comes into open windows at night when its hunting is over. It flies
among the branches of trees and examines the foliage for insects of
all kinds. In early spring, when the sallows are in bloom and attracting
swarms of insects, the Long-eared Bat is there also: fresh from
hibernation and with a keen appetite. He hovers like a hawk over a
favourable tree, and swoops down upon his selected prey. He appears
in the evening usually about half an hour after the sun has departed,
and apparently feeds during the greater part of the night; occasionally
he is active in daylight. He appears to be at least partially migratory,
for it has been observed that in summer a swarm will appear in a
district where they are not noticeable as a rule, and after staying a
few weeks disappear.
The single young one is born in June or July.
They are often found hibernating in clusters under house-roofs;
but solitary individuals are also found in hollow trees and similar
situations. Should the thermometer register 46° F. or more at any
time during the winter, the Long-eared Bat awakes and makes a foraging
flight--calling attention to his presence by his acute, shrill cry.
The dental formula is: _i 2/3, c 1/1, p 2/3, m 3/3 = 36_.
*Barbastelle* (_Barbastella barbastellus_, Schreber).
One feels inclined to apologise for the poverty of language displayed
in the heading above; though no one accepts responsibility for it--the
fault lies with the Law of Priority. A strong point in the Linnean
System of nomenclature was its binomial character--there were two
words only in the name of every animal and plant, the first of the two
indicating the genus in which it was grouped, and the second peculiar
to the species. In recent years the extension of our knowledge of the
world's fauna has led to the breaking up of many of the older genera
and a regrouping of the species. In some cases the species name has been
adopted to denote a new genus, and then the Law of Priority steps in
and says the oldest species name must be retained, so that instead of
a binomial we get a mere duplication. When this happens--as above--to
be essentially the same as the only "popular" name the species has ever
had the result is ludicrous.
Daubenton, who first described it (1759), called it the Bearded Bat (La
Barbastelle) owing to tufts of black bristles on the glandular swellings
on the muzzle. It is of slender form with long legs and small feet. The
irregularly four-sided ears are relatively large, as broad as long, and
united by their bases just behind the muzzle. The outer border has a
deep notch; the lance-shaped tragus is half the length of the ear. The
nostrils open in a naked depression.
The long, soft fur is a very dark brown, but many of the hairs on the
upper surface have pale tips which produce a frosted appearance; on
the lower surface such light tips are more numerous, and are specially
evident along the middle line of the abdomen. The wing, ear, nose, and
foot are dusky, appearing lighter than the furred regions.
The head and body measure about two inches, and the tail an inch and
three-quarters. The expanse of wings is about ten and a third inches.
This and the Long-eared Bat are the only British species whose ears
connect; and the form of the ear in each is so distinct that there is
no danger of confusing them. It is both solitary and silent in flight,
which begins early in the evening, often in daylight; it holds its
feet far apart and the tail decurved. In fine weather it flies high.
During its diurnal rest it has been found in various retreats, often
in company: under thatch of a shed, between the rafters and tiles of
outhouses, behind a cottage shutter, in the crevices of walls and trees.
Its voice is a metallic squeak or a buzz.
It has one premolar less on each side than the Long-eared Bat, so that
its dental formula stands thus: _i 2/3, c 1/1, p 2/2, m 3/3 = 34_.
As a British Bat, the Barbastelle is found chiefly in the South of
England, though it has been recorded from all the English counties
between the Severn and the Wash; also Lincoln, Cheshire, and Cumberland
(Carlisle). It appears to be absent from Scotland, Ireland, and the Isle
of Man.
FLESH-EATERS: FOX, BADGER, OTTER, WEASELS, MARTENS, AND WILD CAT
*Fox* (_Vulpes canis_, Linn.).
It is safe to say that, except in the wildest and most remote corners
of our island, the Fox would have been placed long ago in the list of
extinct British mammals, but for its careful preservation by the various
"hunts." In recent times--that is since fox-hunting became a fashionable
sport--the poultry and sheep-raising agriculturist has had to bear
heavy losses in order that the local pack of fox-hounds may have its
well-conditioned quarry at the proper season. As far back as the reign
of Elizabeth an Act of Parliament was passed for the protection of
grain, which incidentally provided for the payment of "xijd" for the
head of every Fox or Gray that might be brought in to the officers
appointed to receive them. To-day, outside the hunt areas, the killing
of a Fox is considered a meritorious act, particularly in the northern
mountain districts; in Cornwall, we have seen a loafer carrying a dead
Fox around the villages and receiving pence from the grateful owners of
domestic poultry.
