This extensive genus may be considered as truly cosmopolitan. One or more

species occur in every part of the American continent from Greenland

to Patagonia and the Falkland Isles; and similarly, in the Old World,

Europe, Africa, and Asia, with most of the large islands adjacent, and

even Australia, have their wild Dogs, though in the last case they may

belong to a feral race, introduced originally by man. They are generally

sociable animals, hunting their prey in packs. Many species burrow in

the ground; none habitually climb trees. Though mostly carnivorous,

feeding chiefly on animals they have chased and killed themselves, many,

especially among the smaller species, eat garbage, carrion, insects, and

also fruit, berries, and other vegetable substances. The species are

very numerous, and, as in most other large genera, very ill-defined,

few zoologists agreeing as to which of the many slightly different

modifications should be considered as local varieties and which true

species. Perhaps the best cranial character by which the different

members of the genus can be distinguished is that pointed out by

Burmeister, viz. that in the animals generally called Dogs, Wolves, and

Jackals the postorbital process of the frontal bone is regularly smooth

and convex above, with its extremity bent downwards, whereas in Foxes

this process is hollowed above, with its outer margin (particularly of

the anterior border) somewhat raised. This modification coincides in the

main with that upon which Professor Huxley[473] has based his division

of the group into two parallel series, the Thooids or Lupine forms and

Alopecoids or Vulpine forms, which he characterises by the presence of

frontal air-sinuses in the former, which not only affect the external

contour but to a still greater degree the shape of the anterior part of

the cranial cavity, and the absence of such sinuses in the latter. The

pupil of the eye when contracted is round in most members of the first

group, and vertically elliptical in the others, but more observations are

required before this character can be absolutely relied upon. The form

and length of the tail is often used for the purposes of classification,

but its characters do not coincide with those of the cranium, since many

of the South American _Canidæ_ have the long bushy tails of Foxes and

the skulls of Wolves. Taking into account various combinations of these

and other minor characters, the species may be arranged in the following

groups, which some authors have considered as of generic importance.

A. _Thooid or Lupine Series._—The typical group, or _Canis_ proper,

contains the largest members of the genus, the true Wolves of the

northern parts of both Old and New Worlds (_C. lupus_, etc.), the

Jackals of Southern Asia and Africa (_C. aureus_, _mesomelas_, etc.),

and the various breeds of the domestic Dog (_C. familiaris_). The true

Wolves are (excluding some varieties of the domestic Dog) the largest

members of the genus, and have a wide geographical range, extending over

nearly the whole of Europe and Asia, and North America from Greenland

to Mexico, but they are not found in South America or Africa, being

replaced in both of these continents by various species of Jackals and

Foxes. As might be expected from this extensive range, and the varied

character of the climatic conditions of the countries they inhabit, they

present great diversities of size, length and thickness of fur, and

coloration, although resembling each other in all important structural

characters. These differences have given rise to a supposed multiplicity

of species, expressed by the names of _C. lupus_, _C. lycaon_ (Central

Europe), _C. laniger_ and _C. niger_ (Tibet), _C. pallipes_ (India), _C.

occidentalis_, _C. nubilis_, _C. mexicanus_, etc., of North America, but

it is very doubtful whether some of these ought to be distinguished as

other than local varieties. Mr. W. T. Blanford, in his recent work on the

mammals of India, regards the two forms from Tibet mentioned above as

inseparable from _C. lupus_. In North America there is a very distinct

smaller species, called the Coyote or Prairie Wolf (_C. latrans_);

and perhaps the Japanese Wolf (_C. hodophylax_) may also be distinct,

although, except for its smaller size and shorter legs, it is scarcely

distinguishable from the common species. Though generally distributed

throughout the Indian peninsula, the Indian Wolf (_C. pallipes_), which

is rather smaller and slighter than _C. lupus_, is not found in Ceylon,

nor in Burma and Siam. The ordinary colour of the Common Wolf is a

yellowish or fulvous gray, but specimens have been met with almost pure

white and others entirely black. In northern countries the fur is longer

and thicker, and the animal generally larger and more powerful than in

the southern portion of its range; this being especially the case with

the Tibetan races. The habits of the Wolf are similar everywhere, and it

is still, and has been from time immemorial, especially known to man in

all the countries it inhabits as the devastator of his flocks of sheep.

They do not catch their prey by lying in ambush, or stealing up close to

it and making a sudden spring as the Cat tribe do, but by fairly running

it down in open chase, which their speed and remarkable endurance enable

them to do; and usually, except during summer, when the young families of

cubs are being separately provided for by their parents, they assemble in

troops or packs, and by their combined and persevering efforts are able

to overpower and kill even such great animals as the American Bison. It

is singular that such closely allied species as the Domestic Dog and the

Arctic Fox are among the favourite prey of Wolves, and, as is well known,

children and even full-grown people are not unfrequently the objects

of their attack when pressed by hunger. Notwithstanding the proverbial

ferocity of the Wolf in a wild state, many instances are recorded of

animals taken when quite young becoming perfectly tame and attached to

the person who has brought them up, when they exhibit many of the ways of

a Dog. They can, however, rarely be trusted by strangers.

The history of the Wolf in the British Isles and its gradual extirpation

has been thoroughly investigated by Mr. J. E. Harting in his work on

_Extinct British Animals_, from which the following account is abridged:

To judge by the osteological remains which the researches of geologists

have brought to light, there was perhaps scarcely a county in England

or Wales in which, at one time or another, wolves did not abound, while

in Scotland and Ireland they must have been still more numerous. The

fossil remains which have been discovered in Britain are not larger

than, nor in any way to be distinguished from, those of European wolves

of the present day. Wolf-hunting was a favourite pursuit of the ancient

Britons as well as of the Anglo-Saxons. In Athelstan’s reign these

animals abounded to such an extent in Yorkshire that a retreat was

built by one Acehorn, at Flixton, near Filey, wherein travellers might

seek refuge if attacked by them. As is well known, great efforts were

made by King Edgar to reduce the number of wolves in the country, but,

notwithstanding the annual tribute of 300 skins paid to him during

several years by the king of Wales, he was not altogether so successful

as has been commonly imagined. In the reign of Henry III the number of

wolves in some parts of the country was sufficient to induce the king to

make grants of land to various individuals upon the express condition of

their taking measures to destroy these animals wherever they could be

found. In Edward II’s time the king’s forest of the Peak, in Derbyshire,

is especially mentioned as infested with wolves, and it was not until the

reign of Henry VII (1485-1509) that wolves appear to have become finally

extinct in England. This, however, is rather a matter of inference from

the cessation of all mention of them in local records than from any

definite evidence of their extirpation. Their last retreat was probably

in the desolate wolds of Yorkshire. In Scotland, as might be supposed

from the nature of the country, the wolf maintained its hold for a much

longer period. There is a well-known story of the last of the race being

killed by Sir Ewen Cameron of Lochiel in 1680, but there is evidence

of wolves having survived in Sutherlandshire and other parts into the

following century (perhaps as late as 1743), though the date of their

final extinction cannot be accurately fixed. In Ireland, in Cromwell’s

time, wolves were particularly troublesome, and said to be increasing in

numbers, so that special measures were taken for their destruction, such

as the offering of large rewards for their heads, and the prohibition

(in 1652) of the exportation of “wolf-dogs,” the large dogs used for

hunting the wolves. The active measures taken then and later reduced

their numbers greatly, so that towards the end of the century they became

scarce, but, as in the case of the sister island, the date of their final

disappearance cannot now be ascertained. It has been placed, upon the

evidence of somewhat doubtful traditions, as late as 1766.

Remains of _C. lupus_ are common in the European Pleistocene; while the

Indian Pliocene _C. cautleyi_, of which the upper teeth are shown in Fig.

251, was probably the ancestor of _C. pallipes_. _C. neschersensis_, of

the Upper Pliocene of France, was a smaller extinct Wolf. A lower jaw

from the French Pleistocene, described under the name of _Lycorus_, has

only three premolars, but evidently belongs to the Wolf.

The Jackals are smaller than the Wolves, with the bushy tail about

one-third the length of the head and body, and the carnassials relatively

shorter as compared with the tubercular molars. The Common Jackal

(_C. aureus_, Fig. 252) has a very wide distribution, ranging from

South-Eastern Europe through South-Western Asia to India and Burma, and

also occurring in Northern Africa; being replaced in the Ethiopian region

by closely allied species. Remains indistinguishable from _C. aureus_

occur in the Pliocene Siwaliks of Northern India. Jackals hunt at night

in packs, uttering the piercing cries so well known to all who have

resided in countries where these animals are found.

The origin of the Domestic Dog, with its numerous breeds, has been

the subject of much controversy. Some naturalists believe it to be a

distinct species, descended from one that no longer exists in a wild

state; others have sought to find its progenitors in some one of the wild

or feral races, either of true Dogs, Wolves, or Jackals; while others

again believe that it is derived from the mingling of two or more wild

species or races. It was probably the earliest animal domesticated by

man, and few if any other species have undergone such an extraordinary

amount of variation in size, form, and proportion of limbs, ears, and

tail—variations which have been perpetuated and increased by careful

selective breeding. The Dingo or Australian Dog is met with wild, and

also as the domestic companion of the aboriginal people. Dogs were also

in the possession of the natives of New Zealand and other islands of the

Pacific, where no placental mammals exist naturally, on their discovery

by Europeans in the last century.

[Illustration: FIG. 252.—The Jackal (_Canis aureus_).]

The second group includes the wild Dogs of the south-east of Asia,

described as _Cyon_, and distinguished by slight modifications as _C.

rutilans_, _C. dukhunensis_, and _C. javanicus_, and differing from the

above in wanting the small last lower tubercular molar. This difference

reduces the number of the teeth to the same as in _Viverra_, and

is precisely paralleled by some of the species of the extinct genus

_Cynodictis_ mentioned below. The muzzle is shorter than in other

species, and the facial profile is slightly convex instead of concave.

The mammæ are also 12 or 14 instead of the normal 10; while there is

long hair between the foot-pads. Wild Dogs inhabit not only the whole

of the Oriental region, but extend into Central Asia as far north as

the Altai and Amurland (_C. alpinus_). _C. dukhunensis_ ranges from the

forest regions of peninsular India to Gilgit and Western Tibet, where it

must inhabit open country. In their general form, and more especially

the shortness of the legs, these animals come nearer to the Jackals than

to the Wolves. They hunt their prey in packs. Remains of species of

this group occur in the cavern-deposits of the Continent, and have been

described under the name of _C. europæus_.

A group for which the name _Lycalopex_ has been proposed comprises

certain South American _Canidæ_, distinguished from _Canis_ proper

by their longer tails and Fox-like aspect:—_C. cancrivorus_, _C.

brasiliensis_, _C. melampus_, _C. vetulus_, _C. fulvicaudus_, _C.

azaræ_, _C. magellanicus_, _C. griseus_. The last three have been

further separated (under the name of _Pseudalopex_) on account of slight

differences in the relative size of the molar teeth, and of their pupil

being elliptical when contracted. _Nyctereutes_ (one species, _C.

procyonides_, from Japan and North-East Asia) has no claims to generic

distinction but such as are founded upon its long loose fur, short ears,

and short bushy tail, which give it some superficial resemblance to a

Raccoon.

B. _Alopecoid or Vulpine Series._—The _Vulpine_ group (_Vulpes_) includes

the true Foxes, of which there are numerous varieties and species, spread

over North America, Eurasia, and Africa, which have been described under

the names of _C. vulpes_ (_Vulpes alopex_), the common Fox of Europe;

_C. niloticus_, _adustus_, and _variegatus_, Africa; _C. flavescens_,

_montanus_, _bengalensis_, _japonicus_, _corsac_, Asia; _C. fulvus_,

_macrurus_, _velox_, North America. Mr. Blanford[474] concludes, however,

that the Asiatic _C. flavescens_ and _C. montanus_, and very probably

the North American Cross-Fox (_C. fulvus_) are merely local races of

_C. vulpes_, distinguished by certain peculiarities of coloration. The

English Fox measures about 2 feet in length exclusive of the tail, which

is about a foot long. Its fur is of a reddish-brown colour above, and

more or less white beneath; the back of the ears and the fore part of

the limbs are black, and the tip of its bushy tail is white. Its long,

sharp muzzle, erect pointed ears, and sharp eye, give it the well-known

appearance of sagacity and cunning. The Fox is a solitary animal,

inhabiting a burrow, which it either excavates for itself, or obtains by

ejecting the badger or the rabbit. So averse, indeed, is the Fox to dig

for itself, that when foiled in its attempts to dispossess the badger,

it has been known to take up its quarters with the latter, and it can be

induced to make its home in artificial burrows constructed of stone and

earth for the purpose of facilitating the operation of digging out the

cubs. The Fox also occurs in woods, and even in the open country without

burrows, lying in its “cover” by day and stealing forth at night in

search of its prey. Remains of the Common Fox occur not unfrequently in

the Pleistocene deposits of Europe. The Indian _C. bengalensis_ is a very

much smaller and well-marked species.

The tail of the above forms is clothed with soft fur and long hair,

uniformly mixed; from them Baird distinguishes, under the name of

_Urocyon_, other species which have a concealed erect mane of stiff hairs

along the upper line of the tail. These have also a shorter muzzle and a

wide space between the temporal crests; they are _C. virginianus_ and _C.

littoralis_, both from North America. The Arctic Fox (_C. lagopus_, genus

_Leucocyon_, Gray) has the tail very full and bushy and the soles of the

feet densely furred below. Its colour changes according to season from

bluish-gray to pure white.

Certain small elegant African Foxes (_C. zerda_, _famelicus_, and

_chama_), with very large ears and corresponding large auditory bullæ,

have been separated under the name of _Fennecus_, and are commonly known

as Fennecs.

The earliest undoubted occurrence of the genus _Canis_ seems to be in the

Upper Miocene of Switzerland, where it is represented by the Fox-like _C.

œningensis_. In the Upper Pliocene of France _C. megamastoides_ is said

to be allied to the Foxes and Jackals, but with some signs of affinity to

the extinct _Cynodictis_. In the Pliocene Siwaliks of India there occurs

_C. curvipalatus_, of the size of a small Fox, which appears to have

certain resemblances to _Otocyon_.

