At one time the gray squirrel was so abundant as to make ruinous
inroads on the corn and wheat crops of our pioneers. In Ohio, a hundred
years ago, there was a law requiring each free white man to deliver
100 squirrel scalps every year or pay a penalty of $3. Today the gray
squirrel needs legal protection to prevent its extermination.]
The hares have developed long legs for running on open plains, and the
weasels have long, slender bodies and an exceeding quickness which
enables them to follow and capture their elusive prey in its burrows
and among crevices in the rocks.
The hairy coat of the mole is short and equal to the finest velvet,
while that of the porcupine stands out in strong, sharp spines; the
skin of the armadillo is practically hairless, but forms a bony armor
covering its upper parts.
The front feet of squirrels and most other rodents are slender and used
with deftness as hands in manipulating food, while those of the badger
and skunk are heavily clawed and strongly muscled for the purpose of
digging up their prey.
The tails of many species are varied in form to serve special purposes.
The long-haired tails of tree-squirrels have a plume-like character,
which adds much to the beauty of these attractive animals. The long
tails of the kangaroo-rats and the jumping-mice serve as balances for
their bodies during long leaps. The vertically flattened tail of the
muskrat and the broad horizontally flattened tail of the beaver are
useful as rudders. Perhaps the oddest of all is the naked prehensile
tail of the opossum, which coils about branches or other support and
thus is a safeguard against a possible fall, and even permits the
animal to hang suspended by it alone.