[Illustration: _Pl. 34._ _E 52._
*Fox.*
Vulpes canis.]
[Illustration: _Pl. 35._ _E 53._
*Fox cub.*
Taking a peep at the outside world.]
The head and body of the Fox measures usually a trifle over two feet in
length, and the bushy, white-tipped tail adds at least another foot to
his total length when running; but examples have been recorded greatly
exceeding these measurements. He stands only about fourteen inches high
at the shoulder. The beautiful fur is russet or red-brown above and
white on the under parts. The front of the limbs and the back of the
ears are black. The sharp-pointed long muzzle, the erect ears, and the
quick movements of the eye with its elliptical pupil combine to give
him an alert, cunning appearance, which so impressed the ancient writers
that they invented many stories of his astuteness. The Foxes ("Tods")
of Scotland, although of the same species, have usually greyer fur than
that of the English Fox. The Fox is an ancient Briton, and he was here
at a period long anterior to the Mammoth's days.
The habits of the Fox are nocturnal, and save at the breeding season
he leads a solitary life. The day is spent in an "earth"--a burrow
underground, rarely made by himself, usually acquired from Badger or
Rabbit; in the former case he has probably taken up quarters in the
entrance to a Badger's earth and rendered it uninhabitable to the more
cleanly beast by permeating it with the secretion from glands under
the tail. In the case of the Rabbit-burrow the Fox gets undisputed
possession by eating out those who constructed it. The Fox then stops
all the exits except one, leaving that if possible that opens in a
bramble thicket or the dense undergrowth of bracken on a hillside.
From this stronghold he issues at dusk, and trots at a light easy pace
along his accustomed trails, keeping a watchful eye for rabbit, hare,
pheasant, partridge, hedgehog, squirrel, vole, frog--even snails and
beetles. He sometimes takes to the seashore in quest of fish, crabs, and
mussels. On winter nights he will prowl around the farms, looking for a
hen-house whose door has not been properly secured; or for a fowl that
is sleeping out in the copse. Sometimes a lamb is the victim, and in
the mountain districts hunger will goad him to attack one of the small
mountain sheep, especially if the vixen is hunting with him. If cornered
he proves a hard fighter, and snaps like a wolf.
[Illustration: *Skeleton of Fox.*]
At night in January the scream of the vixen or she-fox, may be heard in
appropriate places, and the yelping bark of the dog fox in answer to
her invitation. About April the Vixen produces her litter of about four
blind whelps. She is a model mother, unremitting in attention to their
wants and education. They are without sight until ten days old. When
nearly a month old they are taken out one night for exercise, and if
suitable cover is found in the wood or on the moor among the heather,
they may not return, though the vixen remains with them and teaches them
hunting until the autumn, when the family party breaks up, each member
going his or her own way; though they will not be fully grown until
another year has passed. In fox-hunting countries artificial burrows
are constructed in suitable places, of earth and stone, of which the
expectant-mother vixen will avail herself. These are furnished in order
that the cubs may be dug out with ease when they have reached a proper
age for the huntsman's purpose.
[Illustration: _Pl. 36._ _E 54._
*Badger's Front-door.*
The deep entrance slope connects with underground galleries.]
[Illustration: _Pl. 37._ _E 55._
*Badger.*
Meles taxus.]
The Fox is credited with resorting to a species of hypnotism to attain
his ends. Seeing a party of rabbits feeding, and knowing that they
will bolt to their holes on his approach, he starts rolling about at
a safe distance to attract their attention; then like a kitten he will
begin chasing his tail, whilst the silly rabbits gaze, spellbound, on
the performance. At it the Fox continues without a pause, as though
oblivious to the presence of spectators; but all the time he is
contriving to get nearer, until a sudden straightening of his body
enables him to grab the nearest rabbit in his jaws.
The Foxes of the northern hill country are a finer race than those of
the southern woodlands. This, of course, is due to the fact that every
man's hand is against them, and it is only the individuals of great
cunning and superior physique that survive to continue their kind.