_Lycaon._[475]—This genus resembles in most of its characters the Dogs

of the Lupine series, but the teeth are rather more massive and rounded,

the skull is shorter and broader, and there are but four toes on each

limb, as in _Hyæna_. The one species, _L. pictus_, the Cape Hunting

Dog (Fig. 253) from South and East Africa, is very distinct externally

from all the other _Canidæ_. It is nearly as large as a Mastiff, with

large, broadly ovate erect ears, and singularly coloured, being not only

variable in different individuals, but unsymmetrically marked with large

spots of white, yellow, and black. It presents some curious superficial

resemblances to _Hyæna crocuta_, perhaps a case of mimetic analogy.

It hunts its prey in large packs. A lower jaw from a cave-deposit in

Glamorganshire, which agrees with that of the existing form in the

presence of an anterior cusp to the last lower premolar, has been made

the type of a distinct species (_L. anglicus_).

_Icticyon._[476]—The Bush-Dog (_I. venaticus_), from Guiana and Brazil,

is a species about the size of a Fox, with close hair, and short legs and

tail, distinguished from all other Dogs by the reduction of the molar

teeth to ¹⁄₂, and their comparatively small size. The lower carnassial

is also characterised by the loss of the inner cusp of the blade, and

the secant form of its hind talon; both these features indicating a

specialised type. Remains of the Bush-Dog are found in the Pleistocene

cavern-deposits of Brazil, and were originally described under the name

of _Speothos_.

[Illustration: FIG. 253.—The Cape Hunting Dog (_Lycaon pictus_).]

_Otocyon._[477]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ³⁻⁴⁄₄; total 46

or 48. The molar teeth are thus in excess of any other living heterodont

mammal. They have the same general characters as in _Canis_, with

very pointed cusps. The lower carnassial shows little of its typical

characters, having five cusps on the surface; these can, however, be

identified as the inner cusp, the two greatly reduced and obliquely

placed lobes of the blade, and two cusps on the talon. The skull

generally resembles that of the smaller Foxes, particularly the Fennecs.

The auditory bullæ are very large. The hinder edge of the mandible has

a very peculiar form, owing to the great development of an expanded,

compressed, and somewhat inverted subangular process. Vertebræ: C 7, D

13, L 7, S 3, C 22. Ears very large. Limbs rather long. Toes 5-4. One

species, _O. megalotis_, from South Africa, rather smaller than a common

Fox.

Professor Huxley looks upon this as the least differentiated or most

primitive existing form of the family, regarding the presence of the

four molar teeth as a survival of a condition of the dentition exhibited

by the common ancestors of the existing _Canidæ_ and the existing

carnivorous Marsupials. There is, however, at present no palæontological

proof of this, as none of the numerous fossil forms of _Canidæ_ yet

discovered have more than the normal number of molars.

_Extinct Genera._—A large number of fossil Carnivora have been described

from various Tertiary deposits which are more or less closely allied to

the existing _Canidæ_, although, as already mentioned, connecting the

latter so closely on the one hand with the _Viverridæ_ and on the other

hand with the _Ursidæ_, that it is almost, if not quite impossible to

say where one family begins and the other ends. A few only of the more

important of these annectant types will be mentioned here. _Temnocyon_,

of the Miocene of the United States, is a true Dog, which agrees with

_Icticyon_ in having a secant hind talon to the lower carnassial, but

preserves a generalised character in having an entepicondylar foramen

to the humerus. An extremely interesting form is _Cynodictis_, of

the Middle Tertiaries of Europe and the United States, which (as now

restricted by Dr. Schlosser) includes a number of species mostly not

larger than Foxes. The dental formula is generally the same as in

_Canis_, but (as in that genus) the last lower molar may be absent. The

teeth are very like those of _Viverridæ_, the lower carnassial never

being greatly elongated antero-posteriorly, and its inner cusp being

situated immediately on the inner side of the hinder lobe of the blade,

instead of somewhat behind it, as is the case in most Dogs. In the

skull the auditory bulla is inflated, but is said to have no distinct

septum; while the humerus invariably has an entepicondylar foramen. It

is suggested that _Cynodictis_ is not far removed from the ancestral

type of many of the Viverroids and Canoids, and may itself have been

derived from the under-mentioned genus _Amphicyon_. M. Boule considers,

indeed, that from the resemblance of the Pliocene _Canis megamastoides_

(p. 553) to _Cynodictis_ we ought to regard the Foxes and Jackals as the

descendants of _Cynodictis_, while the Wolves have been derived directly

from _Amphicyon_. The last named genus, which includes some species

as large as a Bear, is found in the Upper Eocene and Lower Miocene of

Europe, and is represented in the Miocene of the United States by the

allied _Daphœnus_. It is characterised by the presence of three upper

molars—thus bringing up the dental formula to the full Eutherian number;

by the five digits on all the feet, which were plantigrade; and by

the presence of a third trochanter to the femur and an entepicondylar

foramen to the humerus. The teeth are essentially those of a dog, and

the base of the skull is also dog-like, although it is highly probable

that the auditory bulla had no trace of a septum. According, however, to

Dr. Filhol[478] the minute foramina described by Professor Cope[479] in

the postparietal and mastoid which occur in _Ursus_, but are said to be

absent in _Canis_, are present in _Amphicyon_. So far, however, as we

can see, the presence or absence of those foramina cannot be regarded

as diagnostic of _Ursus_ and _Canis_, although they are generally more

strongly developed in the former. _Amphicyon_ may, indeed, be considered

as a very generalised Dog, with affinities to the Bears in the structure

of its limbs. _Dinocyon_ is a still larger form, from the Middle Miocene

of France, which, so far as its teeth are concerned, connects _Amphicyon_

with the Ursoid genus _Hyænarctus_ so closely as to render it absolutely

impossible to indicate any characters of family importance by which they

can be distinguished. The upper carnassial of _Dinocyon_ is unknown. For

other genera, see p. 562.

_Section_ ARCTOIDEA.

[Illustration: FIG. 254.—Right half of the palatal aspect of the cranium

of the Raccoon (_Procyon lotor_). Letters as in Fig. 8, p. 38. (From the

_Proc. Zool. Soc._ 1869, p. 10.)]

This section includes a considerable number of forms which agree in the

essential characteristics of the structures of the base of the cranium

and reproductive organs, and in the absence of a cæcum to the intestinal

canal. They have no Cowper’s glands, but there is a rudimentary prostate

and a large cylindrical penial bone; while all the members of the group

have five completely developed toes on each foot. Considerable diversity

is found in the characters of the base of the skull in the various forms,

but the following features are common to all. The cavity of the auditory

bulla is simple, and has no trace of a dividing septum; the inferior lip

of the auditory meatus (_am_, Fig. 254) is considerably prolonged; the

paroccipital process (_p_) of the exoccipital is more or less triangular,

directed backwards, outwards, and downwards, and standing quite apart

from the bulla; the mastoid process (_m_) of the periotic is always

widely separated from the paroccipital, and generally very prominent;

the carotid foramen (_car_) is large, and placed on the inner margin of

the bulla, usually near the middle, but occasionally more posteriorly;

the condyloid foramen is distinct and exposed, and never sunk into a

common opening with the foramen lacerum posticum; and the glenoid foramen

is always present, and usually conspicuous. The alisphenoid canal is

absent except in _Ursus_, _Melursus_, and _Ælurus_.

It has been already observed (p. 501) that the evidence of fossil forms,

so far as it goes, is not in favour of the Arctoidea being a natural

group; so that its retention must be regarded as a somewhat provisional

measure, largely based on its convenience. The group may be divided into

the three families, _Ursidæ_, _Procyonidæ_, and _Mustelidæ_.[480]

_Family_ URSIDÆ.

In existing forms the true molars ²⁄₃, with broad, flat tuberculated

crowns. Typically the three anterior premolars of both jaws rudimentary

and often deciduous. Fourth upper premolar (carnassial) with no third or

inner root. An alisphenoid canal (except in _Æluropus_). Skull with the

auditory bulla depressed, and scarcely at all inflated. Feet plantigrade.

No entepicondylar foramen to the humerus. Kidneys conglomerate.

Geographical distribution extensive.

_Ursus._[481]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ²⁄₃; total 42.

The three anterior premolars above and below one-rooted, rudimentary, and

frequently wanting. Usually the first (placed close to the canine) is

present, and after a considerable interval the third, which is situated

close to the other teeth of the molar series. The second is very rarely

present in the adult state. The fourth (upper carnassial) differs

essentially from the corresponding tooth of other Carnivores in wanting

the inner tubercle supported by a distinct root. Its sectorial characters

are very slightly marked, and it is much smaller than the first molar.

The crowns of both the true molars are longer than broad, with flattened,

tuberculated, grinding surfaces. The second has a large backward

prolongation or heel. The lower carnassial has a small and indistinct

blade and greatly developed tubercular heel. The second molar is of

about the same length, but with a broader and more flattened tubercular

crown. The third is smaller. The milk-teeth are comparatively small, and

shed at an early age. Skull more or less elongated. Orbits small and

incomplete behind. Palate prolonged considerably behind the last molar

tooth. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14, L 6, S 5, C 8-10. Body heavy. Feet broad,

completely plantigrade; the five toes on each foot all well developed,

and armed with long compressed and moderately curved non-retractile

claws. Palms and soles naked. Tail very short. Ears moderate, erect,

rounded, hairy. Fur generally long, soft, and shaggy.

[Illustration: FIG. 255.—Head of the Brown Bear (_Ursus arctos_). From

Sclater, _Proc. Zool. Soc._ 1867, p. 817.]

The Bears are all animals of considerable bulk, and include among them

the largest members of the order. Though the species are not numerous,

they are widely spread over the earth’s surface (but absent from the

Ethiopian and Australian regions, and only represented by one species in

the Neotropical region), and differ much among themselves in their food

and manner of life. They are mostly omnivorous or vegetable feeders, and

even the Polar Bear, usually purely carnivorous or piscivorous, devours

grass with avidity in summer. The various species maybe arranged in the

following groups:—

_Thalassarctine Group._—Head comparatively small, molar teeth small and

narrow. Soles more covered with hair than in the others. This group is

represented only by the well-known Polar or White Bear (_U. maritimus_)

of the Arctic regions, which is one of the few mammals which are

completely white at all seasons of the year.

The typical, or _Ursine_, group includes a number of species, of which

the Common Brown Bear (_U. arctos_) is the best known example. This

species is an exceedingly variable one, and has a very wide range in

the Palæarctic region; the Syrian form described as _U. syriacus_, as

well as the Hairy-eared Bear (_U. piscator_, Fig. 255) of North-Eastern

Asia, and the Snow-Bear (_U. isabellinus_) of Kashmir and Nipal, not

being specifically separable. The Brown Bear hibernates in cold regions,

and in the Himalaya keeps to comparatively high regions, emerging

from its winter lair in March, April, or May, according to the season

and elevation, to feed on the numerous bulbous plants which abound in

the regions it inhabits. Both the Syrian and Himalayan varieties are

generally of lighter colour and smaller size than the typical European

form. Bears were at one time found in the British Isles, from which,

however, they have been long since exterminated. They are still found in

the Pyrenees, and are comparatively abundant in parts of Norway, Hungary,

and Russia. In the Kashmir Himalaya they were very abundant in some

districts a few years ago, one of the present writers having in 1874 seen

no less than seven examples at one time from the top of a mountain ridge;

of late years their numbers have, however, been greatly diminished. The

Brown Bear, although with strong powers of smelling, is very slow of

sight and hearing, and in the Himalaya it is easy to approach so near

that they may be shot with a smooth-bore gun. The Grizzly Bear (_U.

horribilis_) of North America is so closely allied to the Brown Bear

that some writers think it should only rank as a very well-marked local

variety. The Black Bears of the Himalaya (_U. torquatus_), Japan (_U.

japonicus_), and North America (_U. americanus_) belong to this group.

The Himalayan species ranges from Persia to Assam, and thence to China

and Formosa. In the greater part of this area it is essentially a forest

animal, and may be found in autumn in the forests of the Kashmir valley

feeding upon chestnuts and other fruits. It is also exceedingly fond

of maize, mulberries, and walnuts; and a few years ago it was no very

uncommon sight to see three or even five of these bears up a single

mulberry or walnut tree in Kashmir. The Spectacled Bear (_U. ornatus_) of

the Peruvian Andes is another member of this group.

The _Helarctine_ group is represented only by the Malay Bear or Sun Bear

(_U. malayanus_), in which the head is short and broad; the molar teeth

are comparatively broad (but the length still exceeding the breadth),

the tongue is very long and extensile, and the fur short and smooth.

This small species inhabits the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo,

Tenasserim, Arakan, Chittagong, and the Garo hills of India; it inhabits

forest districts, and is an expert climber.

The earliest known occurrence of the genus is in the Lower Pliocene of

the Indian Siwalik Hills; where it is represented by _U. theobaldi_,

which was probably the ancestor of the existing _Melursus_. The genus is

represented in the Upper Pliocene of Europe by the small _U. etruscus_;

and in the Pleistocene by the existing _U. arctos_, as well as by the

great extinct Cave-Bear (_U. spelæus_), distinguished by the complexity

of the crowns of the molars and the total loss of the three anterior

premolars in the adult condition. Remains of Bears are also found in

cavern-deposits in the north of Africa. The small _U. namadicus_, from

the Pleistocene of the Narbada valley, India, may have been allied to _U.

malayanus_.

_Melursus._[482]—This differs from the true Bears in the first upper

incisor being absent or shed at a very early age, in the very small

size of the other teeth, in the very large extensile lips, the deep

concavity of the palate, and other minor characters. The one species,

_M. labiatus_, the well-known Sloth-Bear of India, feeds chiefly on

black ants, termites, beetles, fruit, honey, etc. This species inhabits

peninsular India, from near the Himalaya to Cape Comorin and Ceylon, and

its remains are found in the cavern-deposits of Madras. The black hair

is very long and coarse; there is a light horse-shoe-shaped mark on the

chest (as in _Ursus torquatus_), and the extremity of the muzzle is of an

ashy gray.

[Illustration: FIG. 256.—_Æluropus melanoleucus._ (From Milne-Edwards.)]

_Æluropus._[483]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₃, _m_ ²⁄₃; total 40.

Premolars large, increasing in size from first to last, and two-rooted

except the first. First upper molar with quadrate crown, broader than

long; second larger than the first. Cranium with zygomatic arches and

sagittal crest immensely developed, and ascending ramus of mandible

very high, giving greater spaces for attachments of temporal muscle

than in any other existing member of the order. Facial portion short.

