BIOLOGY
LIBRARY

G

THE WAYSIDE
AND WOODLAND
& JS SERIES .

ANIMAL LIFE

OF

THE BRITISH ISLES

ANIMAL LIFE

OF THE

BRITISH ISLES

A POCKET GUIDE TO THE

MAMMALS, REPTILES AND BATRACHIANS

OF WAYSIDE AND WOODLAND

BY ,3 *

EDWARD STEP, F.L.S,

AUTHOR OF

"WAYSIDE AND WOODLAND TREES"
WAYSIDE AND WOODLAND BLOSSOMS," ETC;, ETC.

W I T H

111 PLATES FROM PHOTOGRAPHS

INCLUDING 48 IX COLOUR

BY W. J. STOKOE

LONDON

FREDERICK WARNE & CO. LTD.

AND NEW YORK

1921

57

BIOLOGY
LIBRARY

fe of wood and underwood,

The tawny Squirrel vaulting through the boughs,
The Ueer, the high-back'd Polecat, the Wild Boar,
The burrowing Badger."

The Foresters.

PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN

PREFACE

IT is unnecessary to say much by way of Preface to the present
volume, the series' of popular handbooks of which it forms part
being so widely known to Nature-lovers. The same methods
of treatment that were followed in the previous volumes have
been pursued here, though the smaller number of species
falling within its scope has allowed a fuller consideration of
each,

With the exception of the birds (dealt with in Mr. Coward's
companion volumes), all the terrestrial animals endowed with
a bony framework are included. There are, indeed, a few
other native mammals that might have been described ; but as
they are restricted to the sea it was felt to be undesirable to
include their life-histories in the "Wayside and Woodland
Series."

The Author and Publishers desire to express their thanks to
the undermentioned naturalist photographers who have con-
tributed their admirable work for reproduction, viz. : Mr.
Douglas English, F.Z.S., for Plates i, 5, 6, 10, n, 12, 14, 15,
17, 20, 23, 25, 26, 27, 37 to 41, 46, 47, 48, 50, 53 to 62, 65, 66,
69> 70, 71, 75» 84> 89, 90, 93, 96, 97, 98, 101, 103, 104, 105, and
the lower photograph on Plate 109. To Mr. Oxley Grabham

47V6009

VI PREFACE.

for Plates 3, 4, 7, 8, 21, 24, 28, 30, 32, 43, 49, 52, 63, 85, 94, 95,
and 107. Mr. Riley Fortune for Plates 16, 19, 33, 45, 51, 77 to
80, 82, and 88. Mr. Charles Reid for Plates 2, 34, 35, 42, 64,
73, 76, and 83. Mr. Stanley C. Johnson, B.A., for Plates 92,
99, 100, 106, 108, no, in, and the upper subject on Plate 109.
Mr. E. W. Taylor for Plates 18, 86, and 91.

The Author's own contribution consists of Plates 9, 13, 22,
29, 31, 36, 44, 67, 68, 72, 74, and 87.

The appearance of 48 of these photographs in the natural
colours is due to the skilful work of Mr. W. J. Stokoe.

CONTENTS

PAGE

PREFACE v

INTRODUCTORY i

INSECT-EATERS : MOLE, SHREWS, AND HEDGEHOG . . 9

FLYING MAMMALS : BATS 30

FLESH-EATERS: Fox, BADGER, OTTER, WEASELS, MARTENS,

AND WILD CAT 52

GNAWING ANIMALS: RABBIT, HARES, DORMOUSE, VOLES,

MICE, RATS, AND SQUIRRELS 78

HOOFED ANIMALS: RED DEER, FALLOW DEER, AND ROE

DEER 124

LIZARDS AND SLOW- WORM . . . . . . .136

SNAKES 146

AMPHIBIOUS ANIMALS : FROGS, TOADS, AND NEWTS . .157

CLASSIFIED INDEX TO ORDERS, GENERA, AND SPECIES . 179

GENERAL INDEX . 181

vii

INTRODUCTORY

APART from the birds and the fishes, the vertebrates or back-
boned animals of the British Islands constitute a very select
group. Within the historical period several former notable
members of that company have ceased to be represented in the
freedom of nature in this country, and their forms can be
studied only in museums and zoological gardens. Although we
have to regret the absence from our list of the Beaver and the
Wild Boar, the Ure-ox and the Short-horned Wild Ox, the
Brown Bear and the savage Wolf, there are still sufficient of our
vertebrates left to give a zest to the observations of the rambler
in the woodlands, over the mountains and along the quiet way-
sides and streams of our country.

To observe these mammals, reptiles, and batrachians we
must go afoot : the bicycle or the motor-car is of use only to
convey us quickly out of town to appropriate localities in the
open country. Arrived there, quietness must be the order of
the day — the footfall light and the voice lowered in conversa-
tion if there are two or more in company. The sitter will see
far more than the man who wants to perambulate the entire
wood or explore the acreage of moorland. A comfortable seat
having been chosen with deliberation for the view it affords of
a wood margin, a hillside, or stream curve, according to the
habits of the creatures we are hoping to see, the field-glass
should be brought into requisition, and every inch of the field
of vision carefully and repeatedly scanned. The movement of a
grass-blade, the trembling of a fern frond or the rustling of a

A.L. B

2 INTRODUCTORY.

dead leaf will often indicate the precise spot to be watched. It
will be understood that as most of these creatures are more or
less nocturnal in their activities, observation must be continued
until sometime after dusk at least, in order to be successful.

If the observer is new to this work, he should endeavour, if
possible — on the first occasion at least — to get as companion a
friend who has already some experience of field-work. A day
with such a companion will do more to open his eyes than a
whole chapter of printed hints ; for it is as true to-day as it was
in 1855, when Charles Kingsley wrote in his " Glaucus" — "The
greatest difficulty in the way of beginners is (as in most things)
to * learn the art of learning.' They go out, search, find less
than they expected, and give the subject up in disappointment.
It is good to begin, therefore, if possible by playing the part of
1 jackal ' to some practised naturalist, who will show the tyro
where to look, what to look for, and, moreover, what it is that
he has found : often no easy matter to discover." On that last
point the " Wayside and Woodland Series " has done much to
simplify matters.

Respecting the utility of taking an interest in these fellow
inhabitants of our country, one of the intellectual giants * of the
Victorian Age described Natural History "as the greatest of all
sources of that pleasure which is derivable from beauty. I do
not pretend," he says, " that natural-history knowledge, as such,
can increase our sense of the beautiful in natural objects. I do
not suppose that the dead soul of Peter Bell, of whom the great
poet of nature says —

' ' A primrose by the river's brim,
A yellow primrose was to him —
And it was nothing more,'

would have been a whit roused from its apathy by the informa-
tion that the primrose is a Dicotyledonous Exogen with a
monopetalous corolla and central placentation. But I advocate
* Huxley.

INTRODUCTORY. 3

natural-history knowledge from this point of view, because it
would lead us to seek the beauties of natural objects, instead of
trusting to chance to force them on our attention. To a person
uninstructed in natural history, his country or sea-side stroll is
a walk through a gallery filled with wonderful works of art,
nine-tenths of which have their faces turned to the wall. Teach
him something of natural history, and you place in his hands a
catalogue of those which are worth turning round. Surely our
innocent pleasures are not so abundant in this life that we can
afford to despise this or any other source of them. We should
fear being banished for our neglect to that limbo, where the
great Florentine tells us are those who during this life ' wept
when they might be joyful.' "

Some of the species described have a very limited range
in our country at present, the Deer, for example, being re-
stricted as wild animals to-day to the Scottish mountains and
glens and the West Country moors, but even these may be
studied as tolerably free animals in the New Forest, Epping
Forest, and in many parks such as those at Windsor and
Richmond, as well as in private domains. To the Deer we
must add the Wild Cat, the Pine Marten, and the Alpine Hare
as mammals that must be sought in special restricted areas ;
but most of the others may be reckoned to be met with, sooner
rather than later, in our country rambles.

In view of the practice usual in natural histories of arranging
the vertebrate animals in a series with the Birds separating the
Mammals from the Reptiles, it may at first sight appear incon-
gruous to bring the latter classes together as we have done ; but
to the present writer the fitness of this arrangement is quite
clear. It is widely held that the Mammalia — the highest class
of vertebrates, and therefore the most complex of all animals —
have been evolved from an extinct group (Theromorpha) of
Reptiles, whose remains are found in strata of the Permian and
Jurassic Periods. There are, it is true, similar evidences

4 INTRODUCTORY.

furnished by the rocks showing that the Birds had a reptilian
origin ; but the Birds did not form an evolutionary stage
between the Reptile and the Mammal, but evolved side by side
with the latter.

The existing British Mammals represent the six orders
nsectivora (shrews, mole, and hedgehog), Chiroptera (bats),
Carnivora (beasts of prey), Rodentia (gnawing animals),
Cetacea (whales and dolphins), and Ungulata (hoofed animals).
These all agree with the Reptiles and Batrachians in having a
many-jointed internal skeleton, a bony framework giving
support to a system of powerful muscles ; and of this frame-
work the most important feature is the long backbone or
vertebral column consisting of a number of bony rings jointed
together by outgrowths or " processes," and held in position by
strong ligaments. This attachment of the rings by their flat
surfaces produces the spine or vertebral column, with a canal
on its upper half in which lies the spinal cord. This column,
for descriptive purposes, is divided into regions — cervical,
dorsal, lumbar, sacral, and caudal. The number of rings or
vertebras in each region varies somewhat in the different classes
and orders, but as a rule the cervical or neck vertebras are
seven ; the dorsal, to which the ribs are connected, are about
thirteen (extreme numbers are nine and twenty-two) ; the
vertebras of the lumbar or loin region are usually six or seven,
but they vary inversely to those of the dorsal from two to
twenty-three ; the sacral vertebras (about five) are in the adult
fused together into a solid bone (sacrum) of triangular shape ;
the caudal vertebras vary from three (man) to nearly fifty,
according to the length of tail common to the genus or species.

In front of the neck is the skull, in the Mammals a bony case
containing the brain and organs of sense, made up of plates
interlocking by their zigzag margins ; in the Reptiles and lower
vertebrates a more or less open framework. The lower jaw, or
mandible, is in adult Mammals the only part of the skull that

INTRODUCTORY. 5

is separate. Its hinder ends work in cavities on the lower part
of the skull, and are held in position by strong ligaments and
muscles.

The ribs are attached to the dorsal vertebras, and connect by
cartilage at the other end with the sternum or breastbone —
really a series of united bones in the middle line of the chest
(thorax). The blade-bones (scapula) of the fore-limbs are
attached to the upper ribs by the flat or concave side ; and the
hinder limbs are connected strongly to the sacrum by means of
the hip-bones which are united below to form the pelvis, to

Skeleton of the Common Badger.

which the thigh-bone is jointed. The Reptiles and Amphibians
exhibit some differences in their skeletal structure which will be
pointed out later.

In the matter of teeth there is great diversity among the
Mammals — even in the small number of British species. With
a view to a proper understanding of the teeth in, say, the
Rodents and the Ungulates, it is necessary to write a few words
respecting tooth-structure. Although in adult Mammals the
teeth are so intimately connected with the jaw as to appear
outgrowths from it, this is not the case really. They originate
in the skin which covers the jaw, and the most effective part of
their structure — the enamel — is derived from the epidermis, the

6 INTRODUCTORY.

outer layer of the skin. The centre of each tooth is filled with
pulp, around which is the bone-like dentine with an outer coat
of hard, glossy enamel. In the incisors or cutting teeth of the
Rodents, while the front of the tooth is protected by a thick
plate of hard enamel, the back portion consists only of dentine
which wears away whilst the enamel front maintains a chisel-
like cutting edge. In the grinding teeth or molars, especially
noticeable in the Ungulates, the enamel is thrown into ridges
and tubercles, so that the action of these in the upper and
lower jaws upon each other is like that of "the upper and the
nether millstones " in grinding corn.

Four forms of teeth are recognised in the Mammals :
the incisors in the front of the jaw, the pointed, round canines
or " eye-teeth " next to them, and at the sides the cheek
teeth, separated into premolars and molars. In describing the
teeth in any species a simple formula is adopted which shows
at a glance the number of each kind in one side of each jaw.
Taking our own normal dental equipment as an example, it
would be expressed in this fashion : —

i f , c \, pm |, m § = 32

the upper figures representing the number of each kind in the
upper jaw and the lower figures the teeth of the lower jaw, and
the total being reached by multiplying by two for the two sides
of the skull. Often in our rambles we may come across the
skull of some animal, and an examination of the teeth will help
us to the identity of its late owner.

For the purposes of the present work it is unnecessary to
enter minutely into all the characters that distinguish the
Mammals from the other back-boned animals. One is really
sufficient — the possession of glands (teats) in the skin of the
female which secrete milk for the nourishment of the new-born
young. There are, in addition, differences in the structure of
the skull and the articulation of the lower jaw. The skin is

INTRODUCTORY. 7

always more or less clothed with hair. The heart has a
single left aortic arch, the blood is hot, and the heart and lungs
are lodged in a special cavity separated from the abdomen by
a muscular partition known as the diaphragm.

Respecting one item in the foregoing — it has been said truly
that the possession of a few or many true hairs as outgrowths
from pits in the skin is alone sufficient to distinguish a Mammal
from any other animal. Although these hairs may take different
forms, they are alike in their origin— even, to take an extreme
case, the spines of the Hedgehog. Each hair consists of an
outer wall enclosing a central cavity filled with pith, in which is
the dark pigment which gives the hair its colour. In the
Mammals this pigment is always brown, and the varying tints
of the hairs — black, brown, tawny, cream-colour or white —
depends upon the amount of pigment and its disposition in the
pith, combined with differences in the density of the envelope.
In some cases, as about the mouth, eyes, and ears of the Cat?
long sensitive hairs are connected with the terminations of
nerves, which help the animal to feel its way. There are no
marked colour differences in the fur of the sexes, such as we
find in the plumage of Birds ; though we do find such dis-
crepancies in the presence or absence of horns in Deer, and in
the manes and hair-tufts of some exotic Mammals. Certain
species, such as the Alpine Hare and the Stoat, undergo a
marked seasonal change of colour in the fur under the influence
of low temperature. This may be quite sudden, owing to a
rapid fall of temperature, and — as shown by Metchnikoff — is
effected by the pigment granules being consumed by a sort of
phagocyte. By Metchnikoff's researches an old controversy
appears to have been settled finally.

ANIMAL LIFE
OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Hedgehog (Erinaccus europ&us^ Linn.).

The Hedgehog, Urchin or Hedgepig is so distinct from every
other British mammal, that anybody could correctly name it
at sight. The development of many of its hairs into long, stiff
spines gives it an individuality that is not to be confused with
any other ; but there are other peculiarities, such as the extreme
shortness of the head and neck in comparison with the bulk of
its body, and the muscular power that enables it to remain
rolled into a ball with every part protected by erected spines.
But for the fact that the Hedgehog is frequently introduced
into houses and gardens to keep down insect pests, few town-
dwellers would have had the opportunity of seeing the Hedge-
hog alive ; for it is a nocturnal beast coming from its retreat
only at dusk and hunting through the night. There are, how-
ever, exceptions to this rule when a heavy summer downpour of
rain has drenched the herbage and caused the snails and slugs
to show considerable activity. Then the Hedgehog wakens
also, and reduces their numbers ; for it is with such fare, plus
insects, worms, mice, rats, frogs, lizards and snakes, that the
Hedgehog maintains his portliness. He passes the day under
a heap of dead leaves or moss in a spinney or thick hedgerow,
and the solitary observer in such places may sometimes be
guided to this retreat by his snoring !

10 ^ *VNM\1£L LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Ti.e ^iutcr time is c,pent as a rule in continued sleep ; though
he has been known on mild nights in winter to wake up and
prowl around for the very few good things then to be found.
But he is no intermittent hibernator like the Squirrel and
Dormouse ; therefore he makes no provision by laying up
winter stores, which are only possible for seed-feeders. For
his winter retreat he looks out for a hole in the bank — perhaps
one that has been gradually enlarged by a colony of wasps to
accommodate their continually increasing nest — and this he
lines with dry leaves and moss, carried in by the mouth. Then
he snuggles into his bed and goes to sleep until the spring.

The Hedgehog's eyesight does not appear to be very good,

but this is made up to him by a very acute sense of smell. He

hunts along the hedgebottoms and the sides of ditches, and in,

some localities he is frequently to be seen in such situations.

But we have met with signs of his presence high up on the

moors where ke finds dense cover among the heather and

bilberry. His common diet of snails and beetles is varied by the

eggs of the robin .and meadow pipit, and occasionally he

stumbles upon a huge store of food in the shape of a dozen or

more eggs of pheasant or partridge. By depressing his spines

he may even find his way between the bars of a hen-coop, but

after eating a great part of the hen he may be too portly to get

out, and then falls a victim to the enraged poultry-farmer. He

is, of couse, too short-legged to accomplish the operation

formerly attributed to him — that of milking cows — unless, of

course, the cow assented to the robbery and laid down to it.

But no evidence has been given in support of the charge, which

is of kindred nature to the aspersions of Pliny, ./Elian and other

of the ancients that it climbed apple and fig trees, gathering

and throwing down the fruit, then throwing itself down so that

its spines would impale its plunder with which it walked off.

One weak point in the story is the fact that the Hedgehog has

no use for such fare as apples, and as for the milk — any one

HEDGEHOG. II

inspecting the small gape of his mouth would exonerate him
from the charge of getting a cow's dug into it.

He is said to be capable of killing and eating a wild Rabbit ;
but, of course, although he runs well, he could never catch a
Rabbit unless the rodent were wounded. He is also a good
swimmer and climber, not only of trees but of rain-pipes and
rough walls, especially where these are creeper-clad. In addi-
tion to the food mentioned above he takes slugs and worms,
mice, rats, lizards, frogs, and snakes — including the Viper to
whose poison he is immune. It is certain that it fights with
Rats, and Lord Lilford has told how it cleared a garden of them ;
but the Rat is sometimes the victor and eats the Hedgehog.
The Hedgehog on occasion will indulge in a feast of carrion.

Only animals that are very hungry will attack the Hedgehog,
and then the young are preferred if available. Gipsies, Foxes,
and Badgers appear to be his principal enemies. The Fox is
said to have a special and disgusting method of making the
Hedgehog unroll when he is on the defensive ; and a writer in
The Field some years ago stated that when caught by the
Badger the Hedgehog utters a pitiful wail, though he will permit
himself to be torn to pieces by a terrier without a cry.

The male and female are known respectively as Boar and
Sow, to carry out the idea that they are a lesser kind of pig.
Though the males are very quarrelsome among themselves, they
have the domestic virtue and mate for life. Some time between
the end of June and the end of August, the female produces a
litter of four to seven blind and helpless young, sparsely clad
with pale, flexible spines, and the ears drooping. The spines
gradually stiffen and become first dull grey, then brown and
ringed with three bands, of which the middle one is dark and
the others light. The spines are arranged in radiating groups,
surrounded by coarse harsh fur. Normally, these spines lie flat
upon the body, but can be erected at will. They cover the
entire upper surface with the exception of the short conical head

12 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

and stumpy little tail— which is shorter even than the short
rounded ear. The head and underside are clothed with harsh
fur of a dirty brown or dirty white colour. In Devon and
Cornwall it is known as Furze-a-boar. It expresses its feelings
by means of a quiet grunt ; the youngsters by a squeak.

The adult male Hedgehog is about nine and a quarter inches
in measurement of head and body, and the tail is a little over an
inch ; the female is less than the male by about three-quarters
of an inch. In relation to its entire bulk — it weighs one and a
half pounds — the neck and body are said to be shorter than in

Skeleton of Hedgehog:.

any other British mammal. The eyes are bright and prominent.
The legs are so short that the body but little more than clears
the ground in walking. Both hand and foot has five clawed
toes, and five pads on the sole.

The sharply pointed spines are about three-quarters of an inch
in length. They are quite hard, and have from twenty-two to
twenty-four longitudinal grooves. They have a hemispherical
base above which is a narrow neck sharply bent, so that the
spine is almost at right angles with the base.

When attacked the Hedgehog has the skunk-like habit of
emitting a highly objectionable odour in order to disgust its
assailant.

MOLE. 13

We have never tried Hedgehog-meat as food, but several
well-known men have testified to its excellence when cooked
gipsy-fashion — in a crust of clay.

The dentition of the Hedgehog is i §, c \)pm f, m | = 36.

With the Hedgehog we make our acquaintance with the order
Insectivora, which is represented in Britain by five species
only: the others being the Mole and three Shrews. In many
respects they are similar to the Rodentia, but the incisor teeth
have not the chisel-shape of the latter, and the molar teeth
instead of having grinding crowns have them developed into
pointed eminences more suited for piercing the chitinous armour
of beetles, etc. The skeleton is furnished with clavicles or
collar-bones. There are five toes on each of the feet, furnished
with claws, and the animal walks on its soles. Our native
species represent three distinct families : Erinacida (Hedge-
hog), Talpidce (Mole), and Soricidce (Shrews).

Mole (Talpa enropcea. Linn.).

However slight may be their personal acquaintance with the
Mole himself, his engineering work is only too evident to every
possessor of a garden. He may, perchance, live in a neighbour's
land, but from time to time we shall find some morning that he
has driven a tunnel right across the lawn or the tennis-court,
marring its hitherto fair surface with an ugly ridge and at
intervals a little heap of raw earth. If we are sufficiently self-
controlled to dissemble our inward rage, we may get some
countervailing good out of the calamity. If we bring a garden
chair and sit quietly within range of the newest heap, our quiet
watching may be rewarded by a sight of the clever little engineer,
and we may be restrained from throwing stones at him by the
thought that he is seeking to reduce the number of those worm-
casts on the lawn that have always annoyed us so.

If the tunnelling work is not yet completed, we shall see a

14 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

heaving of the fresh heap of soil, and after a short interval the
sharp, black snout of the Mole will be pushed up from the centre
to sniff the air and ascertain if it is safe for him to make a fuller
appearance. Satisfied that it is so, he exhibits his shoulders
and the broad shovel-shaped hands with which he has accom-
plished all this navigator's work. Now he is right out, even to
his ridiculous little tail, and so to speak swimming over the
turf — for he cannot walk on his forefeet, the hands being set
sideways for his shovelling work.

Why has he come up? We can only surmise that he is
satiated with the luscious earth-worms and beetle-grubs that
live under our lawn, and is looking around for some more
substantial fare — a dead bird or mouse, perhaps, for he is by no
means averse from picking bones for a change, though his
structure makes it impossible for him to catch any of the
vertebrates alive, but he can kill and eat a smaller or weaker
Mole,,and has been reported to attack birds, lizards, frogs, and
snakes ; he will not touch vegetable food. His appetite is
almost insatiable, and there is little substance in his under-
ground fare, which impels him ever to increase his sources of
supply by boring fresh runs. There ! your movement alarmed
him, and he has dived to earth again in the soft mould of the
border.

It is not only in the garden that we may see the Mole and
his work. He is perhaps more active in the meadow and the
cornfield, where he has a wider range for his long straight main
run and the side runs that branch off from it. In either of these
places he is actually much more of a nuisance than in our
garden — difficult though it may be for the garden-owner to
realise this. When the hay or the wheat has to be reaped the
lines of hillocks across the field are an impediment to the
reaping machines. So the farmer has to set traps to minimise
the nuisance as much as possible. When these are of the bent
hazel rod and noose variety we may find the trapped Mole

MOLE. 15

swinging from the rod that has straightened itself, and can
then indulge in a close inspection of his form and structure.
In pasture-land the mole-hills often appear to occupy more
space than the intervening surface.

The velvet-clad body is cylindrical, with the fore-limbs set
well forward opposite the short neck. The long muzzle is
blunt-pointed and terminated by the nostrils, which are close
together. His eyes are mere points that have to be searched
for among the close fur, and the same applies to the ears which
have no external shell. Shakespeare, who thought the Mole
sightless, was aware of his acute sense of hearing —

" Pray you, tread softly, that the blind Mole may not
Hear a footfall."

The flexible snout is adapted for turning up the earth after the
immense hands with their large, strong nails have loosened it.
They are wide-open hands that cannot be closed and the palms
always face outwards. The hairs constituting the velvety fur
are all set vertically, so that they will lie forwards or back-
wards or to either side ; and the colour appears to change
according to our point of view — two persons viewing the same
Mole can describe it correctly as black and as grey. It is really
a dark grey.

The teeth should be examined. In the upper jaw there are
six incisors of equal size — three on each side — two comparatively
large canines of triangular shape and flattened from the sides,
eight little premolars and six molars. In the lower jaw the
dentition is somewhat puzzling, as the canines are similar to the
incisors and the first premolar is developed into a suitable
mate for the upper canine. These are not teeth designed for
gnawing like those of the Rat and Rabbit ; they are for biting
insects and other small creatures, and agree in general with
those of the Shrews. The formula stands thus :

= 44-

1 6 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

The adult Mole is a slave to his appetite, and if kept without
food for only a few hours he dies of starvation. Knowing this,
the old writers averred that he kept a store of bitten worms so
that he might draw upon it on emergency ; but this state-
ment has never been substantiated by careful observers.

Every one is familiar with the diagrams of what was styled
fancifully the Mole's Fortress, as though it were a stronghold
held by force against an enemy. There is really no more
reason for calling it a fortress than for applying the same term
to a Rabbit's burrow or a bird's nest. The idea upon which
the originators of the fortress story worked was that the mole-
hill was a place of intricate passages where the invader could
be given the slip. Le Court, the French inventor of the
term, whose account was published by Antoine Cadet de Vaux
in 1803, described its interior as having a central chamber
surrounded by two galleries, one above, the other below,
connected by five nearly equidistant passages. From the
upper and smaller gallery three similar passages gave access
to the central hall, at the bottom of which was a bolt-hole
communicating with the main run. Plans and elevations, as
an architect would describe them, were made of these details,
and for a hundred years every writer on the Mole reproduced
these illustrations without doubting their absolute accuracy.
It was so much more easy to accept them than to patiently
explore and accurately draw the actual structure. Of course,
what these writers described as a fortress must not be confused
with the " mole-heaves " or " tumps " thrown up at frequent
intervals to get rid of the earth from a newly excavated run.
These are only a few inches in height. The home of the Mole
— the mole-hill proper — is about a foot high and about three
feet broad in any direction. This, as a rule, will be found
partly sheltered by a rTush, sometimes well out in a pasture,
and always on the line of the Mole's high-road, which lies
deeper than the newer side runs he is always excavating for

MOLE. 17

hunting purposes. These are but little below the surface, in
the richer soil where there are more worms and grubs and
where the dug-out earth is easily pushed up to the surface by
the pressure of his head.

Moral writers used to commiserate the poor blind Mole for
having to expend its energies in ceaseless toil in the dark under-
ground, and then rhapsodise on its marvellous adaptation to
its role in nature, getting lost in admiration of the mathematical
skill displayed in the construction of the " fortress " they had
never seen and which was largely an imaginative piece of
engineering. It is true that its body may be said to fit the
tunnels it has excavated, though it might be more accurate to
say that the tunnels are modelled upon and by the Mole's form,
for it is the constant passage of the animal backwards and
forwards that smooths and consolidates their walls. The
sense of sight is of less importance to it than that of smell,
which is apparently its most highly-developed sense, though
that of hearing is very acute.

Although the eyes are complete in the sense that eyeballs
and lenses are present, they are so small and so completely
surrounded by fur that it does not appear that the Mole can
get any great advantage from their possession, even when he
is above ground. The diameter of the eyeball is one millimetre
— that is, considerably less than the head of a " short white 7'
pin !

At the end of the last century, my friend Mr. Lionel E. Adams
set himself the task of providing some more reliable information
as to the life-story and habits of the Mole, and in four years of
research did not hesitate in the interests of science to break in
upon the digger's privacy in order to explore his so-called
"fortress," and the nursery of Mrs. Mole. He was not content
with cutting sections of two or three of these erections ; he
examined three hundred of them, finding a considerable
variation in their arrangements, but not one of them was like

A.L. C

l8 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

the familiar drawings in the books of Thomas Bell and J. G.
Wood, copied from French authors.

Mr. Adams experienced great difficulty in making these
observations owing to the nature of the subject, but he perse-
vered, and made plans of sections from a hundred of the three
hundred hills he explored, and found that no two plans were
alike. Some were very simple, others exceedingly complicated,
" but," he says, " in no case have I found one to tally exactly
with the time-honoured figure originating from Geoffroy Saint-
Hilaire, elaborated by Blasius, and copied from him by every
succeeding writer, apparently without the slightest attempt at
verification."

But even in those cases where there is some approach to the
plan of the old diagram, Mr. Adams found that it was clearly
not due to any scheme for constructing a baffling system of
bolt-runs for defensive purposes, but purely incidental to the
work of excavating the nest cavity and getting rid of the
material dug out. The easiest way to dispose of this redundant
earth is to push it to the surface, and to do this a tunnel has
to be made above the nest cavity. This, as a rule, is originally
only from two to six inches below the surface, but the hoisting
out of the surplus earth causes the formation of a solid dome of
considerable thickness above it. The tunnels thus made to get
rid of earth usually end in blind terminals, and would not be
available for escape in the case, say, of the " fortress " being
entered by a Weasel. It is notable that in the only one of Mr.
Adams' plans that approaches nearly to the old figure there is
no connection between the "galleries" and the nest cavity.

In some soils (like the Bunter Sandstone) Adams found that
stones of four ounces are turned out— that is, equal to the
average weight of an adult Mole. He also found that " the
softer the soil, as a rule, the nearer are the runs to the
surface."

In his work " De la Taupe," de Vaux says : " The Mole

; * '''

••%-,

/v. 6.

6' 18.

Mole making a new burrow.

When alarmed above ground it dives rapidly into soft earth.

MOLE. 19

places his habitation in the most favourable spot in his canton-
ment ; he studies everything, and never does he make a mistake
except under circumstances which he has been unable to foresee,
such as continuance of rains, a flood ; then he makes up his
mind promptly, and establishes himself elsewhere. It is by
preference that he places his fortress in the foundation of a
wall, under a hedge, at the foot of a tree."

Upon this Adams has the following comment : —

" With regard to a deliberate choice of ' the most favourable
spot ' after a survey of the cantonment by a practically blind
animal of the Mole's impatient disposition and subterranean
habits, there can be no question as to its absurdity."

The male and female (Boar and Sow) appear to associate
only temporarily, the female being polyandrous and con-
structing her own nest-hill, which is smaller and of more simple
plan than the male's winter retreat and seldom has a bolt-run.
Her hunting tunnels are winding as compared with the long
straight runs of the male. The nest is a ball of leaves and
grass, all having to be carried in by the mouth. The chief
pairing season is at the end of March and beginning of April,
and the young are born about six weeks later. The number of
young in a litter varies from two to seven, the average is three
or four. They are blind, naked and pink, but before the fur has
begun to appear the skin has darkened to a bluish slate colour.
The eyes open about the twenty-second day.

The Mole does not appear to be definitely hunted by any
enemy — save man ! — although killed by Weasels, Herons, Owls,
Fox, and Badger when they come across him. Adams thinks
that for all practical purposes the Mole may be considered
blind ; that if its eyes were not covered by fur the low position
of its head would prevent it seeing beyond an inch or so. He
is convinced that worms are hunted by scent. The Mole is an
excellent swimmer, and can attain to a similar speed in the
water to that of the Water Vole.

20 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

The Mole does not hibernate : the demands of his appetite
appear to preclude the possibility of a long fast, even if
dormant.

Old names, still extant in some districts, are Moldwarp,
Moudiewarp, Wunt, Want (in the " Epinal Glossary " of about
A.D. 700, spelled Wand). Its feet, carried in the pocket, are a
rustic specific for rheumatism.

Though Adams refrained from eating adult Mole, warned as
he tells us by the dark flesh and musky odour, he experimented
with a couple of milk-fed young, ten days old, and had them
boiled. Eaten without salt or other condiment, he says he
" found them excellent, much like Rabbit, the flesh being white
and very tender."

The Mole's position in human regard has always been equi-
vocal. The gamekeeper has accused him of sucking partridge's
eggs, and the farmer has pointed to his young wheat plants
turned out of the ground as the Mole ran a surface furrow across
the cornfield. Against this in former days the farmer would credit
him with the wholesale destruction of earthworms ; nowadays,
however, the farmer has more enlightened views on the subject
of earthworms, and their destruction must go into the debit
side of the account. But the Mole does not live on worms
alone, though chiefly : his runs must cross the track of many a
grub — wireworm, leather-jacket, and fat cockchafer-grub, for
examples, and slugs and snails on the surface — that the farmer
would gladly have removed ; and it is not likely that the Mole
pushes such fare from him untasted. Then, again, one must
remember the agricultural value of the little black engineer who
carries out so efficient a system of surface drainage, and im-
proves the pasture by bringing to the surface fresh soil from
below. There is, however, no mercy shown, no redeeming
virtue admitted, in the case of the Mole who sins against society
by running his tunnels under the tennis-lawn or golf-green, and
spoiling their levels by thrusting up his unsightly rubbish heaps.

COMMON SHREW. 21

So enormous numbers are killed yearly ; and the Mole-catcher
boasts of his great annual catches. But the astute Mole-
catcher refrains from destroying the nests, for were he to do so
his occupation would be gone. The Mole squeaks much like a
Bat or Shrew.

The Mole appears to be plentiful in all parts of England,
Wales and Scotland, wherever there are earthworms ; it has
been found even at an elevation of 2,700 feet. But it does not
occur in Ireland, the Shetlands, Orkneys, Outer Hebrides, or
the Isle of Man.

Colour variations have been recorded including cream,
orange-pink, whitish with markings nearly black, orange or
yellowish, as well as wholly grey, fawn or ash-coloured.

Common Shrew (Sorcx araneus, Linn.).

Along the hedge-bank, the ditch-side and the edge of the
spinney in the evening, may be seen one of the smallest and
prettiest of our mammals, a minute dusky red-brown creature
with long flexible pointed snout turned up ever and anon to
reach an insect on the grass-stems. Although he has bright
bead-like eyes his range of vision is very short, and if we keep
quiet and undemonstrative we can watch him without his being
aware of our presence.

This is the Common Shrew or Shrew-mouse, an inoffensive
and useful creature, for its food is restricted to insects, snails,
woodlice and the other small fry that annoy man without the
latter being able to do much in retaliation. As he sits there
among the long-stalked trefoils and nodding flowers of the'
wood-sorrel we are able to get a good view of him.

With a combined length of head and body amounting only
to three inches, his long hairy tail adds nearly half as much
again — but the tail length varies a good deal in different indi-
viduals. His bilobed snout extends far beyond his mouth, and

22 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

is well furnished with whiskers. His hind-foot — a distinguish-
ing feature in the Shrews — measures just over half an inch.
He is clad in a coat of soft, close, silky fur whose dark upper
part pales to dirty yellowish grey beneath, and his hairy feet
and tail are flesh-coloured. The dark coloration may vary to
almost or entirely black. The hairs on the tail are short and
stiff, almost like little spines. A gland on each flank, midway
between elbow and thigh, provides the disagreeable musky
odour which is its sole protection against enemies.