Dental formula: _i 3/3, c 1/1, p 4/4, m 2/3 = 42_.
*Badger* (_Meles taxus_, Boddaert).
In the old forestal days of Britain the Badger, Brock, Bawsen or Grey
must have been a common beast. Like the Beaver--also a former British
beast--he has left indelible marks in place-names, such as Brockham,
Brockenhurst, Brockley, Brockholes, and many more. In the present day,
by the majority of people, the Badger would be regarded almost as one of
the extinct native fauna, only to be read of in books. But it is very
far from being extinct; and the London naturalist who is determined to
see it may have his wish gratified with a journey of no more than five
and twenty miles, possibly less. It must be remembered, however, that
the Badger is even more nocturnal in his habits than the Fox, retiring
at dawn to his "set" deep in the earth, where he sleeps until dusk.
This underground hollow may be ten feet or more below the surface,
and besides the entrance slope it may have several passages and upper
galleries, with probably a back door at some distance from the main
entrance. In front of this aperture, and partly hiding it, is a mound
of earth that was turned out when the excavation was made, and the size
of this mound may be taken as an indication of the depth and extent of
the habitation. It is no unusual thing for some of the upper passages
communicating with the entrance to be tenanted by Foxes and--Rabbits!
The proximity of the Badger's "set" may be ascertained sometimes, when
rambling through the woods, by coming across a beech or birch tree whose
smooth bark is scored vertically, and an idea of the size of the Badger
may be obtained by noting the length of these marks. They are caused
by the Badger "up-ending" and stretching his limbs to the full extent
whilst he cleans and sharpens his claws, as the domestic cat does hers
on a table leg. The scores of the Badger cubs may be found there also.
The rough-coated Badger measures from two and a half to three feet
long, and stands about one foot at the shoulder. At a little distance
he appears to be of a uniform grey colour, but more closely he is seen
to be reddish-grey above and black beneath. The body is stout and broad,
the muzzle pointed; the ears short, and tail 7 to 8 inches long. The
soles of the feet are naked, and the claws of the forefeet are larger
than those of the hind feet. His weight may be anything up to 40 lbs.
The Badger is by no means particular as to the nature of his food: he
is a general feeder, and most things appear to be to his liking, whether
young rabbits, voles, hedgehogs, birds that have dropped from the nest,
mice, snakes, lizards, grubs of wasps and humble-bees, for which he
will rout out underground nests, and beetles from under bark or among
decaying leaves. On the vegetable side he is known to hunt for fleshy
roots, to pick up acorns and other fruit, and C. St. John found he had a
liking for the bulbs of the Bluebell--that is to say, he frequently
found them about the Badger's holes.
The female prepares a special lying-in chamber well furnished with moss
and grass, and there in spring or summer the young cubs or "earth-pigs,"
three or four in number, are born blind and helpless. These are at
first a silver-grey colour, but later they become dull brownish-yellow
and finally darker blue-grey, when the characteristic black and white
stripes appear on the cheeks. The blue-grey tint harmonises with the
half-tones of the wood late in the evening, and the strong contrast
between the black and white stripes fits in with the lights and shadows
of the moonlit wood. The Badger is not a sprinter, and little of his
animal food is obtained by running it down. The birds, voles, and
rabbits he captures are mostly sickly or wounded, and he has been known
to visit regularly, night after night, the ground under a rookery, in
order to pick up luckless squabs that have fallen from the nests. He is
said to be clever in springing traps without being caught, by the heroic
plan of rolling upon them, and then walking off with the bait. His
ordinary gait and form suggest the bear; and for many years naturalists
classed him among bears, but his affinities are now known to be with the
Otter and the Weasels. He is exceedingly clean in his personal habits,
and to prevent defilement of his "set," digs pits in the neighbourhood
for offensive waste.
If an ascertained Badger "set" be watched in the late evening, the
occupant may be seen to put out his head and, elevating his snout, sniff
at the air to ascertain whether it bears any enemy taint. If all is well
the Badger emerges, perhaps followed by the cubs; and they follow the
well-worn tracks that their feet have hardened, and hunt for food. St.
John says: "Eggs are his delight, and a partridge's nest with seventeen
or eighteen eggs must afford him a fine meal, particularly if he can
surprise and kill the hen-bird also; snails and worms which he finds
above ground during his nocturnal rambles are likewise included in his
bill of fare."