Bony palate not extending behind the last molar tooth. No alisphenoid

canal. Feet bear-like, but soles more hairy, and perhaps less completely

plantigrade. Fur long and thick. Tail very short. One extremely rare

species, _A. melanoleucus_ (Fig. 256), discovered by Père David in 1869,

in the most inaccessible mountains of Moupin in Eastern Tibet. Said to

feed principally on roots, bamboos, and other vegetables. It is of the

size of a small Brown Bear, of a white colour, with ears, spots round the

eyes, shoulders and limbs black. In the large size and complex crowns of

the upper premolars this genus differs very markedly from the true Bears.

The fourth upper premolar (carnassial) makes no approach to the markedly

sectorial type presented by the corresponding tooth of _Hyænarctus_, its

structure being, on the whole, more like that of _Ælurus_.

[Illustration: FIG. 257.—Palate of _Arctotherium bonariense_,

Pleistocene, South America—¼ natural size. (From the _Palæontologia

Indica_.)]

_Extinct Genera._—The genus _Arctotherium_ includes some very large

Bear-like animals from the Pleistocene of South America and California,

in which the dentition departs less widely from a normal carnivorous

type than in the true Bears. Thus the upper carnassial (Fig. 257) is

relatively larger than in _Ursus_; while the crowns of the upper molars

are broader and shorter. The humerus is said to have an entepicondylar

foramen. _Hyænarctus_, of the Miocene and Pliocene of Europe and Southern

Asia, has the crowns of the upper molars either square or triangular;

the upper carnassial having three distinct lobes to the blade, while

the lower carnassial is practically indistinguishable from that of the

Dog-like _Dinocyon_ (p. 556). The proximal extremity of the ulna differs

from that of _Ursus_ in having a long olecranon, and thereby resembles

the corresponding bone of the Dogs. Indeed all the characters at present

available tend to show a complete passage from the Tertiary Dog-like

animals, through _Dinocyon_, _Hyænarctus_, and _Arctotherium_, to the

true Bears. Most of the species of _Hyænarctus_ were of very large

dimensions, but smaller forms occur in the Miocene. _Cephalogale_, of

the Continental Tertiaries, is a genus represented by several species

of medium size showing evident signs of affinity with _Hyænarctus_. The

upper molars have subtriangular crowns, while the carnassial is short,

and has two comparatively low lobes. Here also may be mentioned several

other genera, apparently more or less closely allied to the present

group, some of which are regarded by Dr. Schlosser as showing marked

signs of affinity to the _Procyonidæ_. Among these are _Simocyon_ from

the Pliocene of Europe, with _p_ ²⁄₂₋₄, _m_ ²⁄₂; and _Enhydrocyon_ of

the North American Miocene, with _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ²⁄₂, a secant talon to

the lower carnassial, and a very short skull. The Miocene _Ælurodon_

comprises several large North American forms, having a trilobed upper

carnassial like that of _Hyænarctus_, and a dental formula similar to

that of the latter and _Canis Prohyæna_ is founded upon a much-worn jaw

of _Ælurodon_. _Hyænocyon_, of the Miocene of the United States, with _p_

³⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₂, appears to be an allied form, also having a trilobed upper

carnassial.

_Family_ PROCYONIDÆ.

True molars ²⁄₂, tuberculated or multicuspid; upper carnassial short and

broad. Alisphenoid canal absent, except in _Ælurus_. Feet plantigrade.

Tail generally annulated. In some cases an entepicondylar foramen to

the humerus. Typically American, but with the outlying Oriental genus

_Ælurus_.

_Ælurus._[484]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₄, _m_ ²⁄₂; total

38. First lower premolar very minute and deciduous. Molars (Fig. 259)

remarkable for their great transverse breadth and the numerous cusps of

their crowns. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14, L 6, S 3, C 18. Skull (Fig. 259) high

and compressed, very convex, with the facial portion short, the palate

convex antero-posteriorly, and the ascending ramus of mandible extremely

high. Head round. Face short and broad. Ears large, erect, pointed.

Limbs stout, with large sharp semiretractile claws. Tail nearly as long

as body, cylindrical, annulated, and clothed with long hairs. Fur long

and thick. One existing species, _Æ. fulgens_, the Panda (Fig. 258),

an animal rather larger than a Cat, found in the South-East Himalaya,

at heights of from 7,000 to 12,000 feet above the sea, among rocks and

trees, and chiefly feeding on fruits and other vegetable substances. Its

fur is of a remarkably rich reddish-brown colour, darker below.

The genus _Ælurus_ has been made the type of a distinct family, but its

relationship to the Raccoons is regarded by Mr. W. T. Blanford[485] as

sufficiently close to admit of its being included in the same family.

According to this zoölogist the Panda often sleeps coiled up like a Cat,

with the bushy tail over its head, but at other times resting on its legs

with the head tucked under the chest and between the fore legs, after a

manner said to be common with the Raccoons. Although by no means strictly

nocturnal, these animals sleep much during the day, and roam out in

search of food in the morning and evening. The young are born in a very

helpless condition, and remain for a long period concealed in the holes

of trees or rocks.

[Illustration: FIG. 258.—The Panda (_Ælurus fulgens_). The dark nasal

stripe shown in this figure is generally absent. (From Sclater, _Proc.

Zool. Soc._ 1869, p. 408.)]

Fossil remains of a species of _Ælurus_ (_Æ. anglicus_) have been

obtained from the English Pliocene Crag deposits which indicate an animal

of about one and half times the size of _Æ. fulgens_. The first evidence

of this fossil species was afforded by part of the mandible with the

last molar in place, and the subsequent discovery of an entire first

upper molar renders full confirmation of the generic determination. This

distribution of _Ælurus_ is very important, as showing how its area

may have once approximated to that of the ancestors of the American

representatives of the family. It is probable that the genus existed in

India during the Siwalik period.

The whole of the under-mentioned genera are American, and are

characterised by the absence of an alisphenoid canal in the skull.

[Illustration: FIG. 259.—Lateral view of skull and right half of palate

of _Ælurus fulgens_. (From Blanford, _Mammalia of British India_, p.

190.)]

_Procyon._[486]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ²⁄₂; total 40.

The molar teeth broad and tuberculated (Fig. 259). The upper carnassial

with three cusps along the outer margin, and a very broad bicuspid

inner tubercle, giving an almost quadrate form to the crown. First

molar with a large tuberculated crown, rather broader than long; second

considerably smaller, with transversely oblong crown. Lower carnassial

with an extremely small and ill-defined blade, placed transversely in

front, and a large inner cusp and hind talon. Second molar as long as the

first, but narrower behind, with five obtuse cusps. Vertebræ: C 7, D

14, L 6, S 3, C 16-20. Body stout. Head broad behind, but with a pointed

muzzle. Limbs plantigrade, but in walking the entire sole is not applied

to the ground as it is when the animal is standing. Toes, especially of

the fore foot, very free, and capable of being spread wide apart. Claws

compressed, curved, pointed, and non-retractile. Tail moderately long,

cylindrical, thickly covered with hair, annulated, non-prehensile. Fur

long, thick, and soft. The well-known Raccoon[487] (_Procyon lotor_,

Fig. 260) of North America is the type of this genus. It is a clumsy

thickly-built animal about the size of a Badger, with a coat of long

coarse grayish-brown hairs, short ears, and a bushy black and white

ringed tail. Its range extends over the whole of the United States, and

stretches on the west northwards to Alaska and southwards into Central

America, where it attains its maximum size. The following notes on the

habits of the Raccoon are taken from Dr. C. H. Merriam’s _Mammals of the

Adirondack Region_:—

[Illustration: FIG. 260.—The Raccoon (_Procyon lotor_).]

“Raccoons are omnivorous beasts, and feed upon mice, small birds, birds’

eggs, turtles and their eggs, frogs, fish, crayfish, molluscs, insects,

nuts, fruits, maize, and sometimes poultry. Excepting the bats and flying

squirrels, they are the most strictly nocturnal of all our mammals, and

yet I have several times seen them abroad on cloudy days. They haunt the

banks of ponds and streams, and find much of their food in these places,

such as crayfish, mussels, and fish, although they are unable to dive and

pursue the latter under water, like the otter and mink. They are good

swimmers, and do not hesitate to cross rivers that lie in their path....

The Raccoon hibernates during the severest part of the winter, retiring

to its nest rather early, and appearing again in February or March,

according to the earliness or lateness of the season. It makes its home

high up in the hollow of some large tree, preferring a dead limb to the

trunk itself. It does little in the way of constructing a nest, and from

four to six young are commonly born at a time, generally early in April

in this region. The young remain with the mother about a year.”

The South-American _P. cancrivorus_, the Crab-eating Raccoon, is very

similar to _P. lotor_, but differs by its much shorter fur, larger size,

proportionally more powerful teeth, and other minor characters. It

extends over the whole of South America, as far south as the Rio Negro,

and is very common in all suitable localities. Its habits are similar to

those of the North-American species. Fossil remains of _Procyon_ have

been described from the Pleistocene deposits of the United States.

_Bassaris._[488]—A form closely allied to _Procyon_, but of more slender

and elegant proportions, with a sharper nose, longer tail, and more

digitigrade feet, and with teeth otherwise like, but smaller, and more

sharply denticulated. It was formerly, but erroneously, placed among the

_Viverridæ_. Two species:—_B. astuta_, from the southern parts of the

United States and Mexico, and _B. sumichrasti_, from Central America.

_Bassaricyon._[489]—This name has been given to a distinct modification

of the Procyonine type of which at present only two examples are known,

one from Costa Rica and the other from Ecuador, which, appearing to be

different species, have been named _B. gabbi_ and _B. alleni_. They much

resemble the Kinkajou (_Cercoleptes_) in external appearance, but the

skull and teeth are more like those of _Procyon_ and _Nasua_.

_Nasua._[490]—Dentition as in _Procyon_, but the upper canines are

larger and more strongly compressed, and the molars smaller. The facial

portion of the skull is more elongated and narrow. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14,

L 6, S 3, C 22-23. Body elongated and rather compressed. Nose prolonged

into a somewhat upturned, obliquely truncated, mobile snout. Tail long,

non-prehensile, tapering, annulated. These animals, commonly called

Coatis or Coati-Mundis, live in small troops of eight to twenty, are

chiefly arboreal, and feed on fruits, young birds, eggs, insects, etc.

Recent researches have reduced the number of supposed species to two, _N.

narica_ of Mexico and Central America, and _N. rufa_ of South America

from Surinam to Paraguay. Remains of this genus, mostly referable to the

existing species, occur in the cavern-deposits of Brazil.

_Cercoleptes._[491]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ²⁄₂; total

36. Molars with low flat crowns, very obscurely tuberculated. Skull short

and rounded, with flat upper surface. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14, L 6, S 3,

C 26-29. Clavicles present, but in a very rudimentary condition. Head

broad and round. Ears short. Body long and musteline. Limbs short. Tail

long, tapering, and prehensile. Fur short and soft. Tongue long and very

extensile. But one species of this somewhat aberrant genus is known, _C.

caudivolvulus_, the Kinkajou, found in the forests of the warmer parts of

South and Central America. It is about the size of a Cat, of a uniform,

pale, yellowish-brown colour, nocturnal and arboreal in its habits,

feeding on fruit, honey, eggs, and small birds and mammals, and is of a

tolerably gentle disposition and easily tamed.

_Family_ MUSTELIDÆ.

True molars ¹⁄₂ (or ¹⁄₁ in _Mellivora_[492]). No alisphenoid canal. In

the upper molar the inner tubercular portion is always longer in the

antero-posterior direction than the secant external portion; the degree

of inflation of the auditory bulla is but slight; and the palate is

generally much produced behind the last molars, as is the case with the

members of the preceding family. The post-glenoid process of the cranium

is generally considerably curved over the glenoid fossa, so as to hold

very tightly the condyle of the mandible. The humerus may or may not have

an entepicondylar foramen. Except in the Otters, the kidneys resemble

those of the _Procyonidæ_ in being of simple structure.

This family is a large and widely distributed one, especially in the

northern temperate regions of the earth. The different genera, which are

very difficult to arrange in any natural order, are rather artificially

divided, chiefly according to the characters of their feet and claws,

into the Otter-like (Lutrine), Badger-like (Meline), and Weasel-like

(Musteline) forms.

Subfamily =Lutrinæ=.—Feet short, rounded (except the hind feet of

_Latax_). Toes webbed. Claws small, curved, blunt. Head broad and

much depressed. Upper molar large and quadrate, with its inner

tubercular portion much expanded antero-posteriorly (Fig. 261). Kidneys

conglomerate. Habits aquatic.

_Lutra._[493]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total 36.

Upper carnassial with a trenchant tricuspid blade, and a very large

inner lobe, hollowed on the free surface, with a raised sharp edge, and

extending along two-thirds or more of the length of the blade. True molar

large, with a quadricuspidate crown, broader than long. First upper

premolar very small, and in some cases absent (Fig. 261). Skull broad and

depressed, contracted immediately behind the orbits. Facial portion very

short; brain case large. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14-15, L 6-5, S 3, C 20-26.

Body very long. Ears short and rounded. Limbs short. Feet more or less

completely webbed; claws usually well developed on all the toes, although

they may be rudimentary or absent. Tail long, thick at the base and

tapering, rather depressed. Fur short and close. The humerus may or may

not have an entepicondylar foramen. In conformity with the shape of the

skull, the posterior part of the brain is expanded laterally.

[Illustration: FIG. 261.—Palate of _Lutra cinerea_. (From the

_Palæontologia Indica_.)]

The Common British Otter (_L. vulgaris_), as the type of the genus, may

be described somewhat fully. It has an elongated, low body, short limbs,

short broad feet, with five toes on each, connected together by webs, and

all with short, moderately strong, compressed, curved, pointed claws.

Head rather small, broad, and flat; muzzle very broad; whiskers thick

and strong; eyes small and black; ears short and rounded. Tail a little

more than half the length of the body and head together, very broad and

strong at the base, and gradually tapering to the end, somewhat flattened

horizontally. The fur is of very fine quality, consisting of a short soft

under fur of a whitish-gray colour, brown at the tips, interspersed with

longer, stiffer, and thicker hairs, very shining, grayish at the base,

bright rich brown at the points, especially on the upper parts and outer

surface of the legs; the throat, cheeks, under parts and inner surface of

the legs brownish-gray throughout. Individual Otters vary much in size;

but the total length from the nose to the end of the tail averages about

3½ feet, of which the tail occupies 1 foot 3 or 4 inches. The weight of a

full-sized male is from 18 to 24 lbs., that of a female about 4 lbs. less.

