
white stripes on the back; this coloration being another instance of the tendency 
of the upper part of the body to be lighter than the lower among many members 
of the family. 
Common Skunk. 
The common skunk {Mephitis mephitica ) is an inhabitant of 
Northern and Central America, ranging from Hudson’s Bay in the 
north to Guatemala in the south, and it may be compared in size to a rather small 
cat, the length of the head and body always exceeding a foot, although there is 
considerable local variation in this respect. It is a stoutly-built animal, with a 
small head, short and rounded ears, a moderately-elongated body, and legs of 
medium length; the mode of walking being partially plantigrade. The long and 
bushy tail is thickly clothed with very long and fine hair, and is, as already 
mentioned, generally carried curled over the back when the animal is walking. 
Its length, inclusive of the hair, is somewhat less than that of the head and body. 
The general colour of the moderately long hair of the body is black or blackish; 