In winter he spends his time in hedge-bottoms and copses
among the dead leaves, but not in sleep as stated often. In
summer he moves out into the fields and rough pastures, where
there are tufts of coarse grass in which he can take cover, and
from which he makes runs through the surrounding grass.
Here he may be seen at times actually climbing the stout
grass stems after insects ; sometimes he climbs a tree. His
toes are well separated, and this enables him to climb. Al-
though the feet are not well formed for digging he can burrow
expeditiously in light vegetable soil with the forefeet, and can
bury himself in twelve seconds ; but, as a rule, he is more
inclined to utilise the common underground runs of Mice where
these are available. The long, attenuated and sensitive snout,
like those of the Pig and Hedgehog, are well adapted for
turning over dead leaves and the surface soil in its search for
insects, worms, and snails ; and its short, soft, velvety fur fits
it for passage through the soil without getting dirty. His
movements are not nearly so rapid as those of the Mice, and
it is consequently a better subject for observation. It is by no
means an unusual sight to see it swimming, and in accordance
with this semi-aquatic habit, it frequently makes its nest on
the banks of ditches. The nursery is a cup-shaped nest woven
of dry grass and other herbage with a loose roof beneath which
the Shrew makes its entrances and exits. These are frequently
uncovered by the mowers at haying time.

COMMON SHREW. 23

The breeding season extends from May to November, and
during this period each female appears to have several litters,
each consisting of from four to eight or even ten — but usually
five, six, or seven — young, although she has only six nipples.
Putting it at three litters of six as an average — eighteen in a
season — we get an enormous possible increase of Shrew
population. Yet the numbers observable from year to year
are fairly constant ; and in considering the high birth-rate we
have to allow for the heavy bill of mortality. Though Shrew-
flesh is not to the taste of all carnivorous creatures, and its
musky odour makes it actually repellent to some, this does not
in all cases protect the Shrew from death. Cats, for example,
kill many Shrews, but will not eat one. Dogs also account for
many Shrews, and will sometimes essay them as food, though
their stomachs refuse to deal with the unpleasant musky morsel.

From the latter part of summer onwards dead Shrews are
quite common objects of the countryside ; and various theories
have been set up to explain the phenomenon, for these dead
bodies are mostly without any signs of maltreatment, either by
tooth or claw. It has even been attributed to an autumn
epidemic afflicting Shrews alone ; and to the influence of fear
caused by a thunder-clap or the mere breaking of a twig near
by. But apart from this mysterious mortality, Owls levy a
heavy toll upon the Shrew, as is evident from the indigestible
" casts " thrown up by these birds. Other birds of prey, such
as the Kestrel, are known to take their share, and a further
considerable number are claimed by Magpies, Jackdaws,
Stoats, Vipers, and Smooth Snakes. Then, again, numerous
males fall victims to the jealous fury of their own sex, which
leads to fierce and fatal battles. But, as already stated, there
are seldom any indications of such encounters on the bodies
of these autumn dead, and the only conclusion that appears
tenable is that they have died from what a coroner's jury would
term •' natural causes."

24 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Mr. Lionel Adams, who has made special investigations into
this matter, suggests that the natural cause is senile decay. He
points out that young Shrews moult before winter, the process
beginning in September and being completed by November,
getting a darker and thicker coat than the light brown one they
have worn hitherto. The progress of the change can be
watched. It begins on the lower part of the back and extends
gradually to the neck, head and face. In spring this darker
coat is exchanged for a shorter and lighter one. But in their
second autumn there is no resumption of the winter garb ! The
natural span of a Shrew's life is fourteen months as the
maximum ; and Nature does not go to the expense of winter
clothing for creatures that will not live to wear it.

So small a body as that of the Shrew does not appear to
require much food to keep it going ; but the character of the
food counts, and apparently insects are not very sustaining.
The insect-eater must pursue his prey almost incessantly. We
have proofs of this in the ceaseless activity of insectivorous
birds, the Mole, the Bats, and the Hedgehog — all insectivorous.
Mr. Adams found that, in captivity, a Shrew would gorge for
half an hour, then have to sleep for a similar period before
renewing its feeding with the same energy. In this case the
food was all provided and had not to be chased ; and the
Shrew was willing to eat the flesh and pick the bones of one of
its own kind. In thirty-six hours it consumed food of various
kinds equal to nearly four times its own weight. If food is not
obtainable for a few hours, the Shrew dies. This excessive
demand of the stomach causes the Shrew to be active both
night and day. It is fond of carrion, and has frequently fallen
a victim to traps baited with bread, cheese, nuts or apple ; and,
as Mr. Pocock reports, with plum-pudding. He sleeps with
the long flexible snout tucked between the forelegs under the
chest.

The Shrew's dental formula is /'$, c\,p f, m i] - = 32. The

LESSER SHREW. 2$

summits of the teeth are red-brown, and the almost horizontal
lower incisors are encircled by those of the upper jaw.

The Common Shrew is found throughout Great Britain but
not in Ireland. Its vertical range is from sea-level certainly
to 1500 feet, at which height it has been found in Cheshire by
Coward and Oldham. It probably goes higher in our mountain
regions, for on the Continent it has been recorded at 6000 feet.
It is active all J:he winter among the dead leaves in some thick
hedgerow, where it searches for hibernating insects which are
plentiful in such covers. The rambler at this season may have
his attention called to the Shrew by its shrill squeak, but like
that of the Bats it does not impress all ears.

A form found in the Isle of I slay has been separated as a
distinct species under the name of Sorex granti.

It is strange that so inoffensive a creature should have been
the subject of superstitious malignity in the past. It was
reputed to cause lameness by merely running over the foot of
man or beast, and as an antidote a Shrew was plugged into a
hole bored in an ash tree from which thereafter a twig passed
over the afflicted part would effect a cure. Readers of Gilbert
White will remember his description of the Shrew-ash that
formerly stood " at the south corner of the plestor " at Selborne.
The evil reputation of the Shrew was much more ancient than
White's day, for the Rev. Edward Topsell, who wrote a
" Historic of Four-footed Beastes " (1607), says of it — "It is
a ravening beast, feigning itself gentle and tame, but, being
touched, it biteth deep and poysoneth deadly. It beareth a
cruel minde, desiring to hurt anything, neither is there any .
creature that it loveth, or it loveth him, because it is feared
of all."

Lesser Shrew (Sorex minutus^ Linn.).
The Lesser or Pigmy Shrew is the smallest of all British
mammals. It may be described roughly as a smaller edition

26 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

of the Common Shrew, and until recent years was considered
to be only the juvenile form of that species, for which, no
doubt, it is still mistaken frequently. It appears to be widely
distributed in Britain, but is local, the areas in which it occurs
being limited and patchy when marked on the map. These are
mostly in wooded districts, but extend from sea-level to the tops
of our highest mountains, for it has been found on Ben Nevis
at a height of 4,400 feet. In Ireland, from which the Common
Shrew is entirely absent, its place is taken by the Lesser
Shrew, though it is not nearly so abundant as the Common
Shrew is in Britain.

Seen side by side these two species are sufficiently distinct,
but apart they may be taken as identical. The earlier British
naturalists had not learned to discriminate one from the other,
and even Bell, as late as 1837, does not mention the Lesser
Shrew, though in the second edition of his work (1874) it
appears in a description by Alston. If we take average length
of head and body in an adult Common Shrew as three inches,
we shall find that a similar individual of the Lesser Shrew
measures only two inches and a quarter — a reduction of 25
per cent. The hind foot without the claws in the Common
Shrew is half an inch, but in the Lesser Shrew it is one-sixth
less. The actual length of the tail is about the same in both
species, but proportionately there is a difference, for whilst that
of the Common Shrew only equals half the length of head and
body, in the Lesser Shrew it is equal to two-thirds. But it has
been held that the length of the hind feet alone is distinctive,
and that " any Shrew in which these reach or exceed 12 milli-
metres may be set down as of the larger species."

The colour of the fur is the brown and white of the common
species with a fairly sharp line of demarcation between them.
Though the animal as a whole is more delicately built, the
snout is relatively longer and thicker ; the tail also thicker
and more hairy ; the forearm and hand are shorter. The

WATER SHREW. 27

sensitive snout appears to be more useful than its eyes in
hunting. As the result of his experiments, Adams is of opinion
that the sight of Shrews is not much — if at all — better than
that of the Mole. Yet it must hunt incessantly for, owing to
its rapid digestion, frequent meals are a necessity. It is so
delicately organised that it has been found that detention in a
trap for only a few minutes is fatal to it ; and captured speci-
mens that have been carried in the hand for a few hundred
yards have died shortly after.

It is an excellent climber, and sometimes enters the upper
windows of houses. It is more nocturnal in its habits than the
Common Shrew ; but is subject to the same autumnal mor-
tality. It does not appear to construct burrows, but utilises
those of Mice. Its nests have been found in various situations,
such as a clump of rushes, a hollow tree stump or a hollow in
the ground roofed by a stone ; and they have been of different
materials according with the local conditions, moss, dry grass,
fine rush shreds and wood chips variously combined and
interwoven to form a hollow ball.

There are probably two litters of from two to eight young,
born between May and September.

Water Shrew (Neomysfodiens, Schreber).

The Water Shrew is our largest species, the length of head
and body combined varying from three to three and three-
quarter inches, the body of bulkier build than that of the
Common Shrew, and the tail longer than the body. Its upper
parts are dark coloured — from slaty black to dark brown — and
the light ashy grey or dirty white of the underparts appear pure
white by contrast. The snout is shorter and broader than that
of the Common Shrew ; the small eyes are blue, and the ears,
which are entirely concealed, bear a tuft of white hairs. The
brown feet are broader and the digits are bordered with stiff

28 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

hairs which make them more efficient as paddles ; and the
tapering flattened tail of the adult has a double fringe of strong
silver-grey hairs along its underside, constituting a " keel " and
making it more efficient as a rudder. The hind foot usually
exceeds three-quarters of an inch. The fur is finer and thicker
than in the other British Shrews ; and the upper and lower
colour areas are sharply separated one from the other. Its
aquatic habits have in some districts caused it to be known as
Otter-Shrew. The tail is brown above and lighter below.
Variation to full black is frequent, and albinos have been
recorded.

The teeth have coloured tips like those of the other Shrews,

Skeleton of Water Shrew.

but the points of the incisors are more hooked than in the two
species of Sorex\ moreover, there are two teeth less, the
dental formula standing thus : — z f, c\, p f-, m i| = 30. It is these
differences in the teeth that has led to the Water Shrew being
placed in a separate genus.

In wandering quietly along the streamside we may perchance
see the Water Shrew sunning itself on a mossy stone by the
margin of the water, for it is active by day as well as by night.
We may see it make a sudden plunge into the stream, and present
a beautiful appearance under water, for the fur carries a good
deal of air entangled in it which gives the submerged body a
silvery appearance. It chases the whirligig beetles and water-
gnats on the surface, or routs at the bottom for caddis-worms
and other larvae. Its haunts may often be detected by the
little heaps of caddis cases on the bank, which it has brought

WATER SHREW. 29

ashore and emptied of their living contents. It eats other
aquatic animals, such as snails, worms, small crustaceans,
frogs, and small fishes ; is not averse from a little carrion, and
has been caught in a trap that was baited with cheese. It
utters a cricket-like chirp not unlike that of the other Shrews.

As he seldom goes more than a couple of yards from the
bank, the quiet observer may take full stock of his proceedings,
for the limited range of his vision does not permit him to see
you. He appears to be very buoyant in the water, swimming
with his head slightly above the surface and the body spread
out. Though he may walk for a time along the bottom, he
never gets his fur wet. At times he makes distinct leaps out of
the water, apparently after a flying insect.

His home is a burrow in the bank, and far inside the female
lines a chamber with moss and fine roots, or weaves a round
nest of grass and leaves where in May or June she brings forth
her litter of five to eight minute blind and naked young. These
develop rapidly and when they are five or six weeks old they
are independent. There is probably a second brood in
September. Like the other Shrews the males are great
fighters.

He is found sometimes at a considerable distance from the
water, apparently seeking a change of diet, or migrating to a
more abundant food supply. It does not hibernate, and may
be seen in winter pursuing its prey beneath the ice. Its chief
enemy is the Owl, whose cast-up pellets frequently contain the
skulls of Shrews.

The Water Shrew is much more local in its occurrence than
are the other Shrews. With this reservation it may be said to
be widely distributed throughout England, Wales, and Scotland ;
and in Staffordshire and Cheshire has been found at elevations
of a thousand feet. It is not found either in Ireland, the Isle
of Man, the Outer Hebrides, the Orkneys or Shetlands. In
the Fen country it is known as the Blind-mouse.

30 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

BatS (Chiropterd).

With the exception of the great class of Birds, the Bats are
the only surviving back-boned animals that possess the organs
of true flight. Apart from this specialisation for a life in the air
the Bats are very similar in their organisation to the Insectivora,
and long ago Huxley pointed out that they were exceedingly
modified Insectivora ; but this modification marks them off
sharply from their nearest allies, and the authorities have
agreed that it constitutes a reason for setting them apart in a
special order — the Chiroptera or wing-handed animals.

So complete has been the adaptation to an aerial life, in-
volving both pairs of limbs, that they are no longer fitted for
progression on the earth. The fingers of the hand have been
so drawn out that they are longer than the forearm, and the
middle finger is at least equal in length to the head and body,
whilst the thumb has been converted into a hook by means of
which the Bat can hang from any rough surface. Over these
exaggerated finger-bones abroad web of skin has been stretched,
and connected not only to the sides of the body but also to the
hind legs as far as the ankle, and then nearly or quite to the
tip of the slender tail. The effect of this great modification,
whilst it creates a pair of great wings, is to render the hind
limbs unfitted for ordinary locomotion, for these are so twisted
out of the position assumed in quadrupeds that the knees are
turned backwards. This is the cause of the awkward, shuffling
movements of a Bat on the ground which make it quickly
rise into the air or at least to climb some vertical surface.

Looking at the skeleton of a Bat, we shall find the vertebral
column short, the neck short-boned but broad, the spinal cord
being of great thickness at this part though reduced to "a mere
thread at the hips. The ribs are usually flattened and con-
nected to a strong breast-bone, which has a prominent keel for
the attachment of powerful muscles controlling the wings. The

PL 12.

Lesser or Pigmy Shrew.

Sorex niinutus.

C 30.

BATS.

tail controls the web connecting the hind-legs, which acts as a
rudder in flight and as a net helping to capture and retain the
larger insects upon which the Bat lives.

The permanent teeth — which are quite different from the
milk-teeth — vary in the different species, but they always have
distinct roots, and in the British species the upper surface
always runs into points or cusps, suited for cracking the
chitinous shells of beetles.

The Bat's brain is considered to be of a low order ; yet its
senses are very acute. Spallanzani, in the latter part of the i8th
century made a number of experiments on Bats, depriving them

5§C

Skeleton Of Bat (Vespertilio).

of sight, smell, and hearing, and observing their behaviour under
such conditions. He found that when released in a room across
which he had stretched numerous threads to block their flight,
they in every case avoided these, even when directly in their
course. They appear to be helped in this matter by the sensitive
whiskers around the muzzle, as well as by the delicate membranes
constituting the wings and the outer ears. In the Horse-shoe
Bats there is also a great development of the appendages to the
nose, known as the nose-leaf, which act as delicate organs of
special perception.

In most of the genera there is considerable development of the
ear as compared with other mammals. The little lobe that
guards the entrance to the ear in the human subject, and is
known as the tragus, is much elongated in the Bats so that it

Known

32 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

becomes a conspicuous feature, and its variation affords one of
the characters for identification of the species. Our two Horse-
shoe Bats alone are without any prominent tragus.

It is considered that the Bat's powers of flight are superior
even to those of the birds. This is especially evident if we watch
the rapidity with which it can change its speed, suddenly stop-
ping when in full flight, then making sudden swoops and turning
somersaults in a way that would evoke the admiration of the
stunt-loving airman. The females as a rule have larger wings
and heavier bodies than the males.

Perhaps to the majority of people the Bat appears to be a
creature without a voice. It does, however, utter a shrill squeak
which is so highly pitched that many human ears are incapable
of perceiving it. On the other hand, the Bat has similar
deficiencies ; and it has been proved that low notes, however
loud; make noximpression on the Bat, though a sharp clicking
sound or the tearing of paper will alarm him at once.

Our Bats are all nocturnal in their habits, though a few
indulge in occasional flights by day. Most of them have definite
hours for flight, the time depending upon the flight period of the
insects they prey upon particularly. They retire for the day into
dark situations, such as hollow trees, caves, outhouses, or under
roofs. In these sleeping places great numbers often congregate,
and several species may be represented. During bad weather
— when, of course, their insect prey also remains under cover —
they do not leave their daytime shelter. When asleep their
body temperature falls considerably. In harmony with this
nocturnal habit we find that our Bats are usually dull coloured
— some tint of brown with the underside lighter than the upper.

All the British species hibernate, and before the beginning of
this period they develop a good deal of fat to carry them through
it. On any day in the winter when there is any considerable
rise of temperature they wake at once and look around for
insects that have been aroused by the same means. The larger

Greater Horse- shoe Bat (Rhinolophus ferrum-equinum)
asleep in cave.

6'32.

PL 15.

Greater Horse-shoe Bat,

head enlarged, to show remarkable nose-leaf.

Lesser Horse-shoe Bat.

Rhinoloplrus hipposideros.

.033-

BATS. 33

kinds usually eat their food as they fly, but the smaller Bats rest
for a few moments for this purpose. The web between the legs
and tail (" interfemoral pouch ") is mostly used to hold their prey
whilst it is being eaten. It also serves to receive the newly born
young.

The young Bat is born blind, but not quite naked. It at once
clings to its mother's fur by means of its claws, and by its teeth
to her nipple. Nursing mothers appear to form colonies apart
from the others. The growth of the young Bat is rapid and it
is soon fully covered with fur. Before it is a fortnight old it is
able to leave its mother temporarily, but it does not lead an
independent life until it is about two months old. Nothing
certain is known about the age to which a Bat attains, but it
appears to be about four years.

Until the present century there was an astonishing lack of
knowledge of the life-histories of our native species ; but a small
but enthusiastic band of observers have in recent years done
much to make good the deficiency. In this connection the work
of Messrs. Alcock, Coward, Moffat,Oldham, Tomes and Whitaker
calls for acknowledgment. They have hunted far and wide,
exploring the sleeping places and hibernacula, in woods, caves,
roofs and belfries, and have established — among other facts —
that our Bats are more numerous in the south, becoming scarcer
as we go west, and that there are few species represented in the
fauna of Scotland. Most of the species appear to be common in
some one or more localities, even if rare elsewhere ; and the
physical features of a district have a striking influence on their
local abundance or scarcity, certain species being more dis-
criminative in this respect than others. The presence of woods,
water, and caves appears to be the most favourable condition
governing their comparative plentifulness or scarcity.

The Bats were known generically in Anglo-Saxon times as
Fltttermouse and Reremouse, and these names may be met with
still in certain localities ; but to the general public the Bat is

A.L. D

34 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

still a Bat without distinction of species. Although there are
twelve distinct kinds that breed in the British Isles, for each of
which the naturalist has had to invent an English as well as an
international name, not one of these has got into ordinary use ;
so that it is impossible to get any precise information from those
whose occupation gives them opportunities for observation.

Larger Horse-Shoe Bat (Rhi?wlophus ferrum-eqtdnum,
Schreber).

We have two Horse-shoe Bats, distinguished as Larger and
Lesser, and they are regarded as the lowest organised of our
Bats. Their distinguishing feature as a genus is the absence of
the tragus from the ear, and the presence of a leaf-like out-
growth of naked skin on the muzzle around the nostrils. The
broad forepart of this forms the horse-shoe, a protruding central
portion behind the nostrils is known as the sella, and behind it
an erect tapering portion is the lancet. There can be little
doubt that this extraordinary expansion is no mere ornament,
but a sense organ which enables these Bats to execute their
marvellous flight through narrow passages. They are able even
to distinguish invisible obstacles like glass, and they fly low
down among bushes and herbage where they are far more
likely to collide than in the upper air. In these respects their
motions are different from those of the other Bats.

The Larger Horse-shoe Bat is a large and rather heavily
built Bat whose proportions are only slightly exceeded by the
Noctule (page 46), our largest species. The combined length
of head and body is about two and a half inches, and of the tail
an inch and a quarter. The forearm is two inches or more,
and the expansion of the wings covers more than thirteen inches.
The large ears are about half an inch broad, narrowing abruptly
to the sharp recurved tip ; when laid forward over the face
they reach slightly beyond the tip of the muzzle. The lower

PL 18.

Whiskered Bat

Asleep on roof timbers.

LARGER HORSE-SHOE BAT. 35

portion of the broad wing membrane is attached to the ankle
and the tail almost to the tip of the latter. The colour of the
fur above is reddish grey ; on the underside pale grey. Its cry
is a sparrow-like chirp.

The mouth has a straight broad opening below the swollen
muzzle with its stiff moustache. The large canine teeth are
very conspicuous in contrast with the small incisors. The
dental formula for this and the next species is: i-J, ^i,j>§»#*§

— o->

J-«

As already indicated, the flight of this Bat is usually low,
and it alights to consume its prey, which it presses against the
wing membrane, the interfemoral pouch not being large enough
for the purpose. Its food consists chiefly of the larger beetles,
such as cockchafers and dor-beetles, the quick-running ground-
beetle Pterostichus, moths, flies, bees, and caddis-flies. It
appears to be a thirsty creature, and may be seen lapping
water. It takes its daytime sleep in caves, dark buildings, lofts
and roofs. It may hang singly or crowd into crevices. Mr.
Coward found it in the Cheddar caves hanging in bunches.
Their overhead resorts are revealed by heaps of excrement
below. Their natural resting attitude is hanging by the feet
head downwards. They cannot walk on a flat surface, and
before alighting on a vertical one they turn a somersault in the
air to get the proper position. Their senses are so acute that
Mr. Chas. Oldham says : " Even when sunk in winter sleep they
appreciate a man's approach. The eyes are, of course, then
shrouded by the wings, and the sense of danger must be con-
veyed to them either by hearing, smell, or, as seems to be most
probable, by the exercise of their extraordinary tactile sense',
which enables them to actually feel the approaching danger.''

There is but one young at a birth, which occurs at the end
of June or in July. Its eyes are closed, and the underside is
quite naked and the skin purple. The eyes open about the
tenth day.

36 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

The Larger Horse-shoe Bat has an extensive distribution.
From England it is found through Central Europe and the
Mediterranean region, through the Himalayas to China and
southern Japan. In our own country it is found chiefly in the
South-west of England, South and West Wales, but does not
occur in either Scotland or Ireland. The presence or absence
of caves suitable for a winter retreat appears to have some
bearing upon its distribution.

Lesser Horse-Shoe Bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros,
Bechstein).

The Lesser Horse-shoe Bat is much smaller and more
delicately built than the species last described. The nose-leaf
has a narrower outline and its sella is more wedge-shaped ; the
lancet slender with a wedge-shaped tip. The expanse of wings
is less than ten inches, and the length of the forearm is only an
inch and a half. The colour is much the same as in the larger
species, but somewhat darker above and more yellow below.
Its habits are similar also, but, naturally, it does not hunt such
large beetles, nor does it fly so low. It has a more fluttering
flight with intervals of gliding. Its " tchek-tchek " cry is of
lower pitch than in most Bats, and Oldham compares it
to a diminutive of the alarm-note of the Greater Spotted
Woodpecker.

The single young one is born somewhat later than in the last
species : it is born like the other with a thin coat of downy
hair on the upper side only.

Males, apparently, are more numerous than females.

The species appears to be more abundant in localities
where there are caves which provide it with the equable
temperature it requires in hibernation. It is most susceptible
to wind, and will frequently remain inactive in its shelter because
there is wind outside. Even tame individuals exhibit a strong

PL 20.

Red-grey Bat,

emerging from retreat in hollow tree.

PI. 21.

Daubenton's Bat.
Myotis danbentonii.

/>37-

WHISKERED BAT. 37

desire to get into the most retired corners and crevices. The
first recorded British example was taken in a cavity over a
baker's oven to which it had obtained access through a small
fissure.

It may be considered a common species in the South of
England from Kent to Cornwall, and more sparingly to Wales.
It is unknown in East Anglia, rare in the Midlands, and its
northward range terminates at Ripon. In Ireland it occurs in
the West only, in some parts of which it is the commonest
species. Its wider distribution includes Central Europe,
Mediterranean, 'to Gilgit ; northward in Europe to the Baltic.

Whiskered Bat (Myotis mystadnus, Kuhl).

The small and usually solitary Whiskered Bat was formerly
considered to be a rare species, but it turns out that the
naturalists of last century frequently confused it with the
Common Bat — the Pipistrelle — which, however, is smaller and
has a broader muzzle. The head and body measure about an
inch and a half, and the tail the same length. The wings are
narrow, but long, and have an expanse of nine inches.

The soft, long fur of the upper parts is light yellowish brown
in colour ; lighter, almost dirty white below. It extends but
slightly on the wing membrane, and there is little of it on the
long, slender ear, whose outer margin is deeply notched, and
the straight, tapering tragus half the length of the shell of the
ear. The hinder margin of the brownish black wing membrane
is continued to the base of the toes, and the spur (calcar).
reaches halfway from the ankle to the long tail. Owing to the
length of the fur on the face the small eyes are almost hidden
and the face appears to be very short. There is a bristly
moustache on the upper lip which has suggested its trivial and
scientific names.

Though reputed to be of solitary disposition — and it usually

38 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

enjoys its daytime rest apart from its kin — it has been taken
in numbers on several occasions. It makes its appearance
early in the evening, flying low along hedgerows, plantations,
and cliffs, its method of hunting being not to chase flying
insects in the air but to pick off such as have settled on leaves
and twigs. It may also be seen at times flying in the daytime.
It has a fondness for the neighbourhood of woods and water,
where it finds many flies, beetles, and moths in flight. It is
quite silent on the wing.

Mr. Oldham describes the flight of the Whiskered Bat as
" slow, steady, and silent — I have never heard this species
squeak on the wing. Individuals did not appear to wander far,
but confined their attentions to single pools or short stretches
of the stream, where they flitted about the alder-bushes or
threaded their way with marvellous precision through the
lower branches of the sycamore trees. I never saw one rise to
a greater height than twenty feet, and often they flew within a
few inches of the ground or skimmed the surface of a pool for
a yard or two, only to rise again to resume their flight around
the alders."

It is not very particular where it takes its daytime sleep.
Any sort of shelter will do, whether it be a hollow tree or under
a piece of loose bark, a hole in the wall, a roof, or behind
window shutters. Its hibernation is passed by preference in a
cave, whence it emerges for a flight whenever the weather is
fine. In spite of its customary silence, it can produce a feeble
squeak.

On the wing it is not easily distinguished from the Pipistrelle,
which is so similar in size ; but the noisiness of the Pipistrelle
compared with the silence of the Whiskered Bat is the best
guide.

The solitary young one is born in June or July.

It is widely distributed throughout England, with the ex-
ception of East Anglia. In Yorkshire it has been found at an

RED-GREY BAT. 39

elevation of 1400 feet. It appears to be common in Wales and
Ireland, but rare in Scotland. It occurs all over Europe where
there are trees, and extends eastwards to Asia. It is the smallest
member of its genus.

We have three other representatives of the genus Myotis,
which is probably the largest as it is the most widely distributed
of all the genera of Bats. They are all of slender, delicate form,
which is seen most clearly in the shape of the skull, the muzzle,
the ear and its tragus. They agree also in having thirty-eight
teeth — six more than in the Horse-shoe Bat. The dental
formula of all the members of the genus is : i §, c\, p f , m § = 38.

Red-grey Bat (Myotis nattereri, Kuhl).

The Red-grey or Natterer's Bat is somewhat larger than the
Whiskered Bat, the head and body measuring about an inch
and three-quarters, but the tail is relatively shorter, being only
an inch and a half. It has the longest wings of our species
of MyotiS) their expanse being equal to eleven inches and a
quarter.

The long, soft and dense fur is of a greyish-brown colour
above and whitish on the underside. The wing membranes
are dusky. It has a small head, with a narrow muzzle which is
naked at the tip and slightly overhangs the lower jaw. The
face is so densely covered with fur that the small eyes are hidden.
There is also a moustache, and above the lips on each side is a
prominent gland. The large oval ear is notched on the outer
margin above the middle, and the long slender tragus is more
than half the length of the ear, ending in a long, very slender
point. The wing membrane extends to the base of the outer
toe, and the interfemoral membrane is distinctly fringed with
stiff hairs along its lower edge. The tail, which is carried
extended behind, is slightly less than the head and body in
length.

40 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

The Red-grey Bat shares the Whiskered Bat's partiality for
wooded districts, where it may often be seen in numbers, even
before sunset. Unlike the last-named species it is both sociable
and gregarious, and its daytime retreat in holes in walls, hollow
trees, and caverns, is shared with Bats of its own and other
species. It flies low, with a slow, steady flight, and often picks
flies and small moths off leaves and twigs. When so engaged
like the Whiskered Bat it may be known from it by its noisy
chirping. It will turn somersaults in the air in order to alight
by clinging with its feet.

The solitary young one is born towards the end of June.

It does not appear to be a generally distributed species even
in the South of England. Its range extends from Cornwall
and the Isle of Wight to Durham and Norfolk. It also occurs
in Wales and various parts of Ireland. In Scotland it has
been reported from Argyll, Midlothian, and Montrose. It is a
native of Central and Southern Europe, extending north to the
south of Sweden.

Beehstein S Bat (Myotis bechsteinii, Kuhl).

Bechstein's Bat has a general resemblance to the Red-grey
Bat, but is slightly larger, with ears almost twice the breadth of
those of that species, and the feet relatively as well as actually
larger. Though the skull is larger, it is actually narrower than
in that species. The thin ears are relatively larger than those
of any European Bat, except the Long-eared Bat, where, how-
ever, they are of quite different shape and are connected by their
lower margins, whilst here their bases are widely apart. The
form of the ear is like that of the Whiskered Bat ; so is the
tragus, and the shape of the wings.

It is covered with soft, woolly fur, which is a greyish-brown
on the upper parts and buff-grey below. The membranes are
dark brown ; that of the wing arises from the base of the

DAUBENTON'S BAT. 41

toes, and that of the interfemoral leaves the last joint of the
tail free.

The combined length of head and body is about two inches ;
of the tail an inch and a half. The ears are about three-
quarters of an inch in length and half an inch wide ; the tragus
half the length of the ear. The expanse of the wings is ten
inches. The single young is born about midsummer.

Bechstein's is the rarest of British bats, and so far has been
recorded only from the South of England, the localities being
the New Forest, Isle of Wight, Sussex, Berkshire, and Oxford-
shire. Our knowledge of its habits is derived chiefly from
the Continent, where it flies about woods, orchards, and the
neighbourhood of dwellings, coming out from its retreat late in
the evening and flying slowly and low over lanes and woodland
roads, but only in calm weather. It is restricted to Central
and Southern Europe.

Daubenton's Bat {Myotis daubentonii^ Kuhl).

Daubenton's or the Water Bat was formerly considered one
of our rarest Bats, but is known now to be one of the most
widely distributed and plentiful species. It had probably been
mistaken for the Common Bat or Pipistrelle to which it comes
near in point of size, though its habits are different. It keeps
close to the water, especially to some alder-sheltered pool in
the river where there are plenty of caddis-flies and other
insects. There from an hour before sunset it flies slowly in
circles, frequently dipping its muzzle into the water to pick up
surface insects. In such places the evening fly-fisher sometimes
finds this Bat caught on his hook. It appears to be on the
wing all night. It was probably to this Bat that Gilbert White
referred in his eleventh letter to Pennant, when he said : "As I
was going, some years ago, pretty late, in a boat from Richmond
to Sunbury, on a warm summers evening, I think I saw

42 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

myriads of Bats between the two places ; the air swarmed with
them all along the Thames, so that hundreds were in sight at
a time." This was long before it had been distinguished as
a distinct species, and when it would probably have been
regarded as the Common Bat.

It is clothed with short, dense fur, of a grizzled warm brown
colour on the upper parts, and lighter brown or buffy grey,
sometimes so pale as to show a distinct line of separation along
the sides from the angle of the lips to the thigh. The face is
dusky, and the ears and wing membrane are of a reddish dusky
tint. The interfemoral membrane is whitish below, and there
are whitish hairs on the toes. The membrane arises from the
middle of the foot.

In size it is a little larger than the Whiskered Bat and the
Common Bat, but smaller than Leisler's Bat. The head and
body measure about two inches, the tail an inch and a quarter,
the ear half an inch ; the wing expanse is about nine inches.
The fore-leg and foot are conspicuously large. The ear has a
rounded tip, and a shallow concavity on the upper part of the
hind margin ; the lance- shaped tragus is about half the length
of the ear. The spur or calcar of the foot extends three-fourths
of the distance between the foot and the tail. The last two
joints of the latter usually extend beyond the membrane.

For its daytime rest it retires to crevices in trees, walls, caves
or roofs, often in numbers, but its resorts have not the evil smell
that such places frequently give off. It has a low soft chirp,
less shrill than the cry of the Common Bat. In hibernation—-
which extends from the end of September to about the middle
of April — it is no longer sociable, but hangs alone in some dark
cave.

There is a single young one, born in June or July.

Its ran^e extends from Ireland to Asia, and from the
Mediterranean to central Norway.

COMMON BAT. 43

Common Bat (VespertiUc pipistrellus, Schreber)

The Common Bat is in a general sense familiar to everybody,
for it may be seen in the evenings flying everywhere, even in
the streets of crowded cities. Its British distribution extends
from the South of England to Scotland and the Hebrides and
westward to Ireland. Its wider range includes Europe and
parts of Asia. It is the smallest of the British Bats.

In spite of its small size — the head and body measure little
more than an inch and a half — the Common Bat is of robust
build, and it has a wing expanse of over eight inches. It has a
flat broad head with a blunt muzzle and wide mouth. The
short, broad ears are somewhat triangular with blunt tips. The
erect, slightly incurved tragus has a rounded tip which does not
reach quite to half the height of the ear. There are glandular
swellings on the muzzle between the nostril and the small, but
rather prominent eye. The tail is little over an inch in length,
and the legs also are short. The last joint of the tail is free
from the membrane and prehensile, and the Bat makes use of
it as a support in crawling up or down. The spur reaches
more than half way to the tail. The narrow wing is attached
to the middle of the sole of the foot.

The somewhat silky fur is a reddish-brown on the upper
parts, slightly paler beneath. The wing membrane and the
ears are blackish.