As the Otter lives almost exclusively on fish, it is rarely met with far

from water, and usually frequents the shores of brooks, rivers, lakes,

and, in some localities, the sea itself. It is a most expert swimmer and

diver, easily overtaking and seizing fish in the water, but when it has

captured its prey it brings it to shore to devour it. When lying upon the

bank it holds the fish between its forepaws, commences at the head, and

then eats gradually towards the tail, which it is said always to leave.

The female produces three to five young ones at a time, in the month of

March or April, and brings them up in a nest formed of grass or other

herbage, usually placed in a hollow place in the bank of a river, or

under the shelter of the roots of some overhanging tree. The Common Otter

is found in localities suitable to its habits throughout Great Britain

and Ireland, though far less abundantly than formerly, for, being very

destructive to fish, and thus coming into keen competition with those

who pursue the occupation of fishing either for sport or for gain, it

is rarely allowed to live in peace when once its haunts are discovered.

Otter-hunting with packs of hounds of a special breed, and trained for

the purpose, was formerly a common pastime in the country. When hunted

down and brought to bay by the dogs, the Otter is finally despatched by

long spears carried for the purpose by the huntsmen.

The Common Otter ranges throughout the greater part of Europe and Asia,

the Indian _L. nair_ not being distinct. A closely allied but larger

species, _L. canadensis_, is extensively distributed throughout North

America, where it is systematically pursued by professional trappers

for the value of its fur. The Common Otter is regularly trained by the

natives of some parts of Bengal to assist them in fishing, by driving the

fish into the nets. In China Otters are taught to catch fish, being let

into the water for the purpose attached to a long cord.

Otters are widely distributed over the earth, and, as they are much

alike in size and coloration, their specific distinctions are by no

means well defined.[494] Besides those mentioned above, the following

may be noticed. In the Oriental region there are _L. ellioti_[495] of

India, _L. sumatrana_ of the Malay countries, and _L. cinerea_ ranging

over the greater part of the region. The latter species (often known

as _L. leptonyx_) is of small size, with a short head, and rudimentary

claws, which may be absent; it was at one time regarded as generically

distinct, under the name of _Aonyx_. The upper true molar (Fig. 261) is

characterised by the great development of its inner tubercular portion,

and the first upper premolar is absent. In the Ethiopian region there

are two species, _L. capensis_ and _L. maculicollis_. Of the Neotropical

forms it will suffice to mention the small _L. felina_ and the large _L.

brasiliensis_. The latter is by far the largest of the existing forms,

and is characterised by the presence of a prominent flange-like ridge

along each lateral margin of the tail, on which account it was referred

by Dr. Gray to a distinct genus, with the name of _Pteronura sambachi_.

It should be observed that all Otters have a very distinct inner cusp to

the blade of the lower carnassial, but that the relative size of this

cusp varies in the different species.

_Extinct Otters._—Several species of fossil Otters have been

described. Thus in the Indian Siwaliks we have _L. palæindica_, which

is closely allied to _L. sumatrana_, and a larger form described

as _L. bathygnathus_. The Pliocene of Hessen-Darmstadt yields _L.

hessica_; while _L. dubia_, of the Middle Miocene of France, is a

species characterised by the small size of the inner cusp of the lower

carnassial—a character in which it resembles those Tertiary forms

described as _Trochictis_, which are believed to connect _Lutra_ with the

_Mustelinæ_. Two very large Otters, respectively from the Indian Siwaliks

and the Italian Miocene, named _L. sivalensis_ and _L. campanii_, may

be regarded either as representing a very distinct _Enhydriodont_ group

of _Lutra_ or as referable to a separate genus _Enhydriodon_. They are

characterised by certain peculiarities in the structure of the teeth,

and the second upper premolar may be absent in the Indian form. Lastly,

the genus _Potamotherium_ contains a small Otter (_P. valetoni_) from

the Lower Miocene of the Continent, which differs from all other known

_Mustelidæ_ in having a minute second upper true molar. This species is

evidently a very generalised form approximating to the _Viverridæ_ in

its dental formula, and also in the characters of the teeth themselves.

The brain, as recently described by Dr. Filhol, differs from that

of _Lutra_ and other Mustelines in the great relative width of the

anterior extremity of the hemispheres and olfactory lobes, and also in

the disposition of the sulci, in both of which respects it more nearly

resembles the _Viverridæ_.

_Latax._[496]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₂, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total 32.

Differs from all other existing Carnivora in having but two incisors on

each side of the lower jaw, the one corresponding to the first (very

small in the true Otters) being constantly absent. Though the molar teeth

generally resemble those of _Lutra_ in their proportions, they differ

very much in the exceeding roundness and massiveness of their crowns

and bluntness of their cusps. Feet webbed. Fore feet small, with five

subequal toes, furnished with short compressed claws; palms naked. Hind

feet very large, depressed, and fin-like. The phalanges flattened as in

the Seals. The fifth toe the longest and stoutest, the rest gradually

diminishing in size to the first, all with moderate claws. Tail

moderate, cylindrical, and obtuse; about one-fourth the length of the

head and body.

The Sea-Otter (_L. lutris_, Fig. 262) is the sole representative of

this genus. The entire length of the animal from nose to end of tail

is about 4 feet, so that the body is considerably larger and more

massive than that of the English Otter. The skin is peculiarly loose,

and stretches when removed from the animal so as to give the idea of

a still larger creature than it really is. The pellage is remarkable

for the preponderance of the beautifully soft woolly under fur, the

longer stiffer hairs being very scanty. The general colour is a deep

liver brown, everywhere silvered or frosted with the hoary tips of the

longer hairs. These are, however, removed when the skin is dressed for

commercial purposes.

[Illustration: FIG. 262.—The Sea-Otter (_Latax lutris_). From Wolf,

_Proc. Zool. Soc._ 1865, pl, vii.]

Sea-Otters are only found upon the rocky shores of certain parts of

the North Pacific Ocean, especially the Aleutian Islands and Alaska,

extending as far south on the American coast as Oregon; but, owing to the

unremitting persecution to which they are subjected for the sake of their

skins, which rank among the most valuable known to the furrier, their

numbers are greatly diminishing, and, unless some restriction can be

placed upon their destruction, such as that which protects the Fur-Seals

of the Pribyloff Islands, the species is threatened with extermination,

or, at all events, excessive scarcity. When this occurs, the occupation

of five thousand of the half-civilised natives of Alaska, who are

dependent upon Sea-Otter hunting as a means for obtaining their living,

will be gone. The principal hunting grounds at present are the little

rocky islets and reefs around the island of Saanach and the Chernobours,

where they are captured by spearing, clubbing, or nets, and recently

by the more destructive rifle bullet. They do not feed on fish, like

the true Otters, but on clams, mussels, sea-urchins, and crabs, for the

mastication of which the blunt cusps of their teeth are admirably suited.

The female brings forth but a single young one at a time, apparently

at any season of the year. They are excessively shy and wary, and all

attempts to rear the young ones in captivity have hitherto failed.

Subfamily =Melinæ=.—Feet elongated. Toes straight. Claws non-retractile,

slightly curved, subcompressed, blunt; those of the fore foot especially

large. Upper molar variable. Kidneys simple. Habits mostly terrestrial

and fossorial.

_Mephitis._[497]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total

34. Upper molar larger than the carnassial, subquadrate, rather broader

than long. Lower carnassial with talon less than half the length of

the whole tooth. Bony palate terminating posteriorly opposite the

hinder border of the last molar tooth. Facial portion of skull short

and somewhat truncated in front. Vertebræ: C 7, D 16, L 6, S 2, C 21.

Head small. Body elongated. Limbs moderate, subplantigrade. Ears short

and rounded. Tail long, abundantly clothed with very long fine hair.

Anal glands largely developed. The secretion of these glands, which can

be discharged at the will of the animal, has an intolerably offensive

odour, which circumstance has rendered the Skunks, as they are commonly

called, proverbial. They are strictly nocturnal animals, terrestrial and

burrowing, feeding chiefly on small mammals, birds, reptiles, insects,

worms, roots, and berries. All the known species have a prevalent black

colour, varied by white strips or spots on the upper part (Fig. 263).

They generally carry the body, much arched, and the tail erect, the long

loose hair of which waves like a plume over the back. There are three

species, all inhabitants of the American continent, over which they have

an extensive range.

[Illustration: FIG. 263.—The Common Skunk (_Mephitis mephitica_).]

The Common Skunk (_M. mephitica_, Fig. 263) is an animal of about

the size of a small Cat, ranging from Hudson’s Bay to Guatemala. The

following account of its habits is given by Dr. C. H. Merriam in his

_Mammals of the Adirondack Region_:—

“The skunk preys upon mice, salamanders, frogs, and the eggs of birds

that nest on or within reach from the ground. At times he eats carrion,

and if he chances to stumble upon a hen’s nest the eggs are liable to

suffer; and once in a while he acquires the evil habit of robbing the

hen-roost, but as a rule skunks are not addicted to this vice. Of all

our native mammals perhaps no one is so universally abused and has so

many unpleasant things said about it as the innocent subject of the

present biography; and yet no other species is so valuable to the farmer.

Pre-eminently an insect-eater, he destroys more beetles, grasshoppers,

and the like than all our other mammals together, and in addition to

these he devours vast numbers of mice. He does not evince that dread of

man that is so manifest in the great majority of our mammals, and when

met during any of his circumambulations rarely thinks of running away. He

is slow in movement and deliberate in action, and does not often hurry

himself in whatever he does. His ordinary gait is a measured walk, but

when pressed for time he breaks into a low shuffling gallop. It is hard

to intimidate a skunk, but when once really frightened he manages to get

over the ground at a very fair pace. Skunks remain active throughout the

greater part of the year in this region, and hibernate only during the

severest portion of the winter. They differ from most of our hibernating

mammals in that the inactive period is apparently dependent solely on the

temperature, while the mere amount of snow has no influence whatever upon

their movements. Skunks, particularly when young, make very pretty pets,

being attractive in appearance, gentle in disposition, interesting in

manners, and cleanly in habits—rare qualities indeed! They are playful,

sometimes mischievous, and manifest considerable affection for those who

have the care of them. Their flesh is white, tender, and sweet, and is

delicious eating. Skunks have large families, from six to ten young being

commonly raised each season; and as a rule they all live in the same hole

until the following spring.”

The two ducts leading from the anal glands open at the tips of two small

conical papillæ placed in such a position that the animal can protrude

them externally, and can thus guide the direction of the jet of nauseous

fluid, which can be propelled by the powerful muscles surrounding the

glands to a distance of from 8 to 12 feet.

The Long-tailed Skunk (_M. macrura_), from Central and Southern Mexico,

has two lateral stripes, and a longer and more bushy tail than the

common species. _M. putorius_, of the Southern United States and thence

southwards to Yucatan and Guatemala, is of a much smaller size, with four

interrupted white lateral stripes, and a skull differing considerably in

form from that of the type species. It is regarded by some writers as

representing a distinct genus, _Spilogale_; and has been recently divided

by Dr. C. H. Merriam into several nominal species.

_Conepatus._[498]—The Skunk of tropical America (_C. mapacito_), ranging

from Texas to Chili and Patagonia, differs considerably from the true

Skunks, although in colour it is almost precisely similar to the common

species, with which it also agrees in the variation of the relative

development of the black and white. Its build is heavier than that of

_Mephitis_; the snout and head are more Pig-like; and the nostrils open

downwards and forwards instead of laterally on the sides of the muzzle.

The skull also has many special characters, and the teeth are different

in shape and, as, a rule, in number also, the first minute premolar of

_Mephitis_ being almost invariably absent, so that the dental formula is

_i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ²⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total 32.

Remains of _Conepatus_, which have been referred to three species, are

found in the cavern-deposits of Brazil.

_Arctonyx._[499]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total

38. Incisor line curved, the outer teeth being placed posteriorly to the

others. Lower incisors proclivous. First premolars often rudimentary

or absent. Upper molar much larger than the carnassial, longer in the

antero-posterior direction than broad; lower carnassial with a very

large, low, tuberculated talon. Cranium elongated and depressed; face

long, narrow, and concave above. Bony palate extending as far backwards

as the level of the glenoid fossa; palatal bones dilated; suborbital

foramina very large. Vertebræ: C 7, D 16, L 4, S 4, C 20. Snout long,

naked, mobile, and truncated, with large terminal nostrils, much like

that of a Pig. Eyes small. Ears very small and rounded. Body compressed

rather than depressed. Limbs of moderate length and digitigrade in

walking. Tail moderate, tapering. A full soft under fur, with longer,

bristly hairs interspersed. The best-known species is _A. collaris_,

the Sand-Badger, or _Bhálu-soor_[500] (_i.e._ Bear-pig) of the natives,

found in the mountains of the north-east of India and Assam. It is rather

larger than the English Badger, higher on its legs, and very Pig-like

in general aspect, of a light gray colour, with flesh-coloured snout

and feet; and is nocturnal and omnivorous in habits. The imperfectly

known _A. taxoides_ from Assam and Arakan, and perhaps China, is a much

smaller species. A third form probably exists in Eastern Tibet. Professor

Mivart remarks that the brain-case of _Arctonyx_ is narrower than in any

other Arctoid; while the palate is relatively longer than in any other

Carnivore except _Procyon_; and the metatarsus is relatively shorter than

in any other member of the order.

_Mydaus._[501]—Dentition as in the last genus, but the cusps of the

teeth more acutely pointed. Cranium elongated, face narrow and produced.

Suborbital foramen small, and the palate, as in all the succeeding genera

of this group, produced backwards about midway between the last molar

tooth and the glenoid fossa. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14-15, L 6-5, S 3, C 12.

Head pointed in front; snout produced, mobile, obliquely truncated, the

nostrils being inferior. Limbs rather short and stout. Tail extremely

short, but clothed with rather long bushy hair. Anal glands largely

developed, and emitting an odour like that of the American Skunks. One

species, _M. meliceps_, the Teledu, a small burrowing Badger, found

in the mountains of Java at an elevation of 7000 or more feet above

sea-level.

_Meles._[502]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total 38.

The first premolar in both jaws extremely minute and often deciduous.

