19 
Another large family of the smaller carnivora is the Mits- 
telidce , which are largely represented in the New World ; most 
of the fur-bearing animals, such as the otter, mink, sable, 
marten, and skunk being found within its limits. Some of 
the South American forms, as the Tayra ( Galictis Barbara) 
and Orison (G . vittata ), and the Indian Ratel ( Mellivora 
indica ), which require artificial warmth in winter, are kept in 
this building. 
The order Insectivora is not easy to define, as its members 
present such a diversity of characters that most of them have at 
times been placed in other orders. They are all of small size, 
and feed chiefly on insects and other invertebrates. A famil¬ 
iar example is the common mole. A rare and curious mem¬ 
ber is the Solenodon ( Solenodon cubanus ), from Cuba, 
nearly related to the shrews. Another strange form, the 
Tenrec ( Centetes ecandatus ), comes from Madagascar. A 
better known insectivore is the Common European Hedge¬ 
hog ( Erinaceus europens). This curious little animal is found 
in almost all parts of Europe, in the colder portions hiber¬ 
nating through the winter months. 
Few articles of food come amiss to the hedgehog, although 
its tastes are mainly carnivorous,—worms, insects, moles, 
small mammals, birds, and eggs being its chief diet, while in 
many parts of Europe the common people have a strange be¬ 
lief that it sucks the milk of cows when they lie down in the 
pasture or the barn-yard, of course, without foundation in fact. 
The Rodentia is a very large order, characterized by the 
absence of canine teeth and the development of the incisors 
to so great a degree that they resemble chisels, and are used 
by the animal for the purpose of cutting wood and other hard 
substances, from which is derived their name— Rodentia or 
gnawers. Representatives of this order are found all over 
the world, North America having a large proportion of the 
whole number of species. Many of the occupants of this 
building belong to this group; among them are generally 
the Punctated Agouti ( Dasyprocta punctata) from Central 
America, the Golden Agouti (Z>. aguti ), the Mexican 
Agouti ( D . mexicana), the Olive Agouti or Acouchy ( D . 
acouchy) from South America and the West Indies, the Paca 
or Spotted Cavy (^Cczlogenyspaca), and Fournier’s Capromys 
( Capromys pilorides). 