It is a very active Bat, flying over farmyards and gardens and
about houses, frequently uttering its shrill little squeak as it
snaps up the flies and small beetles, pouching and eating them
without alighting. It continues its flight all through the night,
and has a longer period of activity than any other species, for
it leaves its hibernaculum in March and does not retire until
winter has begun. Even then, a moderately high mid-day
temperature is sufficient to awaken it and bring it out for an
hour's hunt. It is this habit that accounts for the letters in the

44 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

daily papers from City gentlemen who report the presence of a
Bat flying along Cornhill or Cheapside early in January.

It is not particular in regard to its sleeping place, and is
frequently found under roofs, behind rainwater pipes and
gutters, or in any crevices between woodwork and brickwork in
buildings. Any regular dormitory acquires a very fetid odour
from its use.

The dental formula of the Common Bat is : z §, c j, p # , vi :}
= 34. Schreber's name of Vespertilio pipistrellus was bestowed
in 1774 and is the oldest name ; in the British Museum Cata-
logue it is Pipistrellus pipistrellus, a combination invented by
Miller in 1897.

Serotine ( Vespertilio scrotinus, Schreber).

The Serotine and the Noctule are our two largest Bats, and
in the early records they were very much confused. Though
similar in size, they may be known apart by the shape of the
ear ; in the present species oval-triangular with the tips rounded.
The fur is also of a darker brown, and there are other points of
difference, such as the possession of two additional teeth by the
Noctule. But for a few records of its occurrence in Essex, it
might be said to be restricted in Britain to that portion of
England bounded by the river Thames and the English Channel.
A few examples have been taken in Cornwall, and other counties
in which it is found are Surrey, Hampshire, Sussex, and Kent.
It occurs throughout the Isle of Wight — where it is known as
Rattle-mouse — but Kent is its British metropolis, where it is
the commonest Bat. It extends through Central and South
Europe, from Denmark to the Mediterranean and eastward
into Asia.

It has a somewhat swollen face with little hair on the front
portion, save for a moustache on the upper lip ; but owing to
the dark skin of the face the lack of fur is not very noticeable.

PL 26.

Great Bat

showing use of tail as additional foot.

SEROTINE. 45

The dark brown fur of the upper parts is soft and dense ;
behind the shoulders the hairs have buffy tips. On the under-
side the fur is somewhat lighter. There is little extension of
fur on the wing, except a line of down on the under surface of
the forearm. The membrane is attached to the base of the
toes. The head and body measure about three inches, and the
tail slightly exceeds two inches, the last joint being quite free
of the membrane. The expanse of the wings is fourteen and a
half inches. There are prominent glandular swellings on the
muzzle. The ear is about three-quarters of an inch long ; the
short tragus — less than half the length of ear — has a straight
front border and a curved hind border, with rounded tip. The
canines and the inner incisors of the upper jaw are noticeably
large and strong. Dental formula : i §, c \, p J, m § = 32.

The Serotine makes its appearance in public about sunset,
apparently retiring early and flying again in the early morning.
It frequents glades in woods, and preys upon beetles and moths.
In May and June large numbers of cockchafers fall victims to
it, and in July and August in Kent and Sussex it plays havoc
with the local Brown-tail Moth. In the early part of its season
it flies at a low height, but later it prefers an altitude between
thirty and forty feet, from which, however, it frequently descends
to the ground. The change is, no doubt, connected with the
seasonal succession of insects with different habits. It is a
sociable species, and when it retires to holes or roofs for its
daytime rest it is usually in company. Its hibernation begins
at the end of October. Its voice is a squeak.

The Parti-coloured Bat (Vespertilio viurinus, Linn.) is some-
times enumerated among British Bats, but on the strength of
only two specimens captured in this country, in the " 'thirties "
of last century. As one of these was taken at Plymouth and
the other at Yarmouth, it is reasonable to suppose that they

46 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

were mere stragglers which had reached our shores on board
ship. Had they occurred as residents their distinctive colora-
tion— dark brown upperside mottled with yellow-brown and
whitish underside — and large size, would have established their
identity at once.

Great Bat (Nyctalus noctula, Schreber).

Though similar to the Serotine in size and to the Pipistrelle
in form, the Great Bat or Noctule was recognised as a distinct
species long ago. We might with great fitness call this White's
Bat, for it was the Selborne naturalist who first called attention
to it as a native species, under the name of altivolans, sug-
gested by its high flight. Schreber, however, had some years
previously named it noctula^ basing his description upon a
French specimen. White refers to it several times, and in his
xxxvith letter to Pennant gives particulars which the latter
included in his " British Zoology." Part of White's description
is worth quoting. He says : " In the extent of their wings they
measured fourteen inches and a half; and four inches and a
half from the nose to the tip of the tail ; their heads were large,
their nostrils bilobated, their shoulders broad and muscular ;
and their whole bodies fleshy and plump. Nothing could be
more sleek than their fur, which was of a bright chestnut
colour. . . . They weighed each, when entire, full one ounce
and one drachm. Within the ear there was somewhat of a
peculiar structure that I did not understand perfectly ! [? tragus]
but refer it to the observation of the curious anatomist. These
creatures sent forth a very rancid and offensive smell."

To add to White's description, it maybe said that the general
form is robust and heavy, the forearm massive, the wing long
and slender, its narrowness being due to the shortness of the
fifth finger. The lower leg is short and thick and the foot
broad and powerful. The muzzle is broad and has a glandular

PL 29.

Great Bat

alighting after day-time flight.

GREAT BAT. 47

swelling between eye and nostril. The nostrils project forward
and outward and there is a distinct concavity between the two
crescent-shaped orifices. The ear is short — when flattened it
is broader than long — with the front border rounded to the tip ;
its inner surface covered with short hairs. The ears are far
apart. There is a very short, downy, bow-shaped tragus,
broader above than below. The long, soft, golden-brown fur is
abundant, and extends over the face and a short distance over
the wing ; it is paler and duller on the lower parts. On the
underside there is a narrow band of fur below the arm bones.
The last joint of the tail is free. The membrane and ears are
blackish.

The dentition is : z §, c j, p 2, m jf = 34.

The Great Bat, as one would expect from the shape of the
wings, has a quick, dashing flight reminding one of that of the
Swifts, with which, indeed, it may be seen high in the air
hawking for the same prey. It often glides down obliquely on
expanded wings. It flies at twilight and again at dawn, as well
as in the daytime occasionally. It has a shrill, clear, cricket-
like voice.

Mr. C. B. Moffat says they "cram themselves to bursting
point either once or twice in the twenty-four hours, during a
seventy minutes career of mad excitement among the twilight-
flying beetles and gnats." They also take moths and other
insects ; but in captivity they have resolutely refused to eat
such " warningly coloured " species as the Cinnabar and
Magpie moths. It is proved that at one meal they will con-
sume food equal to a fourth of their own weight. When one
considers the lightness of insects the amount of good these
purely insectivorous creatures effect is obvious.

Their resorts are in hollow trees and under the eaves of
buildings, where numbers may associate together, especially in
hibernation. Their presence is often indicated by thick layers
of excrement.

48 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

The Great Bat flies all through the year with the exception
of January and the latter part of December. Pied and almost
black variations from the normal colouring have been recorded.

The sexes are said to separate into distinct colonies in the
summer : the females retiring to trees. The single young is
born naked and blind towards the end of June. When they
get their fur they are much darker than the adults.

Although the Great Bat is generally distributed as far north
as Yorkshire, Durham, and the Lake District, it is common
only in the South of England, from Norfolk to Cornwall, but
is rare in the Isle of Wight. It is not recorded from Ireland.
Formerly, it was not considered a native of Scotland, but in
recent years several examples have been captured there. It
is found throughout the greater part of Europe and adjacent
parts of Asia.

Bat (Nyctalus leisleri, Kuhl).

It is not necessary to give a detailed description of Leisler's
or the Hairy-winged Bat, for it is a miniature edition of the
Great Bat in a darker binding. The length of the head and
body is two and a half inches and of the tail an inch and
a half. The wing expanse is thirteen inches and a quarter.
The fur on the upper parts is a darker brown than that of the
Great Bat, but it is lighter on the under parts. The skull is
only half the size of that species, and the entire build is lighter
and less massive. Owing to this difference in size it is not so
likely to be mistaken on the wing for the Great Bat as for the
Common Bat. It is without the strong odour of the Great Bat.
It agrees with the latter in its high flight, but its movements
are not so swift and are more zig-zag.

It is one of the rarest of our Bats, and like the Great Bat a
woodland species, making its dormitory preferably high up in
a decayed oak, but also in the roofs and crevices of buildings.

/

PL 30.

Leisler's Bat
asleep on roof masonry.

;

Long-eared Bat.

Ears uncurling after sleep.

Face, showing distinctive ear and tragus.

• 33.

On the wing (reduced two-thirds).
Barbastelle (Barbastella barbastellus).

LONG-EARED BAT. 49

Its period of activity begins about the third Week in April and
lasts until near the end of September, when it goes into hiber-
nation, but a little mild weather in winter will wake it up and
bring it out for a flight. According to the observations of Mr.
C. B. Moffat it flies for about a hundred minutes just after sunset,
and for a similar period just before sunrise. Its food consists
of flies, beetles, and moths. Dr. Alcock, who has brought this
Bat down by shooting it an hour after sunset, found it so
crammed with food that it did not appear physically possible
for it to feed longer.

The distribution of Leisler's Bat does not agree at all with
that of its near ally, the Great Bat. It has been obtained
chiefly in the Valley of the Avon (Warwickshire) ; also in
Yorkshire, Cheshire, and Norfolk. It does not appear to occur
in Scotland ; but it is reported as abundant in several parts of
Ireland. It is a purely European species, occurring only from
Central Europe westward.

Long-eared Bat (Plecotus auritus, Linn.).

The Long-eared is probably the best-known of our Bats
owing to the very distinctive character afforded by the huge
ears, which are as long as the forearm and longer than the
body. In addition, it is one of the commonest and most
widely distributed of our Bats, and likely to be met with any-
where in the British Islands. It is, however, rarer in the North
of Scotland than elsewhere. It is found nearly all over Europe.

The large and mobile ears give this Bat an appearance of
size not justified by its small and delicate build. The head and
body combined measure less than two inches, whilst the tail is
only a fraction less than that measurement The fact that no
other European Bat has such an equipment renders a detailed
description superfluous, for the ears at once distinguish this
from all the other species. These ears have their bases joined

A.L. E

50 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

across the forehead. Their form is a long oval with rounded
tip. Except for fringes on the folds they are hairless. They
are semi-transparent and have transverse folds. The tapering
tragus is nearly half as long as the ear, and might be mistaken
for it when the Bat hangs asleep ; for then the ears are care-
fully folded and tucked away in the wing whilst the tragus
sticks out beyond the inanimate-looking bundle. Sometimes,
when awake, one ear is held at a different angle from the other ;
but in flight both ears are directed forward. Often, when it
has caught an insect, the Long-eared Bat will come to the
ground to eat it.

The soft, silky, brown fur is long and thick, especially on
the shoulders, but does not extend far upon the wings. On the
under parts it pales to yellowish or dirty white. The wings are
both long and broad, and their expanse in flight is about ten
inches. The long tail when folded forwards can touch the top
of the head ; its tip is slightly free from the interfemoral
membrane, and when the Bat hooks itself up head downwards
for sleep it serves as a third foot.

The Long-eared Bat is found chiefly among trees, though it
frequently 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 ; occasion-
ally 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.

BARBASTELLE. 51

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: / f, c \, p §, m % — 36.

Barbastelle {Barbastella barbastellus, Schreber).

One feels inclined to apologise for the poverty of language
displayed in the heading above ; though no one accepts re-
sponsibility 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 dupli-
cation. 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.

52 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

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 out-
houses, 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 : z f, c }, p §, m £ = 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.

FOX (Vvlpes amis, 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 pre-
servation 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

Pi. 35-

Fox cub

taking a peep at the outside world.

FOX. 53

that the local pack of fox-hounds may have its well-conditioned
quarry at the proper season. As far back as the reign of
Klizabeth 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.

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 astute-
ness. 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 posses-
sion by eating out those who constructed it. The Fox then

54 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

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

Skeleton of Fox.

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.

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

Badger's Front-door.

The deep entrance slope connects with underground galleries.

BADGER. 55

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.

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 : / if, c J, p f , in § = 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,

56 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

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 fore feet are larger than those of

BADGER. 57

the hind feet. His weight may be anything up to 40 Ibs. 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

58 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

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 ff, c\,p^, m\ = 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.

OTTER. 59

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

60 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

is tail. The weight of a full-grown male is between 20 Ibs. and
25 Ibs., but occasionally it exceeds 27 Ibs. — Pennant records
one of 40 Ibs. ! The female weighs less than the male by about
four pounds. The dental formula is i ^ c\^p^ m\ — 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

PL 40.

£60.

Pine Marten.

Mustela martes.

OTTER.

61

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.

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

Skeleton of the Otter.

will work the shallow waters for flat fish, bass, crabs, and
mussels. From here also it will make excursions over a con-
siderable 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 condi-
tion. It also shows a fondness for the freshwater mussel
(A nodonta cygned] .

In the rutting season there is a good deal of desperate fighting

62 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

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 them-
selves, 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

PINE MARTEN. 63

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.).

The Pine Marten or Marten Cat was formerly quite a common
woodland beast, but owing to the onslaughts of the gamekeeper
and the high prices paid for a skin, it is now, so far as southern
and midland England is concerned, extinct. In the wilder
parts of the Peak district, the North of England, Wales, Scot-
land, and Ireland, however, it still exists, though in small and
ever decreasing numbers in most places. In the Lake District
it was quite recently reported to be fairly common even. The
name Pine-Marten is a misnomer in so far as it indicates that
the animal is at all restricted to pine- woods ; and it is probable
that in the past it led to confusion, for in all the natural histories
published up to a late date in the nineteenth century, Britain was
credited with an additional species, the Beech Marten (Mustela
foina). The two species are much alike, and the practice
appears to have been to record those found in pine-woods as
M. martes and those in other woods as M. foina ! Bell, indeed,
though he expressly states his disbelief in our possession of two
species of Marten, refers to the white-throated form as the
Beech Marten or Common Marten and says it is more frequently
met with than the yellow-throated form or Pine Marten. The

64 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

truth is that there is a white-throated Mustela foina in Europe
and Asia, but it does not reach northward so far as Sweden,
Norway, or the British Isles. The white examples found in
this country are old animals from which the yellow tint has faded.

The Pine Marten may be described as resembling roughly
the better-known Polecat, but with longer legs, a broader, more
triangular head with sharp-pointed muzzle, and a longer, more
bushy tail. Its entire length is between twenty-five and thirty
inches, of which from nine to twelve inches are contributed by
the tail. Its colour is a rich dark brown, except on the throat
and breast which vary from orange through yellow to creamy-
white. The middle of the back and the exposed sides of the
legs and feet are darker than the rest, whilst beneath the tint
approaches grey. The superficial colour is provided by the
long upper, glossy fur, but beneath this is a finer, softer fur of
shorter reddish-grey hairs tipped with yellow. The eyes are
large, black, and prominent, the ears broad, open, and rounded
at the tips. Like all the other members of the family Mustelidas,
the Marten is provided with glands near the base of the tail.
It is these which enable the Skunk and the Polecat to disgust
their enemies ; but in the case of the Marten the secretion is
merely of a musky odour and not objectionable ; in consequence
one of its old English names was Sweet Marten to distinguish
it from the Foulmart or Polecat.

The habits of the Pine Marten are mainly arboreal, for
which the long slender body and sharp long claws specially fit
it, whilst the long bushy tail is useful as a balancer in negotiating
slender branches in the pursuit of birds, or in reaching their
nests for eggs. All the same, the Marten is at times very
active on the ground where he destroys rats, mice, voles,
rabbits, hares, game-birds, and domestic poultry large and
small. He is even accused of attacking lambs and stealing
trout from the fishing boats. He has also a taste for bilberries,
strawberries, cherries, and raspberries ; and C. St. John tells

PL 42.

Stoat.

Characteristic hunting attitude.

£64.

PINE MARTEN. 65

an interesting story in this connection which illustrates the
Marten's cleverness in hiding. He says : " I saw in my garden
in Inverness-shire that some animal came nightly to the rasp-
berry bushes ; the track appeared like that of a rabbit or harer
but as I also saw that the animal climbed the bushes, I knew
it could be neither of these. Out of curiosity, I set a trap for
the marauder ; the next morning, on going to look at it very
early, I could see nothing on the spot where I had put my trap
but a heap of leaves, some dry and some green ; I was just
going to move them with my hand, when I luckily discovered
a pair of bright eyes peering sharply out of the leaves, and
discovered that I had caught a large Marten, who, rinding that
he could not escape, had collected all the leaves within his
reach, and had quite concealed himself under them. The
moment he found that he was discovered, he attacked me most
courageously, as the Marten always does, righting to the last.
I had other opportunities of satisfying myself that this animal
is a great fruit-eater, feeding much on the wild raspberries,
and even blackberries, that grow in the woods." It also robs
beehives of their honey.

The female Marten forms a nest of grass among the rocks,
in a hollow tree, or utilises an old crow's nest by relining it,
and produces a litter of four or five — -sometimes varied in
number from two to seven — and there are at least two litters
each year. The young are exceedingly pretty and are easily
tamed ; though a captured adult is savage and untameable.

The dentition of the Marten is : i §, c \, p £ , m I = 38.

Cuvier divided the Linnean genus into two subgenera,
Mil stela and Putorius, the first. Martens and Sables,
possessing an additional small premolar on each side of the
jaw ; the second including the Polecats, Stoats, and Weasels.
At a later date Nilsson called these subgenera genera, sub-
stituting the name Maries for the Martens and giving that of
Mnstela to the Weasels. This has the effect of making the

66 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

name of the Pine Marten, Martes martes, which is rather
ridiculous ; and we have preferred to retain the Linnean name
Mustela martes. The old spelling of the popular name was
Martzn, but in recent works, to avoid any possible confusion
with the birds of that name, zoologists have agreed to use e as
the second vowel when writing of the mammals.

The Pine Marten is found in all the wooded regions of
Europe and into Asia ; northwards from the Mediterranean to
the limits of tree-growth.

Stoat OF Ermine {Mustela ermlnea, Linn.).

Though the gun and the snare of the gamekeeper and the
poultry-farmer levy their toll upon the Stoat equally with the
Polecat, and the keeper's gibbet always shows a goodly row of
Stoats, the species manages to keep itself well represented,
even in the strictly preserved woods of Southern England.
There must, therefore, be some additional reason for the
scarcity of the Polecat (see p. 74).

The Stoat is much smaller than the Polecat, its total length
being only a little more than fourteen inches, of which about
four and a half inches are the long-haired but not very bushy
tail. In colour, too, it is very distinct, the upper parts being
red-brown and the under surface white tinged with yellow.
The tail takes the colour of the upper surface, except its tip
which is invariably a tuft of long black hairs. In the Alpine
districts of Scotland as in other northern countries, the fur in
winter becomes pure white all over, with the exception of the
tip of the tail which always remains black. This change takes
place also in the North of England, but not so generally, and
in the South it is only of rare occurrence, and often only partially,
some parts remaining brown, as a ring around the eyes pro-
ducing a spectacled appearance. The summer coloration is
" protective " inasmuch that it harmonises generally with the

STOAT OR ERMINE. 67

colour of the ground littered with the remains of dead leaves,
bark, etc. ; but in a landscape under snow for months, as the
Alpine districts are, the brown fur would render the animal so
conspicuous that it would be heavily handicapped in the hunt
for food ; but the winter change to white fur enables the Stoat
to steal upon its prey unseen from a short distance. The change
is quite sudden, given the requisite fall in the temperature,
the pigment being withdrawn. (See Introductory chapter.)

Like the Polecat, the Stoat can secrete a most objectionable
odour from its scent-glands, but in this case it is not nearly so
insupportable. St. John says that if the Stoat is suddenly shot
before he has had time to see his aggressor the dead body has
not this offensive odour ; the same result follows upon his
sudden death in a spring trap, but if he is trapped alive or
hunted before being shot the vile smell is imparted to the fur
and is irremovable.

The Stoat hunts along hedgerows, rivers and brooks, in
the latter places for fish, of which all the members of the
Weasel tribe are exceedingly fond. An eel or other fish placed
in a trap is a deadly bait for these animals. The Stoat also
frequents sand dunes, where it lives sumptuously upon Rabbits.
It is very destructive to game and poultry, which it will attack
right in the open field, and if pursued by a dog, immediately
takes shelter in a mole's or rat's run, where pursuit is impossible.
It will destroy the Mole and take possession of its chamber,
though it appears to be fonder of " field mice " (Voles) than of
Moles. Although largely nocturnal in its habits, it is by no
means exclusively so, and there is more chance of observing
the Stoat hunting in broad daylight than in the case of any
other of our native carnivora. Sometimes it hunts in small
packs — family parties ; and it is said that when through increase
of its own numbers it has largely reduced the food supply of a
district, it will migrate in large numbers, when their associated
courage is so great that they will attack a man. A single

68 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

female who has young will, indeed, exhibit the greatest courage
and ferocity in their defence. The Stoat hunts by scent, and
its movements consist largely of a succession of low bounds
which give its progress a snake-like appearance — and like the
other members of the family it makes sidelong leaps. Many
years ago, whilst walking along a woodland road in Surrey, we
paused to listen to cries of terror in the cover far ahead. A
panic-stricken young Rabbit came into the open in our direction
swiftly pursued by a Stoat which rapidly gained upon it. As
it came near the Rabbit became aware of our presence and
appeared deliberately to change its course, and fell on its side
exhausted against our feet. The Stoat, by this time only a
few yards away, stopped, and looked up at us with a snarling
expression, but kept out of reach of our uplifted stick. Realising
that the hunt had failed and the Rabbit had found a spoil-
sport protector, the Stoat then made off into the bracken ;
whilst the panting Rabbit allowed us to carry it on our arm for
half a mile until it had recovered. Its natural fear of man was
not nearly so great as its terror inspired by the bloodthirsty
Stoat ; and when at length it was set down in what was
judged to be a safe place, it hopped off without any frightened
haste.

It appears that the Hare under similar conditions does not
exert itself greatly to escape from the Stoat, but becomes so
terrorised as to be unable to adopt methods which so frequently
outwit the Fox or the fleetness of trained hounds.

The nursery is made in a hole in the bank, the hollow of a
decayed tree, or in the retreat of a female Mole who has been
killed or evicted. Here about April or May the female Stoat
gives birth to four or five young, which she will defend with
great fierceness against all dangers.

The distribution of the Stoat extends eastward from Great
Britain into Asia, and from the Alps and Pyrenees across
Europe to its arctic shores.

PL 44-

F6S.

Weasel's Hole.

in woodland bank, containing nest and young.

'\ .'*;

Polecat at Bay.

Defying a hum an intruder.

WEASEL. 69

A local race of smaller size, with some variation in the
colouring, is found in Ireland, and some systematic naturalists,
eager to swell our short list of native mammals, have dignified
it with a separate species name — Mustela hibernicus. In Ireland
it is known as the Weasel, but no specimens or skins of the
true Weasel {Mustela nivalis) have ever been received from
that country. Another local race in the Isle of Jura on the
west coast of Scotland is similarly given species rank.

Weasel {Mustela nivalis, Linn.).

Although of very similar form to the Stoat, the Weasel may
be known by its smaller size and by the absence of the black
tip which marks the tail of the Stoat. In colour there is little
difference in the two species, except that in the Weasel the
upper parts are of a redder brown and the under parts a purer
white than in the Stoat. The head is narrower and the legs
are shorter, whilst the tail, which is a conspicuous feature of the
Stoat, is here less bushy and little more than half the length of
the Stoat's appendage. The average length of a mature male
is nine or ten inches, to which the tail contributes only two
inches ; the total length of the female is an inch and a half less
than that of the male.

The long, slender body, short limbs, long neck and small head
give it a snake-like appearance which is helped by its active,
gliding movements. The snake-likeness is accentuated when
only the foreparts are seen protruding from a hole. On one
occasion as we passed a stack of cord-wood on the edge of a
wood, our attention was attracted by a hissing noise. On the
level of our face a snake-like head peered out from between the
cord-wood ; and many persons would, no doubt, assume that a
snake had threatened them. But the snarling expression ex-
posed the canine teeth. The cause of the demonstration was
no obvious, but we presumed that there were young Weasels in

70 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

the stack, and that some other predatory animal had threatened
danger to them just before we passed, and had aroused the
maternal rage. In spite of its small size the bloodthirsty
Weasel is full of courage, and will attack creatures larger
than itself. We have seen it, in the neighbourhood of a barn,
struggling to haul along a nearly full-grown Rat, two or three
times its own weight, after it had paralysed its victim by biting
through the base of the skull. Sometimes it hunts in couples,
or family packs.

Although, like the other members of its family, the Weasel is
chiefly nocturnal in habit, it is also active by day, and may be
encountered frequently in our rambles. His diet is varied, and
includes rats, mice, voles, moles, frogs, small birds, and chickens.
He will swim in pursuit of the Water Vole, and will climb trees
and bushes in order to rob a bird's nest of eggs or young.
Voles and mice are probably his principal victims, his small
size enabling him to pursue them in their underground runs.
But though the farmer may lose some of his chickens through
want of care in protecting fowl-houses and runs, he has in the
Weasel a most efficient guardian of his mangold-caves and
other consumable stores. Many farmers have testified that
their poultry is untouched by the Weasel, but destroyed by the
Stoat.

One winter's day in Cornwall we were strolling up a road
from the sea that ran between farm buildings, when our atten-
tion was attracted to the peculiar movements of some object on
the road about a quarter of a mile ahead. Screaming cries
came from the rolling mass, and soon we got near enough to
see that a struggle was going on between two creatures who
were mixed intimately ; and finally saw that a large, well-fed
Rat had been taken in charge by a lithe little Weasel. Spots of
blood on the road and the redness of the rodent's neck-fur
showed that the bite that rendered the Rat powerless had been
given already. So intent was the Weasel upon the work in

WEASEL. 71

hand that for a moment he appeared ignorant of our presence
within a few feet. Then he paused, stood upright on his
haunches, and looked up with a fierce gleam in his bright
black eyes that seemed to say, " Don't interfere, there's a good
fellow. I've tackled him fairly — let me finish the job." That
slight pause gave the Rat a chance — a very poor one, but he
tumbled in a stupid, drunken kind of way towards the hedge,
to which the Weasel had been trying to drag him.

On the other side of the hedge was a " cave " of mangolds
upon which the Rats had been committing fearful ravages, as is
their wont, and this particular thief had waxed fat upon such

Skeleton of Weasel.

fare. The Weasel had evidently caught him in the act of com-
mitting larceny, but the Rat had given the little policeman a
run through the hedge and across the road before the Weasel
had leaped upon the culprit's back and inflicted the deadly bite.
So much was told with tolerable certainty by the drops of blood
and the footprints on the soft road. Now, getting somewhat
alarmed at our presence, the Weasel ran into the hedge ; but
immediately rallying his pluck came out of his corner again,
seeking his quarry who was at the hedge-foot, dreamily looking
for the hole that in ordinary health he would have darted to
straight. He floundered hopelessly under the herbage ; but in
a second or two the Weasel had him again by the skin of the
back, and was trying to haul him up the bank to get him

72 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

through the hedge. Then, realising the impossibility of his
task — for the Rat was probably six times the Weasel's weight —
and finding we had taken up an attitude of benevolent neutrality,
not loving Rats, he got on the Rat and finished the business.
A few spasmodic movements of the extended limbs showed
that the Rat was dead, so we left the Weasel to enjoy his feast
of brains in the solitude he desired.

When the Weasel has failed by stalking or hunting such prey
to secure a meal, he is known to resort to " charming " tactics.
In full view of a hedgerow where small birds are numerous, he
will throw his body into snake-like contortions to attract their
attention. They become fascinated and curious, and though
apparently filled with fear, they approach nearer and nearer
until one is close enough to be grabbed by the charmer. Then
the others recover their senses, and in numbers fly at the
WTeasel, mobbing and pecking him in a fearless manner, so
that he is coerced by the defenceless creatures he intended to
kill, and is glad to slink into cover. If there is a scarcity of
live food, the Weasel will content himself with carrion. Its
chief enemies are hawks.

There is, as a rule, no seasonal change of colour in the
Weasel's fur in this country ; but occasionally it has been
found white in winter. In colder climates this change is quite
normal.

The Weasel's nest is placed in a hole in the bank or in some
hollow tree, and consists of dry leaves, grass, etc. In it the
female brings forth from four to six — usually five — young, in
spring or early summer ; and the mother will sacrifice her own
life in the defence of her helpless progeny. If necessary to
remove them, she does it as a cat removes her kittens.

In the north it is known as the Whittret = Whitethroat of
Suffolk ; in Yorkshire, the Ressel ; in Cheshire, the Mouse-
killer ; in Sussex, the Beale ; and in some parts of Surrey as
Kine, which suggests Gilbert White's Cane, the local name in

POLECAT. 73

Hampshire for " a little reddish beast not much bigger than a
field-mouse, but much longer," of his fifteenth letter to Pennant.
The more general name Weasel is the Anglo-Saxon Wesle.

When Scotland suffered severely from a " plague " of Field
Voles in 1892, the Board of Agriculture appointed a Committee
of Enquiry, and the examination of witnesses — farmers, keepers,
shepherds— clearly established the fact that the chief natural
enemy of the Field Vole is the Weasel, and that the gravest
mistake had been made in destroying and in exporting large
numbers to our Dominions in order that they might there
reduce the " plague " of Rabbits. It was even suggested that
we should make good this error by importing Weasels from the
Continent and turning them loose. Other evidence showed
that the Weasel is frequently blamed by game-preservers for
what is undoubtedly the work of the Stoat, the Weasel preferring
the lower-lying farmsteads, where Mice and Voles are abundant,
to the elevated ranges frequented by Grouse and Rabbits.
Apart from its preference for the smaller Rodents, the Weasel
appears to differ from the Stoat in being of a less hardy con-
stitution, and in winter at least requires the shelter afforded by
granaries and rickyards, where it co-operates with the Owls in
an unceasing warfare on the Rats and Mice. Its extra-British
distribution agrees with that of the Stoat.

Albino-Weasels, with pure white fur and pink eyes, have been
recorded several times, but they appear to be very rare.

Polecat (Mustela piitorius^ Linn.).

In contradistinction to the Sweet-mart already described, our
forefathers called the Polecat or Fitchew the Foumart or Foul
Marten, because the secretion from the glands under the tail is
intolerably acrid and mephitic ; on this account the fur is con-
sidered useless, the odour attaching to it permanently. Like
the Marten, the Polecat, thanks mainly to the unremitting

74 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

vigilance of the gamekeeper, has become very rare in this
country. In this case there can be no doubt that the keeper is
fully justified, for there is no more destructive beast among our
native carnivora. It is still common throughout Europe, as far
north as central Scandinavia.

Though in general appearance similar to the Marten, the
Polecat is smaller, has shorter legs and a shorter tail, and
differs in colour. The entire length is about two feet, but of
this the bushy tail accounts for about seven inches. Its long
coarse fur is dark brown on the upper parts of the body, and
black on the undersurface. The head, also, is blackish, relieved
with white marks about the muzzle and between the ears and
eyes. The weight of a full-grown Polecat is about six pounds.

Its usual habitat is a wood or copse, not too far from a
plunderable farm ; but it has no fixed type of dwelling, taking
advantage of any hole, be it a fox-earth, a rabbit burrow, or a
natural rock crevice ; often indeed a woodstack in the farmyard
may be utilised. On the approach of winter it looks out for
some deserted building where it can find shelter. Unlike the
Marten, it is not much of a climber, and does not exhibit the
sprightly agility of that species. It is a nocturnal hunter, and
is an adept at finding entrance to a hen-house, where it has been
known to kill off every one of the inmates in a night, though it
could only make off with a solitary hen. Although it may
consume the brains of its victims on the spot, the bodies are
always carried to its lair for more leisured consumption. Its
food includes eggs of all kinds, rabbits, rats, mice, birds, fish,
frogs, lizards, and snakes, including the viper, whose poison is
considered to be innocuous in the blood of the Polecat. When
it gets into the poultry yard, the superior size of some of its
victims does not alarm it ; a goose will serve its turn as well as
a chicken. Bell tells of sixteen turkeys that were killed in one
night by a single Foumart ; though, of course, it could not drag
away one of the carcasses. Its usual method of carrying smaller

WILD CAT. 75

prey is to grip them by the middle of the back, much as a
retriever carries game. In addition to the remains of hares,
rabbits, numerous birds, and several eels, C. St. John found in
the larder of a she-polecat the bodies of three kittens which he
knew to have been drowned at least a quarter of a mile away.

The Polecat pairs about February, and from three to eight
(mostly five or six) young to a litter are born in April or May.
The nest is made of dry grass. There is probably a second
litter a few months later.

The dentition of the Polecat, the Weasel, and the Stoat, is the
same as that of the Marten, except that there are only three
premolar teeth on each side of the jaws. In setting traps for
Polecats the bait is found to be rendered far more seductive by
scenting it with musk.

The tame Ferret, so largely bred for use in catching Rabbits
and destroying Rats, is an albino, probably of the Asiatic
Polecat (M. eversmauni), with yellowish-white fur and red
eyes. Its employment in hunting ground-game dates back
certainly as far as to the Romans, as evidenced by references in
Pliny's Natural History. When all the exits but one from a
Rabbit " bury " have been netted, the Ferret, properly muzzled,
is turned into the one left open, and quickly drives out all the
occupants into the nets. In similar fashion Rats are driven out
of their holes to have their backs promptly broken by terriers
in waiting. Dark-coloured Ferrets are known as Polecat
Ferrets, and appear to be hybrids between the Ferret and the
ordinary Polecat.

Wild Cat (Fells silvcstris, Schreber).

When in England or Ireland we talk with keepers or other
woodland folk, and they happen to mention Wild Cats, let it be
understood always that their wild cat is a domestic pussy that

76 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

has tired of the soft indoor life and become feral. Such cats
are a terror to the gamekeeper on account of their destruction
of young pheasants, hares and rabbits, and the tails of many of
them ornament his gibbets.

To have even a slight chance of seeing the real British Wild
Cat to-day, we must seek it in North Wales, or preferably the
north or north-west of Scotland, its present restricted area in
that country having as its eastern boundary the Caledonian
Canal. It inhabits the most lonely and inaccessible mountain
sides, hiding during the day in some rocky fastness, prowling
far and wide at night in search of prey. It is of a general
yellowish grey colour, but individuals differ in their dark brown
markings, some having vertical stripes running down the sides
from a black longitudinal line down the middle of the back ; in
others these are broken up to form spots. It has a squarish
thick head and body, the latter longer than in the Domestic
Cat ; but the thick bushy tail is relatively shorter, ringed and
ending in a long black brush. The limbs, too, are longer than
those of the tame cat, so that it stands higher. A pair of dark
stripes extend from the eyes and over the head to behind the
ears. The fur is long, soft and thick. The pads of the toes are
not quite black. The average length is about two feet nine
inches, of which the tail accounts for eleven inches ; but there
is a record of a Scottish example measuring three feet nine
inches in all.