In winter the Badger retires to a specially deep chamber, excavated
below the nursery apartment, and prepared in autumn by bedding it with
fallen leaves which ferment and keep up a moist warmth. The passages are
blocked to keep out unwelcome visitors as well as cold, and when the
cold renders food scarce the family retires and settles down to a long
sleep. In any short spell of mild weather the Badgers will emerge and
see what is to be picked up. The cubs taken young are easily tamed, and
in response to kind treatment show a considerable amount of attachment
to their owners. Happily for our national reputation, the brutal
custom--it was called a "sport"--of badger-baiting has long been a thing
of the past. Commending itself, as it did, very strongly to certain
elements in our society, it is probable that it may have continued much
longer but for the growing difficulty in obtaining victims.
The Badger's dental formula is: _i 3/3, c 1/1, p 4/4, m 1/2 = 38_. The
minute first premolar in each jaw is frequently shed early, and may be
missing from any adult skull examined.
Although the Badger is a distinctly local species, it is widely
distributed in Britain and Ireland. In the latter country, where it
is common, Badger hams are not an unknown delicacy in rustic larders.
In Europe it extends from the south of Sweden to Italy.
[Illustration: _Pl. 38._ _E 58._
*Otter.*
Lutra vulgaris.]
[Illustration: _Pl. 39._ _E 59._
*Otter swimming.*
When the rivers are low the Otter retires to sea-caves.]
*Otter* (_Lutra vulgaris_, Erxleben).
The Otter is by no means the nearly extinct beast that is commonly
imagined; but he who would see it in a wild state must seek it by night
along the banks of remote streams or tarns, where there are alder-holts,
or in the neighbourhood of the East Anglian Broads. It may sometimes be
found by day, by searching the caves on some remote part of our coast
where the cliffs are rocky and the shore strewn with boulders. Even so
near the congested haunts of men as the upper Thames, Otters are
occasionally trapped.
If one has the good fortune to get a good view of the Otter in such
places it will be found to be a very different creature from the
specimens in zoological gardens. The long, lithe body, clad in fine
smooth fur and ending in the long thick tapering tail, gives it a very
graceful appearance in the water; and, of course, it is a most expert
and agile swimmer. The head is broad and flattened from above, the
face short, the black eyes small but bright, and the short, rounded
ears hairy. The ears are closed when under water. The legs are short
and powerful, and all the feet are completely webbed. There are five
toes on each, with short pointed claws, those of the hind feet flat
and nail-like. The tail is somewhat flattened from the sides, and forms
a most efficient rudder. Below its thick base there is a pair of glands
which secrete a fetid fluid. The fur is of two kinds: a fine, soft,
under-fur of whitish-grey with brown tips, among which are interspersed
longer, thicker, and glossy hairs. Water does not penetrate the
under-fur. On the upper parts and the outer sides of the limbs, these
longer hairs, which have a grey base, have rich brown ends; but on the
cheeks, throat, and under parts they are brownish-grey. At a little
distance it appears to be of a uniform dusky brown tint. White,
cream coloured, and spotted examples are on record.
The total length is about four feet, of which about one-third is tail.
The weight of a full-grown male is between 20 lbs. and 25 lbs., but
occasionally it exceeds 27 lbs.--Pennant records one of 40 lbs.! The
female weighs less than the male by about four pounds. The dental
formula is: _i 3/3, c 1/1, p 4/3, m 1/2 = 36_. The molar teeth have
sharp tubercles on the crown.
Where the presence of Otters is suspected, a keen look-out should
be kept for their footprints--known as "seal" or "spur" (spoor)--on
moist ground, which may help us to find its "holt" or lair, which
will probably be a hole in the bank with the entrance under water and
overhung by alders and rank herbage. There may also be an alternative
way in at the back of the bank above water. Here the Otter rests
secluded in the daytime, coiled up like a dog with its tail around
its face. The "spraints," or droppings, are also a good clue for
the observer. A short distance in from the mouth of the tunnel, a
side-chamber will be found, which is the family midden.
About the time of sunset the Otter wakes up, utters his flute-like
whistle, enters the water, and hunts favourite pools in the stream for
fish, which it secures by diving below them. These are always brought to
the bank to be consumed. The backbone is first bitten through behind the
gills; and where fish are large (salmon) and plentiful the Otter often
contents himself with a mouthful from the shoulder. At other times he
may eat methodically from this point to the tail, which is always left.
