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16 QUERSTRASSE, LEIPZIG

PLATE I.

HEDGEHOG AND YOUNG. Page 10.

BRITISH
LAND MAMMALS

AND THEIR HABITS

BY

A. NICOL SIMPSON, F.Z.S.

AUTHOR OF "familiar SCOTTISH ANIMALS," ETC.

CONTAINING 24 ILLUSTRATIONS, viz.

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

Mammals form the highest class of vertebrate or
backboned animals. The name of the class is derived
from the Latin mamma^ meaning '' a breast," and it
covers all those vertebrates which suckle their young.
Man stands at the head of the class. All mammals
have hearts v^ith four chambers, are v^arm-blooded, and
breathe by means of lungs. The class includes some
creatures of the sea, such as whales and seals, and many
animals of greatly varied structure and habits. As the
title of this little book indicates, only British land
mammals are dealt with in its pages. These fall under
five different orders, as follows :

1. The Chiroptera (Greek cheir^ hand ; pteron^
wing) : The Bat Order.

2. The Insectivora (Latin insectum^ an insect ;
vorare^ to devour) : The Order of Insect-Eaters, in-
cluding Moles, Shrews, and Hedgehogs.

3. The Carnivora (Latin caro, carius^^ts\\\ vorare^
to devour) : The Order of Flesh-Eating Mammals —
Dogs, Cats, etc.

Introductory Note

4. The Ungulata (Latin ungius, a veil) : The
Order of Hoofed Mammals, in which the digits are
enclosed in hoofs, as in the Ox, the Deer, etc.

5. The RoDENTiA (Latin rodere^ to gnaw) : The
Order of Gnawing Mammals, such as the Hares and
Rabbits.

Mr. Simpson, the author, is a practical observer of
wide experience, and in the following chapters he
describes British land mammals as one who is inti-
mately acquainted with them.

CHARLES A. HALL.

VI

CONTENTS

CHAl'TEK PAGE

INTRODUCTORY NOTE ...... V

I. BRITISH BATS ....... I

II. BRITISH INSECTIVOROUS LAND MAMMALS . . 7

III. BRITISH FLESH-EATING LAND MAMMALS

1. WILD CAT AND FOX . . . 'I?

IV. BRITISH FLESH-EATING LAND MAMMALS {continued)

2. THE WEASEL FAMILY .... 26

V. BRITISH HOOFED MAMMALS ..... 47

VI. BRITISH GNAWING MAMMALS

1. SQUIRRELS, HARES, AND RABBITS . . 54

VII. BRITISH GNAWING MAMMALS {continued)

2. RATS — REAL AND UNREAL. ... 67

VIII. BRITISH GNAWING MAMMALS {continued)

3. MICE AND VOLES ..... 73

IX. YESTERDAY AND TO-DAY ..... 80

INDEX 87

Vll

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

I. HEDGEHOG AND YOUNG

* .

II.

III.

[long-eared bat - )

\lesser horseshoe bat J

tmole
(^hedgehog asleep

IV. PINE MARTEN

*

V. OTTER FEEDING ON TROUT

VI.

rWILD CAT

VII.

'\fox cubs

TWEASEL -

'\fALLOW DEER

VIII. RED DEER — STAG*

IX. SQUIRREL*

X. WILD RABBIT

fDORMOUSE
XI. -^

(^ BROWN RAT

XII. HARES AND LEVERETS'

XIII. WATER VOLE*

f HARVEST MOUSE

XIV

•t

LONG-TAILED FIELD MOUSE

}

XV. FIELD VOLE PEERING OUT OF NEST
XVI. FOX PROWLING* - - -

Frontispiece

FACING PAGE

- 9

- i6

- 25

- 32

- 35

- 38

- 41

- 48

- 51

- 54

- 57

- 64

- 73

- 80

On the cover

* These eight illustrations are in colour ; the others are in black and
white.