Pennant (1776) says: "This animal may be called the
British tiger ; it is the fiercest, and most destructive beast we
have ; making dreadful havoke among our poultry, lambs and
kids." C. St. John, nearer to our own time (1845), sa)'s its
strength and ferocity when hard pressed are perfectly astonish-
ing. Fully acquainted as he was with the wild life of the more
remote parts of Scotland, he adds : " I have heard their wild
and unearthly cry echo far in the quiet night as they answer and
call to each other. I do not know a more harsh and unpleasant

PL 50.

Squirrel's way with nuts.

Empty shells showing the neat work of the incisor teeth.

PL 51.

Grey Squirrel.

FTJ.

WILD CAT. 77

cry than that of the Wild Cat, or one more likely to be the
origin of superstitious fears in the mind of an ignorant High-
lander." He describes how one day whilst fishing in Suther-
land, and having to climb over rocks to get from one pool to
another, he had a close personal encounter with one.

" In doing so, I sank through some rotten heather and moss
up to my knees, almost upon a Wild Cat, who was concealed
under it. I was quite as much startled as the animal herself
could be, when I saw the wild-looking beast so unexpectedly
rush out from between my feet, with every hair of her body
standing on end, making her look twice as large as she really
was." Pursued by his three Skye terriers " she took refuge in
a corner of the rocks, where, perched in a kind of recess out of
reach of her enemies, she stood with her hair bristled out, and
spitting and growling like a common cat. Having no weapon
with me, I laid down my rod, cut a good-sized stick, and pro-
ceeded to dislodge her. As soon as I was within six or seven
feet of the place, she sprang straight at my face over the dogs'
heads. Had I not struck her in mid -air as she leaped at me,
I should probably have got some severe wound. As it was she
fell with her back half broken amongst the dogs, who, with my
assistance, despatched her. I never saw an animal fight so
desperately, or one which was so difficult to kill. If a tame cat
has nine lives, a Wild Cat must have a dozen."

The female makes a nest in some remote rock-cleft or hollow
tree, where in early summer she usually brings forth four or five
kittens, which at an early age spit angrily at any intruder.

The distribution of the Wild Cat includes Europe and
Northern Asia to the North Himalaya. Though formerly a
beast of chase in England, it appears never to have been a
native of Ireland. Old English names for it were Catamount
and Cat-a-mountain.

Dental formula : /§, c {, p -i), in \ — 30.

78 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Squirrel (Sdurus vulgaris. Linn.).

With the beautiful Squirrel, the most popular of all our
native fauna, we make the acquaintance of another order of
animals, the Rodentia or gnawing mammals, which is the most
numerously represented of the orders in our meagre list, Britain
still possessing fifteen species of rodents. Besides- the Squirrel,
the order Rodentia includes the Dormouse, the Rats, Mice,
and Voles, the Hares and Rabbit ; and the characteristic
feature that brings them together is the chisel-like pattern of
their incisor teeth. (See Introduction.) They may be said
to be the dominant race of mammals in the present day, for
whilst over a thousand species are known to science, and
these mostly of very wide geographical range, there are vast and
increasing numbers of individuals representing many of the
species. Whilst man is busy killing off the carnivora and the
birds of prey, these natural checks to the multiplication of
the Rodents are being missed seriously, and Rats, Hamsters,
and Voles prove a serious menace to man's agricultural produce,
and the Rat to his health owing to its instrumentality as a
carrier of disease.

A distinctive character of the Rodents, additional to the
chisel-teeth and the absence of canines, is the possession of
hairy linings to the mouth, the external skin being continued
into the sides of the mouth behind the upper front teeth. In
the Hares and Rabbits the whole of the inside of the cheeks is
covered with hair.

Very few of the Rodents are aquatic in their habits, and of
these few the Water Vole is the only British representative.
Most of them are burrowing animals, and excavate long runs
and nesting places in the earth ; a few, like the Squirrels and
Dormice, are arboreal. As a whole the Rodents may be said to
be vegetarians ; but the Rats are omnivorous, and the Water
Vole though mainly herbivorous takes a little animal food.

SQUIRREL. 79

The Squirrel is one of the most picturesque of our small
mammals, especially when seen sitting on his haunches on ?.
tree branch, his plumy tail curled up his back, his tufted ears
erect, and his forepaws holding a nut ; or when making his
prodigious leap from bough to bough. He is not nearly so big
a creature as he looks under these conditions, for if we could
pass the tape over him from the end of his snout to the tip of
his tail proper (that is, not including the hairs that extend
beyond the tip), we should find he only measures about fifteen
and a half inches, and of this length seven inches, or nearly
half, is provided by the tail. Examine his feet, and you will
see that they are adapted eminently for climbing. The fore-feet
have four fingers and a rudimentary thumb, and the hind feet
have five toes ; the claws long, curved and sharp-pointed, and
the soles hairy. The muzzle is well furnished with " whiskers/'
the prominent eyes are black and bright, and the large, pointed
ears bear tufts of long hairs in winter. The hind limbs are
much longer than the fore limbs, and the heel of the long foot
touches the surface upon which it rests. The upper parts and
tail are brownish red and the under parts white. Before
winter, when the fur becomes softer and thicker, a -grey tinge is
developed on the sides, and the ear-tufts become longer and
bushy ; these are shed in the breeding season (early summer).
At times it may be found with the tail of a creamy tint.

One of the Squirrel's strong claims to popular favour is his
diurnal habits, which makes him better known by all who
wander in the woods ; in one sense it is a pity it is so, for in
the neighbourhood of large towns the " sporting instinct " of
'Any has led him to kill or mutilate the Squirrel with sticks and
stones. Not many years ago the numerous Squirrels that added
to the attractions of Richmond Park were shot by the keepers
to prevent 'Arry killing them ! Ordinary intelligences thought
it would have been better to have disciplined 'Arry.

The Squirrel builds nests in the branches of the trees it affects,

So ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

not merely as nurseries, but for resting places. There may be
several of these in adjacent trees or in the one to which the
builder is specially attached. Some of these may be crows' or
magpies' nests adapted for the new tenants, or may be wholly
the Squirrel's work. They are bulky structures composed of
twigs, strips of thin bark, moss, and leaves ; sometimes cup-
shaped, others domed. These are usually known as "dreys'1 ;

Skeleton of Squirrel.

but in parts of Surrey they are "jugs," squaggy-jugs to give
them their full name. The breeding nest is a huge ball (unless
there is a roomy hollow in the trunk that can be upholstered)
with a side entrance. Here in summer the three or four blind
and naked young are born, and they remain with their parents
until themselves adult.

The food of the Squirrel is fairly varied. In pine woods
the cones provide the staple dish, and the ground beneath a

Squirrel.

Sciuvus vulgaris.

GREY SQUIRREL. 8 1

Squirrel's tree will be found littered with chips and cores of the
cone from which the seeds have been extracted. This dtbris
should be looked for as an unfailing sign that there are Squirrels
in the wood. In beech woods they rely largely on beech-mast,
the sharp-edged triangular seeds contained in the prickly nuts.
They usually have a hazel-copse not far distant whence they
derive their favourite food in the autumn, storing up considerable
quantities in holes for use during the winter. Several times
when filling our own pockets with hazel-nuts we have met with
angry protests from a Squirrel who considered the place his
own preserve. Standing on a stout limb just overhead he would
stamp his forefeet and utter a little bark. Similar objection has
been made at times when we were filling our basket with the
nutty Blusher Toadstool (Amanita rubescens), of which some of
the caps in a clump showed the marks of the Squirrel's incisors.
He is also fond of cherries, wild or cultivated, and the shoots
of Pines which contain the burrowing larvae of the Pine Tortrix
moth. It is also accused of being so far carnivorous as to con-
sume bird's eggs and nestlings.

The Squirrel does not hibernate, as it is said by the older
writers to do. In the winter it certainly indulges in long naps ;
but on a fine day it wakes up and visits its stores of food. It
rarely descends to the ground, except for the purpose of crossing
a wide woodland road, or to seek water at a stream. In connec-
tion with water, it may be said that the Squirrel is an expert
swimmer. Dental formula : z'J, ^o>^8> m f — 22-

The Squirrel is generally distributed in Great Britain and
Ireland, where there is sufficient woodland, and in similar
situations in Europe and Asia.

Grey Squirrel (Scinrus cinerew, Linn.).

In some places in the London district a light grey Squirrel
may be seen, and thought to be a colour variation of our native
A.L. G

82 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

species. It is really an American visitor, distinct in colour and
without tufts to the ears. Some years ago the caged specimens
in the Zoological Gardens, Regent's Park, had become so
numerous that some of them were given their liberty. Their
numbers increased among the trees of the Gardens, and they
overflowed into the Park, where they became so familiar as to
accept food from the hands of the delighted children. Gradually,
some of them developed exploring tendencies and made their
way to the wooded grounds of suburban residences. British
naturalists of a not-distant future will probably have to
include two species of Squirrels in their lists.

The pretty Chipmunk (Tamias striatus. Linn.), or Chipping.
Squirrel, one of the Ground Squirrels, is another American
species that has become acclimatised in the London area. It
lacks the long tufted ears of our Squirrel, the tail is shorter, and
there are pouches inside the cheeks. Its general appearance is
strikingly different from the Squirrel, for though its ground
colour is red-brown, the eye is set in a white band divided into
two stripes by a black line. A black stripe runs down the
middle of the back, and in addition there is a white stripe
bordered by black above and below along each side.

It feeds on nuts, beech-mast, grain, roots, and insects ; migrat-
ing from place to place as local food-supplies become scanty.
It stores up food for the winter like the Squirrel, carrying it to
its caches by means of the cheek-pouches. Though capable of
climbing, and occasionally seen ascending lofty trees, it is much
more at home on the ground. It burrows a retreat in the
ground, if no suitable stump is available for excavation. When
startled it utters a cry of " chip-per-r-r."

Dormouse (Muscardiniu avellanarius^ Linn.).

The non-scientific observer of our native mammals satisfied
himself long ago that the pretty Dormouse was a miniature kind

Seeking for thistle-seeds.

PL 54-

£82.

Fighting for a wheat-ear.
Harvest Mice.

PI- 55.

G 83.

DORMOUSE. 83

of Squirrel, and he was helped to this conclusion by the general
resemblance in colouring, the form of the head, the prominent
black eyes, large ears, and thickly furred long tail ; as well as
by its arboreal habitat and its habit of sitting up on its haunches
and holding a nut or other food in its fore paws. But the
classifying naturalist has to look below the surface to discover
a sound basis for his work. Superficial resemblances are often
due to similarity of habit and habitat ; and in this case the
internal structure of the Dormouse shows that it has closer

Skeleton and Molars of Dormouse.

affinity with the Mice than with the Squirrels, though really
distinct from both.

The total length of the Dormouse is about five and a half
inches, but nearly half of this is contributed by the tail. The
fore limbs, which are much shorter than the hind limbs, are
furnished with four separate fingers and a rudimentary thumb ;
whilst the hind feet have five toes, though the first of these is
short and clawless. All the claws are short ; and on each foot
there are six large pads. The fur of the upper parts is light
tawny coloured, and of the underside yellowish white, but the
throat and adjoining part of the chest is a purer white.

In the copse and thick hedgerow where the Dormouse is
mostly to be found, he must be sought after the brightness of

84 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

day has departed ; for he is a nocturnal beast and spends
the hours of sunshine in heavy slumber. So deep is his
somnolence, and so low his temperature, that one not
accustomed to his ways might easily imagine him to be actually
dead. It is not a case of " sleeping with one eye open " with
the Dormouse ; he needs, as it were, to be shaken to arouse
him. One autumn many years ago we frequently found the
empty shells of cob-nuts in our greenhouse, and were somewhat
puzzled to account for their presence. A thick row of cob-
bushes in our neighbour's garden ran along the back of the
greenhouse, but we never suspected that they were haunted by
Dormice. One day in selecting a flower-pot from a number of
empty ones that lay " nested " one within another a hoard of
splendid nuts was found occupying the available space in
several of them. Then a common box mouse-trap was set, and
next morning it contained a plump Dormouse, curled up on its
back with all the appearance of death, and it was lifted out
by the tail without immediately awaking. Four or five were
caught in this manner on successive nights.

For diurnal privacy and comfort the Dormouse constructs a
globular nest of twigs, moss and grass, about three inches in
diameter (sometimes with a circular opening), which may be
among the stubs in the coppice, beneath a tussock of grass, or
even suspended high up in the bushes. The nursery nest is
twice this size. In some districts the nest will be constructed
of the bark of old honeysuckle stems, which shreds off in
ribbons. The inner lining is of the same material more finely
divided, with a bed of leaves. Several litters of three or four,
or even six or seven, blind and naked young are born in spring
or summer ; but there are also records of young being found in
September or October. Having regard, however, to the
hibernating habit of the species it is probable that these perish,
for autumn -born young would scarcely be in fit condition to go
without food for a long period. In their first coat the young

DORMOUSE. 85

are more grey than red, but gradually assume the adult tint.
There are no scent glands.

The adults have usually retired by the middle of October, by
which date they have prepared for a long sleep by accumulating
much fat beneath their coats, and make further provision by
laying up a store of nuts. The reason for the latter is that the
Dormouse's sleep is not continuous. It wakes up at intervals,
has a good meal, and resumes its sleep. Its activities are not
resumed until the spring, so that its retirement lasts nearly for
half the year. Its winter nest is usually under moss among
roots, or far underground. Its sleep is profound, without
breathing, and it becomes absolutely cold.

The food of the Dormouse is much the same as the Squirrel's,
but it is particularly fond of the hazel-nut, a good fat producer,
and the "haws" of the whitethorn. It does not crack the
shell of the nut, but gnaws quite a small hole, extracting the
kernel piecemeal. In addition it eats many insects, and some-
times indulges in birds' eggs or even the birds themselves, if
they can be captured.

The Dormouse is frequently kept as a pet for children, for
which its gentle, fearless manner and non-disposition to bite
seem to make it specially suitable ; but we have found it
regarded by youngsters as " a bit of a fraud " in this character,
for as they have said, " It doesn't wake up until we are asleep."
We have found that in semi-captivity it woke on most evenings
throughout the winter to enjoy a supper of apples and nuts.
Freshly captured specimens become tame at once. Ours were
fond of climbing the long window curtains and hunting for
flies — for the Dormouse is insectivorous as well as frugivorous.
It is not given to the gnawing of wood, like the true Mice ; and
it is said to be one of the creatures that are immune to Viper
poison.

The Dormouse is a European animal, but it does not extend
northwards of Sweden. In agreement with this distribution,

86 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

it does not occur in Scotland. From Ireland it is entirely
absent. Eastward it extends only to Asia Minor.

The head is comparatively large, with blunt muzzle, prominent
eyes, broadly rounded short ears, and long whiskers. The
dentition is much the same as that of the Squirrel : there is a
single large incisor on each side of the upper and lower jaws,
and one premolar and three molars after a considerable blank :
*i> c%>Pm T» ms — 2a The enamel ridges of these cheek-
teeth constitute a rasping surface such as no other mammal
possesses.

The soft, dense fur of the Dormouse was of repute anciently
as a remedy for ear diseases and paralysis. The English name
can be traced back certainly to the fifteenth century, and is
considered to embody the verb dorm — to doze, still used in
the North of England, which brings it very close to the
Sleepmouse of Southern England and Sleeper of other parts.
Derrymouse, Dorymouse, and Dozing-mouse are other local
variants.

Albino varieties are very rare ; but individuals with white-
tipped tails are reported not infrequently.

Harvest Mouse (Micromys minutns, Pallas).

With the exception of the Lesser Shrew the pretty little
Harvest Mouse is the smallest of British mammals. It long
held that distinction, until the Lesser Shrew was shown to be a
distinct species and not the young of the Common Shrew. The
Harvest Mouse will always be associated with the name of
Gilbert White, for it was in his letters to Pennant that it was
first made known as a British mouse, and its appearance and
habits were published by Pennant in his " British Zoology."

The head and body combined measure less than two and a
half inches, and the nearly naked, scaly tail is almost as long.
The thick, soft fur of the upper side is yellowish-red in colour,

PL 56.

Harvest Mouse (enlarged).

Minromvs mirmt.no

£86.

PI. 57-

m.-v ,«

Nest of Harvest Mouse.

£87.

HARVEST MOUSE. 8/

and of the under parts white ; the two colours being rather
sharply separated. The tail is exceedingly pliant and pre-
hensile, and serves as an additional foot, being at once coiled
around any suitable object within reach. It has bright black
eyes, short blunt nose, and short rounded ears, the latter about
one-third the length of the head.

It is found chiefly in the South of England, becoming less
abundant as we go north. In Scotland it is very scarce, and it
does not occur in Ireland. It is more generally distributed on
the Continent, where it ranges from Northern Italy to Russia
and Siberia. The usual habitats of the Harvest Mouse are
pastures and cornfields, where it climbs the stems of the tall
grasses and corn plants, cutting off the ripe ears and carrying
them to the ground where it picks out the grain. During the
summer it feeds largely upon insects, caught in the same situa-
tions. At the same season it stores up much grain in burrows
for use in the winter between its periods of sleep. Sometimes,
however, instead of wintering in burrows in the earth, it tunnels
into hayricks, and if undisturbed may even bring up a litter or
two in the rick ; as a rule it constructs the wonderful nursery
which has won human admiration ever since White made the
species known.

This is a ball-shaped nest about three inches in diameter
formed of neatly plaited and woven blades of wheat or grass,
with no definite opening, the grass-blades being merely pushed
aside to make entrance or exits where required, and closing
again by their own elasticity. There is just sufficient room
inside for the mother-mouse and her blind and naked offspring,
whether they number four, eight, or even nine. This nest is
suspended at some little distance — about half a foot — above
the ground, several stems being incorporated in its walls to
give it stability, or it may be lodged between the stem and leaf
of a thistle, or a knapweed, in blackthorn bushes or broom.
The bed is made of split leaves of corn or grass. The nests

ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

are not always so tough as that described by White, which
" was so compact and well-filled that it would roll across the
table without being discomposed, though it contained eight
young." Several litters are produced throughout the year,
varying in the number of young from five to nine ; and one
might expect that the species would be represented by indi-
viduals as numerous as those of the House Mouse. It must
be remembered, however, that the diurnal habits of the Harvest
Mouse and its methods of feeding expose it to the attacks of
the larger birds ; whilst the smaller carnivorous beasts do not
neglect it. When the corn is cut the Harvest Mouse is often
carried in the sheaves to the barn ; in that case it spends the
winter there, and does not go to sleep. It is considered that
the modern reaping machine has caused a great reduction in
its numbers.

Until about December the young of the year resemble the
House Mouse in colour, and may easily be mistaken for it ;
then from the hind quarters forwards they begin to assume the
redder tint. As the adult Harvest Mouse weighs only about a
sixth of an ounce, it is not surprising that it should be able to
sit on an ear of corn to which its capable little hands and
prehensile tail have enabled it to climb with ease. But the
familiar name must not delude us into supposing that it is only
found in or about cornfields. It is also a denizen of the tall,
rank herbage along ditches and untrimmed hedgerows. In
winter it is frequently found about the lower parts of wheat and
oat stacks.

Where the Harvest Mouse occurs it may be watched at close
range by the quiet observer. Though as a rule timid and gentle
in demeanour, it becomes at times savage and cannibalistic. It
lacks the offensive odour of the House Mouse. Its voice is of
a low chirping character, and has been likened to that of the
wren.

With a more intimate knowledge ot the structure of the

WOOD MOUSE. 89

various species of Mice, it has been found necessary to break
up the old Linnean genus Mus into several smaller genera. In
this process our little Harvest Mouse becomes the sole British
representative of the genus Micromys.

Wood Mouse (Apodemus sylvaticits. Linn.).

An alternative name for the Wood Mouse is Long-tailed
Field Mouse, and but for the fact that Linnaeus dubbed it Miis
sylvaticus, it would be better to adopt Pennant's designation,
for it is much more an inhabitant of the field, the hedgerow,
and the garden than of the wood. It is, indeed, the cause of
something approaching despair to the keeper of the kitchen
garden ; for this is the miscreant that ploughs up and eats the
newly sown peas that have not been rolled in red lead or soaked
in paraffin. He has also a great fondness for strawberries at
the moment they have become ripe.

The Wood Mouse is about three and a half inches long from
the long snout to the base of the tail ; and the tail by itself falls
only a very little short of that length. The fur on the upper
parts is a dark yellow-brown ; the under parts white. In adults
the line of demarcation is always distinct. There is a spot of
buff or orange on the chest whose development in certain local
races has enabled recent systematists to make five species out
of this one. It has large and prominent dark eyes — for it is
chiefly of nocturnal habits — and its long oval ears have the
inner margin turned inwards at the base. The tail is dark
brown above, and whitish below. It is the commonest of the
British mammals in country places, but less frequent in Ireland.
It is common in Europe as far north as Sweden and Norway.

As a rule it constructs its burrows underground or under the
roots of trees, and here it stores up great quantities of nuts,
haws, grain, and smaller seeds for use in winter, when it
becomes inactive, though it does not really hibernate. But if

90 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

there is a house handy to which it can gain entrance in late
autumn, it prefers to become the guest of those whose garden
has been a boon to it through the spring and summer. We
have had them spend the winter cosily in our rolled-up tennis
nets, stowed away in a shed to keep them dry in the off-season ;
and as potatoes were stored in the same place they consumed
a number of these. On several other occasions Wood Mice
were detected attempting impudently to enter the dwelling
house by the back-door. Once an entire family — mater, pater,
and five active youngsters — succeeded in this enterprise ; but
they left incriminating evidence of their presence, though they
were suspected of being ordinary House Mice. Accordingly a
break-back trap, baited with cheese, was set one evening, and
within half an hour its loud clap proclaimed its effectiveness.
This trap appeared to show that the Wood Mouse is a simple-
minded, unsuspecting creature, for it was reset with the same
uneaten bit of cheese-rind for bait again and again, and no
sooner was the trapper's back turned than another member of
the family was secured. Seven times it sprang, and then its
inaction appeared to be due to the fact that there were no more
possible victims, for we saw no further traces of the mice. Its
general resemblance to the House Mouse frequently leads to
its being mistaken for that species.

There are several litters of young during the year, and these
vary in number from five to nine — an alarming rate of increase ;
but, fortunately, the Barn Owl that hunts the hedgerow inch by
inch, every evening, takes a heavy toll that keeps the numbers
down. The Fox, the Weasel, the Hedgehog, and the Viper also
do their part.

The Wood Mouse is a very active creature, running and
jumping in zigzag fashion, climbing high in the bushes in
order to obtain berries, leaping from considerable heights, and
swimming well when occasion requires. Although an accom-
plished excavator, it often makes use of unmortared stone walls

WOOD MOUSE. 91

for its runs and stores. It wanders widely in its search for
berries, bulbs, and grain. In the matter of berries, it is not the
juicy pulp that it desires but the seeds, which it will carefully
pick out. It prefers the larger grains from the cornfield to
those of a grass-meadow. It is both timid and gentle in dis-
position, and on account of its short sight, it may be approached
closely and caught with the hand.

Its stores of food are often communal, a colony of mice con-
tributing, for it is not always of solitary habit. These stores
are of the most varied character. Of the very miscellaneous
items on its menu a few may be mentioned : leaves of clover
and dandelion, with flower-buds of the latter, nuts of all kinds,
apples, grapes, gooseberries, crocus and hyacinth bulbs (Millais
says the Dutch were taught to multiply hyacinths by division
of the bulbs through observing the effects of this mouse's attacks),
acorns, rose and bramble seeds, slow-worms, eggs and — putty !
It has been known to enter beehives, and not only to eat the
honeycomb, but impudently to construct its nest there. De-
serted birds' nests are often adapted to its use, either as a
dining-room when seeking haws in the hedges, or as a
permanent habitation, in this case roofed with moss.

The breeding nest is a globular structure of dry grass, and is
usually built in a separate chamber of the underground run, but
occasionally is on the surface or under a heap of hedge dtbris.
Some of the burrows may extend as much as three feet under-
ground.

Towards the end of last century, Mr. de Winton called
attention to what was considered to be a new British mouse — '
the Yellow-necked Mouse (Apodemus flavicollis), distinguished
from the Wood Mouse by its larger size, the head and body
measuring four and a quarter inches, and the brown spot on
the chest commonly found in the Wood Mouse developed into
an orange cross whose arms are connected with the upper side

92 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

coloration — described as golden brown. This is a feature that
at once attracts attention where this form occurs ; but there is
another distinction out of sight — there being three additional
bony joints in the tail, that is thirty instead of the twenty-seven
in the tail of an ordinary Wood Mouse. Whether it is a really
distinct species or the typical form of the Wood Mouse is at
present open to question. It is found chiefly in the southern
and eastern portions of England, but its distribution also
includes Northamptonshire, Herefordshire, and Northum-
berland.

Other local races have been distinguished also as distinct
species or sub-species under the name of Hebridean Field
Mouse (A. hebridensis) with the white of the under parts
tinted with buff; Fair Isle Field Mouse (A. fridariensis\ like
the Yellow-necked but without the collar ; St. Kilda Field
Mouse (A. hirtensis] with brown under parts ; and Bute Field
Mouse (A. butei\ darker, with shorter tail and ears.

House Mouse (Mus mnsculus, Linn.).

The most familiar, the most widely distributed and most
numerous of the mammals of our country, the Common or House
Mouse, stands in little need of nice description. Although of a
timid and retiring nature, it can on occasion exhibit not only
bold familiarity, but actual friendliness to mankind to which it
has been attached for ages, preferring to live in palace or hovel
with human beings to the open-air life of woods and fields.
Not that he is not to be found in the open air ; but then it is
mostly in the immediate neighbourhood of a house, where he
can make his runs in ricks of corn — mountains of food. It is
this easy method of despoiling man of his goods that caused the
Mouse in ancient days to attach himself to the huge creature
that is so impotent in ridding himself of small adversaries.
The domestic Mouse is considered to have had its home, its

HOUSE MOUSE. 93

place of origin, in Asia, whence it has spread to every part of
the world where man has gone. In most cases, it may be pre-
sumed with safety, it has travelled cosily stowed away in his
stores and merchandise, so that as soon as the human migrant
has built himself a home he finds that the Mouse is in occupa-
tion, and demanding a share of his food. In spite of all his
serious depredations, our literature teems with evidence that
the victim has always retained some kindly feeling for his pretty
four-footed oppressor.

For the sake of uniformity, let us say that the head and body
of the House Mouse measure a little more than three and up to
four inches, and the tapering, flexible, and sparsely haired,
scale-ringed tail may slightly exceed that measurement. It has
a pointed snout, the bright, bead-like eyes are black, the large,
sensitive brownish ears are nearly half the length of the head,
and the soft, brownish-grey fur is only a little paler on the
under parts. Outdoor specimens are often more yellow-brown
in coloration. As compared with the Wood Mouse we have
this more dusky and uniform coloration, shorter whiskers,
smaller eyes, stouter and less flexible tail, and shorter legs.
The thumb of the hand is reduced to a mere tubercle.

It is very active and silent in its movements, emerging from
a tiny hole in floor-board or skirting and gliding without sound
over the floor, ascending with ease table-legs or walls, and then,
if alarmed, springing with a prodigious leap back to its hole.
Concrete floors will not suffice to keep it out of a house, for it
will climb the outer walls and enter the upper windows, thence
making itself secret ways to the lower floors behind woodwork
or plastered walls, till it reaches the kitchen, the larder or trie
storeroom. Though it shows by its preferences that its natural
role is that of grain thief, it will eat any kind of human food and
much besides : in a word, it is omnivorous.

Its great success as a species is due to this adaptability and
to its astonishing fecundity. It produces four or five litters

94 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

during the year, each consisting of five or six, or even up to
twelve, blind and naked young which develop so rapidly that
in a fortnight they are capable of independence. At the age of
six weeks they may begin to breed.

The House Mouse exhibits a considerable range of variation
in colour, both darker and lighter than the type, and many of
these variations have been bred from and their peculiarities per-
petuated and accentuated in confinement as " fancy " mice. Of
these the most familiar are the White Mice, really albinos with
pure white fur, pink eyes, feet, and tail. There are also dark,
nearly black variations, and spotted examples. Sometimes one
is surprised at night to find that the house is tenanted by a
musical mouse that runs up the scale in what appears to be an
attempt at a little song. It has been ascertained, however,
that these so-called singing mice are afflicted with a form of
asthma, and the supposed vocal efforts are merely the mani-
festation of their physical trouble. We have had experience of
musical mice in another way. For several nights in succession
weird sounds came from the pianoforte which suggested that
fairies were using it as a harp, twanging the wires instead of
striking them with the hammers. An examination of the
interior seemed to indicate the actual performer, for a little pile
of Spanish nuts, stolen from the table, was discovered inside ;
and the twanging of the notes was caused probably by the
mouse climbing them. A trap baited with a shelled nut put a
stop to these performances. Bateson mentions several cases of
hairless Mice, except for a few whiskers.

A local race of the House Mouse found in St. Kilda is some-
times dignified with species rank under the name of Mus
muralis. Its distinguishing features include less slender feet
and tail, and slight peculiarities of the palate.

<A

o

3

h

*j O

S ."

1 1

BLACK RAT. 95

Black Rat (Epimys rat/us, Linn.).

Not many years ago a good deal of modified regret was
expressed because it was thought that the Black Rat — the real
old British Rat as it was called — was being exterminated by
that vulgar upstart the Brown Rat — the Hanoverian or Norway
Rat. These laments were mainly called forth by its compara-
tive scarcity in old London warehouses where it had formerly
been very numerous. One would have thought it a matter for
rejoicing that there was a possibility of our having only one
species of the rat pest to contend with instead of two. The
disappearance of the Black Rat was remarked by Pennant as
far back as 1778. However, later observations tend to show
that the Black Rat is far from being extinguished even in the
City of London, where the old type of warehouse is being
rapidly replaced by ferro-concrete erections with carefully
trapped drains. The intelligence of the Rat is equal to little
impediments of that sort, and if it cannot get in by way of the
basement it can climb walls and enter by the attic windows.

On the score of sentiment we need not distinguish between
the Black Rat and the Brown. They are both Asiatic aliens,
though the Black Rat had been settled here for several
centuries before the Brown Rat followed in his tracks.
Nothing definite is known as to the date of his arrival.
Geologists assure us that he was not among the indigenes, for
even the most recent strata yield no remains of his bones or
teeth. He is known to have been on the other side of the
dividing Channel in the thirteenth century, and to have reached
England soon after, and quickly to have become a nuisance.
He had a clear run of over four hundred years in which to
occupy the most remote portions of the island, before he had
to meet with keen competition in the form of the Brown Rat.
He reached Ireland in the twelfth century, if not earlier.

The Black Rat is of more slender proportions than the better

9O ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

known Brown Rat, and much smaller," the dimensions of the
head and body being about seven inches, whilst the scaly-ringed
and almost hairless tail is more than eight inches. The
long, pointed snout projects far beyond the short lower jaw ;
the whiskers are long and black. Though presenting the
appearance denoted by its popular name, the glossy blue-black
fur has a good sprinkling of grey on the upper surface, whilst
below it is dark grey. The large, thin ears are naked, and
about half the length of the head. The feet are pink, with
scale-like rings on the underside of the digits and five pads on
the sole. The thumb of the fore feet is reduced to a mere
tubercle.

Although the Rats have much to do with garbage and
offensive matters, they take the greatest of care to maintain
their own cleanliness and a spruce appearance, spending much
of their time in cleaning their fur and paws. One of the
reasons for regretting the possible extirpation of the Black Rat
by his more pushful relative, was, no doubt, his less ferocious
ways and well-known milder disposition — a trait which is
obvious to any one who has handled the domesticated albino,
or White Rat, which is generally considered to be of this
species.

Where — as in India — the Black Rat lives a more out-of-door
life, it climbs trees and mostly makes its nest in them. With
us the doe collects a good quantity of suitable materials — rags,
paper, straw, etc. — and constructs a roomy nest which she uses
for successive broods, which come at short intervals. Seven or
eight is the usual number for a litter, and there are five or six
broods in a year.

In the matter of food, both the Rats are omnivorous, and
it is, therefore, useless to attempt to give a list of substances
acceptable to them. Fish, flesh, fowl, or vegetable, crustacean
or mollusc — anything that can be digested — is eaten by them ;
and if all else fails they will eat their own kin. In this matter

BROWN RAT. 97

the Brown Rat, from his superior size and ferocity, has the
advantage, as is emphasised by an incident told by a professional
rat-catcher to Frank Buckland. He said that having had a suc-
cessful haul in infested premises he had turned all his captures
both Black and Brown into a large wire cage, intending to have
a little sport next day with a few cronies and a terrier or two.
To his astonishment next morning all the Black Rats had dis-
appeared and only the Brown — or some of them— remained.

A sub-species, the Alexandrine Rat (Epimys rattiis alexan-
drinns\ with brown back and dusky underside, is frequently
introduced with shipping from North Africa, and has been
recorded from Lundy Island and Shetland. Another sub-
species, the Tree or Roof Rat (E. rattus frugivorus], common in
the Mediterranean region, often appears in our ports. It has
long, soft and dense fur, of light grey or brown on the upper
parts and whitish below (pure white to pale yellow), and the
feet usually white above.

The Black Rat is more of a climber than a burrower ; more
cleanly in its feeding than its brown rival. The pink-skinned
young are born without fur, sight, or hearing.

Brown Rat (Epimys norvegicus, Erxleben).

The Brown .Rat still has two alternative names applied to it,
though the inappropriateness of one was shown by Pennant
more than 150 years ago. These names are Norway Rat and
Hanoverian Rat. Pennant does not mention the second, but
of the first he says that the Brown Rat is quite unknown in .
Scandinavia and is not mentioned by Linnaeus. The name
Hanoverian appears to have been given to it because it was
believed to have made its entry into England with George I.
Writing in 1776, Pennant says : "This animal never made its
appearance in England till about forty years ago." Recent re-
searches into its distribution make it appear that the species

A.L. H

98 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

originated in Trans-Baikal, whence it has spread westwards, even
to America by way of the British Isles. Both species hit upon
an improved method of extending their range over the earth.
The old-fashioned natural way for mammals to spread was for
a few adventurous individuals to make food-finding excursions
beyond the district in which they were born ; but climate,
mountain ranges, broad rivers or seas often checked further
progress. The Rats discovered that by keeping close to man
they were always in the neighbourhood of food, whether
intended for himself or his domestic animals ; and even these
tame creatures would at times serve for the Rats' meals. So
when they found man loading ships with grain and other
desirable food they decided to go with him. Often they con-
trived to get into his bales of merchandise and so conveyed to
the hold. If not, there were always mooring ropes which
served as bridges from the quay to the vessel. And so they got
themselves conveyed in comfort, sure that wherever the goods
went there would be settlements of their biped friends to house
them and serve their ends generally. Now, wherever man has
established himself, you are almost certain that the Rat is close
at hand.