Apart from the fact that he has to make frequent visits to the surface
in order to breathe, he is as much at home in the water as a fish,
swimming in circles where the water is deep, and his movements in that
element are as graceful as those of the fishes he pursues. Not that his
diet is restricted to fish: he is very fond of the river crayfish, and
will turn over every stone in his section of the stream in his search
for them. He is known also to consume frogs, which he carefully skins
before eating them. Occasionally he indulges in wild duck or moorhen;
and when he hunts on shore may catch a rabbit unawares, a rat or a
vole. When he goes down stream he floats with the current his forelegs
pressed against his sides and only the upper part of his head with eyes,
ears, and nostrils exposed.
[Illustration: _Pl. 40._ _E 60._
*Pine Marten.*
Mustela martes.]
[Illustration: _Pl. 41._ _E 61._
*Stoat or Ermine.*
Mustela ermina.]
In summer when the water is low in the streams, he travels across
country from pool to pool by night, seeking some estuary or the open
coast. Although so obviously adapted for an aquatic life, the Otter can
travel with speed on land, and it has been estimated that in one night
it will cover about fifteen miles. On arrival at the coast it will
seek some bat-haunted cave that has been favoured by its kind for
generations, and will work the shallow waters for flat fish, bass,
crabs, and mussels. From here also it will make excursions over a
considerable area of neighbouring country by means of the creeks and
marshes. In autumn it will return to its favourite stream and feed
royally on migrating eels that are on their way to the sea. It does not
hibernate. In winter when fishing may be poor, it may be constrained to
dig out the mole and the vole from their underground retreats to provide
a meal, and is even glad of hibernating insects, either in the larval or
pupal condition. It also shows a fondness for the freshwater mussel
(_Anodonta cygnea_).
[Illustration: *Skeleton of the Otter.*]
In the rutting season there is a good deal of desperate fighting
between jealous males; but this business disposed of a nursery nest
or "hover" is constructed of rushes and grass, and lined with the soft,
purple flower panicles of the great reed. Here, in the winter, the
bitch Otter brings forth her two or three blind young. They are already
covered with a fine downy fur. Both parents hunt to provide them with
food, and in due course they are taken out one night to be taught the
way of life in the waters. The partnership of the parents is only
temporary, and as soon as the young ones are capable of taking care
of themselves, the old dog Otter goes to live by himself. The mother
remains with her family until the rutting season returns, when she also
departs to find another mate. In Norfolk the nursery is frequently found
on the surface, in the great reed-beds.
The chief enemy of the Otter is the river-keeper on waters that are
preserved for fishing, who has always his traps set for them. This is
somewhat strange when it is remembered that the Otter is also an animal
of the chase, packs of Otter-hounds still being kept like fox-hounds in
certain districts, though the packs are by no means so numerous as in
former times. The flesh of the Otter is rank and fishy-flavoured, and
therefore not in demand for human food; but there are many records
showing that it has been esteemed for use on days when the rules of
the Church permitted fish only to be eaten, the clerical casuists easily
finding that as it spends most of its active life in the water and has
a fishy taste, it must be a kind of a fish! Readers of dear old Izaak
Walton will remember the Otter-hunter's reply when Piscator asks him
whether he hunts a beast or a fish. The Huntsman says--
"Sir, it is not in my power to resolve you; yet I leave it to be
resolved by the College of Carthusians, who have made vows never to
eat flesh. But I have heard the question hath been debated among many
great clerks, and they seem to differ about it; yet most agree that _her
tail is fish_; and if her body be fish too, then I may say that a fish
will walk upon land (for an Otter does so), sometimes five or six or ten
miles in a night."
More recently Pennant says he saw an Otter in the kitchen of the
Carthusian monastery near Dijon, being prepared for dinner.
There have been many cases of tame Otters who hunted streams for fish
for the benefit of their owner, to whom they return on hearing a whistle
or other signal. Some years ago an interesting account appeared in _The
Field_ of an Otter whelp that had been mothered by an Otter-hound,
afterwards hunting its own kind with the pack.
*Pine Marten* (_Mustela martes_, Linn.).