Vlll

BRITISH LAND MAMMALS
AND THEIR HABITS

CHAPTER I

BRITISH BATS

The curious formation of Bats and their mode of
existence must be taken as an excuse for the super-
stitious views held by our forefathers in regard to
these mammals. It seems peculiarly strange to see a
mouse-like creature, endowed with wings, floating
through the summer air and then vanishing without
any explanation until the summer insects dance again
in the after-glow.

The body of a Bat is truly mouse-like, but the wings
that convey the creature through the air are not so
bird-like as might be supposed merely by observing
the animal in flight. The fore-limbs are quite an
innovation considered as wings. These are drawn out,
and what would be the fingers on a forearm are very
long and thin. In this transformation the flat portion
of the hand has lost its palm, the bones of which,
combined with the remainder of the fingers, are turned

B.L.M. I

British Bats

into tiny stretchers for the thin and delicate sheet of
skin that spreads over them. This skin is fixed to the
body, and extends backwards, taking in the hind-legs.
Now, these wings serve the Bat as well as the wings of
a bird serve it, but there is this difference : a bird can
move rapidly in mid-air, and on the ground it can
exhibit remarkable powers of locomotion. Not so
with the Bat. It is only a creature of activity while on
the wing. Once it settles on terra-firma it is almost
helpless, its movements being a mere crawl. I have
picked a Bat off the ground before it could regain
its self-confidence. It had evidently been disturbed
during the midday sun and forced to take wing, and
landed on the roadway. Although Bats seldom fly
during the daytime, I have repeatedly observed them
hawking for insects in a glaring sunshine.

Some species of Bats are endowed with enormous
ears considering the size of their bodies. Others have
an apparently abnormal amount of skin clustering
round their muzzles. These skin developments seem
to have their uses, evidently being sensitive to touch
in a remarkable degree. This in a great measure makes
up for the rather rudimentary eyes Bats generally have.

Bats hibernate throughout the winter, retiring to
some lofty tower or other edifice. Here they attach
themselves to the couplings or rafters — often in clusters
— and sleep until congenial weather returns. As be-
comes a mammal, the female suckles her offspring, of
which there are two at a time.

2

British Bats

All the Bats native to Britain are sombre in
colouring as a whole, but the various species diiFer
slightly in intensity. The Long-eared Bat is palish
brown above and lighter on the underparts. The body
measures somewhat under 2 inches. The head is flat,
and the nostrils are placed in the front of rather
curiously curved grooves on the upper frontal of the
creature's hairy muzzle. Over each eye there is a
wart. The wing-membrane rises from the base of the
toes and spreads out umbrella fashion to the forearm.
It is by no means an uncommon species, and seems to
be more prevalent in the open spaces where trees are
few and far between.

In the Greater Horseshoe Bat the ears are short and
pointed. The head and body measure fully 2 inches,
and the tail about an inch. The forearm reaches
2 inches. There are two joints in the first hind-toe
and three in the others. This Bat prefers the vicinity
of woods. Although now and again mentioned as
appearing in Scotland, the species truly belongs to the
more southern counties of England.

The Lesser Horseshoe Bat is a native also of the
more southern counties of England. In colour it is
brown above and dull grey on the underparts. It
measures fully more than an inch, including body and
head, with a tail about i inch long and the forearm
fully that length. The ears are pointed, and almost as
long as the head.

The Barbastelle is coloured black with a greyish

3

British Bats

tinge. The head and body are about equal in length
with the tail — that is, almost 2 inches. The nostrils
open on the top of the muzzle, and there are grooves
passing downwards from these. This Bat is found
chiefly in the northern counties of England.

The ears of Daubenton's Bat are concave in part and
almost as long as the head. The earlet is about as long
as the ear itself, with a straight end and a rounded lobe
placed over the base. With the exception of a few
hairs just in front of the ears, the face is quite bare.
It is not a large Bat — the frame being less than 2 inches,
with a little under that for the tail. The colour is
brown over the back portions and greyish-white below.
This is a very widely distributed species, and quite
common on both sides of the Border.