Mr. A. W. Rees, in his interesting " Creatures 'of the Night,:'
has summarised the chief characteristics of this species in a
paragraph. He says : " Brown Rats are an insufferable nuisance.
There is no courtesy or kindness in the nature of the Rat ; no
nesting bird is safe from his attacks, unless her home is beyond
his reach in some cleft of a rock that he cannot scale or in some
fork of a tree that he cannot climb. He is a cannibal — even
the young and the sick of his own kind become the victims of
his rapacious hunger — and he will eat almost anything, living
or dead, from the refuse in a garbage heap to the dainty egg of
a willow-wren in the tiny, domed nest amid the briars at the
margin of the river."

As compared with the Black Rat he is more heavily built,

BROWN RAT. 99

and the combined length of head and body is eight or nine
inches, whilst the thicker, scaly-ringed tail is only equal to, or
less than, the length of the body alone. His head is pro-
portionately shorter, with blunter muzzle, much smaller ears
and more prominent though smaller eyes. The fur on the
upper parts is grey-brown with a tawny tinge, and dirty white
on the under parts. The ears, feet, and tail are flesh-coloured.
It sometimes occurs with black or blackish fur, and is then
frequently mistaken for the Black Rat ; but the relative length

Skeleton and Molars of Brown Kat.

of tail to body is a superficial character by which they can
be separated at once. There is a black race of this species on
the east coast of Ireland to which some authors have given the
distinctive name of Epimys hibernicus. It appears to have
extended its range from Ireland to the Hebrides. In one form
or other the Brown Rat has extended to nearly every part of
the British Islands and their islets.

The Brown Rat becomes a parent at the age of six months,
and produces four or five litters in a year. Ordinarily these
consist of from four to ten blind, deaf, and naked young ; but
much larger litters are on record, the highest of which we have

100 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

seen a note being twenty ! Sometimes the young grow up
hairless or blind. Some years ago we disturbed a nest in the
garden from which issued half a dozen young Rats about four
inches long (head and body), all blind. They moved about
in a very uncertain manner, and were easily despatched.
Similar cases have been recorded. At the meeting of the Zoo-
logical Society in December, 1902, a hairless Rat was exhibited
on behalf of Mr. G. A. Doubleday, one of three captured
at Leyton, Essex, in the same condition. The skin, which was
slate-coloured, was wrinkled into folds all over the body.
Millais mentions a hairless Rat with yellow skin.

In the country — where it is known as the Barn Rat — the
Tawny Owl and the Weasel are the farmer's best friends as
Rat-catchers, though they do not always get the consideration
that their services merit. The Weasel tribe are admittedly
also destroyers of poultry ; but the depredations of the Rat in
this connection are much more serious. They do much mis-
chief in chicken-runs, and being good swimmers and divers,
even ducklings afloat are not safe from them. If a pair of
ducks have made their nest on an island for safety, rats will
swim to it and feast on the eggs, or, should these be hatched,
kill the ducklings and eat them. It is more than probable
that much of the destruction of pheasant and partridge eggs
debited to the account of the Hedgehog, has really been
carried out by the Rat. Jordan (" Forest Tithes ") says he
has known a Rat or Rats take a dozen eggs from a wild
duck's nest and bury them in the soft peaty bottom of a moor-
land runnel, close to the nest. " I traced the whole proceeding
and dug the eggs out with my fingers."

It does not matter where it is living, in town or country, the
Rat is equally destructive to property and live stock. We have
known them to destroy a crop of garden peas by ascending the
pea-sticks, night after night, lacerating all the pods that had
fair-sized peas within, and eating out every one. They skulk

PL 65.

Water Vole Swimming.

This fine swimmer is making for his burrow in the bank.

BROWN RAT. %•' » *• * % - HOf

*

along the hedgerows until they reach, t)ieV{£avg f -
farmer has stored his mangolds to secure them from frost.
Scores of them will burrow through the cover of earth
and eat their fill of the succulent roots. Well is it for the
farmer if the Weasels have not been exterminated on his land,
for they are the most efficient guardians of his hoard. Hawks
and Foxes render similar service if the Rat wanders out into
the open moorland ; but the Rat rarely ventures far from cover
of some sort.

There is a melanic or black form of the Brown Rat which is
frequently mistaken for the true Black Rat, though the more
bulky build and blunter muzzle should show the difference at
sight. First recorded from Ireland in 1837, it was considered
a distinct species under the name of the Irish Rat. Its fur is
uniformly dusky above and below, and the skin is of similar
hue. The variation is now known not to be confined to Ireland,
but to occur in many parts of England and in the Outer
Hebrides. White, fawn-coloured, and pied variations also
occur.

The versatility of the Brown Rat is such that it would be idle
to attempt any description of its habits. Every one knows at
least some part of the story, and the whole of it would require
a book. It is the most powerful natural enemy that civilised
man has had to contend with, for it attacks him in his own
strongholds, spoiling and wasting his food stores and destroying
his property in general. There was a time when it could be
looked upon more as a commensal because of the valuable
scavenging work it performed ; but since man has learned that-
it is safer to attend to this work himself the Rat has become
a mere parasitical nuisance. Sir ]. Crichton-Browne has
estimated the annual loss to this country through the depre-
dations of Rats at ,£15,000,000 (pre-war figures, 1908).

The Rat is so thoroughly omnivorous that it would be
equally absurd to attempt a list of its food : there is nothing

ANIMA-t LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

at Jhe Rat will not eat. Therefore, there is
no possibility of starving him out. Rat-killing campaigns that
do not cover every square yard of the country can only have
the effect of temporarily mitigating the nuisance ; for the Rats'
fertility is so great and so rapid that the loss of nine-tenths of
a generation is quickly made good. A continental statistician
has worked out the theoretical progeny of a single pair
of Rats after ten years as reaching the appalling figure of
48,319,698,843,030,344,720 ! Of course, there is no great value
in such a calculation, for it proceeds upon the assumption that
every individual lives to become a parent, whereas in fact the
mortality in all creatures of such fecundity is enormous, and
there are few if any more survivors this year than there were
last year. In other words, the great fertility of a race only
suffices to make up the wastage from enemy attacks. But the
figures serve to show what might happen if the natural control
by Weasels, Stoats, Hawks, and Owls were suspended for a
short time. But Rats are disseminators of bubonic plague with
the aid of their special species of flea.

Water Vole (Arvlcola amphibius, Linn.).

In certain directions it appears that failure is the lot of those
who have spent the greater part of their lives in trying to
spread enlightened views as to the true nature of our native
animals and plants. Among a number of such failures two or
three may be briefly cited here : you cannot persuade a
countryman that a slow-worm is not a snake, that all snakes
are not poisonous and to be killed at sight, and that the
comparatively inoffensive rodent now to be described is not a
rat and of rat-like nature. The name of Water Rat is general
as a true folk-name.

The Voles are of heavier build than the Rats, the head is
shorter, thicker, and the muzzle rounded instead of being

WATER VOLE. IOJ

pointed ; the limbs are shorter and the hairy tail is not much
more than half the length of the head and body. The eyes are
small and short-sighted, and the small round ears scarcely
project from the surrounding fur, though when listening intently
the Vole erects them and makes them more conspicuous.
Linnaeus, following Ray, described the Water Vole as having
webbed feet, but this is incorrect, though the toes of the hinder
foot are connected at their base. They are naked and pale
pink beneath, with five rounded pads, but above are clothed in
stiff hairs. The thick, long, glossy fur is of a warm reddish-
brown above, sprinkled with grey, and on the under parts
yellowish-grey. This applies chiefly to the male ; the female is
slightly smaller than her mate, is less bright and more greyish-
brown in her coloration. The average length of head and body
is seven and a half inches, and of the tapering, ringed tail about
four and a half inches. It sometimes occurs with black fur,
especially in East Anglia and Scotland ; and these examples
are usually reported as the Black Rat. Some modern authorities
recognise it as a sub-species (reta).

Although it has not the webbed feet that Ray attributed to it,
its swimming and diving powers are of a high order. Often in
walking near a stream or pond, the loud sudden " plop " as it
drops into the water is our first intimation that the Vole is
near. We may occasionally track his course under water, but
as a rule he at once disappears into his burrow in the bank,
sometimes by an underwater entrance, and may regain the
bank by an upper exit. These burrows, in which the Vole
spends most of the daytime, often occasion considerable
damage, as to the dykes in the Fenland, and where ponds
have been constructed by artificial banking. Otherwise, the
Water Vole must be pronounced an entirely inoffensive rodent,
in spite of the libels that accuse him of capturing waterfowl and
fish for which he is unfitted. He has been seen grubbing among
the mud at the bottom for caddis-worms and other insects,

104 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

freshwater snails and the like ; otherwise his food appears to
be restricted mainly to the stems of horsetails and the succulent
grasses, flags, loosestrife, and sedges that grow along the banks.
Mr. A. Patterson says that in East Anglia he eats dead fish
and living swan-mussels — also crayfish ; but prefers the stems
of the succulent grasses that grow in shallow ditches. That
he is not a strict vegetarian appears to be proved by the fact
that he is sometimes captured in rat-traps that have been
baited with meat. St. John says that in spring, before the
grasses are much grown the Water Vole feeds largely upon
toads, rejecting the feet which it bites off and leaves in little
heaps. We have been assured by a Surrey woodlander of long
experience and an intelligent observer, that he has known the
Water Vole on several occasions to indulge in very young
chickens ; but he admits this is a very rare occurrence and
that it scarcely detracts from the Water Vole's reputation as
a vegetarian.

On the flanks, about halfway between the shoulder and the
tail, will be found a pair of wrinkled glands which secrete a
greasy matter with a musky odour. These are present in both
sexes. Though the odour probably protects the Water Vole
from some animals that might otherwise prey upon it, it does
not appear to be objectionable to the Heron, the Owl, or the
Stoat. When, to escape from real or fancied danger on land it
suddenly dives into the water, it is not always to safety, for
pike, large trout, and eels have been observed to seize them.

The Water Vole does not hibernate ; but it has been said
to lay up considerable stores for the inclement season when
food will be scarce and difficult to find. These stores consist
of nuts, beechmast, acorns, and the creeping underground
stems of the horsetails. During the milder nights that come
in winter he issues from his chamber in the bank and feeds
upon young willow shoots ; and though mainly a nocturnal
animal will often take advantage of the higher temperature at

FIELD VOLE. 105

midday during the winter. It is often found in fields far away
from any water.

The female constructs a thick-walled globular nest of reeds
and grasses in the chamber under the bank, or in a hollow
willow or a bird's nest, and there brings forth her litter of about
five (two to seven) naked and blind young. The process is
repeated three or four times during the season.

The Water Vole is generally distributed in Britain, but does
not occur in Ireland, or the Scottish islands ; nor is it known
outside Britain.

The surface of the molar teeth in all the Voles presents a
pattern of alternating triangular prisms. In the Water Vole
and the Field Vole these teeth are not rooted in the jaw ; in
the Bank Vole they are in the adult.

In addition to the definitely black sub-species (reta) referred
to above, the southern brown sub-species occasionally throws
up black, pied, or albino variations.

Field Vole (Microtus agrestis, Linn.).

To country folk the Field Vole is known generally as the
Short-tailed Field Mouse, to distinguish it from the Wood
Mouse which is also the Long-tailed Field Mouse. Being
different in organisation from the true Mice the attempt was
made in natural history works many years ago to substitute the
name Vole for these blunt-muzzled Rodents. Recently, after
about a hundred years' use of the word Vole in all the works
on mammals, Mr. Barrett-Hamilton has objected to it, at least
in connection with the present species, on the ground that Field .
Vole is a duplication, the word Vole meaning " field." This
would be almost as bad as Mr. Barrett-Hamilton's own use of
such scientific names as Pipistrellus pipistrellus, Barbastella
barbastclla, Maries martes, and Capreolus capraea, which
are duplications in the same language ! In East Anglia this
species is the Marsh Mouse, and in Surrey Dog Mouse.

106 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

The general appearance of the Field Vole is so different
from that of a Mouse that it should be obvious at a glance that
they are not very closely related. The general stumpy form
with the blunt oval outline of the head, the short, round ears
just protruding from the reddish-brown fur, and the short,
rather stiff tail, are points sufficient to distinguish it from either
of our Mice. The colour mentioned refers to the upper parts : on
the under side the fur is greyish-white. The hind feet have six
pads on the under surface as compared with the five of the
Water Vole. The length of head and body is about four inches,
and of the tail only an inch and a quarter, that is, about a third
of the body length.

The chief resorts of the Field Vole are meadows and damp
pastures, but it will also be found in gardens, orchards, and
plantations, doing enormous damage in every place, for its food
is mainly of a vegetable character. It must, however, be placed
to its credit that it catches and consumes large numbers of
insects, among them the destructive Larch Sawfly (Nematus
erichsomi). It has extensive underground stores where it lays
up food for the winter ; but it is a mistake to say, as it has
been said repeatedly, that the underground burrows include its
summer nest. These burrows connect with a network of
above-ground runs through the grass and herbage, with
occasional holes that enable the Vole to bolt underground.
These runs are made without disturbing the grass blades,
which cross above them and so enable the Vole to run or creep
along them without being seen by the hawk that circles high
overhead. He is not so successful in eluding the Owl, who
hunts much nearer to the ground and with the Weasel keeps a
salutary check upon its increase. Beside a rank tuft of grass
along one of these runs the female makes her nest, roofed with
a circular dome of grass blades divided longitudinally and
plaited and felted. It very much resembles the ground-nest of
the Humble-bee, but on a much larger scale. There is nothing

FIELD VOLE. 107

to distinguish it from its surroundings, so that only an eye
trained to find it would see it. It may be detected by the finer
character (due to shredding) of the grass. The parent enters
or emerges from any point under the edge of the dome, and in
the case of our uncovering the nest will at once bolt, leaving
her five youngsters at our mercy. This we have found to be
a characteristic callousness on her part. We have frequently
torn off the roof of such nests suddenly, but have only been able
to catch sight of the rapidly moving mother and trace her for
a short distance along a run, so unhesitating and rapid was
her flight. Like all our Rodents with the exception of the
Hares, the young are naked and blind at birth, and there may
be five, six, or seven in a litter. Those shown in the photo-
graph, though their eyes were not open, had beautiful coats of
short fur. There are several litters in a season.

In those districts where the over-zealous efforts of the game-
keeper have resulted in the partial extermination of the Weasel
and the Owls, the increase of the Field Vole is so enormous
and so rapid that they have at times become a plague. Crops
are cleared from the fields, young trees in plantations destroyed
by thousands, and even newly-sown cornfields rendered un-
productive by every seed being eaten. In the New Forest and
the Forest of Dean great loss has been sustained at various
times by their severing the roots of young trees that crossed
their runs, and by their gnawing the bark of the young trunks.
The most effective of the plans adopted for lessening their
numbers was by sinking pits a foot and a half deep, wider at
the bottom than at the mouth, into which vast numbers fell
and from which they could not escape. More recently the
South of Scotland suffered from a plague of " mice'' that ate
up everything in the fields, inflicting such serious loss to
agriculture that a Government Committee was appointed to
inquire into it, and it was found that the chief culprit was the
Field Vole. Fortunately, when things were at their worst, a

108 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

vast number of Short-eared Owls appeared upon the scene and
feasted royally until there was scarcely a Vole to be found. It
was found that the enormous increase in the numbers of the
Voles was directly due to the warfare waged by keepers on
Weasels and Owls. Matters are better, perhaps, to-day ; but
there are still too many keepers who destroy as vermin the
very agents that keep down the real vermin. We still need
a few landowners of the temper of Charles Waterton, who
threatened to strangle his keeper if the latter molested a
certain pair of Owls.

It was also shown at the Vole Committee of 1893, referred to
above, that the Rook destroys great numbers of Field Voles —
not only adults that chance to cross the fields where the Rooks
are digging cockchafer grubs, but that they systematically
search for the nests and eat the young.

As in the case of the Wood Mouse, there are several local
races of the Field Vole that have arisen in the islands of the
Orkneys and Hebrides, which have been elevated into dis-
tinct species by some recent authors. Thus, there are recog-
nised the Hebridean Vole, the Orkney Vole, the Sanday Vole,
and the Westray Vole. Mr. Barrett- Hamilton regards the
true agrestis of Linnaeus as not occurring in this country,
where it is represented by several sub-species. The Common
Field Vole described above, he says, is a distinct species, the
M. hirtus of Bellamy. This, which he describes as " a newer,
smaller form," he says " has replaced an older, larger M.
agrestis, the latter now confined chiefly to northern regions,
and with isolated southern colonies on the mountains." Seeing,
however, that most modern authorities agree in retaining the
Linnean name, we have considered it advisable to do so also.

The form that Barrett-Hamilton recognises as M. agrestis
and calls the Northern Grass Mouse, is, so far as Britain is
concerned, represented only in Scotland and its western islands
by five sub-species which he names as under: —

PL 70.

Orkney Vole.

Microtus orcadensis.

ORKNEY VOLE. 109

Macgillivray's Grass Mouse (J/. agrestis macgillivraii), a
rich buff-coloured form with thin fur, restricted to I slay, where
it is rare.

Hebridean Grass Mouse (M. agrestis exsul\ common on
several islands of the Hebrides. Distinguished from the Field
Vole by its much larger size and duller brown colour.

Eigg Grass Mouse (M. agrestis mial) restricted to the island
of Eigg. Differs from M. a. exsul in its shaggy coat of
abundant long hairs.

Highland Grass Mouse (M. agrestis neglectus) found on the
summits of the highest Scottish mountains. It is larger than
the Field Vole, with thicker fur and darker, browner upper side.
It differs from M. a. exsul in the simpler character of the
first molar tooth.

Muck Grass Mouse (M. agrestis hick}, of which only three
specimens have been taken, all on the island of Muck. About
the same size as the Field Vole, it has a buff underside.

Orkney Vole (Microtns orcadensis, Millais).

So far back as 1805 the Rev. George Barry, in his " History
of the Orkney Islands," mentions a rodent that was known
locally as the Vole Mouse, which he believed to be the same as
the agrestis of Linnaeus. He says it " is very often found in
marshy grounds that are covered with moss and short heath, in
which it makes roads or tracks of about three inches in breadth,
and sometimes miles in length,, much worn by continual tread-
ing, and warped into a thousand different directions."

Towards the end of last century Mr. J. G. Millais obtained
specimens, and on a critical examination found that they
differed from the known forms in several details of skull
structure and in the folds and angles of the teeth, sufficient in
his opinion to constitute a new species, which he called Microtus
orcadensis. It is larger than the Field Vole, with a longer and
slightly broader head.

110 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

It was found subsequently that specimens from different
islands in the Orkney group showed differences due to their
segregation over a long period, and they have consequently
been distinguished as five sub-species. These differences are
minute, and it would be wearisome and out of place in a popular
work such as the present to detail them. Generally speaking,
they are much alike, and their habits are practically identical,
so far as at present known.

The runs are a conspicuous feature of the islands, among the
heather and the rough vegetation of the fields and hillsides,
running along the surface and at intervals entering tunnels
about two and a quarter inches in diameter — just sufficient to
clear the spread of the Vole's whiskers. Their nesting places,
like those of the Mole, are under small mounds connected with
a network of runs. The nest itself is made of grass and roots
in a rounded chamber, where at intervals during the spring and
summer several litters, varying from three to six, are produced.
Before they are three weeks old they are capable of independent
existence, but for a time are still guarded by the mother.

The Orkney Vole appears to be specially fond of the roots of
Heath Rush (Juucus squarrosus\ but also feeds on grass and
the crops in cultivated fields to which they can gain access.
Mr. Millais found that in cold weather his captive Voles became
inactive. It has many enemies to hold its increase in check,
for every bird and beast large enough to capture it will eat it
readily.

Bank Vole (Evotomys glareolus, Schreber).

There can be little doubt that in many places the Bank Vole
has been mistaken for a bright variation of the Field Vole. Its
habits are much the same, except that it haunts the hedgerow
and wooded country rather than the open fields. As to the
differences between the two species, the Bank Vole's head and
body measurement is only three and three-quarter inches against

BANK VOLE. Ill

four inches in the Field Vole, but its tail is actually (not merely
proportionately) longer, being nearly half the length of head
and body, and ends in a pencil of hairs. The ears and feet are
proportionately larger, the former also being more oval than
round. It further differs from the other Voles in the fact that
the molar teeth become rooted in the jaws of the adults. The
fur of the upper parts is a bright chestnut-red or Vandyke brown,
excepting the hairy tail, which is black above. The under
parts, including the lower side of the tail, are whitish varying to
yellowish or even buff. The redder tint causes this species
frequently to be styled the Red Vole. It has pink lips, and
grey feet. Whiskers about an inch long. Black and albino
varieties have been recorded.

It was considered formerly to be a rare British species, but
more discriminating attention to the smaller mammals in recent
years, and the wider adoption of trapping by naturalists, have
tended to modify that view. It is probably more local, but it
appears to be widely distributed, and to occur as far north
certainly as Moray and Elgin ; but it is not recorded from
Ireland, Man, Hebrides, or Shetland. A local race is found in
Skomer Island, and has been named E. skomerensis. When
Yarrell detected the Bank Vole as a distinct species in 1832, it
was considered to be of very restricted range in this country.
The discovery was made in Essex, but it was soon reported from
Hertfordshire, Middlesex, Berks, and Cambridge, and more
recently from Oxfordshire, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Worcester-
shire, the Lake District, Northumberland, Inverness, etc. It is
restricted to Europe in its wider range. In this country it does
not appear to occur at elevations of more than about 700 feet.

The Bank Vole is much more agile than the Field Vole, and
not so much given to burrowing. It may be seen abroad in
sunny situations at any time of the day, preferring warm, dry
places, yet frequently to be found in wet places. It is a good
swimmer and diver. It constructs shallow runs in the earth of

112 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

a roadside bank or hedgebank. These have many entrances
and exits above and below, as shown in our photograph ; some
of the passages connecting with the top of the bank, others
enlarging into blind chambers. Its food includes herbage,
roots, bulbs, fruits, and seeds ; it appears to be particularly
fond of turnips. In spring it has been observed climbing rose
and hawthorn bushes in order to nibble the new leaves, and in
autumn to obtain the hips and haws. It also seeks nuts,
berries, the grain of wheat and barley, and the seeds of smaller
grasses. Insects, snails, and even small birds are eaten by it,
and the entrance to its burrows frequently gives evidence of the
variety of its food. It has been known to eat the unpalatable
Shrew that it has killed, and even to given way to cannibalism.
In Scotland it is accused of eating the shoot-buds of young
conifers, especially of larch, and gnawing the bark from
branches.

In this country it is occasionally captured in the act of
robbing household stores, but in more northern regions, as in
Norway and the Yukon, it is a constant inhabitant of houses.
It is not one of the hibernating species, therefore as a rule it
does not lay up stores ; but Mr. Douglas English records the
digging up of five Bank Voles with a store of ninety-three
sound cob-nuts.

There are several litters of three to six naked and blind young
during the year, produced in nests of grass, moss and wool, or
feathers, usually placed above ground, sometimes in a bird's
nest at some height above it. The males are very quarrelsome,
and when fighting or pairing are very vocal, indulging in
grunting squeaks.

Three geographical races or sub-species have been recognised
by Barrett- Hamilton as distinct species under distinct names.
These are Skomer Bank Vole (Evotomys skomerensis) from
Skomer Island, off Pembroke ; Alston's Bank Vole (E. alstoni)

RABBIT. 113

from the Isle of Mull ; and the Raasay Bank Vole (E. erica)
from Raasay Island, Skye. Barrett- Hamilton regards these as
descendants of a former "Boreal" group of Voles, which have
been supplanted on the British mainland by the competition of
the Bank Vole.

Rabbit (Oryefofagus cuniculus^ Linn.).

The Rabbits and the Hares being comparatively large and
familiar members of our native fauna do not appear to stand in
need of much space being devoted to them. Familiar as the
two common species may be they require to be distinguished
not only one from the other, but also from the two other and
less familiar species, and in addition there may be a few facts
of organisation and habit that are not well-known to all our
readers. All members of the family Leporidae, there are certain
structural features in which they all agree in a general way.
They belong to the section of Rodents known as Duplicidentata,
because in the upper jaw there are always two pairs of incisors.
All the other Rodents have only one pair, and they form the
division Simplicidentata. The dentition of the Rabbits and
Hares is therefore as follows : i f , c g, p f , m §• = 28.

The ears are remarkably long and out of all proportion to the
size of the body when compared with other Mammals. If laid
forward over the face they reach nearly to the tip of the nose.
The eyes are large and prominent and placed well to the sides
of the head. The hinder legs are longer than the fore legs, and
so greatly developed as to be the main propelling power. In- •
stead of pads on the soles to protect the foot and legs from the
jars incidental to hard running, the Leporidae have all the feet
covered beneath with a thick coating of hair which gives a firm
grip either on hard rock or slippery snow. The tail is very short
and turned up. • The fur is of triple formation : there is a
dense, soft, woolly underfur, through which push longer and
stronger hairs and give the coat its colour, and a still longer but

A.L. I

114 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

much less numerous set, scattered among the others. The two
longer sorts of hair are more or less ringed. The coat becomes
thicker in winter.

They are sexually mature at a very early age, and often begin
to breed before they have attained to full size. The females are
distinguished by the form of the head, which is longer and more
delicately modelled than that of the male. The males (bucks),
too, are restless and quarrelsome. They are promiscuous
breeders, and the entire care of the family falls upon the
mother (doe).

Litters of Rabbits succeed one another rapidly between
February and September ; less frequently in the autumn and
winter months. The litters vary from two or three to eight, the
higher numbers being those of the warmer months. Young
Rabbits are but sparsely clothed and are blind and deaf, the
ears being closed and having no power of movement until
about the tenth day. The eyes open a day later. In a few
days more they can run, and make short excursions from the
underground nest. Before they are a month old they are
capable of independent existence. Until then the mother will
defend them against all-comers, including the Weasel and
Stoat, using her powerful hind feet against her adversary, and
to good purpose.

The Rabbit is a much smaller animal than the Hare, greyer
in colour, with smaller ears and feet, and the black tips of the
ears so noticeable in the Hare, are in the Rabbit much reduced
or altogether wanting. Its average weight and measurements
are : weight, 2^ to 3 Ibs. ; length of head and body, i6J ins.,
tail, 3f ins., ear, 3 ins., hind foot with claws, 3^ ins. It also differs
from the Hare in the structure of its heavier skull, its smaller
eyes, shorter ears, and lesser specialisation of the limbs for
speed in running.

It is believed that originally the Rabbit was a native only of
the western parts of the Mediterranean region — where it still

RABBIT. 115

teems — and to have spread northwards largely by human aid.
It is known to have been introduced to Italy from Spain by the
Romans, who are usually credited with having brought it to
Britain. It is now thought, however, that we are indebted to
the Normans for its presence. It was certainly here in the
twelfth century. The name Rabbit is from the French, and
originally indicated the suckling young ; the adults being known
as Conies.

Although so famous as a digger of extensive underground
dwellings, Nature does not appear to have specially built the
Rabbit for this purpose ; but where the soil is light the efforts
of many generations of associated workers have resulted in a
system of burrows both extensive and complicated, with bolt-
runs as emergency exits and stop-runs for nursery use. Although
it prefers the light sand of the dunes covered with Marram-
grass, or a sandy heath overgrown with furze and heather, it
will on occasion drive its tunnels into firm loam or dry clay ; it
has been known even to burrow deeply into a surface seam of
coal. The fore paws are the principal burrowing tools, the
loosened earth being thrown far back by the kicking of the
hinder feet. Where stones come in the way that cannot be
loosened by the paws, they have been known to be removed by
the teeth. These tunnels are about six inches in diameter, in-
creased locally to a foot to provide passing places. The
residential quarters are always blind chambers leading from the
main passages. The adult Rabbits do not indulge in bedding
materials but rest on the bare soil. The does, however, make
beds for their young by denuding their own under parts of fur.
These tunnels are frequently made use of by other animals, if
necessary, by enlarging the passage to admit their larger
bodies. When Rabbit-earths are ferreted they sometimes yield
more than Rabbits : a Fox, a Cat, a Stoat, with several Rabbits
and Rats, have been driven out of the same earth.

Where the Rabbit finds the ground too hard or too wet, it

Il6 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

contrives to do without tunnelling underground, making runs
under the heather, furze, or matted herbage. Such exceptions
are known to sportsmen as Stub-Rabbits or Bush-Rabbits, in
the belief that they are a separate species. Occasionally, too,
the doe will follow the example of the Hare, and make a
nursery " form " in fallow land or among the growing turnips.

The Rabbit is almost exclusively a vegetarian, its chief food
being grass and the tender shoots of furze ; but in the vicinity of
cultivated land they devastate the crops and inflict serious loss
upon the farmer. The exception to a vegetable diet is found in
its occasional indulgence in snails. Wherever there is sufficient
food and his enemies are not too oppressive the Rabbit has ex-
tended his range to the most out-of-the-way corners of these
islands. A century ago it was a scarce beast in Scotland, but
it is now to be found in abundance up to the extreme north.
It is found also. all over Ireland. Its chief enemies, in addition
to man, are all the members of the Weasel family, the Owls, and
the Hawks.

Every one who has come across a party of Rabbits feeding
must have noticed how conspicuous the white underside of the
upturned tail makes them in flight. Wallace suggested that like
the white patch on the hind parts of deer and antelope it served
as " a signal flag of danger," a guide to the young and feeble to
escape from danger by following the most vigorous seniors.
This view has been strongly criticised, even ridiculed ; but the
critics have not offered a better explanation of the upturned
Rabbit's " scut." It must, however, be admitted that any ex-
planation ought to fit the case of the Hare which often carries
its tail with the white underside exposed, but is a solitary animal
with no companions to follow it. On the sand dunes the
Rabbit's coat renders it invisible through harmony with the
sand.

In the ordinary way of life the Rabbit is a silent animal, except
that he gives vent to low growls and grunts to express anger or

I

BROWN HARE 117

pleasure ; but when terrorised by the imminence of attack by a
Stoat the Rabbit finds its voice and gives utterance to a loud
scream of agony. This has been referred to in the account of
the Stoat (anfe, p. 68).

Brown Hare (Lepus europaus, Pallas).

Although in general form and structure the Hare is similar
to the closely related Rabbit, there are differences so great as
to have induced recent systematists to put them into different
genera ; and, even superficially, they are sufficiently unlike to
enable country-folk to keep them distinct under different names.
These differences are evident in the longer body, the great
length of the hind limbs, the longer ears with their invariable
black tips, and the tawny colour of the fur of the upper parts.
To these distinctions they can add the patent facts that whilst
the Rabbit is a sociable beast, associating in large communities,
the Hare is as solitary and retired as a hermit.

There has never been any suggestion that the Hare's title to
rank as a real native of Britain is open to doubt, for its name is
Anglo-Saxon, and identical with that in use in Denmark and
Sweden. It is widely distributed in England, Wales and
Scotland up to about 2000 feet elevation ; but in Ireland (which
has a separate species of its own) the Brown Hare is not a
native. It has been a favourite animal of the chase from the
earliest times of which we have records ; and our ancient
sportsmen had age-names for it as for Deer. Thus, in its first
year it was a Leveret, in the second year a Hare, and in the
third a Great Hare. The male is distinguished as Jack-Hare,
and the female as Doe.

The total length of the Hare is about twenty-four inches, to
which the tail contributes three inches and two-thirds, and the
head nearly four inches. The ears fall short of five inches.
The weight averages about eight pounds. The tawny fur of the
upper side is harsher than that of the Rabbit, which is due to

Il8 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

a predominance of the strong hairs of medium length described
under Rabbit. The shoulders, neck, and flanks are of a ruddier
hue than the back, and a ruddy band crosses the loins. The
sides of the face, and the outer surfaces of the limbs, incline to
a yellow tint. The underside is pure white except at the breast
and loins where the ruddy tint is continued from above. There
is a profusion of black and white whiskers, of which the white
are the longer and as much as three and a half inches in length.
The tail, which is carried curved up over the back or straight
behind, is black above and white on the sides and below. The

Skeleton and Teeth, of Brown Hare.

large, prominent eyes have a horizontal pupil. As it is almost
impossible to come upon a Hare asleep, it was formerly believed
that they have no eyelids and are compelled, therefore, to sleep
with their eyes open. This, of course, was an " inexactitude "
comparable to the belief in the Mole's lack of eyes and ears.
The prominence of the dark eyes of the Hare, and their situa-
tion well to the sides of the head give him a wide field of vision.
As regards sexual distinctions, the Jack-Hare has a smaller
body, shorter head and redder shoulders than the Doe.

The Hare is not a burrowing animal, and does not seek
refuge underground from his enemies, unless hard pressed,

whei

BROWN HARE.

when he may enter a Rabbit burrow temporarily. He relies
upon his russet coat harmonising generally with his surround-
ings ; and content with a slight depression among the grass
known as a " form," he sits all day and surveys the landscape*
ever ready to use his powerful limbs when his keen senses tell
him there is danger near. At dusk he goes abroad to feed, and
returns to the form at dawn. To break the continuity of scent,
when he is leaving his form, and again when returning to it, he
will suddenly turn at right angles to his former course and
make a prodigious leap — fifteen feet or more — to the top of a
bank, then take another long bound, perhaps into marshy
ground where the scent will not lie, and repairing to the feeding-
ground feel safe from being tracked by Fox or Polecat. He
always adopts this leaping trick, also the plan of doubling on
his track, which has been the admiration and vexation of the
hunter from old times. Shakespeare has told at some length

41 How he outruns the winds, and with what care
He cranks and crosses with a thousand doubles :
The many musets through the which he goes
Are like a labyrinth to amaze his foes."

As he courses across the fields you get the impression that he
is longer than the measurement given above ; the impression
is due to the length of the hind legs extended in running, and
from which he especially gets the advantage over pursuers
when the course lies uphill. He is a good swimmer, and often
crosses rivers in order to reach a better feeding-ground, to
avoid pursuit, or to seek a mate. Hares have been known to
cross the Trent in numbers, where it was two hundred yards
wide, in order to reach a field of carrots on the further side ;
and Yarrel saw one cross an arm of the sea a mile broad.

The "form " is made in rank grass among thickets of gorse
and briar, or in the open field where the ground is dry beneath
it. It takes and retains the shape of the animal's body, and
may be used for a long period. Here the doe brings forth her

120 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

litter of two, three, or four young — occasionally more. There
is much variation in this respect. These are born with their
eyes open, and a short furry coat, which however lacks the
ruddiness of the adult. They are capable of using their limbs,
and are so well advanced in development before birth, that scon
each makes its own little form beside the mother's, and when a
month old they are quite independent. When left alone on the
form, whilst the mother goes off to feed, and anything alarms
them, they cry " leek, leek." The adults pair promiscuously ;
and there appear to be three or four litters a year.