Upper molar very much larger than the carnassial, subquadrate, as broad

as long. Lower carnassial with a broad, low, tuberculated talon, more

than half the length of the whole tooth. The post-glenoid processes of

the skull are so strongly developed, and the glenoid fossa is so deep,

that the condyle of the lower jaw is firmly held in its place even after

all the surrounding soft parts are removed. Vertebræ: C 7, D 15, L 5, S

3, C 18. Muzzle pointed. Ears very short. Body stout, broad. Limbs short,

strong, subplantigrade. Tail short. The best-known species is the common

Badger (_M. taxus_) of Europe and Northern Asia, still found in many

parts of England, where it lives in woods, is nocturnal, burrowing, and

very omnivorous, feeding on mice, reptiles, insects, fruit, acorns, and

roots. Other nearly allied species, _M. leucurus_ and _M. chinensis_, are

found in continental Asia, _M. canescens_ in Persia, and _M. anakuma_ in

Japan.

The appearance of the common Badger is too well known to need

description, but, it may be mentioned that a full-grown individual stands

about a foot in height at the shoulder, and measures from 2½ to 3 feet

in length. The young are born in a naked and blind condition, usually in

litters of three or four. It appears that the usual period of gestation

is about eleven and a half months, but instances are recorded where the

period has been protracted to upwards of fifteen months.

Fossil remains of the common Badger are found in the Pleistocene deposits

of Europe, while extinct species have been described from the Lower

Pliocene beds of Maragha, in Persia.

_Taxidea._[503]—Dental formula as in _Meles_, except that the rudimentary

anterior premolar appears to be always wanting in the upper jaw. The

upper carnassial much larger in proportion to the other teeth. Upper

molar about the same size as the carnassial, triangular, with the apex

turned backwards. Talon of lower carnassial less than half the length

of the tooth. Skull very wide in the occipital region; the lambdoidal

crest very greatly developed, and the sagittal but slightly, contrary to

what obtains in _Meles_. Vertebræ: C 7, D 15, L 5, S 3, C 16. Body very

stoutly built and depressed. Tail short. The animals of this genus are

peculiar to North America, where they represent the Badgers of the Old

World, resembling them much in appearance and habits. _T. americana_ is

the common American Badger of the United States; _T. berlandieri_, the

Mexican Badger, is perhaps only a local variety.

_Mellivora._[504]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₁; total

32. Upper carnassial large, with its inner tubercle quite at the anterior

end of the blade, as in the following genera; molar much smaller and

transversely extended, having a very small outer and a larger rounded

inner lobe. Talon of lower carnassial very small, scarcely one-fourth of

the whole length of the tooth, and with but one cusp; lower tubercular

molar absent. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14, L 4, S 4, C 15. Body stout, depressed.

Limbs short, strong. Head depressed, nose rather pointed. External ears

rudimentary. Tail short. The animals of this genus are commonly called

Ratels. _M. indica_ from India, and, _M. ratel_ (Fig. 264) from South

and West Africa, have nearly the same general appearance and size, being

rather larger than a common Badger. Their coloration is peculiar, all

the upper surface of the body, head, and tail being ashy gray, while the

lower parts, separated by a distinct longitudinal boundary line, are

black. The two species may be distinguished by the circumstance that the

African one has a distinct white line round the body at the junction of

the gray of the upper side with the black of the lower, while in the

Indian form this line is absent; the teeth also of the former are, on the

whole, larger, rounder, and heavier than those of the latter. In spite of

these differences the two are, however, so nearly allied that they might

almost be considered as local races of a single widely spread species.

[Illustration: FIG. 264.—The African Ratel (_Mellivora ratel_).]

The following account of the Indian species is extracted from Dr.

Jerdon’s _Mammals of India_: “The Indian badger is found throughout the

whole of India, from the extreme south to the foot of the Himalayas,

chiefly in hilly districts, where it has greater facilities for

constructing the holes and dens in which it lives; but also in the north

of India in alluvial plains, where the banks of large rivers afford

equally suitable localities wherein to make its lair. It is stated to

live usually in pairs, and to eat rats, birds, frogs, white ants, and

various insects, and in the north of India it is accused of digging out

dead bodies, and is popularly known as the grave-digger. It doubtless

also, like its Cape congener, occasionally partakes of honey. It is often

very destructive to poultry, and I have known of several having been

trapped and killed whilst committing such depredations in Central India

and in the northern Circars. In confinement the Indian badger is quiet

and will partake of vegetable food, fruits, rice, etc.”

A fossil species of _Millivora_, apparently closely allied to the

existing forms, occurs in the Pliocene Siwaliks of India. The same

deposits have also yielded remains of an extinct genus described as

_Mellivorodon_.

[Illustration: FIG. 265.—_Helictis personata._ (From Blanford, _Mammalia

of British India_, p. 175.)]

_Helictis._[505]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total

38. Upper carnassial with a large bicuspid inner tubercle; upper molar

smaller, wider transversely than in the antero-posterior direction.

Lower carnassial with talon about one-third the length of the tooth.

Skull elongated, rather narrow and depressed. Facial portion especially

narrow. Infraorbital foramen very large. Head rather small and produced

in front, with an elongated, obliquely truncated, naked snout. Ears

small. Body elongated. Limbs short. Tail short or moderate, bushy.

Several species are described (_H. orientalis_, _personata_ [Fig. 265],

_moschata_, _subaurantiaca_), all from Eastern Asia; they are all small

animals compared with the other members of the subfamily, climbing trees

with agility and living much on fruit and berries as well as on small

mammals and birds. The two first named species occur in British India,

_H. orientalis_ also ranging into Java; the Chinese _H. subaurantiaca_ is

brilliantly coloured in the region of the throat.[506]

[Illustration: FIG. 266.—Left lateral and superior aspect of the brain of

_Helictis subaurantiaca_. (From Garrod, _Proc. Zool. Soc._ 1879, p. 307.)]

The brain of _Helictis_, represented in the accompanying figure, shows

the general type of cerebral structure characteristic of the _Mustelidæ_.

The brain of this genus differs, however, from that of every other

Carnivore in that the hippocampal gyrus rises to the surface on either

side of the great longitudinal fissure, in consequence of which there is

no crucial fissure, and the so-called “Ursine lozenge,” so characteristic

of the Arctoidea, is incomplete behind. The superior gyrus, as in

_Ictonyx_ and _Mustela_, ceases at the superior posterior angle of the

hemisphere.

_Ictonyx._[507]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total

34. In general characters the teeth much resemble those of the Polecats

(_Mustela_), being more delicately cut and sharply cusped than in most

of the foregoing. Upper molar smaller than the carnassial, narrow from

before backwards. Lower carnassial with a small narrow talon and distinct

inner cusp. General form of body Musteline. Limbs short. Fore feet large

and broad, with five stout, nearly straight, blunt, and non-retractile

claws, of which the first and fifth are considerably shorter than the

others. Tail moderate, with longer hairs towards the end, giving it a

bushy appearance. Hairs generally long and loose. The best known species

of this genus, _I. zorilla_, the Cape Polecat, was placed by Cuvier in

the genus _Mustela_, and by Lichtenstein in _Mephitis_; and in many

characters it forms a transition between these genera. It is about the

size of an English Polecat, but conspicuous by its coloration, having

broad, longitudinal bands of dark brown, alternating with white. Its

odour is said to be as offensive as that of the American Skunks. From the

Cape of Good Hope it ranges as far north as Senegal. Another species, _I.

frenata_, from Sennaar and Egypt, has been described.

Subfamily =Mustelinæ=.—Toes short, partially webbed; claws short,

compressed, acute, curved, often semiretractile. Upper molar of moderate

size, wide transversely. Kidneys simple. Terrestrial and arboreal in

habits.

_Galictis._[508]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total 34.

Molars small but stout. Upper carnassial with the inner tubercle near

the middle of the inner border of the tooth. Lower carnassial with talon

small, and inner cusp small or absent. Body long. Limbs short; claws

non-retractile. Palms and soles naked. Head broad and depressed. Tail

of moderate length. The best-known species are _G. vittata_, the Grison

(genus _Grisonia_, Gray), and _G. barbara_, the Tayra (genus _Galera_,

Gray), both South American; _G. allamandi_ is an intermediate form.

Remains of _Galictis_ occur in the Pleistocene cavern-deposits of Brazil,

and also in the Pleistocene of North America.

_Mustela._[509]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁻⁴⁄₃₋₄, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total

34 or 38. Upper carnassial with inner tubercle close to the anterior edge

of the tooth. Molar nearly as large as carnassial. Lower carnassial with

small or no inner cusp. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14, L 6, S 3, C 18-23. Body long

and slender. Limbs short, digitigrade. Feet rounded; toes short, with

compressed, acute, semiretractile claws. Tail moderate or long, more or

less bushy.

The genus _Mustela_, as restricted by Cuvier (_Règne Animal_, 1817),

contains a very natural assemblage of animals commonly called Martens,

Sables, Polecats, Stoats, Ermines, and Weasels, all closely allied in

structure and habits. A structural division, however, occurs between the

two first-named and all the others, especially shown in the presence

of an additional small premolar tooth on each side of the jaw; and,

availing himself of this and some other minor characters, Cuvier divided

the genus into two subgenera, for the first of which he retained the

name of _Mustela_, and to the second assigned that of _Putorius_. Three

years later Nilsson (_Skand. Fauna_, 1820) definitely constituted the

two groups into genera, applying to the first the name of _Martes_, by

which the animals composing it had been generally designated by the Latin

writing zoologists of the preceding century, and keeping _Mustela_ for

the more typical Weasels and their immediate allies. Later zoologists

have been divided between the nomenclature of Cuvier, which has the

priority, and that of Nilsson, which on other grounds is preferable.

Those who adopt the latter affirm that Cuvier’s names, being only used

by him in a subgeneric sense, and not binominally, need not be applied

generically, but this is contrary to the practice usually followed in

such cases; and therefore, if the original genus be divided, the name

_Mustela_ should be retained for the Martens, and _Putorius_ for the

Polecats and Weasels. Here, however, the genus will be employed in its

wider sense, and divided into two groups.

The typical group of the Martens[510] presents the following distinctive

features. Body long, slender, and very flexible, though less so than in

the true Weasels. Head somewhat triangular; muzzle pointed, the nose

extending a little beyond the lips; eyes large and prominent; ears

conspicuous, broad, somewhat triangular, rounded at the ends, furred

outside and in. Limbs short; feet rounded; toes short, five on each

foot, all with short, compressed, curved, sharp-pointed claws; soles

densely furred between the naked pads. Tail moderately long, more or

less bushy. Outer fur long, strong, and glossy; a very abundant soft

under fur. Skull elongated and depressed. Facial portion moderate and

rather compressed. Zygomata arched and wide, but slender. Postorbital

processes small. Auditory bullæ large, but not very globose. Mandible

with a strong triangular vertical coronoid process and a well-developed

angular process. Premolars ⁴⁄₄. Upper incisors in a straight transverse

line, rather long and compressed; first and second subequal, third

considerably larger. Lower incisors very small, especially the first, and

crowded together, the second placed rather behind the others. Canines

long and sharp-pointed. Upper premolars: first very small, with simple

crown and one root; second and third nearly equal in size and two-rooted,

with simple compressed sharp-pointed crowns, with very slightly developed

accessory cusps; fourth (the carnassial) with blade consisting chiefly of

the central and posterior lobes, the anterior being rudimentary, inner

tubercle small and confined to the anterior part of the tooth. True molar

tubercular, about twice as wide transversely as in the antero-posterior

direction, having an outer, more elevated, but smaller portion, bearing

three blunt tubercles; to the inner side of this the crown is contracted,

and its surface deeply hollowed; it then expands again into a broad low

lobe, with the central part elevated, and a raised, even, semicircular,

slightly crenated internal border. Lower premolars: first very small,

simple, and one-rooted; second, third, and fourth increasing slightly in

size, with high compressed pointed crowns and posterior accessory cusps,

best marked in the third. First molar (carnassial) with well-marked

bilobed blade, talon scarcely more than one-third of the length of the

tooth, and a very small inner cusp. Second molar small, single-rooted,

with a low, flattened, subcircular or oval tubercular crown.

In geographical distribution the Martens are limited to the northern

hemisphere, ranging throughout the greater part of the temperate regions

of both Old and New Worlds, as far north as conditions of existence

suited to their habits are met with, and southwards in America to 35° N.

lat., while in Asia one species is met with as far in this direction as

the island of Java.

The various species appear to be very similar in their habits. They

live in woods and rocky places, and are thoroughly arboreal, spending

most of their time in trees, although descending to the ground in quest

of prey. They climb with great facility, and are agile and graceful in

their movements. Some species are said occasionally to resort to berries

and other fruit for food, but as a rule they are strictly carnivorous,

feeding chiefly on birds and their eggs, small mammals, as squirrels,

hares, rabbits, and moles, but chiefly mice of various kinds, of which

they destroy great numbers, and occasionally snakes, lizards, and frogs.

In proportion to their size they are among the most bloodthirsty of

animals, though less so than the true Weasels. The female usually makes

her nest of moss, dried leaves, and grass in the hollow of a tree, but

sometimes in a hole among rocks or ruined buildings, and produces several

young at a birth, usually from four to six. Though wild and untameable

to a great degree if captured when fully grown, when taken young they

are very docile, and have frequently been made pets of, not having the

strong unpleasant odour of the smaller _Mustelidæ_. The common European

Marten appears to have been partially domesticated by the Greeks and

Romans, and to have been used to keep houses clear from rats and mice

before cats were introduced.[511] In the same way, according to Hodgson,

the Yellow-bellied Weasel (_M. cathia_) “is exceedingly prized by the

Nipalese for its service in ridding houses of rats. It is easily tamed;

and such is the dread of it common to all Murine animals that not one

will approach a house where it is domiciled.” It is, however, to the

great value attached to the pelts of these animals that their importance

to man is chiefly due. Though all yield fur of serviceable quality, the

commercial value varies immensely, not only according to the particular

species from which it is obtained, but according to individual variation,

depending upon age, sex, season, and other trifling circumstances. The

skins from northern regions are more full and of a finer colour and gloss

than those from more temperate climates, as are those of animals killed

in winter compared with the same individuals in the summer season. The

caprices of fashion have, moreover, set wholly factitious values upon

slight shades of colour, recognised and named by experienced furriers,

but not indicating any specific or other distinctions of which zoologists

have any cognisance. Enormous numbers of animals are annually caught,

chiefly in traps, to supply the demand of the fur trade, Siberia and

North America being the principal localities from which they are obtained.