The Reddish-grey Bat can be recognized as the
animal passes in mid-air. The white colour of the
underparts is quite sufficient for the purpose of
identification. In this species the fur is comparatively
thick and long ; over the back the colour is a deep
brown, with a reddish colour along the upper fur. It
is a small Bat, rather less than 2 inches over head and
body. The ears are longer than the head, and semi-
transparent. A rather curious fringe of stiff hairs
grows on the membrane between the legs. This Bat
loves the vicinity of cliffs and caves, in which it takes
up its abode. At other times it may be located near
outstanding buildings.

The name of the Whiskered Bat denotes the char-

4

Serotine and Pipistrelle Bats

acteristic feature of this species. It can be identified
by its moustache. Another noticeable feature is that
the wing-membrane starts from the base of the outer
toe. The ears are as long as the head, and the earlet
is long and straight, while the lobe is rounded at the
base. The body measures an inch, and the head half
that length. This species loves to hunt the insects
between a sheet of water and the tree-boughs, and is
seldom seen in large numbers. It is not over-particular
where It settles for the winter ; a high building ; a cleft
in a rock ; or the hollow branch of a tree, proving
equally acceptable.

The Serotine Bat is found in the southern counties
of England. The back is dark brown, with a paler
hue below. It has shortish ears ; shortish fur on the
face ; a fringe of straight hair on the upper lip ; and the
chin is adorned with a wart. A few hairs radiate from
the latter. In length this mammal runs to nearly 3
inches for head and body, with 2 inches for the tail,
and fully 2 inches for the forearm.

The Pipistrelle is the smallest, and at the same time
the commonest, of all the native Bats of the British
Isles. This little creature measures scarcely 2 inches.
The head and face are hairy, the muzzle rather short,
with the nostrils opening forward. It has rounded tips
to the ears, which are of themselves somewhat triangular
in shape. This Bat hunts the gnats in the summer
evenings, even in the most populated districts, and
seems quite devoid of fear mid the bustle and noise of

5

British Bats

the city. It is, however, beyond the city's noise and
din that the Pipistrelle can be seen to the best advan-
tage. About the semi-quiet of the inland village these
little Bats may be seen in dozens flitting hither and
thither on tireless wing, at one time dipping under
the tree-arms that sway over the churchyard wall, now
dancing along a few feet above the waters where the
miller's ducks stay late in the summer gloaming.

The Noctule has very broad, thick ears. The head
is broad and the nostrils wide set, with a deep space
between them. In colour this Bat is reddish-brown,
with paler underparts. The head and body measure
3 inches, and the tail about an inch less. The North
of England is generally credited with being the true
habitat of the Noctule.

The forearm of the Hairy-armed Bat has the fringe
of hair on the under-side more pronounced than in
the case of the Noctule species. It is a mammal of
fully 2 inches in the frame, with a tail about -^ inch
less. In colour it is dark brown, with the hairs tipped
with fainter brown, both on the upper and lower parts.
It is found in various parts of the British Isles.

6

CHAPTER II

BRITISH INSECTIVOROUS LAND MAMMALS

There are three distinct species of Shrews native to
Britain. These are the Common, Lesser, and Water
Shrews. As the name implies, the first quoted is
widely distributed, and may be identified throughout
the length and breadth of the mainland. This little
creature is as much at home high up the mountain-
side as it is in the pasture-lands. At best it is a tiny
mite of some 2^ inches, or a little more, exclusive of
the tail.

They vary much in their general colouring. By
nature they are insectivorous, but at times they will eat
worms or slugs, or, indeed, a fledgling that may have
come to death by falling out of its nest. There are
about six young Shrews born in each nest. These
nests may be found amongst herbage by the roadside,
or quite a distance into a hay or corn field. These
nests are cosy structures, with an entrance at one side.
In olden times many superstitious tales were told about
Shrews in the country-sides, but these beliefs are now a
thing of the past. Yet there is a destiny peculiar to
not only the Common Shrew, but to the others as well:
this is shown in the high percentage of these mammals
that are to be seen lying dead about roadways, where

7

Insectivorous Land Mammals

one would scarcely think they cared to live. Some
seasons are more productive than others in this respect,
and so far as the writer knows there is no satisfactory
explanation forthcoming for this peculiar feature in
Shrew life.