The Hare appears to moult twice a year — in early autumn
and early spring ; the former being the principal. Like the
Rabbit, it is exclusively vegetarian in its feeding, including
bark, grain, and roots as well as herbaceous plants in its bill of
fare. It is very destructive to young trees in plantations, and
the farmer and market-gardener suffer severely from its depreda-
tions among the crops of carrot, lettuce, turnip, etc. In the
open country it prefers grasses of the genera Poa, Festuca, and
Molinia, clover, sow-thistle, and chicory. When it gets into
gardens it shows distinct preference for dahlias, carnations,
pinks, nasturtiums, parsley, and thyme. In shrubberies it is
very destructive to bark and boughs, especially of coniferous
trees.

The proverbial expression, " Mad as a March Hare," has
reference to the insane antics of the Jack Hare during the
rutting season. He grunts and kicks, bucks like a broncho,
and has stand-up boxing-matches with his rivals. In bucking
he leaps over his opponent and kicks him vigorously with the
hind feet. Though usually harmless, these encounters have
been known to have fatal terminations. Though regarded
generally as a mute animal, this is not the fact. The Hare
has a low but clear cry, which has been described as " don't,"
"ont" or "aunt," with varying inflections denoting different
moods. When wounded or badly frightened it utters a scream

ALPINE HARE. 121

like that of a child in pain, and sportsmen have declared that
the pitifulness of it caused them to give up shooting Hares.
They have also a warning sound made by grinding the teeth,
and it is passed on from Hare to Hare, having the same result
as the stamping of feet by the Rabbit. The amorous notes of
buck and doe are different, and their imitation by poachers
and gamekeepers is known as Hare-sucking.

The doe is a model mother for a time, and will fight
desperately in defence of her young ; but as soon as they are
capable of looking after themselves she casts them off or
deserts them.

Alpine Hare (Lepus timidus^ Linn.).

Alternatively known as the Scottish or Variable Hare, the
present species is intermediate in size between the Brown Hare
and the Rabbit. The first name has reference to the fact that
it is indigenous only in Scotland and the neighbouring isles. It
has been introduced into England and Wales, but except in
the northern counties and some of the Welsh mountains has
not established itself. The name Variable Hare denotes its
change of hue at the beginning of winter after the manner of
the Stoat. In Cheshire it is known as White Hare. Respecting
this winter whitening of the fur, fierce controversies raged for
many years ; one school contending that it was due to a com-
plete moulting of the summer fur, as a new growth without
colour was produced. The opposition claimed that there was
only one moult — in spring — to get rid of the too conspicuous
white coat as the snow with which it harmonised melted away.
They contended that the old hairs became altered individually
by the abstraction of pigment, or by the development of air-
bubbles. Evidence which was considered conclusive was brought
forward by both sides, and opponents remained unconvinced.
In the early days of the twentieth century, however, Metchnikoff

122 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

showed that the senile whitening of human hair was due to the
activity of certain motile cells, which he termed chromophages
or colour-eaters, which remove the pigment granules and con-
sume them. At a later date he showed that the same process
caused the whitening of the hairs in the Scottish Hare, and of
the feathers of the Ptarmigan — which undergoes a similar
change of colour. It is noteworthy that the black tips of the
ears, like the black tip of the tail in the Stoat, never change
colour.

As already stated, the Alpine Hare is smaller than the Brown
Hare, the combined length of head and body being about
twenty inches, but the head is proportionately larger, the ears
and tail shorter, and the legs longer. The fur is more woolly
and of a duskier tint in summer, the whiskers shorter and finer,
the eyes rounder, and the hair on the underside of the foot
softer. Behind the breast the under parts are white, and the
tail wholly so. Another name — Blue Hare — is suggested by its
appearance in autumn and spring, when the summer and winter
tints are mingled in its fur. The coat becomes closer and longer
in winter than it is in summer. Sometimes the winter coat is
retained longer than usual, through some unexplained retarding
of the spring moult. Black and buff variations have been
recorded. The average weight is between five and six pounds.

The habits of the Alpine Hare are very similar to those of
the Brown Hare ; but it is less timid, and when alarmed clears
off in a more leisurely and less excited manner. As contrasted
with the nervous terror of the Brown Hare and Rabbit, the
Alpine Hare may be said to be comparatively tame. Instead
of making a form it hides in rock crevices and among stones
where it may be sheltered from the sight of birds of prey over-
head. Occasionally, and especially where there are no rocks,
they excavate burrows a few feet in length in the hillside or
into the peat-bank. In general its food is similar to that of
the Brown Hare ; but it is said to add lichens to its bill of

IRISH HARE. 123

fare in winter, and to grind up fir-cones in order to obtain the
seeds.

Precise observation is still needed respecting the breeding
habits of the Alpine Hare, but they do not appear to differ
greatly from those of the Brown Hare, two or three litters being
produced in the year, and the leverets varying in number up to
eight.

Irish Hare (Lepus hibemicus, Bell).

The abundance of Hares in Ireland has been noticed in
literature for more than a thousand years, but it was not until
1833 that it was suggested that the Irish Hare was anything
more than a variation of the Brown Hare. Even so, until quite
recently it has been accepted by most of the high authorities as,
at best, a variety or sub-species of the Alpine Hare. It occurs
naturally all over Ireland, and is not found elsewhere except
where distinct attempts have been made to introduce it. Even
in places where this introduction has succeeded in establishing
colonies — as in the Island of Mull, where it runs with the Alpine
Hare— it refuses to breed with other kinds. Barrett-Hamilton
is satisfied that it is distinct, and probably a direct descendant
of the extinct Lepus anglicus whose remains are found in late
Pleistocene rocks.

It is a larger beast than the Alpine Hare. The head and
body average about twenty-three inches in length, and the tail
about three inches. The ears slightly exceed the tail. The
average weight is about seven pounds ; but exceptionally
exceeds nine, and in one case ten pounds has been recorded.
It has russet fur, not smoky brown or "blue" as in the Alpine
Hare ; its winter whitening is not regular as in that species, and
is frequently patchy, russet "islands" being left surrounded by
white.

As compared with the Brown Hare, the Irish Hare is smaller
and of more graceful build, but the head is relatively longer

124 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

and broader, the eyes rounder, the ears shorter and the limbs
longer.

Though it does not dig burrows of its own, it has been known
frequently when coursed to take refuge in a Rabbit-burrow.
Though, like the other Hares, solitary, the Irish Hare shows a
tendency to gregariousness at times. They have been seen in
the North of Ireland moving in droves of two or three hundred,
like Deer.

It has several litters during the year, averaging three leverets
a litter. They seldom remain long together, either moving
apart of their own accord or being separated by the old doe
They are able to run when only an hour or two old.

Red Deer (Cervus daphus, Linn.).

The largest and noblest surviving member of the ancient
British fauna, the Red Deer to-day has a very limited range —
the mountain glens of Scotland and Westmorland, in the north,
and the wide Devon and Somerset moors and the New Forest
in Hampshire. Even in the New Forest, where only a few
score remain, it is extinct officially, for an Act of Parliament
passed in the year 1851 decreed the extermination of the Deer,
the reason being that they destroyed a vast quantity of what
was then become of far greater national value than venison —
the growing timber — and demoralised the inhabitants by
creating a race of deer-stealers.

A full-grown Stag, as the male Red Deer is called, stands
about four feet in height at the shoulders ; the Hind, or female,
somewhat less. The summer coat is reddish-brown, some-
times golden-red, which changes to a brownish-grey in winter
by the new growth of grey hairs. On the under parts the
colour is white, and a patch of white around the short tail
furnishes a " recognition mark," common to most of the Deer
family, which serves to guide the herd when they are in flight

PL 76.

7i24.

Red Deer Stag.

ft. 77-

7125.

RED DEER. 125

before an enemy. A hind bears her first calf when she is about
three years old.

All the species of Deer belong to what naturalists know as
the even-toed ungulates (animals with divided hoofs). As dis-
tinguished from the Horse, for example, which walks on a single
hoof in the middle line of the foot, the Deer are supported on
two smaller symmetrical hoofs and the axis of the foot passes
between them. If you come across the footprints of the Red
Deer — "slot" the hunter calls them — in soft ground you will
find that fact well-marked. Let me say parenthetically that
when observing wild animals, footprints or u spoor " should be
eagerly watched for. In the deeper slot of the Deer there may
also be slight impressions of two other toes, one on each side
behind and above the hoofs.

If you should come across a no longer needed skull of the
Deer, take the opportunity for examining its dental arrange-
ments. You are, of course, more likely to meet with it in a
museum than in your rambles. You will find the teeth and
their disposition do not differ materially from what are found in
the jaws of the ox and the sheep ; for like those the Deer is a
ruminant, living on vegetable food and having a four-chambered
stomach. There are no teeth in the fore part of the upper jaw,
the three premolars and three molars of each side being placed
well back in the cheek. On each side of the lower jaw we find
right in front three incisors or cutting-teeth, which bite against
hardened gum in the upper jaw. The Stag alone has a single
canine tooth a little behind these, but the Hind is denied this
possession. Three premolars and three molars correspond
with, and bite against, those of the upper jaw. Dental formula :
f't,*fc^f»»*t = 32>

The food of the Deer is herbage and the young shoots of
trees and shrubs. It is this fact that led to their nominal
extermination in the New Forest and other places. By nature
they are woodland animals — although their greater prevalence

126 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

to-day in the Highlands might give us a different impression —
and in the winter especially do great damage to the plantations
of young trees. Agricultural lands in their vicinity also suffer
greatly, a whole field of turnips being ruined in a night by a
visit from a herd of Deer. They also destroy wheat, potatoes,
and cabbages ; and in the woods consume many toadstools,
acorns, and chestnuts.

In spring and summer whilst his horns are growing the Stag
lives apart from his kind, but in the early autumn when these
are well-developed and hard, we may in suitable localities hear
his "belling" call to the Hinds, or in defiance to some rival.

" The wild buck bells from ferny brake,"

as Sir Walter Scott puts it. There is a good deal of furious
fighting when two jealous Stags of similar age and strength
meet in the vicinity of the hinds. He is then in the prime of
condition, his neck and shoulders clad in a thick mantle of long
brown hair, and his head adorned with the noble pair of antlers
that reveals his age. Those that decorated and armed him last
autumn and winter were shed bodily about March, and a new
growth started soon after from the burred frontal knobs that
were left. It is important to notice the difference between
these solid though temporary growths and the mere shells that
permanently decorate the heads of oxen, sheep, and goats. In
the Deer they are what biologists term secondary sexual
characters ; they are possessed by the males only, and cast in
their entirety at the end of each breeding season with its
frequent contests between the Stags. The history of these
antlers is strangely like that of a tall perennial herb whose
stems and branches die down to the rootstock each winter —
that is, after the plant's breeding season — and start into more
vigorous growth each spring. The " rootstock " of the Stag's
horns makes its appearance at an early age, and its annual
growth is more numerously branched each succeeding year.

RED DEER. 127

The growth of the Stag's horns is said to keep pace with the
growth of the bracken among which he rests.

When the male Deer-calf is a few months old he becomes
distinct from the female by the appearance of two knobs
(" bossets ") on the front of the head ; he is then a knobber.
Next year these become longer and pointed (" dags ") and he
becomes known as a brocket. The third year a branch appears
forward — the brow antler — and he becomes a spayad. The
fourth year a second forward antler — the bez-tine or bay — is
produced at about a third from the summit of the now long
horn ; and he is known as a staggard. The tray (tres) or royal
antler appears near the summit in the fifth year, and this
entitles the young Deer to the title of Stag: he has come of
age. From the sixth year, when the crown of antlers begins
to form at the summit by the production of tines in several
directions at the same height, he becomes a Hart or Stag of
Ten; and in former days he could advance beyond that dignity
by escaping with his life after being hunted by the King, thereby
earning the rank of a Stag Royal. If he lives long enough he
may wear a pair of antlers each having as many as forty-eight
points. He is considered, by the way, to live for forty years.

The antler has a core of solid bone covered by a continuation
of the soft skin of the head, which bears a close pile of short
hair and is known as the velvet. When the core has attained
to its proper solidity and hardness, the growth of the rough
burr at its base, pressing on the blood vessels and stopping
their further supply to the velvet above, causes the death of the
latter ; and the Deer by rubbing the new structure against tree
trunks and branches, tears off the velvet in strips, and is then
able to do battle with his peers. The ensuing period of sexual
unrest having been passed through safely, the whole structure
down to the burrs is parted with, and a finer set of antlers
begun. The whole process of antler growth occupies about ten
weeks, and during this period the Stag is always in poor

128 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

condition, and seeks solitude. What becomes of the dropped
antlers is somewhat of a mystery, as few of them are found, and
these usually odd ones.

If one were seeking to judge the habits of the Red Deer from
a finely stuffed specimen in, say, the Natural History Museum,
standing erect with fully developed antlers, one would feel
justified in saying, as many have said — " This is a creature of
the open mountain-side and the moorland, where there are no
trees whose branches could entangle these branching horns-
No adornment could be better fitted for keeping the noble beast
out of the woods." Yet the Deer can actually run through
dense woods with ease, and we know from its habitats in other
countries where it is still plentiful, that it is a true woodland
animal. The explanation is evident if, during a Stag hunt, we
see the hunted seek refuge in a wood. The Stag throws his
head back so that his antlers lie along each side and protect
his body from many a bruise that might otherwise be inflicted
by the branches as he rushes through the undergrowth. The
antlers may be used with deadly effect in self-defence, and
many a hound is killed by a Stag at bay. Their function
appears to be mainly protective against carnivorous beasts ;
they are seldom if ever effective against those of their own kind.

The mating of the Red Deer, as we have indicated, takes
place in the autumn ; and in the spring the Hinds separate,
each retiring to a lonely spot among the bracken where her
single calf (rarely two) is born about the end of May. The
little deer is already covered with fur, and its back and sides
are dappled with white after the manner of the Fallow Deer,
though unlike the livery of that species the spotting of the Red
Deer is not retained beyond calfhood. The calf is born with
some intelligence also. Mr. St. John tells how, one day in the
Highlands, he "was watching a Red Deer hind with my glass,
whose proceedings I did not understand, till I saw that she was
licking a new-born calf. I walked up to the place, and as soon

H ^

PL 79-

Alpine Hare.

Lepus timidus.

PL 80.

Red Deer Hind.

Female Deer have no indication of antlers.

PL Si.

Koa tsucK.

RED DEER. I2Q

as the old deer saw me she gave her young one a slight tap
with her hoof. The little creature immediately laid itself down ;
and when I came up I found it lying with its head flat on the
ground, its ears closely laid back, and with all the attempts at
concealment that one sees in animals which have passed an
apprenticeship to danger of some years, whereas it had evidently
not known the world for more than an hour, being unable to
run or escape. I lifted up the little creature, being half inclined
to carry it home in order to rear it. The mother stood at the
distance of two hundred yards, stamping with her foot, exactly
as a sheep would have done in a similar situation. I, however,
remembering the distance I had to carry it, and fearing that it
might get hurt on the way, laid it down again, and went on my
way, to the great delight of its mother, who almost immediately
trotted up, and examined her progeny all over, appearing, like
most other wild animals, to be confident that her young and
helpless offspring would be a safeguard to herself against the
attacks of her otherwise worst enemy."

It is in the localities described by the author just quoted that
we have still the best chance of studying the Red Deer under
natural conditions, though there have naturally been some
changes since his classic " Wild Sports of the Highlands " was
first published in 1845. But the southerner, as we have hinted,
has still a prospect of meeting with the noble beast on Exmoor
and in Hampshire, to say nothing of the tamer herds in parks.
To get a good view of these, they should be approached with
a pretence of unconcern : they can often be well observed from
a road at a few yards' distance without arousing their suspicions,
whereas a few steps towards them on the greensward will cause
them to bolt.

Respecting the large numbers of Deer that formerly existed
in the south, there is an illuminating reminiscence mentioned
by Gilbert White. He says that an old keeper assured him on
information from his father, head-keeper of Wolmer Forest,

A.L. K

I^O ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

"that Queen Anne, as she was journeying on the Portsmouth
road, did not think the forest of Wolmer beneath her royal
regard. For she came out of the great road at Lippock, which
is just by, and, reposing herself on a bank smoothed for that
purpose, lying about half a mile to the east of Wolmer Pond
and still called Queen's Bank, saw with great complacency and
satisfaction the whole herd of Red Deer brought by the keepers
along the vale before her, consisting then of about five hundred
head. A sight this worthy the attention of the greatest
sovereign ! " Even more striking is the confession of a
notorious deer-stealer in the New Forest, who assured the
Rev. William Gilpin, author of " Forest Scenery/' that in
five years he had killed on an average "not fewer than a
hundred bucks a year."

It should be stated that the British examples of the Red Deer
are considered to constitute a geographical race known as
scoticus. The European range of the species extends from the
Mediterranean to central Sweden and central Norway.

Fallow Deer (Cervus dama, Linn.).

The Fallow Deer is recognisable at a glance as distinct from
the Red Deer by the entirely different character of the antlers.
Those of the Fallow Deer are flattened and expanded in all the
branches of the upper part, though the main stem or " beam "
is rounded as in the Red Deer. With the exception of the
equivalents of the brow-antler and the bez-tine the antler forms
a broad curved plate whose margins run out in a number of flat
points. It is known as a palmate antler, comparable to the
palm of the hand with its finger prolongations. These horns
are shed annually, like those of the Red Deer, but slightly
later. There are no canine teeth in either sex.

The Fallow Deer is smaller than the Red Deer, the Buck
standing only a little more than three feet at the shoulders, and

FALLOW DEER. 131

the Hind somewhat less. It differs in colour, too, from the Red
Deer, being a paler red or reddish-yellow above spotted with
white, and yellowish-white on the under parts. The tail is
longer than that of the Red Deer, and is kept in constant
motion from side to side. The vertical white stripe on either
side of the rump shows up strongly when the animal is in
retreat. In winter the fur darkens ; and some of the tame
herds in parks show this dark coloration at all seasons. This
has been explained by the statement that they are descended
from a darker, hardier race introduced from Norway by
James I. ; but Harting says this variety was in Windsor Park
as far back as the year 1465. It is this dark form that is met
with in Epping Forest. It may also be seen in Richmond Park,
where, however, the lighter form is in the majority.

In this connection it should be mentioned that it is believed
the Fallow Deer was introduced to Britain by the Romans,
though fossil remains found here show that it was a true native
originally. One is inclined to be somewhat suspicious of these
introductions attributed to the Romans. It is quite possible
that in their desire to enjoy all their continental luxuries they
may have brought with them much that was indigenous to the
soil. It is possible, too, that they were more proficient as
conquerors than as observers of Nature. Cassar, for example,
has left it on record that, when he hewed his way through the
dense forests between the south coast and London, there were no
beech trees growing, whereas every botanist who has devoted
attention to the origin and distribution of our flora is convinced .
that the invasion of southern England by the beechwoods of
the Continent took place ages before great Caesar was born, and
before the separating English Channel was more than a river
valley. Men who could overlook so majestic and plentiful a
tree as the beech on our chalklands, were capable of not seeing
the shy Fallow Deer, which has a wonderful power of vanishing
silently among the bracken. However, modern authorities

132 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

are of opinion that the Fallow Deer is native only in the
Mediterranean region of Europe and Asia Minor ; elsewhere it
has been introduced by man.

In addition to the marked difference in the form of the horns
in these two species of Deer, there is also a distinction in the
development of these ornaments. During its first year the
Fallow fawn gives no sign of such a growth, but in its second
it produces a pair of short unbranched prongs, which gives the
fawn its name of pricket. The next year there is a great
advance, for each simple prong is succeeded by a horn that
bears two forward tines, and the extremity of the beam is
slightly expanded and flattened, and its margin indented. In
the fourth year the form is similar but more developed, the flat
portion of the beam being much larger and its outer margin
more regularly toothed or snagged. The fifth year shows
further advance along the same lines, and the animal becomes
known as a buck of the first head. In later years the additions
are merely an increase in the number of spillers or snags to the
flattened beam.

During the breeding season and throughout the winter
Fallow Deer may be encountered in mixed herds of both sexes ;
at other times in parties of Bucks or Does. Like the Red
Deer it is a great enemy to the forester, and in winter time is
not content with browsing on the young shoots of the trees, but
utterly kills many by destroying their bark. They also eat
acorns, chestnuts and horse-chestnuts. By reason of their
feeding more in the lowland woods, where the diet is more
liberal, the venison of the Fallow Deer is considered more
tender and of finer flavour.

The Fallow fawns are born in May or June in a close retreat
far in among the bracken. Though mostly there is only one
at a birth, there are frequently two, and rarely three. The
fawn is capable of taking care of itself when only a few hours
old. As illustrating this point, we may quote an incident

PI. 82

Fallow Deer Hind.

The hind is smaller than the Buck, and of more slender build.

PL 83.

Roe Deer Fawn.

ROE DEER. 133

narrated by Mr. John Watson, who has written intimately of
the wild life of Westmorland. He says : " Once we came
suddenly upon a pretty little soft-eyed creature, evidently only
a few hours old. It squatted closely as we stood over it, but
when aware that it was observed, feigned death in the most
amusing manner, only with the softest and most wide-open
eyes imaginable. As we stooped towards it, with half a dozen
bounds it cleared the brake, and as a rapid stream stopped its
further progress, jumped in, and, after swimming about twenty
yards, came quickly ashore. It then trotted back to its bed
among the fern ; and yet it is probable that this fawn had not
previously used its legs, and had certainly never seen water."

The name Fallow is the Anglo-Saxon fealewe, and indicates
the gilvous colour of the lighter race. Gray in 1843 separated
the species from the Linnean genus Cerviis under its species
name of Dama. The modern effort to get back to original
species names under the rules of priority has caused this Deer
to be dubbed Dama dama in the newest catalogues. We have
preferred to retain the Linnean Cervus dama, but our readers
can say Dama dama if they like it better.

Roe Deer (Caprealus capraea, Gray).

A third species of Deer, the Roe, is now to be found only in
our northern mountain woods. It is the smallest and prettiest
of our native species, and appears to have been formerly the
most widely distributed of the three (though never an Irish
species), but to have been driven further and further north by'
the advance of population and cultivation in the south. Even
so, quiet ramblers in the thicker woods and plantations of the
New Forest have a slender prospect of seeing it. About the
beginning of the nineteenth century, Lord Portarlington in-
troduced Roe to the woods of Milton Abbas, in Dorset, where
they prospered and increased. In the year 1876, or thereabouts,

134 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

it is said that some of these made their way across country
for twenty-five miles and settled in the New Forest. There are
very few of them, and this fact combined with their cleverly
elusive movements in the dense coverts they affect, makes the
chance of seeing them very remote, more particularly as the
Roe is nocturnal in its habits.

The Roe stands only about two and a quarter feet at
the shoulders. Its colour in summer is bright red-brown, the
coat short and smooth ; but in winter it becomes long and
brittle, and the colour changes to a warm grey. The tail is so
short as to be scarcely visible among the surrounding hairs which,
as well as the under parts and the inner sides of the thighs, are
white. The ears are relatively larger than those of the other
species, covered with long hairs and whitish inside. It has a
white chin and a white spot on each side of the dark muzzle.
A mature buck weighs from forty to fifty pounds. There are
no signs of horns in first year fawns ; in the second year they
make their appearance as simple unbranched prongs. The
third year the horns are forked, a short tine pointing forwards ;
those of the fourth year have an additional tine directed back-
wards, and this marks the full complication of their structure.
In later years they have the same general design, but, of course,
are each year larger ; at their maximum they are only eight or
nine inches long, and are nearly upright. Small and primitive
though these horns are, they are very effective weapons, and
there have been occasions when they were used with fatal effect
against human victims. They have no canine teeth.

Roe Deer never congregate in large herds, but form small
family groups. In spring the hind retires deep into the covert,
where her two (sometimes three) spotted fawns are born ; and
when they are about a fortnight old, she brings them out into
the more open parts. Charles St. John, who, in the first half of
the nineteenth century, had full opportunity for a close study
of the natural history of the Highlands, has much to say of Roe

ROE DEER. 135

Deer and their habits. He remarks that, "The greatest draw-
back to preserving Roe to any great extent is, that they are so
shy and nocturnal in their habits that they seldom show them-
selves in the daytime. I sometimes see a Roe passing like a
shadow through the trees, or standing gazing at me from a dis-
tance in some sequestered glade ; but, generally speaking, they
are no ornament about a place, their presence being only known
by the mischief they do to the young plantations and to the
crops. A keeper in Kincardineshire this year told me that he
had often, early in the morning, counted above twenty Roe in a
single turnip-field. As for the sport afforded by shooting them,
I never killed one without regretting it, and wishing that I could
bring the poor animal to life again. I do not think that Roe are
sufficiently appreciated as venison, yet they are excellent eating
when killed in proper season, between October and February,
and of proper age. In summer the meat is not worth cooking,
being dry and sometimes rank."

The Roe is a good swimmer, and often crosses rivers, probably
in order to get a change of food, though sometimes there is no
reason apparent. On this point St. John tells us : " For some
unknown reason, as they do it without apparent cause, such as
being hard-hunted or driven by want of food, the Roe some-
times take it into their heads to swim across wide pieces of
water, and even arms of the sea. I have known Roe caught by
boatmen in the Cromarty Firth, swimming strongly across the
entrance of the bay, and making good way against the current
of the tide, which runs there with great rapidity. Higher up
the same firth, too, Roe have been caught when in the act -of
crossing. When driven by hounds I have seen one cross
Loch Ness."

The dentition is the same as that of the Fallow Deer.

136 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Common Lizard (Lacerta vivipara, Wagl).

There are still two small groups of back-boned animals to be
described, representing the classes Reptilia and Batrachia. To
the average man they are all Reptiles, and he has this justifica-
tion for so regarding them — that until recently they were so
classified by the great naturalists. Modern biologists, however,
dealing with structure and organisation rather than with external
form, find that this association of the scale-clad Lizards and
Serpents with the soft-skinned Frogs, Toads, and Newts cannot
be defended, and they have separated them into the two classes
named. The reasons for this separation will become manifest
in our descriptions of the several species, so that a preliminary
dissertation on the subject is not necessary.

Sitting on a sunny, heather-clad hillside it will not be long,
probably, before we see the active little Common Lizard peep-
ing at us from under cover or leaping swiftly over the crowded
plants. Its movements are so rapid that it is not at all easy to
follow them in detail, or even to catch one for closer examina-
tion; It can run nimbly enough with a gliding motion, for the
body and tail are scarcely lifted from the ground ; but the
principal mode of progression is to shoot forward horizontally
from one tuft of herbage to the next. They run with as much
facility over the shoots of heather or heath, and their long,
delicate fingers and toes secure them as sure a landing as that
of the Squirrel leaping from branch to branch. When we have
hit upon a spot where we have seen several Lizards thus active,
a good plan is to sit down quietly for a time, and keep our eyes
on a patch of sand that is fully exposed to sunshine. In a little
while a Lizard, maybe two or three Lizards, will appear from
under the heather or other plants and bask in the sun.

So seen, we note that they are about five inches in length,
which is only an average size. The maximum attained by
males is six inches, and by females seven inches. The females

COMMON LIZARD. 137

are not merely longer, they are altogether of larger proportions ;
but the male is the more graceful of the two, his tail tapering
gradually from the slender body to the very fine tip. Though
the tail is in both sexes equal in length to the head and body,
that of the female appears shorter owing to its sudden tapering
beyond the thick basal portion.

The colour is some tint of brown, varying considerably in
different individuals from yellow-grey to purple-brown, as a
ground tint, upon which is laid variable dark spots forming
more or less broken longitudinal lines. There is sometimes a

Skeleton of Lizard.

blackish line or band following the course of the backbone to
a little behind the hips, and a dark band along the sides edged
with yellow. On the underside the males are orange or red,
spotted with black ; the females, orange, yellow, or pale
greenish, with or without black spots, or a few small grey dots.
They appear to moult, or " slough," in patches, though entire
sloughs are found occasionally.

The limbs of the Lizards agree structurally with those of the
Mammals, each ending in a well-formed hand or foot with five
long and slender digits, each with a curved claw — those of the
hand worn short and blunt by their use in scraping the earth.

Their principal food is furnished by the various tribes of
insects — flies, beetles, moths, and caterpillars, though spiders

138 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

are greatly appreciated. Unless they are very small, cater-
pillars do not appear to be swallowed, but rather chewed and
the skin rejected. The name •vimpara refers to the fact that
the female retains her eggs until they are fully developed and
ready to hatch, so that the young are born free from the egg-
membrane, or the egg breaks in the act of oviposition or
immediately after. They are deposited anywhere: there is
neither nest nor concealment, and the mother exhibits no
interest or concern in her progeny. These number from six to
twelve, and are nearly black. They remain motionless where
they were born for several days. They are about an inch long.
They start life so well nourished that they take no food for
several days, then start hunting for small insects, such as
Aphides and other soft-bodied species. The teeth are very
small and conical, and unfitted to deal with hard substances ;
and as the two halves of the lower jaw are firmly connected
there can be no distension of the small mouth to accommodate
large parcels of food, as happens with the Snakes.

Points to be noted in the external appearance of the Common
Lizard, when we have succeeded in capturing one, are the fact
that the entire body is clothed with smooth, slightly keeled, and
scarcely overlapping scales, small on the upper side, excepting
the head, where they are large. On the underside, too, they are
larger, especially from the breast to the vent, where they become
broad plates, of which there are six rows, the two central rows
being much smaller than the lateral ones. A row of larger
scales forms a sort of collar across the underside of the neck.
The Lizards have not that fixed, ever-open-eyed stare of the
Snakes. The Lizard can follow your movements with his eye,
and wink at you intelligently, because he is provided with eye-
lids, which the Snake lacks. He closes his eyes in sleep. When
he puts out his tongue to ascertain whether an insect is good for
food, you will notice that the broad tip of it is notched into two
rounded lobes, instead of being forked into two thread-like

PL 86.

Sand Lizard female.

Lacerta agilis.

PI 87.

A' 1 39-

Common Lizard.

Tinner and under sides, showing different scaling.

COMMON LIZARD. 139

points, as in the snakes. The usual attitude of the Common
Lizard is with the extended tail and greater part of the body
resting on the ground, or other support, whilst the head and
fore parts are raised on the arms, and the muzzle turned to one
side in an attitude that suggests listening. It has been stated
that Lizards are susceptible to musical sounds, and that
they may be attracted from their hiding-places by judicious
whistling.

On the underside of the thighs will be found a row of small,
roundish scales, all perforated, and numbering from seven to
thirteen. . The perforations are rilled with a yellowish or brown
substance, which appears as a little cone above the opening.
Its purpose has not been settled satisfactorily, but Cope suggests
that it may be for giving the Lizard a better hold on slippery
surfaces, seeing that the weight of the body rests chiefly upon
the thighs. Another point that should be mentioned is the
brittleness of the tail. In catching — or attempting to catch — a
Lizard, he should be grasped by the shoulders. If the tail be
held instead, it will probably come away in the hand, snapping
at the base as readily as though it were glass or sealing wax. A
sort of tail will grow from the stump if the Lizard lives long
enough, but it is always a poor, ungraceful affair.

This species is the Furze Evvet of the New Forest, and the
Harriman of Shropshire. In Cheshire it is the Swift. In
suitable situations — sandhills, fallows, heaths, and moors — it
may be found all over Great Britain, including the Isle of Man,
and in most localities it is common. It is the one true reptile
that Ireland possesses, and it appears to occur in all parts of
the island, though not in any abundance. It appears (like the
Natterjack) to have escaped the attentions of St. Patrick when
" He gave the snakes and toads a twist and banished them for
ever." Its wider distribution includes Northern and Central
Europe and Siberia, where it shows a preference for mountainous
and high-lying country.

I4O ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Sand Lizard (Lacerta agilis. Linn.).

At a glance there is little beyond its superior size to dis-
tinguish the Sand Lizard from the Common Lizard ; and in
consequence the earlier records of its occurrence in certain
localities have had to be severely revised. It appears to have
been the rule of many recorders, when specimens of the
common species that exceeded average proportions were
captured, to put them down as Sand Lizards without any
critical examination. The truth is that as a British species
the Sand Lizard is found only in certain restricted localities
in the southern counties of Dorset, Hampshire, and Surrey,
and the sandhills by the sea in Lancashire and Cheshire. Its
southern habitats agree almost exactly with those of the
Smooth Snake, for which it provides a favourite food. It is not
found either in Scotland or Ireland.

The adult male of the Sand Lizard is about seven and a half
inches long, of which more than half is tail. The female is
about half an inch longer, but the additional measure is added
to the body, for the tail is less than half of the whole length.
The general colouring may be described as a sandy-brown,
with broken bands of darker tint. There is, of course, a con-
siderable amount of colour variation, and in the males there is
a marked tendency to a green suffusion, which in many cases
is so pronounced as to lead to a belief that the examples in
question are the non-indigenous Green Lizard (Lacerta viridis).
It was, no doubt, some markedly green males of the Sand
Lizard which Gilbert White saw " on a sunny sandbank, near
Farnham, in Surrey," and thought were true Green Lizards.
There are rows of dark and white spots along the sides of the
back, flank, and tail, which give the appearance of longitudinal
stripes. The green of the male is more pronounced during the
breeding season (May-June) when it is also evident in the
usual black dotted yellow of the underside. The black spots

PL 88. A' 1 40.

Sand Lizard.

The tail, seized by an aggressor, lias been parted with.

SAND LIZARD. 141

along his sides have white centres. The under parts of the
female are cream-coloured, and the three rows of white-centred
spots on the sides are dark brown.

The female deposits from five to twelve — usually about eight
— eggs which have white shells of the consistency of parch-
ment. These are covered with sand or leaves, and left for the
sun to incubate. They are laid in July, and the young are
hatched in the same month or early in August. The young
Sand Lizards are grey-brown above and whitish below.

Like the Common Lizard, the Sand Lizard is very apt to lose
its tail by voluntary amputation ; and short-tailed specimens
are sometimes found which are to be explained by supposing
that the original tail has been shed and another grown.

Characters that distinguish the Sand Lizard from the common
species will also be found in the general covering of scales —
which are strongly keeled — and in the ten to eighteen on the
thigh that are perforated, which are triangular, larger and
flatter than the corresponding scales in the Common Lizard.
If we have an opportunity for examining the mouth, too, we
shall find that in addition to the teeth on the jaws there is a
row of them — vomerine teeth — on the hinder part of the palate.
These are not present in the Common Lizard. Both species
spend the winter in a dormant state underground.

Outside England, the Sand Lizard is a native of Central and
Northern Europe, its range extending to the North of Russia
and Siberia ; but it is a lizard of the lower lands, whilst the
Common Lizard on the Continent is more plentiful in mountain
districts.