With the exception of the Pekan (_M. pennanti_) all the Martens are so

much alike in size, general colouring, and cranial and dental characters

that the discrimination of the species, and assignment of the proper

geographical distribution to each, has been a subject which has sorely

perplexed the ingenuity and patience of zoologists. The following

description by Dr. Elliott Coues of the external characters of the

American Pine Marten (_M. americana_) will apply almost equally well

to most of the others: “It is almost impossible to describe the colour

of the Pine Marten, except in general terms, without going into the

details of the endless diversities occasioned by age, sex, season, or

other incidents. The animal is ‘brown,’ of various shades from orange or

tawny to quite blackish; the tail and feet are ordinarily the darkest,

the head lightest, often quite whitish; the ears are usually rimmed

with whitish; on the throat there is usually a large tawny-yellowish or

orange-brown patch, from the chin to the fore legs, sometimes entire,

sometimes broken into a number of smaller, irregular blotches, sometimes

wanting, sometimes prolonged on the whole under surface, when the animal

is bicolor like a Stoat in summer. The general ‘brown’ has a grayish

cast, as far as the under fur is concerned, and is overlaid with rich

lustrous blackish-brown in places where the long bristly hairs prevail.

The claws are whitish; the naked nose pad and whiskers are black. The

tail occasionally shows interspersed white hairs, or a white tip.”

The species generally recognised as distinct are the following, the first

five belonging to the Old and the last two to the New World:—

_M. foina_, the Beech Marten, Stone Marten, or White-breasted

Marten.—Distinguished from the following by the greater breadth of the

skull, and some minute but constant dental characters, by the dull

grayish-brown colour of the fur of the upper parts, and the pure white

of the throat and breast. It inhabits the greater part of the continent

of Europe, but is more southern than the next in its distribution, not

being found in Sweden or Norway, nor, according to the investigations of

Mr. Alston, in the British Isles, although included in their fauna by

all earlier writers; to the eastward it ranges into Afghanistan and the

Himalaya.

[Illustration: FIG. 267.—The Pine Marten (_Mustela martes_).]

_M. martes_, the Pine Marten (Fig. 267).—Outer fur rich dark brown; under

fur reddish-gray, with clear yellow tips; breast spot usually yellow,

varying from bright orange to pale cream-colour or yellowish-white.

Length of head and body 16 to 18 inches; of tail (including the hair) 9

to 12 inches. This species is extensively distributed throughout northern

Europe and Asia, and was formerly common in most parts of Great Britain

and Ireland. Though commonly called “Pine Marten,” it does not appear to

have any special preference for coniferous trees, except that, inasmuch

as they constitute the greater proportion of the forests of the countries

which it inhabits, it is more often met with in them than in any other.

With regard to its recent occurrence in the British Isles, Mr. Alston

writes in the _Proc. Zool. Soc._ 1879:—

“Although greatly reduced in numbers by persecution, it still maintains

its ground in the wilder districts of Scotland, the north of England,

Wales, and Ireland; and occasionally specimens are killed in counties

where the species was thought to have been long extinct. In Scotland it

is still found, though comparatively rarely, in the Lews and in most of

the Highland mainland counties, being perhaps most abundant in Sutherland

and Ross-shire, especially in the deer forests. In the Lowlands a Marten

is now a very great rarity; but a fine example was killed in Ayrshire

in the winter of 1875-76. In the north of England Mr. W. A. Durnford

says the species is still plentiful in the wilder parts of Cumberland,

Westmoreland, and Lancashire, and in Lincolnshire several have been

recorded, the latest killed in 1865, by Mr. Cordeaux. In Norfolk one

was shot last year; and I have myself examined a fine example which was

shot in Hertfordshire, within 20 miles of London, in December 1872. In

Dorsetshire the last is said to have been killed in 1804; but a specimen

occurred in Hampshire about forty years ago, and another in Surrey in

1847. In Ireland the following counties were enumerated by Thompson as

habitats of this species: Donegal, Londonderry, Antrim, Down, Armagh,

Fermanagh, Longford, Galway, Tipperary, Cork, and Kerry. The _Cat-crann_

is probably now a rarer animal in Ireland than it was when Thompson

wrote; but it still exists in various districts, especially in County

Kerry, whence the society has received several living examples; and

Professor A. Leith Adams states that it has been seen of late years even

in county Dublin.”

_M. zibellina_, the Sable (German, _Zobel_ and _Zebel_; Swedish, _sabel_;

Russian, _sobel_, a word probably of Turanian origin).—Closely resembling

the last, if indeed differing from it except in the quality of the fur,

which is the most highly valued of that of all the group. Found chiefly

in Eastern Siberia.

_M. flavigula_, the Indian Marten.—Inhabits the southern slopes of the

Himalaya, the Nilgiri Hills, the interior of Ceylon, the Malay Peninsula,

and Java. The coloration of this species is very striking, the upper

parts being blackish-brown, and the throat and breast yellow or orange,

in the bright coloured variety. It differs from the other species in

having the soles of the feet more or less naked.

_M. melampus._—Japan.

_M. americana_, the North-American Sable or Marten.—A species so closely

allied to the European Pine Marten and Asiatic Sable that it is very

difficult to assign constant distinguishing characters between them. The

importance of the fur of this animal as an article of commerce may be

judged of from the fact that 15,000 skins were sold in one year by the

Hudson’s Bay Company as long ago as 1743, and the more recent annual

imports into Great Britain have exceeded 100,000. It is ordinarily caught

in wooden traps of very simple construction, being little enclosures of

stakes or brush in which the bait is placed upon a trigger, with a short

upright stick supporting a log of wood, which falls upon its victim on

the slightest disturbance. A line of such traps, several to a mile, often

extends many miles. The bait is any kind of meat, a mouse, squirrel,

piece of fish, or bird’s head. It is principally trapped during the

colder months, from October to April, when the fur is in good condition,

as it is nearly valueless during the shedding in summer. Dr. Coues tells

us that, notwithstanding the persistent and uninterrupted destruction to

which the American Sable is subjected, it does not appear to diminish

materially in numbers in unsettled parts of the country. It holds its own

partly in consequence of its shyness, which keeps it away from the abodes

of men, and partly because it is so prolific, bringing forth six to eight

young at a litter. Its home is sometimes a den under ground or beneath

rocks, but oftener the hollow of a tree, and it is said frequently to

take forcible possession of a squirrel’s nest, driving off or devouring

the rightful proprietor.

_M. pennanti_, the Pekan or Pennant’s Marten, also called Fisher

Marten, though there appears to be nothing in its habits to justify the

appellation.—This is the largest species of the group, the head and

body measuring from 24 to 30 inches, and the tail 14 to 18 inches. It

is also more robust in form than the others, its general aspect being

more that of a Fox than a Weasel; in fact, its usual name among the

American hunters is “Black Fox.” Its general colour is blackish, lighter

by mixture of brown or gray on the head and upper fore part of the body,

with no light patch on the throat, and unlike the other Martens generally

darker below than above. It was generally distributed in wooded districts

throughout the greater part of North America, as far north as Great Slave

Lake, 63° N. lat., and Alaska, and extending south to the parallel of

35°; but at the present time it is almost exterminated in the settled

parts of the United States east of the Mississippi.

Fossil remains of a Marten from the Pliocene Siwaliks of India indicate a

species which cannot be distinguished from those now inhabiting the same

region; while remains of _M. martes_ occur in European cavern-deposits,

and in the fens of Cambridgeshire.

With the _Putoriine_ group (genus _Putorius_) we come to those smaller

forms distinguished by having only three premolars in each jaw, by the

absence of an inner cusp to the blade of the lower carnassial, as well as

by certain external characters. This group contains a few species known

as Minks, differing from the rest by slight structural modifications,

and especially by their semiaquatic habits. They are distinguished

from the Polecats, Stoats, and Weasels, which constitute the remainder

of the group, by the facial part of the skull being narrower and

more approaching in form that of the Martens, by the premolar teeth

(especially the anterior one in the upper jaw) being larger, by the toes

being partially webbed, and by the absence of hair in the intervals

between the naked pads of the soles of the feet. The two best-known

species, so much alike in size, form, colour, and habits that although

they are widely separated geographically some zoologists question their

specific distinction, are _M. lutreola_, the _Nörz_ or _Sumpfotter_

(Marsh-Otter) of Eastern Europe, and _M. vison_, the Mink of North

America. The former inhabits Finland, Poland, and the greater part of

Russia, though not found east of the Ural Mountains. Formerly it extended

westward into Central Germany, but is now very rare, if not extinct,

in that country. The latter is found in places which suit its habits

throughout the whole of North America. Another form, _M. sibirica_, from

Eastern Asia, of which much less is known, appears to connect the true

Minks with the Polecats.

For the following description, chiefly taken from the American form

(though almost equally applicable to that of Europe), we are mainly

indebted to Dr. Coues’s _Fur-bearing Animals of North America_. In size

it much resembles the English Polecat,—the length of the head and body

being usually from 15 to 18 inches, that of the tail to the end of the

hair about 9 inches. The female is considerably smaller than the male.

The tail is bushy, but tapering at the end. The ears are small, low,

rounded, and scarcely project beyond the adjacent fur. The pellage

consists of a dense, soft, matted under fur, mixed with long, stiff,

lustrous hairs on all parts of the body and tail. The gloss is greatest

on the upper parts; on the tail the bristly hairs predominate. Northern

specimens have the finest and most glistening pellage; in those from

southern regions there is less difference between the under and over

fur, and the whole pellage is coarser and harsher. In colour different

specimens present a considerable range of variation, but the animal is

ordinarily of a rich dark brown, scarcely or not paler below than on the

general upper parts; but the back is usually the darkest, and the tail is

nearly black. The under jaw, from the chin about as far back as the angle

of the mouth, is generally white. In the European Mink the upper lip is

also white, but as this occasionally occurs in American specimens it

fails as an absolutely distinguishing character. Besides the white on the

chin, there are often other irregular white patches on the under parts of

the body. In very rare instances the tail is tipped with white. The fur,

like that of most of the animals of the group to which it belongs, is an

important article of commerce.

The principal characteristic of the Mink in comparison with its congeners

is its amphibious mode of life. It is to the water what the other Weasels

are to the land, or Martens to the trees, being as essentially aquatic

in its habits as the Otter, Beaver, or Musk-Rat, and spending perhaps

more of its time in the water than it does on land. It swims with most of

the body submerged, and dives with perfect ease, remaining long without

coming to the surface to breathe. It makes its nest in burrows in the

banks of streams, breeding once a year about the month of April, and

producing five or six young at a birth. Its food consists of frogs, fish,

freshwater molluscs and crustaceans, as well as mice, rats, musk-rats,

rabbits, and small birds. In common with the other animals of the genus,

it has a very peculiar and disagreeable effluvium, which, according to

Coues, is more powerful, penetrating, and lasting than that of any animal

of the country except the Skunk. It also possesses the courage, ferocity,

and tenacity of life of its allies. When taken young, however, it can be

readily tamed, and lately Minks have been extensively bred in captivity

in America, both for the sake of their fur and for the purpose of using

them in like manner as Ferrets in England, to clear buildings of rats.

[Illustration: FIG. 268.—The Common Polecat (_Mustela putorius_).]

The Polecats include four species confined to the northern hemisphere,

the best known of which is the Common Polecat (_M. putorius_, Fig.

268). The Ferret is a domesticated variety of this species, generally of

a yellowish-white colour; whereas the Wild Polecat is dark brown above

and black beneath, the face being variegated with dark brown and white

markings.

The skull is rough, strongly ridged, and of a far more powerful type than

that of the Stoats, Weasels, or Martens; being in the female much smaller

and lighter than in the male. The fur, which is long, coarse, and of

comparatively small value, changes its colour very little, if at all, at

the different seasons of the year.

The distribution and habits of this species have been described by

Blasius, the following being an abstract of his account. The Polecat

ranges over the greater part of Europe, reaching northwards into Southern

Sweden, and in Russia to the region of the White Sea. It does not occur

in the extreme South, but is common everywhere throughout Central Europe.

In the Alps it ranges far above the tree-line during the summer, but

retreats in winter to lower ground. In fine weather it lives either in

the open air, in holes, fox-earths, rabbit-warrens, under rocks, or

in wood-stacks, while in winter it seeks the protection of deserted

buildings. During the day it sleeps in its hiding-place, sallying forth

at night to plunder dovecots and hen-houses. It climbs but little, and

shows far less activity than the Marten. It feeds ordinarily on small

mammals, such as rabbits, hamsters, rats, and mice, on such birds as it

can catch, especially poultry and pigeons, and also on snakes, lizards,

frogs, fish, and eggs. Its prey is devoured only in its lair, but,

even though it can carry away but a single victim, it commonly kills

everything that comes in its way, often destroying all the inhabitants of

a hen-house in order to gratify its passion for slaughter. The pairing

time is towards the end of the winter, and the young, from three to

eight in number, are born in April or May, after a period of gestation

of about two months. The young, if taken early, may be easily trained,

like Ferrets, for rabbit catching. The Polecat is very tenacious of life,

and will bear many severe wounds before succumbing; it is also said to

receive with impunity the bite of the adder. Its fetid smell has become

proverbial.

Four other species of Polecats are known, viz.—The Siberian Polecat

(_M. eversmanni_) of Western and Northern Asia is nearly allied to the

European species, but the head and back are almost white, and the skull

is stouter and more constricted behind the orbits. The Tibetan _M.

larvata_ is distinguished from the last by the presence of a process

connecting the pterygoid with the auditory bulla, and by a difference

in the shape of the upper molar. The American Polecat (_M. nigripes_),

inhabiting the central plateau of the United States, and extending

southwards into Texas, is another closely allied species, although some

zoologists have made it the type of the genus _Cynomyonax_. Finally,

the Mottled Polecat (_M. sarmatica_) is a species sparsely distributed

in Eastern Europe and parts of Western Asia, but common in Southern

Afghanistan. Its skull, although smaller, resembles that of the common

species; but the coloration is very different, all the upper parts being

mottled with large irregular reddish spots on a white ground, and the

under side, limbs, and tail deep shining black. The tail is long.

The Common Polecat occurs in a fossil condition in the cave-deposits of

Europe.

[Illustration: FIG. 269.—The Common Weasel (_Mustela vulgaris_).]