There are two species of Lizards that are natives of the
Channel Islands, and strangely one and not the other of these
is usually included in lists of British animals because the
islands are politically British. But the fauna and flora of
the Channel Islands belong to those of the nearest mainland

142 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

— France— and therefore should not be included among British
species unless they occur also in England, Wales, Scotland, or
Ireland. The two species referred to are the Green Lizard
(Lacerta mridis\ with tail equal to three-fourths of its entire
length, and the Wall Lizard (Lacerta muralis) of variable
brown coloration and a tail one and a half times the length of
the head and body. The Green Lizard may sometimes be seen
in this country as an escape from captivity, being a favourite
subject with the keepers of vivaria.

SlOW-WOrm (Anguisfragilis, Linn.).

The average person cannot understand why the naturalist
should be so " pig-headed" as to regard the Slow- worm, Blind-
worm or Deaf-adder as a lizard when it is so obviously a snake,
and has no legs such as a properly constructed lizard should
have. If the naturalist were given to argument of the hi quoque
order he might retort by asking why the average man persists
in styling a swift-gliding reptile a Slow-worm, or one with
brilliant eyes a Blind-worm? But the probability is that he
will quote Longfellow and tell the inquirer that "things are
not [always] what they seem" — that under the close and
polished, uniform scaly covering there are vestiges of limbs
that have been discarded in the long evolutionary history of
the species ; that it has eyelids like other lizards, that the two
sides of the lower jaw have a bony union in front, and that it
has a notched not forked tongue — characters that do not agree
with the structure of any snake. But all this will fall upon deaf
ears, and the average man will go on slaughtering Slow-worms
at sight, and believing that he has done a brave and meritorious
thing.

The Slow-worm attains a maximum length of seventeen or
eighteen inches, but the average "large" example is about a
foot long. Its head is quite small and short, not so broad as

SLOW-WORM. 143

the body just behind it. The tail, which is much longer than
the head and body, and longer in the male than in the female,
tapers gradually, and is very slender before ending in the short
sharp point at the tip. In many examples this graceful taper-
ing of the tail is not evident, because at some time it has been
broken short, and the effort to renew it, whilst it gives a sort of
finish, never appears to be a success. There is usually a
ragged end to the old part, and the narrower new part appears
to have been rather clumsily stuck inside the fringe of old
scales. Many specimens are in this condition, for the Slow-
worm is much more ready to part with its tail than either of
our other lizards. The scales on the upper and undersides are
nearly uniform in size and shape, broader than in the other
lizards and rounded on the hind margin which is thinner than
the dark-coloured central part of the scale. The scales are
quite without keels, polished and plainly overlap their fellows.
There is a thin dark line down the centre of the back, and
another on the upper part of each side.

The small mouth has the jaws well armed with uniform
slightly curved teeth, whose points are all directed backwards.
The bright eyes are placed low down, not much above the
upper jaw. The head is covered by much larger scales than
usual, but in this case the head regions are not so clearly
mapped out as in the other species, owing to the thin edges of
the scales giving no strong outlines. With a live Slow-worm
in the hand one gets a clear idea of the smoothness and close
attachment of the scaly covering. The feeling conveyed is
that there are no scales : that the external coat is continuous
and homogeneous ; and one marvels at the reptile's power of
gliding rapidly through the fingers. Though the Slow-worm
may be found on the edge of the wood, or on the heath, sunning
itself early in the spring, and apparently a lifeless casting in
bronze, on the slightest alarm it dives into the vegetable soil
and speedily disappears. In its basking attitude Slow-worm

144 ANIMAL LIFE OF TPIE BRITISH ISLES.

may be an appropriate name ; but when it begins to move we
are astounded that it has been able to keep so ridiculous
a name.

The food of the Slow-worm is governed by the small size of
the mouth. It is not an easy matter to study its feeding habits
when it is at large, and our knowledge of its food preferences
have been derived mainly from Slow-worms in captivity. It
will take spiders, small earthworms, and small insects ; but
always shows a marked preference for the small greyish-white
slug (Lima* agrestis) that is so great a pest to the grower of
tender vegetables. This slug the Slow-worm consumes in
quantity. Dr. Gerald Leighton, in his book on the " British
Lizards," says : " I can vouch for a meal that consisted of
seventeen slugs, the Slow-worm being a large male sixteen
inches long. But the usual number taken seems to be from
four to ten." Its principal feeding time is soon after sunset,
when the slugs are most in evidence on the surface and
beginning to make their nefarious attacks on the food of man.
If the gardener, professional and amateur, could only be taught
such facts, the sudden descent of the sharp edge of spade or
hoe upon one of his ablest helpers might be stayed. The
reptiles and the batrachians are all his friends.

Like the Common Lizard, the female Slow-worm retains her
eggs until they are fully developed, so that in August or
September she produces a litter of six to twelve animated silver
needles about two inches in length, with a thin black line along
the centre of the back, and black on the underside. These are
very active and very beautiful, perfectly independent and able
to fend for themselves, catching insects, but at once showing
preference for slugs if these are to be found of a size small
enough to pass the tiny mouth. There is a record of a batch
that were three inches in length at birth, but this is unusual.
Occasionally the eggs are deposited before hatching.

Although in early spring the Slow-worm may be seen along

PI. 91.

Grass Snake casts its skin.

1. Immediately before sloughing. 2. Operation nearly complete.
3. In new attire.

Head of grass snake.

PL 92.

Viper.

Difference of form and scaling in heads of the two species.

SLOW-WORM. 145

hedgerows frequently in the daytime, later in the year it must
be sought in the dusk when it is food-finding. It then spends
the day under flat stones and in burrows. In Cornwall years
ago we could always find a number of Slow-worms by turning
over such loose stones along the top of the cliffs ; and we have
since found them pretty generally distributed without much
regard to the nature of the soil. Its principal enemies — besides
man— are the Viper and the Hedgehog. In the winter the
Slow-worm retires —often in the company of half a dozen or
so of its own kind — into an underground burrow or a hollow
beneath a large stone, and goes to sleep ; but it is the first of
the reptiles to reappear at the very beginning of spring. Like
its congeners it casts its skin from time to time — apparently
about four times a year, but the frequency of the sloughing
depends, of course, upon whether it is a good slug year or the
reverse, for the shedding of the cuticle is in response to the
demand for more room for the growing body. The Slow-worm's
length of life is not known ; but it does not appear to attain to
sexual maturity until it is four or five years of age. We have
reliable knowledge of one that was captured when about a foot
in length (probably five or six years old), fifteen years ago,
which is still healthy and active.

It was in the Slow- worm that the discovery was made in 1886
of vestiges of a degenerate median eye connected with the
pineal gland — a discovery that set all the biological investi-
gators of the world at work. The same gland has in the last
few years been found to have important influence in controlling
the growth of the body in all vertebrates.

The Slow-worm is generally distributed throughout the
British Islands, with the exception of Ireland ; it is much more
plentiful in the south and south-west of England than in the
east or north, but even in the south it is much more abundant
in some districts than in others. Its wider range includes all
but the extreme north of Europe, Western Asia, and Algeria.

A.L. L

1^6 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Grass Snake (Tropidonotus natrix^ Linn.).

Before entering upon a description of the greatly feared
though harmless Grass, Ringed, or Common Snake, it would be
well to say a few words on the structure of Snakes in general,
and so avoid some amount of repetition, for in a general way
our three species are alike.

The Slow- worm, our legless Lizard, affords a convenient
transition to the Snakes ; but the bony skeletons of Snake
and Slow-worm exhibit considerable differences. No Snake
possesses a breast-bone, blade-bone, or collar-bone, so that
all the ribs are free at their ends, and they are strongly curved
to produce the cylindrical form of body. When bulky food is
taken the ribs can be flattened out to allow of the necessary
distension of the body until digestion and muscular pressure
have reduced the bulk. The bones of the skull are connected
so loosely that the head can be flattened and widened, so that
the mouth can admit prey equal to three times the size of the
Snake's head under normal conditions. To assist in the
swallowing of such large bodies, the two halves of the lower jaw
have no bony connection but are united instead by elastic
ligaments, so that each half can be moved independently of the
other, and by the alternate movement of the two sides with the
teeth all pointing backwards the food is worked back to
the throat. There are other teeth on the roof of the mouth
which make it difficult for living prey to struggle forward and
escape when once it has been seized. The teeth are all thinly
coated with enamel, and are not planted in sockets. If they
should get broken by the severe work imposed upon them, they
are soon replaced by others which lie in reserve. Poison fangs
are much larger than ordinary teeth, and the enamel is folded
so as to produce a groove down which poison is pressed from a
gland into the wound made by the point of the fang. The fang
is hinged at its base and ordinarily lies pressed back upon the

GRASS SNAKE.

147

upper jaw, and is only " erected" when the Snake is prepared
to strike.

Externally the Snake is covered by small overlapping scales

1 ir

The Head Shields of a Snake.

r, rostral shield ; ff, anterior and posterior frontal ; v, interparietal ; s, snpraocular ;
<?, parietal ; nn', nasal ; /, loreal ; a, preocular ; /, postocular ; un, upper
labial ; //', temporal ; /;/, mental ; **} lower labial ; cc, chin-shields. — After
Giinther.

on the upper parts and by broad plates on the under surface.
The head is covered mainly by shields, each of which has a

148 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

definite name, but for the purposes of this book it is not
necessary to enter upon a tedious recital of these terms, beyond
giving them for reference under the diagram of a Snake's head.
The eyes of a Snake are always wide open, for there are no
movable eyelids to close them. The eyeball has slight power
of movement under its transparent cover, which protects it
much as the watch-glass protects the delicate hands of the
watch. As in the Slow-worm, there is no external indication of
ears, though these are present under the scales. The very long

Skeleton of Snake.

and slender tongue divides forwards into two branches, and
when not in use is drawn into a sheath at its base. It is
constantly used to ascertain the nature of things by contact,
and for this purpose is protruded through a little gap in the
front of the upper jaw. The gape of the mouth extends far
beyond the eye. The forward extremity (glottis] of the wind-
pipe can be thrust outside the mouth when, owing to the passage
of a bulky victim, there is danger of obstruction by compression.
The British Snakes represent the two families Colubridas and
Viperidce.

Every summer and autumn our daily newspapers afford

GRASS SNAKE. 149

evidence that on the subject of Snakes the average man has
not advanced in knowledge beyond that of his prototype a
thousand years or so back. With all that has been done in
various ways during the last half-century to spread knowledge
of natural things, it is astonishing that editors should admit
scare reports about Snakes without a line to set the reader
right. Internal evidence shows that nine-tenths of these alarm-
ing reports about poisonous and aggressive Snakes refer to the
innocuous Grass Snake. This is the kind of thing that reflects
the vaunted intelligence and calmness of the average Briton : —

" An enormous snake was killed yesterday at — — , only a
few yards from where some children were playing. The Rev.
Mr. Blank courageously seized the reptile behind the head, but
when it hissed savagely at him he was forced to throw it down.
Its head was then smashed with a pole, and finally it was
despatched with the aid of a spade. The venomous monster
was found to be over three feet in length. Its nest was found
and a large number of eggs destroyed."

A very elementary knowledge of our native snakes — such as
all country folk might be expected to possess — would dispose of
all this fear and sensation, for no one has ever found a Viper or
Adder — our only venomous snake — that measured quite as
much as three feet, or that had a nest of eggs.

The Grass Snake is our largest British species, full-grown
females averaging four feet in length ; the males a foot less.
Exceptional examples are little short of six feet, and in Italy
the same species attains to a length of eight feet. It is of
graceful form, the body tapering gently from its middle to the
very slender tip of the tail. The long, narrow head, covered
with large shields, ends in a blunt snout, with eyes and nostrils
at the sides. The rather large eyes have round pupils circled
with gold and a dark brown iris. Just behind the head there
are two patches of yellow or orange (sometimes white) forming

150 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

a bright collar which serves to indicate this species at a glance.
In large females this collar is sometimes missing. Immediately
behind it are two patches of black, often united in the middle
line, and behind these the ground colour of grey, olive, or brown
is uniform to the tip of the tail. Upon the ground colour of the
back are laid two rows of small blackish spots, and a row of
short vertical bars along each side. The underside, which is
covered with broad plates, is chequered in black and white (or
grey) ; but is sometimes entirely black. The tail accounts for
about one-fifth only of the total length.

Apart from the head-shields and the broad plates of the
underside, the Grass Snake is covered with nineteen rows of
small, overlapping, lance-shaped scales with a central ridge or
"keel." These scales are an outgrowth from the skin, and
when the Snake moults they do not fall off as the hairs of fur-
clad animals do, but the entire skin with its scales is cast
intact. It separates first at the edges of the jaws, and the Snake
pushes against the ground, stones, or plant stems until the loose
skin is behind the head. Then it glides out of the remainder,
reversing it in the process. In these discarded sloughs the
lens-like covering of the eye will be found unbroken.

In the autumn the Grass Snake retires to some safe shelter
under the roots of trees, among the stubs of a coppice, under
a brushwood pile or fernstack, in order to pass the winter in
sleep. As a rule, several or many associate in hibernation, and
when found they are usually twined together in intricate knots.
Here they remain until March or April, when the Frogs, Toads,
and Newts, emerging from a similar retirement, are available
for a good meal. About this time the males seize the females
in their jaws, and with their bodies entwined pairing takes
place. Some time between June and August the female seeks
some convenient mass of fermenting vegetable matter amidst
which to burrow and deposit her eggs. If a heap of fresh
stable manure is available she will prefer it, the heat hastening

GRASS SNAKE. 151

incubation. The eggs — which may number a dozen or anything
up to four dozen — are equal-ended ovals with a tough, parch-
ment-like shell, and all connected in a string. As soon as laid
they begin to absorb moisture from their surroundings, and
increase in size until they are about an inch and a quarter in
length. They hatch in from six to ten weeks, according to
temperature, and the baby Grass Snakes measure from six to
eight inches. Before hatching they are provided with a special
egg-tooth projecting from the front of the jaws, which enables
them to pierce the egg-shell. It soon becomes loose and drops
off after its special function has been performed. The young
Snake sheds its skin before taking its first meal, and thereafter
goes through the same process four or five times in a year.

The Grass Snake appears to have a life comparatively long.
The female is about four years old, with a length of two feet,
before she begins to breed. Gadow mentions a fine female
which he had alive for nine years, and during this period her
length increased from thirty-five to forty-two inches.

Although the Grass Snake may be found frequently about
ponds and ditches where there are Frogs, Toads, and Newts to
be caught, it is by no means restricted to such resorts, but may
be met with on chalk hills, sandy heaths, and other places far
removed from water. In addition to the amphibians men-
tioned, it feeds occasionally on fish, mice, and small birds. The
young Snake takes worms, tadpoles, and the young of newts,
frogs, and toads. It swims well and often enters the water to
obtain its prey. Although an agile reptile, it may be caught
without difficulty where the ground is not too rich in mouse
runs or too well covered with furze. The undulations by which
it progresses are always horizontal, not vertical as sometimes
represented by imaginative artists. When captured it seldom
makes any attempt at biting, though it will hiss freely and snap
its jaws. It usually seeks rather to disgust its captor by the
voiding of a fetid secretion with a strong odour of garlic

152 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

among other objectionable scents. It soon becomes gentle and
tame.

The Grass Snake is widely distributed over England, Wales,
and the south-eastern parts of Scotland. It appears never to
have reached Ireland. Various attempts have been made to
introduce it in the latter country, but the prejudices of the
people and their respect for the legendary miracle of their
patron saint have always prevented the Snakes from establishing
themselves.

Smooth Snake (Coronetta austriaca, Lacepede).

Although in general appearance similar to the Grass Snake
the Smooth Snake in the hand exhibits a sufficient number of
differences to make its identification easy. The smoothness
which gives it a name is at once evident to our sense of touch,
and is due to the fact that all its scales lack the little keels or
ridges that give a certain roughness to the common species. It
never attains to so large a size as the Grass Snake, its maximum
length being two feet.

The ground colour of this snake on the upper side is grey,
brown, or reddish, with small black, brown, or red spots, which
are usually in pairs ; occasionally there are three lighter longi-
tudinal stripes. The upper part of the head is sometimes
blackish ; this is more frequently so in young examples. A
dark streak runs from the nostrils and through the eye to the
angle of the mouth. This streak may be prolonged, even to the
tail. On the underside the colouring is some tint of orange,
red, brown, grey, or black, with or without black spots or dots.
The eye has a round pupil like that of the Grass Snake, and
this helps to give it a similar gentle appearance.

Prior to the year 1853 British specimens had been regarded
as mere variations of the Grass Snake, but in that year it was
captured by Mr. F. Bond at Ringwood by the New Forest,
though it was not recorded under its proper name until six

SMOOTH SNAKE. 153

years later. It has been found since in other parts of Hamp-
shire, in Dorset, Surrey, and Berkshire ; in some places
abundantly, especially those in which the Sand Lizard occurs,
this being the Smooth Snake's favourite prey. Its usual resorts
are heaths, stony wastes and wooded hillsides. Its food
consists mainly of Lizards, but it also takes young Snakes and
Slow-worms ; occasionally it consumes mice and mice-like
mammals including the Voles and Shrews. When these are
sufficiently large it is said to coil around them in Boa-con-
strictor fashion.

Pairing takes place soon after emergence from hibernation in
spring. As in the case of the Slow-worm and the Common
Lizard, the eggs are retained until the young are ready to
hatch out, and they are born about the end of August. They
vary in number from two to fifteen, but usually there are about
six to a birth. They are enveloped in a thin membrane which
is ruptured immediately, and the Snakes are seen to be about
five or six inches in length.

Like the Grass Snake this species emits an objectionable
odour when captured, and at first attempts to bite, but this un-
friendly phase passes quickly, and it becomes perfectly tame
and exhibits a considerable amount of intelligence.

It may be as well to add that, if we count the rows of small
scales on the back and sides of either of our non-venomous
Snakes, we shall find there are nineteen of them. In the Viper
there are twenty-one rows — rarely nineteen or twenty-three.
Each one of these scales is marked with a tiny pit which
appears to coincide with the end of a nerve fibre, so that one
may say the sense of touch resides in every separate scale.
The head is less distinct from the body than is the case in the
Grass Snake ; and the slender tail is one-fourth of the entire
length in the male and one-sixth in the female.

The Smooth Snake is found throughout the greater part of
Europe.

154 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Viper or Adder ( Vipera lerus, Linn.).

At a superficial glance the Viper is quite distinct from our
other Snakes. Instead of the long, gracefully tapered body of
these, the Viper is short and thick in the body with a short tail.
So far as the length is concerned, the average Viper is less
than two feet. A few exceptionally large females have been
recorded measuring two feet eleven inches ; but the female is
always slightly longer than the male — usually about an inch
more. Two feet three inches may be regarded as the ordinary
maximum for a female. The head is flatter above, and it
broadens behind the eyes, so that it is very distinct from the
body ; further, the shields on the head are very much smaller
than the corresponding plates of the Grass Snake. The iris of
the eye is coppery-red, and the pupil is vertical — which usually
denotes nocturnal habits, but the Viper is active by day as well
as by night, and is fond of basking in the sunshine.

Respecting colour, there is a considerable range of variation,
much of it sexual ; but, generally speaking, it may be said to
be some tint of brown, olive, or grey, and this ground colour
may be so dark that the darker markings are scarcely per-
ceptible on a cursory view. Along the sides there are whitish
spots, sometimes reduced to mere dots. The brown, red-brown,
or olive males have black markings ; the grey or whitish males
are marked with brown or black, and have the underside black,
The throat is black, or whitish with scales spotted or edged with
black.

The females if brown or brick-red have dark brown or red
markings ; olive females have brick-red bands or spots. The
yellowish-white chin and throat are sometimes tinged with red.
The eyes of the female are smaller than those of the male.

The markings are subject to a good deal of variation as well
as the ground colour. The usual wavy or zigzag line down the
centre of the back, with a series of spots on either side, may be

VIPER OR ADDER. 155

broken up into oval spots ; and the characteristic pair of dark
bars on the head may form either a A or an X- The broad
shields which cover the lower surface may be grey, brown,
bluish, or black, or bluish with triangular spots of black, some-
times with white dots along the margins. Below the end of the
tail the colour is yellow or orange. Specimens have been
recorded almost entirely of a rich black, the excepted portion
being the whitish underside of the head and throat.

The usual haunts of the Viper are sandy heaths, dry moors,
the sunny slopes of hills and hedge-banks, bramble clumps,
nettle beds, heaps of stones and sunny places in woods ; but
we have also found it in heathy and grassy places that were
distinctly and permanently wet. For food they appear to prefer
small mammals such as mice, shrews and voles, young weasels ;
but also take birds, lizards, slow-worms, frogs, newts, and large
slugs. The young subsist for a time on insects and worms.

The Viper retires in autumn to a hollow under dry moss
among the heather, under faggot stacks or into the discarded
and leaf-covered ground nests of birds. They reappear about
April, and may then be seen coiled on a sunny bank, apparently
more concerned to absorb heat than to find food. They pair at
this season, and the young (varying from five to twenty) are
born in August or September. In this species, again, the eggs
are retained until fully developed, and when the young see the
light they are coiled up tightly in a thin, transparent membrane,
which usually breaks during the process of birth. They measure
from six to eight inches, and are at once independent.

The hoary old legend about the mother Viper opening her
jaws to afford sanctuary to her young in time of danger has
probably arisen from some occasional acts of cannibalism. It
presupposes what is not true of any of our reptiles — that the
young remain with their parent. They all begin life equipped
for independence, and act accordingly.

The Viper is not so amenable to a life of captivity as our

156 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

other Snakes. It is not amiable, indeed its temper may be
described as short and sulky, which it displays by refusing
all offers of food ; most captive Vipers die of starvation, the
"hunger strike" being their effective protest against the depriva-
tion of liberty. On being captured they are always ready to
bite ; but in a state of freedom the Viper is not the aggressive
monster that is popularly supposed. It seems to depend largely
upon its inactivity for escaping observation, but when it knows
it has been discovered its immediate impulse is to seek cover.
Accidents from Viper bites are rare in this country, where
people go about well shod, and there are very few cases of
authenticated death from this cause. On the Continent, how-
ever, such cases are frequent ; and it is suggested that in the
warmer parts of Europe, where bare feet are more numerous,
the Viper's venom may also be more active than it is here. It
is the toes or fingers that are most likely to be bitten, for the
Viper's mouth is not large enough to enable it to bite the larger
parts. The mechanism by which the poison is introduced
into the blood of its victim has been briefly described on
page 146.

It must not be supposed from the foregoing remarks that we
deprecate caution in dealings with the Viper ; but we do desire,
if possible, to dispose of that senseless fear that is unworthy of
man. If the victim is in bad health the bite of the Viper may
involve very unpleasant consequences — even death, but this is
much more likely to follow from the sting of a gnat ! In case
of a bite from this species, the approved treatment is to suck
the wound thoroughly and apply oil to it. The rustic remedy
approved by quack doctors is an oil prepared from the Viper's
own fat — " a hair of the dog that bit you " sort of cure. A
ligament above the wound will prevent the poison spreading ;
and the blood may be made alkaline by the internal adminis-
tration of ammonia. The popular idea in many parts is that
the reddish-coloured Vipers have more virulent poison than the

I

SB o

_ •*

2 >

2 5-

rjirfv /,;* s
i^t^f *'f?* «'.

FROG. 157

others, but there does not appear to be any good grounds for
this differentiation.

The Viper is found in all parts of Britain, but is not known
in Ireland.

Frog (Ra?ia temporaria, Linn.).

With the Common Frog, popularly classed as a Reptile, we
commence acquaintance with the zoological class Batrachia,
creatures that begin life at a much lower stage of development
and have to pass through a fish-like larval form before attaining
to any likeness to their parents. The Reptiles get through
these developmental stages whilst they are still in the egg ;
they never have water-breathing organs. The Batrachians or
Amphibians are clothed with soft skin which is not protected
by armour plates or scales as seen in the Lizards and Snakes,
but through which they are able to oxygenate the blood. The
Frogs, Toads, and Newts constitute a class intermediate in
structure and development between the Fishes and the Reptiles.
Our native species represent the two orders — Ecaudata (tail-
less), including the Frogs and Toads ; and Caudata (tailed)
comprising the Newts.

Everybody knows the Frog as well as they know any of the
backboned animals, and every youngster even is familiar with
the main facts of its development, from the jelly masses of eggs
in the pond early in spring, through the tadpole stage to the
attainment of four legs and wonderful leaping powers. It is
common knowledge that he has a moist, smooth skin (the
supersensitive erroneously say u slimy") of yellowish ground
colour overlaid with streaks and spots of brown. There is a
big patch of brown behind each eye, and the long hind legs
have cross-bars of the same colour. The ground tint of the
Frog varies in different individuals according to the situation
in which we may find them ; for the pigment cells of the skin
expand and contract under the influence of varying intensities

i58

ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

of light reflected from the surroundings, causing colour changes
much after the manner of those of the Chameleon, though less
marked.

The Frog's fore limbs are very short compared with the hind
pair, and the four moderate-sized fingers are not connected
by webs ; whereas, the hind limbs have their several bones

Skeleton of Frog1.

lengthened, and the abnormal lengthening of those of the
ankle gives the legs the appearance of having a supplementary
joint. The leg is one and a half times the length of head and
body. The foot has five long toes connected for half their
length by a "web" of skin which constitutes a very efficient
paddle when the Frog is in the water. Of these hind toes the
fourth is considerably longer than the long third and fifth.
The Frog's head is as broad as it is long, the muzzle rounded,

FROG. 159

and the horizontal gape of the mouth extends back beyond the
eye. The prominent eyes are perched up on the forehead, and
have a fine golden iris and a horizontal pupil. The Frog differs
from the Snakes and agrees with the Lizards in having eyelids ;
he has also, like the Birds, an additional lid — the nictitating
membrane. There is a row of delicate teeth along the upper
jaw, but none on the lower ; there are others on the palate.
The deeply notched tongue is attached by its base to the front
part of the mouth, the tip far in towards the throat ; in use it
has to be suddenly turned over so that the tip is projected far
beyond the muzzle. The large circular depression behind and
below the eye is the drum of the Frog's ear.

The Frog has no neck, the base of his skull coming close to
the collar-bones, and there are only a few pairs of very short
apologies for ribs between the shoulders and the long pelvis
which produces that steep incline at the rear of his back. He
is clothed entirely with a smooth, soft skin, which is kept moist
by the action of minute mucous glands distributed all over the
body. A row of these glands of larger size forms a pale line
running back from the eye on either side. The skin plays an
important part in the oxygenation of the Frog's blood ; and the
experimental physiologists have shown that a Frog deprived of
its lungs can carry on its respiration for a lengthened period
through the skin alone. Owing to the absence of ribs he has to
fill his lungs by swallowing air.

The male is less portly than the female, and he is further
distinguished by having two pads on the first finger which in
the breeding season become large rough cushions enabling him
to hold his mate. In his throat there is a pair of vocal sacs
enabling him to produce his love songs, and when these are in
use their inflation causes a distension of the skin of the throat ;
but without these adjuncts the female manages to give answering
croakings. When these duets are sung under water they produce
some curious effects.

l6o ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

When the pairing season arrives — quite early, usually about
the middle of March, but sometimes in February — all the Frogs
that have just come out of hibernation select their mates. Any
pool of water will do, however transient, and they often make
mistakes in this matter, their egg-masses being left high and
dry when the waters dry up. The eggs are deposited in a mass
of a thousand to two thousand at the bottom of the water, and
at first they are only about a tenth of an inch in diameter, but
the gelatinous covering absorbs so much water that they swell
up to a third of an inch. There is a corresponding lightening
of the mass, which floats to the surface and is available for
observation. Each of the little jelly-spheres is seen to have a
black centre — the egg proper — with a white spot on the lower
side. If the spring is an average one, in about four weeks'
time the black specks will have developed into brown larvae or
tadpoles, and having escaped from the egg these will be
clinging to the remains of the jelly mass by means of a pair of
suckers on the underside of the head. There are at present no
indications of limbs — head, body and tail, like those of a fish,
merge one into another. Even the gills are not yet developed,
though what we may term the buds of them are seen on the
bars separating the slits behind the head on each side.
These buds soon expand into gill-plumes through which the
blood circulates, taking up oxygen from the water that passes
between them. There is as yet no mouth, but this will soon
open, and horny plates on its jaws will enable the tadpole to
crop soft vegetable matter, upon which it subsists chiefly. Later
on, the gill-plumes will be hidden by a flap which grows over
them. The full series of stages in this development may easily
be watched by keeping a few tadpoles in a glass of water with
a little growing pond weed.

Ultimately, the limbs appear. Though all four develop
simultaneously, the hind pair appear first, because the fore
limbs are at first hidden by the flap which grew over the gills.

FROG. l6l

After the disappearance of the gill-plumes, proper lungs are
developed inside the body, and the animal changes from a fish-
like water-breather to an air-breather, in preparation for a life
on land. When all the legs are well out the form of the tadpole
soon changes to that of the Frog, except that it has a long tail
You may read in some books that the tail is shed, but this is a
mistake that no one could make who has watched day by day
the evolution of the Frog from the tadpole. The tail is absorbed;
it gets smaller daily, until finally the hind body is rounded off
and there is nothing left to indicate that it once ended in a tail.
Ultimately the Frog may attain a length of head and body
equal to four inches.

Mr. E. S. Goodrich, F.R.S., has recently demonstrated that
eggs obtained from a female Frog by dissection can be fertilised
by the leucocytes or colourless corpuscles of the blood. He
exhibited a fatherless Frog, so obtained, before the Linnean
Society in November, 1918.

When all the tadpoles have become real little Frogs, with
their legs sufficiently firm to enable them to indulge in hopping
exercises, they still for a time venture no further than the very
shallow water at the extreme edge of the pond, where they can
walk partially submerged. Then one day there comes a heavy
summer rain storm — a deluge on a small scale. Every little
Frog then appears to hear the word " Go ! " for with one impulse
they all scramble out of the pond into the jungle of wet grass,
they know not whither. If there is a road near, that is the place
in which to form an idea of their prodigious numbers. The few
wayfarers who may be hurrying along that road, looking for
possible shelter from the pitiless rain, and seeing the Frogs
hopping along much as the raindrops bounce, are quite prepared
to declare that they came down from the clouds with the rain.
Many persons who in the ordinary affairs of life would be re-
garded as reliable witnesses have testified that this is what
happens. To them it seems a much more reasonable explanation

A.L. M

l62 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

of this sudden appearance — they term it a phenomenon — than
the naturalist's statement that the Frogs had been waiting
in the pond for the psychical moment to arrive for their dis-
persion— the time when the reeking herbage of many acres
around would offer the safest conditions for their tender bodies
to embark on the great adventure of life, their distribution over
wide areas where they could carry out their proper function, the
control of any inordinate increase in the insect population.
For months they will crawl and hop invisibly among the lush
grass and journey through the dense herbage of hedge-bottoms
and spinneys. Some will come under fences even into our
gardens, to help us in an unequal warfare in which the gardener
is always defeated by the insect, whether the bigger combatant
admits it or not. Their food consists entirely of insects, slugs,
and worms. In turn the Frog constitutes the food of many
larger animals, including fishes, birds, snakes and weasels.
The winter is spent embedded in mud at the pond-bottom, or in
damp holes in the earth.

The Common Frog is distributed widely all over Britain, but
is only of local occurrence in Ireland. Abroad it ranges over
Central and Northern Europe as far as Sweden and Norway,
and eastward to Mid-Asia.

Edible Frog (Rana escuknta, Linn.).

Although the Common Frog is the only species that is really
native in Britain, another one — the Edible Frog, a Continental
species — has been naturalised in the Eastern Counties of
England since the early part of the nineteenth century, when
Mr. Geo. Berney brought about 1500 specimens from France
and Belgium and turned them loose in the Fens, in the neigh-
bourhood of Stoke Ferry, where they are no longer plentiful,
though they occur locally in various parts of Norfolk. A few
years later (1843) Mr. Thurnall discovered the species in the

EDIBLE FROG. 163

Cambridgeshire Fens at Foulmire — a great distance (30 to 40
miles) from Stoke Ferry. Bell says his father had noted the
presence of these Foulmire frogs, under the name of " Whaddon
Organs," about the middle of the eighteenth century ; so that it
appeared that Mr. Berney had "taken coals to Newcastle" —
in other words, had introduced the Edible Frog to a part of
England where it already existed. In 1884 Dr. G. A. Boulenger
discovered that the Foulmire frogs were of the Italian form of
Ranci esciclenta known as the variety lessona, which made it
doubtful whether they could be travelled descendants of Mr.
Berney's frogs. So it was suggested that they were a survival
from an introduction by the Romans — who are always dragged
in to help out doubtful cases.

The difference in the French and Italian forms is mainly one
of colour, the type being a beautiful grass- green, whereas lessonce
is olive-brown. But it has since transpired that lessonce is not
restricted to Italy as Boulenger thought, for he has more recently
discovered it in Belgium and near Paris, and it has been re-
corded from parts of the former Austrian and German Empires.
Such differences as there are in the two forms are not funda-
mental, and the brown tint of the Foulmire examples may be
due to their environment. Fresh importations from the Con-
tinent have been liberated in recent years in Hampshire, Surrey,
Oxfordshire, and Bedfordshire.

The Edible Frog attains to a rather larger size than the
Common Frog. It is usually without the dark patch extending
from the eye to the shoulder, and the markings of the body — '
especially the bright yellow and black marblings of the hinder
parts — are darker and bolder. There is usually a light yellow
or green line running down the middle of the back from the
muzzle to the hinder extremity. The most distinctive feature,
however, is restricted to the male sex : at the hinder angle of
the mouth, just below the ear, are external vocal sacs which,
when the owner is inclined to be melodious, become distended

164 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

with air to the size of large peas, giving him a very quaint
appearance. The croak differs from that of the Common Frog,
and has been described as "more of a loud snore, exactly like
that of the Barn Owl ; " but this probably refers to the vocal
efforts of the female, for Bell says it is so loud and shrill as to
have obtained for the frogs the names of "Cambridgeshire
Nightingales " and " Whaddon Organs." The males continue
to "sing" after the breeding season is past, particularly on
warm moonlight nights, when they may be heard for over a mile
when the choir consists of several hundred voices. The notes
are " Brekeke, gwarr, ooaar, coarx."

To return to a description of the Edible Frog. Full-grown
examples measure from two and a half to four inches of head
and body ; the females larger than the males. The head is
more slender than in the Common Frog, and the brown ear-
drum is two-thirds of the diameter of the eye. The teeth on
the palate form two oblique lines ; and there is a pair of
glandular folds behind the eye. The ground colour of the
upper parts ranges from dull brown through olive to bright green,
with dark brown or blackish spots on the back and larger
patches of similar tint on the limbs. There is usually a bronzy-
brown line along each side of the back, in addition to the
central one already named. The back of the thigh is always
spotted with black and white or yellow. Though the thigh of
the Common Frog is barred or blotched, it never bears these
additional spots. The coloration generally is much brighter
where the vegetation is light than in dark swamps with sombre
vegetation.

The developmental history of the Edible Frog from the egg to
the loss of the tadpole tail follows much the same course as that
of the common species, and it is not necessary to recapitulate
it. The eggs are more numerous, one female producing from
five to ten thousand. The tadpole condition lasts three or four
months. Full-grown tadpoles are about two and a half inches

Egg-ropes of Toad coiled around water-plants.

Hi |/V I,

w

PL 102. M 164.

Newly-hatched Tadpoles clinging to remains of egg-ropes.

Common Toad.

COMMON TOAD. 165

long, of which more than an inch and a half is tail. The frog
that has just got rid of his tail measures only half an inch. ,The
young frogs are not such wanderers as their Common cousins,
but remain in the vicinity of their birthplace, unless the pond
dries up. They like to bask in the sun and wait till their food
comes within range of their extensible tongues. They become
mature between the fourth and fifth years.

This is the Frog whose hind legs are served as food in the
restaurants of France and of the French quarters in London.
We have not experimented with them as food, but remember
that Frank Buckland, who was keen upon out-of-the-ordinary
dishes, described them as " tasting more like the delicate flesh
of the Rabbit than anything else I can think of." Our old
friend, Miss Susan Hopley, told us that she once unwittingly
partook of a much larger kind in the United States, and
innocently remarked, " What a pity to kill such very young
chickens ! " She says she was moved to the remark by the
insipidity of the dish.

The Edible Frog is found all over Europe and in Northern
Asia.

The beautiful little Tree Frog (Hyla arboreal), of bright green
colour, with expanded toe-tips which make it an expert climber,
is widely distributed on the Continent, whence it is frequently
introduced to our conservatories. Some of these examples
turned loose years ago in the Isle of Wight have become
naturalised in some parts of the island, where they have become
so numerous as to arouse complaints against their noisy
nocturnal croaking during the breeding season.

Common Toad (Bufo vulgaris, Laurent).

Though in general terms the Toad may be said to be of
similar form to the Frog, there is no need for a very minute

l66 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

catalogue of differences to enable the reader to discriminate
between the two. So well-known are both amphibians to sight
that the majority of persons know them by their correct names
on a casual glance ; yet we have met many who confuse them,
and for this minority it is well to give some of the Toad's
points.

He has a flatter back than the Frog, the bones of the pelvis
not producing so sharp an angle ; and the hind legs are not so
long in proportion to the body, only slightly exceeding the
length of head and body, whereas in the Frog they are one and
a half times that length. The Toad seems more solidly built
than the Frog, with broader head, shorter limbs, and in general
aspect is closer to the earth, a heavier, more grovelling creature
than the vaulting Frog. This earthliness is accentuated by
the texture and colour of his skin. Instead of the moist and
shining, bright-coloured coat of the Frog we have a dry, dull,
pimply skin so strongly resembling the earth that he is
frequently passed by as a lifeless clod. That is one of the
Toad's strong points ; and he has the patience to squat motion-
less for hours, tiring out any enemy that looks for movement
as proof of life. He is too heavy to take a leap ; instead he
progresses by very short jumps on all four feet which give the
impression of being accomplished only by a great effort. But
he rises alertly to his full quadrupedal height when he is
considering the best way to negotiate a worm.

The colour of the Toad varies a good deal according to the
nature of the soil upon which he happens to live. It is usually
some tint of brown or grey, but the brown may be almost red
in sandpits, a rich brown or a dirty brown ; the grey may be
light or with an olive tinge or a sooty hue that may pass as
black. As he is only active in the evenings and at night, any
of these tints serve to render him inconspicuous in the general
duskiness. Even his bright eyes, being coppery red in colour,
do not serve to draw attention to him.

COMMON TOAD. 167

The pimples of various size that diversify his skin are not
mere ornament, though they help materially to produce the
clod-resemblance. They are glands that on occasion pour out
an acrid and offensive fluid that often saves the Toad when he
is caught up in the jaws of some unsophisticated carnivorous
beast or bird. Experience teaches such enemies to leave the
Toad alone. The largest of these glands — the parotid — may be
seen as an elongated, porous swelling behind the eye. The
underside is whitish, the white being qualified always with an
admixture of yellow, brown, or red, sometimes spotted with
black.

In the matter of size : taking the head and body for length,
average males measure about two and a half inches and
females an inch longer. Occasionally we may meet with much
larger examples, and we may safely set down such monsters as
females. The male has no vocal sacs, internal or external, as
in the Frogs ; but both sexes can croak with several variations
of tone. These sounds are emitted much more freely in the
pairing season. The male develops special grasping pads on
the palm and three inner fingers, at the pairing time.

After the breeding season Toads wander away from the
water, and distribute their forces over field, hedgerow, wood,
and gardens, wherever there is an abundance of insect life, for
the quantity of food each Toad consumes is enormous. It
includes beetles, caterpillars, flies, snails, worms, woodlice, and
small mice. If the droppings of a Toad be examined, they will
be found to consist very largely of the indigestible parts of
beetles. The Toad spends the hotter part of the day concealed
under the lower foliage of plants, and as many nocturnal insects
seek similar situations in the daytime, he has no difficulty in
enjoying a continual feast. His appetite appears to be always
keen, no matter how well he has fed. Some years ago, when
we were pointing to a portly female in her favourite daytime
" form " in the garden, a friend expressed the opinion that she

168 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

was overfed, and we remarked that you cannot overfeed a
Toad. Our friend was sceptical, and undertook to provide
more food than she could eat. There followed a hunt for the
fattest caterpillars and the longest worms, and the Toad
accepted them as readily as though she were breaking a fast.
The caterpillar hunter grew tired of the business whilst the Toad
was still quite fresh, and he admitted that with so elastic an
integument there was no knowing what was the limit of a
Toad's feeding capacity.

The Toad has the homing faculty well developed. By the
judicious wriggling of his hind-quarters he scoops out a hollow
in the soil, preferably under a root or stone, so that he can lie
without being conspicuous.- In the evening he sets out hunting,
and may travel some distance ; but before morning he is back
snugly in his form, where he may be found during the day for
many months. A similar sense of locality — "orientation" the
naturalists call it — is manifested in the choice of ponds for
breeding. Any chance pool, however temporary in character,
will serve the Frog, but the Toad is more particular and has
special requirements for a nursery. Any one who has observed
our batrachians during a series of years must have noticed that
scores of Toads may be seen in early spring, all converging
upon a particular pond, perhaps passing some other piece of
water that looks quite suitable for their purpose. In a garden
where we kept a portion wild as cover for many of the smaller
animals, we had a considerable number of Frogs and Toads
that had come there voluntarily. A small pond was freely
visited by them, together with Newts, an occasional snake and
stray aquatic birds. The Frogs and Newts bred there every
year ; the Toads never. In a field two or three hundred yards
beyond our boundary was a large deep pond that had formerly
been a brickmaker's pit, but the suitable earth being exhausted
it had been allowed to fill with water. To this pond Toads
came in the spring from all quarters. On a mild moist evening

COMMON TOAD. 169

when the great impulse took possession of the Toads, we used
to see scores of them hopping across a well-used road that
divided the grass-lands, and next morning would see the lifeless
bodies of many that had been flattened out by motor-wheels in
the dark. On the further side of the pond the continuity of the
grass-land was again broken by a railway line, and here you
would see them hopping across the track and climbing over the
rails, many, of course, meeting fate in the adventure.

In our present neighbourhood there is a large pond fed by
springs from the plateau gravels of an extensive common. In
the days of our boyhood there was open grassland and copse
between the common and the pond with only an ordinary hedge
to mark that it was private land. At the present time the pond
forms a fine piece of ornamental water in a private garden, and
on all sides residental roads surround it. Yet this pond must
have been a Toads7 breeding place in the old days, for in the
spring we find Toads on the tarred sidewalks of the roads
seeking for gaps in the fence through which they may reach the
desired trysting place ; and we have sometimes put them in
the way of finding it. It is very probable that in such cases the
Toads are making their way back to the identical pond in which
they first saw the light — a corollary to the case of the migrant
birds that find their way back to build their nests in the copse
or hedgerow where they were hatched.

The small, black eggs of the Toad differ from those of the
Frogs in the fact that they form a double row embedded in a
gelatinous string ten to fifteen feet in length. Like those of
the Frog the eggs by imbibing water swell to three times their
original size. The strings are wound about the stems of water,
weeds by the movements of their parents, and the little black
larvae are hatched out in about a fortnight. For the first few
days they cling to the egg-strings, then hang tails downwards
from the undersides of leaves. They go through similar stages
to those of the Frog tadpole, and become small tailless Toads,

170 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

a little more than half an inch long, in eleven or twelve weeks.
It is five years before they reach maturity ; but the full period
of life is not known. In old age they frequently succumb to the
attacks of flesh-eating flies whose eggs are deposited on the
back of the Toad, and the small maggots entering by eye or
nostril devour the brain and eyes.

The Common Toad is found all over England, Wales, and
Scotland ; but Ireland appears never to have had it, in spite of
the legend that St. Patrick banished it with the Snakes. It
occurs all over Europe, through Siberia, the Amoor, and the
Himalayas to China ; also on the further side of the Mediter-
ranean, in Morocco, and Algeria.

Natterjack (Bufo calamity Laurent).

Although in general appearance the Natterjack may be said
to resemble the Common Toad, a close inspection reveals
differences that at once distinguish it as a separate species. It
is smaller than the common species and its legs are not only
actually but also proportionately shorter. But the narrow
yellow line that runs along the centre of the head and back is
the most distinctive mark, and has suggested one of its local
names — Golden-back. Running Toad is the name by which it
is known in the Fens, and this is a good descriptive name, for
owing to the shortness of the hind limbs the Natterjack does
not hop. It runs for a short distance, then stops for a little, and
runs on again.

The maximum length of head and body is three inches, and
there is no marked difference in size between the sexes ; but
the male develops nuptial pads on his first three fingers, and
he has a large internal vocal sac whose use causes a great
bulging of his bluish throat. The skin, though warty, is
smooth ; its ground colour is pale yellowish-brown tending to
olive, with clouding and distant spots of a darker brown or

PI 1 06.

Crested Newt, female,

climbing glass side of tank.

NATTERJACK. IJ I

greenish hue. The underside is yellowish-white with black
spots, and the legs are barred with black. The prominent eyes
are greenish-yellow, and the long porous gland (parotid) behind
the eye is smaller than in the Common Toad.

The Natterjack breeds later than the common species, the
pairing not beginning before the end of April and being spread
over May and June. Like the Frog, it is careless regarding the
permanent nature of its spawning place. The locality chosen
is advertised by the rattling noise of the males, a loud trilling
croak continued for a few seconds at a time, and of sufficient
power to be heard a mile away. The egg-strings are short as
compared with those of the Common Toad, being only five or
six feet in length. The blackish tadpoles are only an inch long
when fully grown ; but they get through their development into
tailless Toads in less than six weeks, and are then less than
half an inch long. In another year they only measure three-
quarters of an inch ; and when they become mature between
the fourth and fifth years they are only between an inch and a
half and two inches long.

The Natterjack feeds on insects and worms, and though its
activities are mainly nocturnal, it may be seen running about in
full sunshine. When molested it spreads itself out flat on the
ground and pretends to be dead. The secretion from its glands
when annoyed is said to smell " of gunpowder or india-rubber."

It is plentiful in some English localities, but it appears to be
somewhat migratory, many places whence it may have been re-
corded last year failing to yield a specimen to the careful searcher
this year. Sir Joseph Banks first called attention to it as a
British species in the account published in Pennant's " British
Zoology" (1776). Part of his note is worth quoting : "This
species frequents dry and sandy places : it is found on Putney
Common, and also near Revesby Abbey, Lincolnshire, where it
is called the Natter Jack. It never leaps, neither does it crawl
with the slow pace of a Toad, but its motion is liker to running.

172 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

Several are found commonly together, and, .like others of the
genus, they appear in the evenings."

In Scotland it is much more rare than in England ; but in
certain parts of Ireland, as around Castlemaine and Valentia
Harbours in Co. Kerry, it is plentiful and known by the name
of Natchet, which is probably an Irish corruption of Natterjack.
In his bright and entertaining " Seventy Years of Irish Life,"
Mr. W. R. Le Fanu gives a native explanation of their continued
presence in Kerry, in spite of St. Patrick's activities : " Notwith-
standing all this, there still exists a species of Toad (the Natchet,
I think) in the barony of Iveragh, in the west of Kerry. I was
fishing in the Carah river the first time I saw them. I said to
two countrymen, who were standing by, ' How was it that these
Toads escaped Saint Patrick? ' * Well, now, yer honour,' said
one of them, ' it's what I'm tould that when Saint Patrick was
down in these parts he went up the Reeks, and when he seen
what a wild and dissolute place Iveragh was, he wouldn't go any
further ; and that's the rason them things does be here still.7
' Well now, yer honour,' said the other fellow, * I wouldn't alto-
gether give into that, for av coorse the saint was, many's the
time, in worse places than Iveragh. It's what I hear, yer honour,
that it was a lady that sent them from England in a letter fifty or
sixty years ago."

The Natterjack is found on the Continent from Denmark and
Sweden to Gibraltar.

As we have naturalised representatives of the Continental
Frogs here, so we have an isolated colony of the European
Midwife Toad (Alytes obstetricans)^ established many years ago
in what was then a nurseryman's garden at Bedford. The
circumstances attending its introduction are not known, but the
colony still exists. The female lays from twenty to fifty bright
yellow eggs connected in a long string, which the male entangles
around his thighs and retires with them to his hole until the
embryos have reached the tadpole stage — a period of about six

Male in bridal attire.

PL 108.

Male, underside.
Smooth Newt.

M 172.

Example with additional right fore-limb.

PL 109.

Cast-off skin.
Smooth Newt.

CRESTED NEWT. 173

weeks. At the proper time he seeks the water, when the tad-
poles escape from the eggs, and complete their development
much after the manner of Common Toad tadpoles.

Crested Newt {Molge cristata, Laurent).

The Newts, of which there are three British species, though
agreeing generally with the Frogs and Toads in their passage
through an aquatic, tadpole stage before attaining their mature
form, differ in the fact that they retain through life the com-
pressed tail. In consequence they constitute, with the Sala-
manders, the order Caudata or Tailed Batrachians. As the
structure, development and habits of the three are much alike
their story may be told here in general terms, before proceeding
to a description of the species separately.

The entire animal is enclosed in a soft skin which develops
mucuous and sensory apparatus, arranged principally along the
sides and the base of the tail. The two pairs of legs are almost
of the same length, the hinder pair being slightly the longer.
The hands have four fingers and the feet five toes as in the other
batrachians. In general form they are like Lizards, and Linnaeus
classified them as such and was followed by the naturalists of
the earlier part of the nineteenth century. During the breeding
season the skin of the males develops into a high crest or fin
along the middle of the back. There is a similar development
above and below the tail. These developments have a triple
importance : they are sexual adornments, swimming aids and
sensory organs. Usually terrestrial animals, the adults are'
impelled to seek the water at the pairing season, and in many
cases travel long distances in order to reach the stagnant pools
that are mostly favoured. There are minute teeth along the jaws
and on the palate ; but they serve only to retain their living
food.

The skin serves the same office of respiration as we mentioned

174 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

in the case of the Frog, and like it they are compelled when on
land to force air into their lungs by a constant pumping and
swallowing action of the mouth and throat.

The male seeks to excite the female by displaying his beautiful
crest and his heightened colours ; also by rubbing her with his
head and lashing her with his tail. Then he emits sperma-
tophores in the form of a mushroom-shaped gelatinous mass
whose head consists largerly of sperms. These sink to the
bottom, whence the female takes them into her body. The eggs

Skeleton of Newt.

are, in consequence, already fertilised when deposited. They
are laid singly against a long leaf of one of the pond-weeds —
Anacharis, Callitriche, Water-moss, etc. — which is folded over
by the female and adheres to the egg. They hatch in about a
fortnight, the liberated larvse being more slender and fish-like
than the tadpoles of the Frog. They have three pairs of
external gills, and soon after hatching they develop two pairs
of thread-like organs from the sides of the upper jaw, which
enable them to cling to water plants. The process of develop-
ment is more prolonged than in the Frogs and Toads, but it is
mostly complete at the end of summer before the hibernation
begins. The little Newts then crawl out of the water and seek

CRESTED NEWT. 175

shelter under stones in the immediate neighbourhood of the
pond.

The Crested Newt, Warty Newt or Great Newt, is our
largest species, attaining a maximum length of six inches, to
which the tail contributes two inches and a half. The skin in
this species is thrown into little warts, and on the upper parts
is dark grey or blackish-brown. Along the lower part of the
sides there is a liberal sprinkling of white dots, and the under-
side is coloured yellow or orange, boldly spotted or blotched
with black. There is a strong collar-like fold at the base of the
throat. The male's nuptial crest starts from the head as a low
frill, but between the shoulders and the thighs becomes high
with its edge deeply notched, the resulting " teeth "waving freely
in the water. Behind the thighs there is a gap, and then the
crest rises again as a tail fin, the lower edge of the tail having
a similar extension. Along the sides of the tail proper runs a
bluish-white, silvery-looking stripe. The eye has a golden
yellow iris.

The female, who exceeds the male in size, is coloured similarly,
but the lower edge of her tail is yellow or orange. Above the
spine runs a depressed line, which is coloured yellow in the breed-
ing season, which begins in April. The newly hatched, semi-
transparent larvae are yellowish-green with two black stripes
along the back, which, later, when the ground colour changes to
a light olive, become broken up into spots, and the flanks and
underside become tinged with gold. They have a finer equip-
ment of branchial plumes than the Frog tadpoles, and their
form is more graceful and not " big headed." Some individuals
do not complete their development before winter, and remain in
the pond until the spring. They may be frozen in solid ice, but
they thaw out none the worse for their cold storage. Their
food consists of any small aquatic life such as insects, worms,
crustaceans, and weaker individuals of their own kind ; later, on
land they feed upon worms and insects.

176 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

The adults, if they did not leave the water immediately after
the conclusion of family affairs, seek dry land in the autumn, and
assemble in numbers in some comfortable damp hole, where
they twist and intertwine into a ball, apparently to prevent loss
of moisture. In this way they pass the winter in a more or
less torpid condition.

The skin is shed much after the manner of the Snake,
separation beginning at the lips, and by the help of the hands
and bodily wrigglings worked off the tail. These sloughs may
be found floating entire in the water looking like Newt-ghosts ;
but on land they may be got rid of piecemeal, the old skin
being sometimes swallowed as in the case of the Toad.

The Crested Newt is widely distributed over England, but is
less plentiful in the west : in Devon it is a scarce species and
locally restricted, and in Cornwall it does not occur. Much
the same applies to Scotland, where it is found as far north as
Perthshire, but not at all in the west. It is absent entirely from
Ireland ; but generally distributed on the Continent.

Smooth Newt (Molge vulgaris, Linn.).

The Smooth Newt, Common Newt, Spotted Newt, Eft or Evat
is the best known of the trio, but is most plentiful in the eastern
half of the Kingdom. It is very much smaller than the Crested
Newt, its maximum length being four inches. It varies in colour,
but the prevailing tint is olive brown with darker spots over the
upper side, and dark streaks on the head. The underside is
orange or vermilion with round black spots, the colours be-
coming more intense in the breeding season ; the throat white
or yellow, mostly dotted with black. The underside of the
female is, as a rule, much paler than that of the male, and often
unspotted. At the mating period the male develops a con-
tinuous crest, running from the top of the head to the end of
the tail, and the lower edge of the tail has a spotted pale blue

PALMATE NEWT. 177

band with black base. The upper edge of the crest is festooned
instead of being serrated. The eye has a golden iris. The
female has shorter fingers and toes than the male.

The breeding history of the Smooth Newt follows much on
the same lines as that of the Crested Newt. The larva is
spotted with yellow along the sides and tail, which ends in a
threadlike prolongation of its tip.

Immediately after the breeding season the adults leave the
water, and seek their food among the vegetation of the land.
They become duller in colour, and the skin becomes more
opaque with a fine velvety surface. They are then the
Dry Evats of country folk. When aquarium-keeping was a
fashionable drawing-room hobby in mid-Victorian days the
Smooth Newt was an annoying pet, owing to its objection to
remaining in the water after the breeding season had passed,
and being so frequently found in a dry and shrivelled con-
dition in obscure corners of the room.

In parts of Ireland it is the Man-eater or Man-keeper (as
well as Dry Ask and Dark Lewker) owing to a superstitious
belief that it enters the mouths of sleepers, and thereafter robs
them of all nutriment of which they may partake.

Palmate Newt (Molge falmata, Dum. and Bibr.).

In general appearance the Palmate Newt is similar to the
Smooth Newt, and is as smooth as that species. There is no
doubt that it is commonly mistaken for it, for a few years ago
it was considered rare, but closer examination shows that whilst
it is local in the south-east of England, it is more plentiful than
the Smooth Newt in the west.

It is a smaller animal than the Smooth Newt, its length
being three inches only. In the breeding season its distinct-
ness is evident, for the male has then a nearly four-sided body
owing to the development of a fold of skin along each side of

A.L. N

i;8 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES.

the back. The crest, instead of being high in front and having
an undulating edge, rises gradually from the head, is of less
height and has an entire margin. The tail appears as though
the tip had been cut off and the attempt to renew it had got ,
only as far as the development of a short thread from the
centre of the cut portion. But what gives the species its name
is a black web which connects the toes. The tail develops a
fin along its lower edge in both sexes, and this in the male is
edged with blue and in the female with orange. Another point
of distinction lies in the colour of the throat. Instead of the
black-dotted white or yellow of the Smooth Newt, the throat of
the Palmate Newt is flesh-coloured without dots.

Above, the colour is olive-brown with darker spots ; below,
the centre is orange bordered by pale yellow, with or without
black spots.

After the breeding season, when the adults leave the water,
the webbing of the feet — being no longer useful— becomes
reduced to a margin along each toe and no longer constituting
a palm ; but the truncated tail remains as a specific distinction,
though the thread-like prolongation becomes very short in the
female.

CLASSIFIED INDEX

TO ORDERS, GENERA, AND SPECIES DESCRIBED IN THIS WORK.

Mammalia.
Order Insectivora.
Talpa europsea, Linn., 13
Sorex araneus, Linn., 21
,, granti, 25
,, minutus, Linn., 25
Neomys fodiens, Schreber, 27
Erinaceus europseus, Linn., 9

Order Chiroptera.
Rhinolophus ferrum-equinum,

Schreber, 34
„ hipposideros, Bech-

stein, 36

Myotis bechsteinii, Kuhl, 40
,, daubentonii, Kuhl, 41
,, mystacinus, Kuhl, 37
,, nattereri, Kuhl, 39
Vespertilio murinus, Linn., 45

,, pipistrellus, Schreber, 43
,, serotinus, Schreber, 44
Nyctalus leisleri, Kuhl, 48

,, noctula, Schreber, 46
Plecotus auritus, Linn., 49
Barbastella barbastellus, Schreber, 5 1

Order Caniivora.
Vulpes canis, Linn., 52
Meles taxus, Boddaert, 55
Lutra vulgar is, Erxleben, 59

Mustela erminea, Linn., 66

,, hibernicus, Thomas, 69

„ martes, Linn., 63

,, nivalis, Linn., 69

,, putorius, Linn., 73
Felis silvestris, Schreber, 75

Order Rodentia.

Oryctolagus cuniculus, Linn., 113
Lepus europoeus, Pallas, 117

,, hibernicus, Bell, 123

,, timidus, Linri., 121
Muscardinus avellanarius, Linn., 82
Evotomys alstoni, Barrett-Hamilton,

112

,, erica, Barrett-Hamilton,

U3

,, glareolus, Schreber, no
,, skomeriensis, Barrett-

Hamilton, 112
Microtus agrestis, Linn., 105

,, orcadensis, Millais, 109
Arvicola amphibius, Linn., 102 •
Apoclemus flavicollis, Melchior, 91
,, fridariensis, Kinnear, 92
,, hebridensis, de Winton, 92
,, sylvaticus, Linn., 89
Micromys minutus, Pallas, 86
Epimys norvegicus, Erxleben, 97
,, rattus, Linn., 95

179

i So

CLASSIFIED INDEX.

Mus muralis, Barrett-Hamilton, 94

„ musculus, Linn., 92
Sciurus vulgaris, Linn., 78
[ ,, cinereus, Linn., Si]
[Tamias striatus, Linn., 82]

Order Ungiilata*
Cervus dama, Linn., 130

,, elaphus, Linn., 124
Capreolus capraea, Gray, 133

Reptilia.

Order Lacertilia.
Lacerta agilis, Linn., 140

,, vivipara, Wagl., 136
[ ,, muralis, Merr., 142]
[ ,, viridis, Linn., 142]
Anguis fragilis, Linn., 142

Order Ophidia* -
Tropidonotus natrix, Linn., 146
Coronella austriaca, Lacepede, 152
Vipera berus, Linn., 154

Batrachia.

Order EC and at a.
Rana temporaria, Linn., 157
[ ,, esculenta, Linn., 162]
[Hyla arborea, Linn., 165]
Bufo calamita, Laurent, 170
,, vulgaris, Laurent, 165
[Alytes obstetricans, Laurent, 172]

Order Caudata.
Molge cristata, Linn., 173

,, palmata, Dum. andBibr., 175
,, vulgaris, Linn., 176

INDEX

ADDER, 154, Plates 92, 94, 96

Alexandrine Rat, 97, PL 6 1

Alpine Hare, 121, PI. 79

Alytes obstetric ans, 172

Anguis fragiliS) 142

Apodemus butd> 92 ; A. Jlavicollia^
91 y A. fridariensiS) 92; ^4. hebri-
densis, 92; ^4. hirtensisy 92; y^.
synvaticus^ 89

" Art of Learning," 2

Arvicola amphibia^ 102

Ask, 177

BADGER, 55, PI. 37

Bank Vole, no, PI. 71

Barbastella barbastellus, 5 1

Barbastelle, 51, PI. 33

Barn Rat. 100

Bat, Barbastelle, 51; Bechslein's B.,
40; Common B., 43; Dauben-
ton's B., 41 ; Great B., 46 ;
Horse-shoe B., 34 ; Leisler's B.,
48 ; Long-eared B., 49 ; Nat-
terer's B., 39 ; Noctule B., 46 ;
Parti-coloured B., 45 ; Red-grey
B., 39 ; Whiskered B., 37

Bechstein's Bat, 40

Blind-worm, 142

Bony structure of Vertebrates, 4

British Rat, 95, PI. 62

181

Brown Hare, 117, Pis. 75, 77; B.

Rat, 97, Pis. 63, 64
Bufo calamita^ 170; B. vulgaris, 165
Bush Rabbit, 116
Bute Field Mouse, 92

CAPREOLUS caprca, 133

Carnivora, 52

Cat, Wild, 72, PI. 46

Catamount, 77

Cat-a-mountain, 77

Cervus dama, 130; C. daphus^ 124

Chipmunk, 82

Chipping Squirrel, 82

Coronella austriaca, 152

Crested Newt, 173, Pis. 106, 107

DARK Lewker, 177

Daubenton's Bat, 41, PI. 21

Deaf Adder, 142

Deer, Fallow, 130; Red D., 124;

Roe D., 133
Dental Formula, 6
Dog-mouse, 105
Dormouse, 82, Pis. 52, 55
Dry Ask, 177

EFT, 175

JEpimys hilernicuS) 99 ; JE. norvc-
s, 97 ; J£. rattits, 95

182

INDEX.

Erinaceiis euro pans ^ 9
Erinacidae, 13
Ermine, 66, PI. 41
Evotomys alstoni, 112 ; E. erica, 113 ;
E.glareohis, no; E. skouieriensis,

112

Evat, 177 ; Furze Evvet, 139

FAIR ISLE FIELD MOUSE, 92

Fallow Deer, 130, Pis. 78, 82

Fawn, 132

Felis silvestriS) 75

Ferret, 75

Field Mouse, Bute, 92 ; Fair Isle

F.M., 92; Hebridean F.M., 92 ;

Long-tailed F.M., 91 ; St. Kilda

F.M., 92 ; Short-tailed F.M., 105,

Pis. 67, 69
Fitchew, 73

Flesh-eating Mammals, 52
Foulmart or Foumart, 73
Fox, 52, Pis. 34, 35
Frog, Common, 157 ; Edible F.,

162 ; Tree F., 165, Pis. 97-101
Furze Evvet, 139

GNAWING MAMMALS, 78
Golden Back, 170
Grass Mouse, 108

,, Snake, 146, Pis. 91, 92, 93
Great Bat, 46, Pis. 13, 26, 29

„ Newt, 173
Green Lizard, 142

HAIR, characteristic of Mammals

alone, 7

Hairless Mouse, 94 ; II. Rat, 100
Hare, Alpine, 121 ; Brown II., 117 ;

Irish H., 123

Harvest Mouse, 86, Pis. 54, 56

Hebridean Field Mouse, 92 ; H.
Vole, 109

Hedgehog, 9, Pis. 1-4

Hind, 124

Hoofed Mammals, 124

Horse-shoe Bat, Larger, 34, Pis. 14,
15 ; Lesser H.B., 36, PL 17

House Mouse, 92, Pis. 58, 60

Huxley on Natural History Know-
ledge, 2

Hyla arbor ea, 165

INSECTIVORA, 9

Irish Hare, 123; I. Rat, 99

Islay Shrew, 25

LACERTA agilis, 140; Z. mttralis,

142 ; L. viridity 142 ; L. vivipara,

136

Leisler's Bat, 48, Pis. 28, 30
Lepits europ&us, 117; L. hibernicus,

123 ; L. timidns, 1 21
Lesser Shrew, 25
Lizard, Common, 136, Pis. 84, 85,

87 ; Green L., 142 ; Sand L., 140;

Wall L., 142

Long-eared Bat, 49, Pis. 31, 32
Long-tailed Field Mouse, 89
L^ltra vulgar is, 59

MAMMALS, 4, 9

Man-eater, 177
Man -keener, 177
Marten, 63
Meles taxus, 55
JMicromys iii'unitus, 86
Microtns agrestis, 105 ; M. orcadensis,
109

INDEX.

Midwife Toad, 172

Mole, 13, Pis. 5-7

Mole-heaves, 16

Mole's "fortress," 16

Molge cristata, 173; Af. palmata,

177 ; M. punctata, 176
Mouse, Dog, 105 ; Dor M., 82 ;

Field M., 91 ; Grass M., 108 ;

Hairless M., 94; Harvest M., 86;

House M., 92 ; Marsh M., 105 ;

Wood M., 89

Mus muralis, 92 ; M. musculus, 92
Muscardinus avellanarius, 82
Mustela erminea, 66 ; M. eversmanni,

75 ; M. hibernicus, 69 ; AL

martes, 63 ; M. nivalis, 69 ; M.

putoriusj 73
Myotis bechstcini, 40 ; Al. dauben-

tonii, 41 ; M. mystacinus^ 37 ;

M. natter eri, 39

NATCHET, 172

Natterjack, 170, Pis. 104, 105

Neomys /adieus, 27

Newt, Common, 176; Crested N.,
173; Great N., 173; Palmate N.,
177 ; Spotted N., 176; Warty N.,
173, Pis. 106-111

Noctule, 46

Nyctalus leisleri, 48 ; A7", noctuta, 46

OBSERVATION, i

Orkn

Or

BSERVATION, i
rkney Vole, 109, PL 70
ryctolagus cunicularis, 113

Otter, 59, Pis. 38, 39

PALMATE Newt, 177, Pis. no, in
Parti-coloured Bat, 45
Pine Marten, 63, PI. 40

Pipistrelle, 43, Pis. 23, 25
Plccotus auritiiS) 49
Polecat, 73, Pis. 45, 48

RAASAY Vole, 113

Rabbit, Bush, 116; Common R.,

113, PI. 73; Stub R., 116
Rana esculenta^ 162 ; R. temporaria ,

157

Rat, Alexandrine, 97 ; Barn R.,
100 ; Black R., 95; British R.,
95 ; Brown R., 97 ; Hairless R.,
loo ; Hanoverian R., 95 ; Irish
R., 99 ; Roof R., 97 ; Tree R.,
97 ; Water R., 102 ; White R., 101

Red Deer, 124, Pis. 76, 80

Red-grey Bat, 39, Pis. 19, 20

Rhinolophus ferruni-equinum^ 34 ;
R. hipposideros, 36

Ringed Snake, 146, Pis. 91, 92, 93

Rodentia, 78

Roe Deer, 133, Pis. 81, 83

Running Toad, 170

ST. KILDA Field Mouse, 92
Sand Lizard, 140, Pis. 86, 88
Scittrus cinereuS) 8 1 ; vulgar is, 78
Serotine Bat, 44, Pis. 24, 27
Short-tailed Field Mouse, 105
Shrew, Common, 21, Pis. 9,, II ; Islay

S., 25 ; Lesser S., 25, PI. 12 ;

Water S., 27, PI. 10
Slow-worm, 142, Pis. 89, 90
Smooth Newt, 176; S. Snake, 152,

PL 95
Snake, Common, 146 ; Grass S., 146 ;

Ringed S., 146 ; Smooth S., 152
Sorex aranens, 21 ; S. granti, 25 ;

S. minutuS) 25

i34

INDEX.

Soricido?, 13

Spotted Newt, 176

Squirrel, Chipping, 82 ; Common S.,

78 ; Grey S, 81, Pis. 49, 51, 53
Stag, 124

Stoat, 66, Pis. 41, 42
Stub Rabbit, 116
Sweet Marten, 63

TADPOLES, 160

Talpa europ<za> 13

Talpidse, 13

Tamias striatus^ 82

Teeth, 5

Theromorpha, 3

Toad, Common, 165, Pis. 102, 103,
105 ; Midwife T., 172 ; Natterjack
T., 170; Running T., 170, Pis.
104, 105

Tree Frog, 165

Tropidonotus natrix, 146

UNGULATA, 124

VERTEBRAL Column, Regions
of, 4

Vertebrates, 3

Vespertilio murinits, 45 ; V. pipi-
streliuS) 43 ; V. serotinus, 44

Viper, 154, Pis. 92, 94, 96

Viper a her us, 154

Vole, .Alston's, 112 ; Bank V., no;
Eigg V., 109 ; Field V., 105 ;
Hebridean V., 108 ; Macgillivray's
V., 109 ; Orkney V., 108 ; Raasay
V., 113; Sanday V., 108 ; Skomer
V., 112; Water Vole, 102; West-
ray V., 108

Vnlpes caiiis, $2

WATER Rat, 102 ; W. Vole, 102,

Pis. 65, 66

Weasel, 69, Pis. 43, 47
Whiskered Bat, 37, Pis. 1 6, iS
Wild Cat, 75, PI. 46
Wild Life, How to observe, 2
Wood Mouse, 89, PI. 59

YELLOW-necked Mouse, 91

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