The remaining members of the genus comprise the true Weasels and Stoats,

which are of almost cosmopolitan distribution. In the Common Weasel (_M.

vulgaris_, Fig. 269) the upper parts, outside of limbs and tail, are a

uniform reddish-brown, the under parts pure white. In very cold regions,

both in Europe and America, it turns completely white in winter, but less

regularly and at a lower temperature than the Stoat, from which it is

easily distinguished by its smaller size, and by its wanting the black

end of the tail. The length of the head and body of the male is usually

about 8 inches, that of the tail 2½ inches; the female is smaller.

This species is pretty generally distributed throughout Europe, Northern

and Central Asia, British North America, and the northern portions of the

United States. It possesses in a full degree all the active, courageous,

and bloodthirsty disposition of the rest of the genus, but its diminutive

size prevents it attacking and destroying any but the smaller mammals

and birds. Mice, rats, voles, moles, and frogs constitute its principal

food. It is generally found on or near the surface of the ground, but it

can not only pursue its prey through very small holes and crevices of

rocks and under dense tangled herbage, but follow it up the stems and

branches of trees, or even into the water, swimming with perfect ease. It

constructs a nest of dried leaves and herbage, placed in a hole in the

ground or a bank or hollow tree, in which it brings up its litter of four

to six (usually five) young ones. The mother will defend her young with

the utmost desperation against any assailant, having been often known to

sacrifice her own life rather than desert them.

The Stoat or Ermine (_M. erminea_) has nearly the same distribution as

the Weasel, but in Asia it is said to extend into parts of the Kashmir

Himalaya. Its size, as already mentioned, considerably exceeds that

of the Weasel; and its most distinctive feature is the black tip at

the end of the tail, which remains when the rest of the pellage turns

white. The white winter skins from the northern regions of its habitat,

where the fur is thick and close, form the well-known and valuable

ermine of commerce. Remains of the Stoat are found in the Pleistocene

cavern-deposits of Europe. The other species of Weasels are very numerous

and widely distributed.

_Extinct Mustelines._—A number of European Miocene Carnivores may be

referred to the genus _Mustela_ in its wider sense, and serve to confirm

the propriety of this use of the term. Thus _M. sectoria_ is a species

of somewhat larger size than the Stoat, with _p_ ⁴⁄₄, while in _M.

angustifrons_ the number of premolars is ³⁄₄, and in _M. mustelina_

⁴⁄₃; the latter species agreeing very closely in size with the Stoat.

The extinct _Plesictis_, in which there are _p_ ⁴⁄₄ and the lower

carnassial has a large inner cusp, is distinguished from _Mustela_ by the

circumstance that the temporal ridges of the skull never unite to form

a sagittal crest. Moreover, the inner tubercular portion of the upper

molar (as in some of the Miocene species of _Mustela_) is shorter in an

antero-posterior direction than the secant outer moiety; and the auditory

bulla is more inflated than in _Mustela_, although it has no septum.

Both these features indicate a decided approximation to the Viverroid

genus _Stenoplesiotis_ (p. 539); and since there are no well-marked

characters of family value by which these two genera can be distinguished

the available evidence points to a transition from the Viverroid to the

Musteloid type. _Mustela larteti_, of the Middle Miocene of France,

should perhaps be referred to _Ictonyx_.

_Pœcilogale._[512]—This genus has been made for the reception of the

South African _Mustela albinucha_, in which the coloration is similar

to that of _Ictonyx_, but the number of cheek-teeth is usually reduced

to _p_ ²⁄₂, _m_ ¹⁄₁, although there may be a second lower molar. The

auditory bulla is quite flat.

_Lyncodon._[513]—This name has been proposed for a small Musteline from

Patagonia, with _p_ ²⁄₂, _m_ ¹⁄₁, which Mr. O. Thomas suggests may be

nothing more than an aberrant southern form of _Mustela_ (_Putorius_)

_brasiliensis_. The auditory bulla is more inflated than in the typical

Weasels. This animal is somewhat larger than the Stoat.

[Illustration: FIG. 270.—The Wolverene (_Gulo luscus_).]

_Gulo._[514]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₃, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ¹⁄₂; total 38.

Crowns of the teeth very stout. Upper molar very much smaller than the

carnassial. Lower carnassial large, with very small talon and no inner

cusp. Third upper incisor unusually large, almost like a canine. The

dentition, though really but a modification of that of the Weasels,

presents a great general resemblance to that of the Hyæna. Palate

prolonged somewhat behind the last molar. Humerus with an entepicondylar

foramen. Vertebræ: C 7, D 15, L 5, S 3, C 15. Body and limbs stoutly

made. Feet large and powerful, subplantigrade, with large, compressed,

much curved, and sharp-pointed claws. Soles of the feet (except the

pads of the toes) covered with thick bristly hairs. Ears very small,

nearly concealed by the fur. Eyes small. Tail short, thick, and bushy.

Fur full, long, and rather coarse. The one species, the Wolverene or

Glutton (_G. luscus_, Fig. 270), an inhabitant of the forest regions

of Northern Europe, Asia, and America, much resembles a small Bear in

appearance. It is a very powerful animal for its size, climbs trees, and

lives on grouse, squirrels, hares, foxes, beavers, reindeer, and is said

to attack even horses and cows. The Wolverene has a curious habit of

stealing and secreting articles of which it can make no possible use, as

is exemplified in the following instance related by Dr. Coues: “A hunter

and his family, having left their lodge unguarded during their absence,

on their return found it completely gutted—the walls were there, but

nothing else. Blankets, guns, kettles, axes, cans, knives, and all the

other paraphernalia of a trapper’s tent had vanished, and the tracks left

by the beast showed who had been the thief. The family set to work, and,

by carefully following up all his paths, recovered, with some trifling

exceptions, the whole of the lost property.” The pairing season occurs in

March, and the female, secure in her burrow, produces her young, four or

five at a birth, in June or July. In defence of these she is exceedingly

bold, and the Indians, according to Coues, “have been heard to say that

they would sooner encounter a she-bear with her cubs than a carcajou (the

Indian name of the glutton) under the same circumstances.”

Fossil remains of the Wolverene are found in cavern and other Pleistocene

deposits in various parts of Europe.

_Suborder_ PINNIPEDIA.

The Eared-Seals, Walruses, and Seals differ from the rest of the

Carnivora mainly in the structure of their limbs, which are modified

for aquatic progression,—the two proximal segments being very short

and partially enveloped in the general integument of the body; while

the third segment, especially in the hinder extremities, is elongated,

expanded, and webbed. There are always five well-developed digits on

each limb. In the hind limb the two marginal digits (first and fifth)

are stouter and generally longer than the others. The teeth also differ

from those of the more typical Carnivora. The incisors are always fewer

than ³⁄₃. The cheek series consists generally of four premolars and one

molar of very uniform characters, with never more than two roots, and

with conical, more or less compressed, pointed crowns, which may have

accessory cusps, placed before or behind the principal one, but are never

broad and tuberculated; and there is no differentiated carnassial tooth.

The milk-teeth are very small and simple, and are shed or absorbed at a

very early age, usually either before or within a few days after birth.

The brain is relatively large; the cerebral hemispheres being broad in

proportion to their length, with numerous and complex convolutions. There

is a very short cæcum. The kidneys are divided into numerous distinct

lobules. There are no Cowper’s glands. The mammæ are either two or four,

and abdominal in position. No clavicles. Tail always very short. Eyes

very large and exposed, with flat cornea.

The animals of this group are all aquatic in their mode of life, spending

the greater part of their time in the water, swimming and diving with

great facility, feeding mainly on fish, crustaceans, and other marine

animals, and progressing on land with difficulty. They always come on

shore, however, for the purpose of bringing forth their young. They

are generally marine, but they occasionally ascend large rivers, and

some inhabit inland seas and lakes, as the Caspian and Baikal. Though

not numerous in species, they are widely distributed over the world,

but occur most abundantly on the coasts of lands situated in cold and

temperate zones. The suborder is divisible into three well-marked

families: the _Otariidæ_, Fur-Seals or Sea-Bears, which form a transition

from the Fissiped Carnivora to the Seals; the _Trichechidæ_, containing

the Walrus; and the _Phocidæ_ or typical Seals.

The resemblances between the skull and other parts of the body of the

Fur Seals and the Ursoid true Carnivora is suggestive of some genetic

relationship between the two groups, and Professor Mivart[515] expresses

the opinion that the one group is the direct descendant of the other. The

same writer goes on to suggest that if the Eared-Seals have been derived

from Bear-like Carnivores this need not necessarily hold good with the

true Seals, which may have had another, and possibly Lutrine, origin.

The presence of an alisphenoid canal in _Ursus_ and the _Otariidæ_,

and its absence in _Lutra_ and the _Phocidæ_, together with other

osteological features, are cited in support of this view; but although

these resemblances and differences are certainly remarkable, yet much

more evidence is required before the hypothesis can be accepted as even

a probable one. It must, moreover, be borne in mind that the true Bears

are a very modern group; and there is a possibility that the Pinnipeds

may prove to have been independently derived from the extinct Carnivora

noticed below under the name of Creodonta.

_Family_ OTARIIDÆ.

When on land the hind feet are turned forwards under the body, and aid

in supporting and moving the trunk as in ordinary mammals. A small

external ear. Testes suspended in a distinct external scrotum. Skull

with postorbital processes, and an alisphenoid canal. Angle of mandible

inflected. Palms and soles of feet naked.

_Otaria._[516]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₂, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ¹⁻²⁄₁; total

34 or 36. First and second upper incisors small, with the summits of

the crowns divided by a deep transverse groove into an anterior and a

posterior cusp of nearly equal height; the third large and canine-like.

Canines large, conical, pointed, recurved. Molars and premolars usually

⁵⁄₅, of which the second, third, and fourth are preceded by milk-teeth

shed a few days after birth; sometimes (as in Fig. 271) a sixth upper

molar (occasionally developed on one side and not the other); all with

similar characters, generally uniradicular; crown moderate, compressed,

pointed, with a single principal cusp, and sometimes a cingulum, and more

or less developed anterior and posterior accessory cusps. Vertebræ: C 7,

D 15, L 5, S 4, C 9-14. Head rounded. Eyes large. Pinna of ear small,

narrow, and pointed. Neck long. Skin of all the feet extended far beyond

the nails and ends of the digits, with a deeply-lobed margin. The nails

small and often quite rudimentary, especially those of the first and

fifth toes of both feet, the best developed and most constant being the

three middle claws of the hind foot, which are elongated, compressed, and

curved.

[Illustration: FIG. 271.—Skull of _Otaria forsteri_. (From Gray, _Proc.

Zool. Soc._ 1872, p. 660.)]

The Eared-Seals, commonly called Sea-Bears or Sea-Lions, are widely

distributed, especially in the temperate regions of both hemispheres,

though absent from the coasts of the North Atlantic. As might be

inferred from their power of walking on all fours, they spend more of

their time on shore, and range inland to greater distances, than the

true Seals, especially at the breeding time, though they are obliged

always to return to the water to seek their food. They are gregarious

and polygamous, and the males are usually much larger than the females,

a circumstance which has given rise to some of the confusion existing

in the specific determination of the various members of the genus. Some

of the species possess, in addition to the stiff, close, hairy covering

common to all the group, an exceedingly fine, dense, woolly under fur.

The skins of these, when dressed and deprived of the longer harsh outer

hairs, constitute the “seal-skin” of commerce, so much valued for

wearing apparel, which is not the product of any of the true Seals.

The best-known species are _O. stelleri_, the Northern Sea Lion, the

largest of the genus, from the North Pacific, about 10 feet in length;

_O. jubata_, the Patagonian or Southern Sea Lion (Fig. 272), from the

Falkland Islands and Patagonia; _O. californiana_, from California,

frequently exhibited alive in menageries in Europe; _O. ursina_, the

common Sea-Bear or Fur-Seal of the North Pacific, the skins of which are

imported in immense numbers from the Prybiloff Islands; _O. pusilla_,

from the Cape of Good Hope; _O. forsteri_ and others, from the coasts of

Australia and various islands scattered over the southern hemisphere.

These have been grouped by some zoologists into many genera, founded upon

very trivial modifications of teeth and skull. In a recent memoir Mr.

Beddard[517] concludes that if the genus be split up at all, it should

be divided into _Otaria_, containing only _O. jubata_ (with its numerous

synonyms), and _Arctocephalus_, comprising all the other species. The

latter group is distinguished by the more narrow and pointed nose, the

longer ears, the palate not excavated nor truncated posteriorly, the

presence of a hook-like process to the pterygoids, and by the posterior

border of the nasals extending behind the zygoma.

[Illustration: FIG. 272.—The Patagonian Sea-Lion (_Otaria jubata_). From

Sclater, _Proc. Zool. Soc._ 1866, p. 80.]

The following account of _O. ursina_ in the Prybiloff Islands is taken,

with slight verbal alteration, from Nordenskiöld’s _Voyage of the Vega_:

“The Sea-Bears are found year after year during summer at certain parts

of the coast, known as ‘rookeries,’ where, collected in hundreds of

thousands, they pass several months without the least food. The males

or ‘bulls’ come first to the place, most of them in the month of May

or in the beginning of June. The most violent conflicts, often with a

deadly issue for one of the parties, now arise regarding the space of

about a hundred square feet which each bull-seal considers necessary for

his home. The strongest and most successful in fight retain the best

places near the shore; the weaker have to crawl farther up on land,

where the chances of getting a sufficient number of spouses are not

particularly great. The fighting goes on with many feigned attacks and

parades. At first the contest concerns only the proprietorship of the

soil. The attacked, therefore, never follows his opponent beyond the area

he has once taken up, but haughtily lays itself down, when the enemy

has retired, in order to collect strength for a new combat. The animal

in such a case grunts with satisfaction, throws himself on his back,

scratches himself with his fore feet, attends to his toilet, or cools

himself by slowly fanning with one of his hind feet; but he is always on

the alert and ready for a new fight, until he is tired out and meets his

match and is driven farther up from the beach. In the middle of June the

females come up from the sea. At the water’s edge they are received in

a very gallant way by some strong bulls that have succeeded in securing

for themselves places next the shore, and now are bent by fair means or

foul on annexing the females for their harem. But scarcely is the female

that has come up out of the water established with male No. 1 than he

rushes towards a new female on the surface of the water. Male No. 2 now

stretches out his neck and without ceremony lays hold of the female of

No. 1, to be afterwards exposed to a similar trick by No. 3. In such

cases the females are quite passive, never fall out with each other, and

bear with patience the severe wounds they often get when they are pulled

about by the combatants, now in one direction, now in another. All the

females are finally distributed in this way after furious combats among

the males, those of the latter who are nearest the beach getting from

12 to 15 consorts to their share. Soon after landing the females bring

forth their young, which are treated with great indifference, and are

protected by their adopted father only within the limits of the harem.

Next comes the pairing season, and when it has passed there is an end

to the arrangement and distribution into families at first so strictly

maintained. The males, rendered lean by three months’ absolute fasting,

by degrees leave the rookery, which is left in possession of the Walruses

and the young Sea Bears, including a number of young males that have not

ventured to the place before. In the middle of September, when the young

have learned to swim, the place is quite abandoned, with the exception of

single animals that have for some reason remained behind.”

_Family_ TRICHECHIDÆ.

In many characters the single genus representing this family is

intermediate between the _Otariidæ_ and _Phocidæ_, but it has a

completely aberrant dentition. It has no external ears, as in the

_Phocidæ_; but when on land the hind feet are turned forwards and used

in progression, though less completely than in the _Otariidæ_. The upper

canines are developed into immense tusks, which descend a long distance

below the lower jaw. All the other teeth (Fig. 273), including the lower

canines, are much alike, small, simple, and one-rooted, the molars

with flat crowns. The skull is without postorbital process, but has an

alisphenoid canal.

[Illustration: FIG. 273.—Diagram of the dentition of the Walrus

(_Trichechus rosmarus_). The denticles placed apart from the others are

milk-teeth, and disappear soon after birth. The small teeth in connection

with the jaws frequently persist throughout life.]

_Trichechus._[518]—Dentition of young: _i_ ²⁄₂, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ and _m_ ⁵⁄₄.

Many of these teeth are, however, lost early or remain through life in

a rudimentary state concealed by the gums. The teeth which are usually

developed functionally are _i_ ¹⁄₀, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ³⁄₃, _m_ ⁰⁄₀; total

18. Vertebræ: C 7, D 14, L 6, S 4, C 12. Head round. Eyes rather small.

Muzzle short and broad, with on each side a group of long, very stiff,

bristly whiskers. The remainder of the hair-covering very short and

adpressed. Tail very rudimentary. Fore feet with subequal toes, carrying

five minute flattened nails. Hind feet with subequal toes, the fifth

slightly the largest, having cutaneous lobes projecting beyond the ends

as in _Otaria_; first and fifth with minute flattened nails; second,

third, and fourth with large, elongated, subcompressed pointed nails.

_Trichechus_ is the almost universally accepted generic name by which

the Walrus or Morse[519] is known to zoologists, but some confusion has

been introduced into literature by the revival of the nearly obsolete

terms _Rosmarus_ by some authors and _Odobænus_ by others. _T. rosmarus_

is the name of the species met with in the Arctic seas; that of the

North Pacific, if distinct, is _T. obesus_. The preceding and following

descriptions will apply equally to both. A full-grown male Walrus

measures from 10 to 11 feet from the nose to the end of the very short

tail, and is a heavy, bulky animal, especially thick about the shoulders.

The soles of both fore and hind feet are bare, rough, and warty. The

surface of the skin generally is covered with short, adpressed hair of

a light, yellowish-brown colour, which, on the under parts of the body

and base of the flippers, passes into dark reddish-brown or chestnut.

In old animals the hair becomes more scanty, sometimes almost entirely

disappearing, and the skin shows ample evidence of the rough life and

pugnacious habits of the animal in the innumerable scars with which it is

usually covered. It is everywhere more or less wrinkled, but especially

over the shoulders, where it is thrown into deep and heavy folds.

[Illustration: FIG. 274.—The Walrus (_Trichechus rosmarus_).]

The tusks are formidable weapons of defence, but their principal use

seems to be scraping and digging among the sand and shingle for the

molluscs and crustaceans on which the Walrus feeds. They are said also

to aid in climbing up the slippery rocks and ledges of ice on which

so much of the animal’s life is passed. Although this function of the

tusks is affirmed by numerous authors, some of whom appear to have had

opportunities of actual observation, it is explicitly denied by Malmgren.

Walruses are more or less gregarious in their habits, being met with

generally in companies or herds of various sizes. They are only found

near the coast or on large masses of floating ice, and rarely far out in

the open sea; and, though often moving from one part of their feeding

ground to another, they have no regular seasonal migrations. Their young

are born between the months of April and June, usually but one at a

time, never more than two. Their strong affection for their young, and

their sympathy for each other in times of danger, have been particularly

noticed by all who have had the opportunity of observing them in their

native haunts. When one of their number is wounded, the whole herd

usually join in a concerted and intelligent defence. Although harmless

and inoffensive when not molested, they exhibit considerable fierceness

when attacked, using their great tusks with tremendous effect either on

human enemies who come into too close quarters or on Polar Bears, the

only other adversaries they can meet with in their own natural territory.

Their voice is a loud roaring, and can be heard at a great distance; it

is described by Dr. Kane as “something between the mooing of a cow and

the deepest baying of a mastiff, very round and full, with its bark or

detached notes repeated rather quickly seven or nine times in succession.”

The principal food of the Walrus consists of bivalved molluscs,

especially _Mya truncata_ and _Saxicava rugosa_, two species very

abundant in the Arctic regions, which it digs up from the mud and sand

in which they lie buried at the bottom of the sea by means of its tusks.

It crushes and removes the shells by the aid of its grinding teeth and

tongue, swallowing only the soft part of the animal. It also feeds on

other molluscs, sand-worms, star-fishes, and shrimps. Portions of various

kinds of algæ or sea-weeds have been found in its stomach, but whether

swallowed intentionally or not is still doubtful.

The commercial products of the Walrus are its oil, hide (used to

manufacture harness and sole-leather and twisted into tiller ropes), and

tusks. The ivory of the latter is, however, inferior in quality to that

of the Elephant. Its flesh forms an important article of food to the

Eskimo and Tchuktchis. Of the coast tribes of the last-named people the

Walrus forms the chief means of support. “The flesh supplies them with

food, the ivory tusks are made into implements used in the chase and for

other domestic purposes, as well as a affording a valuable article of

barter, and the skin furnishes the material for covering their summer

habitations, harness for their dog-teams, and lines for their fishing

gear” (Scammon).

Geographically the Walrus is confined to the northern circumpolar

regions of the globe, extending apparently as far north as explorers

have penetrated, but its southern range has been much restricted of late

in consequence of the persecutions of man. On the Atlantic coast of

America it was met with in the sixteenth century as low as the southern

coast of Nova Scotia, and in the last century it was common in the Gulf

of St. Lawrence and on the shores of Labrador. It still inhabits the

coast round Hudson’s Bay, Davis Straits, and Greenland, where, however,

its numbers are daily decreasing. It is not found on the Arctic coast

of America between the 97th and 158th meridians. In Europe occasional

stragglers have reached the British Isles, and it was formerly abundant

on the coasts of Finmark. It is rare in Iceland, but Spitzbergen, Nova

Zembla, and the western part of the north coast of Siberia are still

constant places of resort, in all of which a regular war of extermination

is carried on. The North Pacific, including both sides of Behring’s

Strait, northern Kamschatka, Alaska, and the Pribyloff Islands, are also

the haunts of numerous Walruses, which are isolated from those of the

North Atlantic by the long stretches of coast, both of Siberia and North

America, where they do not occur. The Pacific Walrus appears to be as

large as, if not larger than, that of the Atlantic; its tusks are longer

and more slender, and curved inwards; the whiskers are smaller, and the

muzzle (of the skull) relatively deeper and broader. These and certain

other minor differences have induced some naturalists to consider it

specifically distinct under the name of _Trichechus obesus_. Its habits

appear to be quite similar to those of the Atlantic form. Though formerly

found in immense herds, it is rapidly becoming scarce, as the methods of

destruction used by the American whalers, who have systematically entered

upon its pursuit, are far more certain and deadly than those of the

native Tchuktchis, to whom, as mentioned before, the Walrus long afforded

the principal means of subsistence.

Fossil remains of Walruses and closely allied animals have been found in

the United States, and in England, Belgium, and France, in deposits of

Pliocene age.

_Family_ PHOCIDÆ.

The true Seals are the most completely adapted for aquatic life of all

the Pinnipeds. When on land the hind limbs are extended behind them and

take no part in progression, which is effected by a series of jumping

movements produced by the muscles of the trunk, in some species aided by

the fore limbs only. The palms and soles of the feet are hairy. There

is no pinna to the ear, and no scrotum, the testes being abdominal. The

upper incisors have simple, pointed crowns, and vary in number in the

different groups. All the forms have well-developed canines and ⁵⁄₅ teeth

of the cheek-series. In those species of which the milk-dentition is

known, there are three milk molars (Fig. 275), which precede the second,

third, and fourth permanent molars; the dentition is therefore _p_ ⁴⁄₄,

_m_ ¹⁄₁, the first premolar having as usual no milk-predecessor. The

skull has no postorbital process and no alisphenoid canal; and the angle

of the mandible is not inflected. The fur is stiff and adpressed, without

woolly under fur.

Subfamily =Phocinæ=.—Incisors ³⁄₂. All the feet with five well-developed

claws. The toes on the hind feet subequal, the first and fifth not

greatly exceeding the others in length, and with the interdigital

membrane not extending beyond the toes.

_Halichœrus._[520]—Dentition: _i_ ³⁄₂, _c_ ¹⁄₁, _p_ ⁴⁄₄, _m_ ¹⁄₁;

total 34. Crowns of molars large, simple, conical, recurved, slightly

compressed, with sharp anterior and posterior edges, but without

accessory cusps, except sometimes in the two hinder ones of the lower

jaw. With the exception of the last one or two in the upper jaw and the

last in the lower jaw they are all uniradicular. Vertebræ: C 7, D 15, L

5, S 4, C 14.

One species, _H. grypus_, the Gray Seal of the coasts of Scandinavia and

the British Isles (see page 604.)

[Illustration: FIG. 275.—Upper permanent and deciduous dentition of the

Greenland Seal (_Phoca grœnlandica_). The first and second deciduous

incisors are already absorbed.]

_Phoca._[521]—Dental formula as the last. Teeth smaller and more pointed.

Molars (Figs. 275 and 276) with two roots (except the first in each jaw);

and their crowns with accessory cusps. Vertebræ: C 7, D 15, L 5, S 4,

C 12-15. Head round and short. Fore feet short, with five very strong,

subcompressed, slightly curved, rather sharp claws, subequal in length.

On the hind feet the claws much narrower and less curved. The species of

this genus are widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, and

include _P. barbata_, the Bearded Seal; _P. grœnlandica_, the Greenland

Seal; _P. vitulina_, the Common Seal (Fig. 277); and _P. hispida_, the

Ringed Seal of the North Atlantic; _P. caspica_, from the Caspian and

Aral Seas; and _P. sibirica_, from Lake Baikal.

[Illustration: FIG. 276.—Skull of Common Seal, showing form of teeth.]

Although the members of this subfamily swim and dive with the greatest

ease, often remaining as much as a quarter of an hour or more below the

surface, and are dependent for their sustenance entirely on living prey

captured in the water, yet they frequently resort to sandy beaches,

rocks, or ice-floes, either to sleep or to bask in the sun, and

especially for the purpose of bringing forth their young. The latter

appears to be the universal habit, and, strange as it may seem, the

young seals—of some species at least—take to the water at first very

reluctantly, and have actually to be taught to swim by their parents. The

number of young produced is usually one annually, though occasionally

two. They are at first covered with a coat of very thick, soft, nearly

white fur, and until it falls off they do not usually enter the water.

This occurs in the Greenland and Gray Seal when from two to three weeks

old, but in the Common Seal apparently much earlier. One of this species

born in the London Zoological Gardens had shed its infantile woolly

coat and was swimming and diving about in its pond within three hours

after its birth. The movements of the true Seals upon the ground or ice

are very different from those of the Eared-Seals. Thus the hinder limbs

(by which mainly they propel themselves through the water) are on land

always perfectly passive, stretched backwards, with the soles of the

feet applied to each other, and often raised to avoid contact with the

ground. Sometimes the fore limbs are equally passive, being placed close

to the sides of the body, and motion is then effected by a shuffling or

wriggling action produced by the muscles of the trunk. When, however,

there is any necessity for a more rapid mode of progression the animals

use the fore paws, either alternately or simultaneously, pressing the

palmar surface on the ground and lifting and dragging the body forwards

in a succession of short jumps. In this way they manage to move so fast

that a man has to step out beyond a walk to keep up with them; but such

rapid action costs considerable effort, and they very soon become heated

and exhausted. These various modes of progression appear to be common to

all species so far as has been observed.

Most kinds of Seals are gregarious and congregate, especially at the

breeding season, in immense herds. Such is the habit of the Greenland

Seal (_Phoca grœnlandica_), which resorts in the spring to the ice-floes

of the North Sea, around Jan Mayen Island, where about 200,000 are

killed annually by the crews of the Scotch, Dutch, and Norwegian sealing

vessels. Others, like the Common Seal of the British islands (_P.

vitulina_), though having a wide geographical range, are never met with

in such large numbers or far away from land. This species is stationary

all the year round, but some have a regular season of migration, moving

south in winter and north in summer. They are usually harmless, timid,

inoffensive animals, though, being polygamous, the old males often fight

desperately with each other, their skins being frequently found covered

with wounds and scars. They are greatly attached to their young, and

remarkably docile and easily trained when in captivity; indeed, although

there would seem little in the structure or habits of the Seal to fit

it by nature to be a companion of man, yet there is perhaps no wild

animal which attaches itself so readily to the person who takes care

of and feeds it. Seals appear to have much curiosity, and it is a very

old and apparently well-attested observation that they are strongly

attracted by musical sounds. Their sense of smell is very acute, and

their voice varies from a harsh bark or grunt to a plaintive bleat.

Seals feed chiefly on fish, of which they consume enormous quantities;

some, however, subsist largely on crustaceans, especially species

of _Gammarus_, which swarm in the northern seas, also on molluscs,

echinoderms, and even occasionally sea-birds, which they seize when

swimming or floating on the water.

[Illustration: FIG. 277.—The Common Seal (_Phoca vitulina_).]

Although the true Seals do not possess the beautiful under fur

(“seal-skin” of the furriers) which makes the skin of the Sea-Bears so

precious, yet their hides are still sufficiently valuable as articles of

commerce, together with the oil yielded by their fat, to subject them to

a devastating persecution, by which their numbers are being continually

diminished.