It is extremely unlikely that these little creatures die
natural deaths. Were the tiny carcasses found during
severe weather one might reasonably surmise that cold
and hunger had stiffened the little bodies. Yet it is in
the milder seasons of the year that these corpses lie
about the turnpike or the bridle-path. The wind
will be rippling the short, soft fur of a dead Shrew on
the bare, sun-baked roadway, while the meadow-sweet
is getting into flower. The roadman, as he kicks the
little carcass into the ditch, partly as an act of devotion
to the dead, partly by way of keeping his stretch of road
free of all rubbish, thinks in his heart that there has
been war in the ranks of the mice, and that the one
moved by his heavy boot has been killed in the fray.
He may be right, for it seems there is no natural death
in the fields. There is no old age in the shires
amongst the grasses and the swaying tree-tops. Disease
may rivet a rodent to a limited area and it may die ;
more than likely a hooded crow croaks on an outspread
branch as the life-blood ebbs away. Accident may
hasten the death of a rodent, and give employment to
the little burying beetle. Murder in cold blood may
limit the age of the active quadrupeds.

Perhaps of all the smaller animals of the hedgerows

8

PLATE II

Plioto, R. FoTttine

LONrT-EARED BAT

LESSER HORSESHOE BAT

British Shrews

the Shrews are the least known. This is because they
are mouse-like, and classed by the rustic as mice in the
concrete. They are very pugnacious in character, and
may be seen at times chasing each other about the
grassy edges of the paths, intent on giving battle to
every rival in the field.

All Shrews own a distinctive musty smell, by no
means unpleasant. A cat will slay a Shrew, but seldom
eat its victim. The true enemies of the Shrews are
Stoats and Weasels, Owls and Kestrel Hawks,

The Lesser Shrew is by no means so frequently seen
as the one just referred to. In some quarters it is
fairly numerous, while in other districts it is all but
unknown. Compared with the common species it is
much smaller, and usually a shade darker in colour.
Indeed, the Lesser Shrew is the smallest of all British
mammals. In habit it greatly resembles the Common
Shrew.

In almost every portion of the mainland the Water
Shrew may be located. It is rather difficult to observe,
being aquatic by nature, and usually distributed where
the vegetation is rank and apart from the beaten track.
But when carefully looked for, the Water Shrew may
be found, and when discovered it will be seen to be a
very handsome little creature. The pond-side, along a
stream-bank, or about a damp ditch, are favourite
localities for this animal. It dives quite readily, and
as it swims off it leaves a tiny line of air-bubbles that
indicate its course. The hind-feet and the underpart

B.L.M. 9 2

Insectivorous Land Mammals

of the tail have small wiry hairs, that assist the animal
greatly in its aquatic movements. The usual colour is
brownish-black over the back, and white beneath, but,
like the other Shrews, there is a great diversity in
shadings. Water Shrews do not appear to be very
particular as to the site they select for a home. A
very ordinary place is about the waterway they fre-
quent, but sometimes they will rear their little ones
quite apart from the stream or pond side. If by the
water-edge they generally have rather lengthy burrows,
but a cavity in a stone wall will suffice for the Water
Shrew's family of five or six youngsters. Like the
other Shrews, the water species seems to be somewhat
nomadic, as it is no unusual sight to see a specimen far
removed from a damp meadow or a sheet of water.

Its ball-like form and spiny coating go to indicate
the Hedgehog wherever seen. When on the move
this animal looks very pig-like, especially about the
head ; its neck and tail are short ; its muzzle is rather
pointed. Its spines, however, are its truly distinctive
feature.

The animal has the faculty when assailed of tucking
in its head and legs, and presenting externally a spiny
ball. These spines are about an inch in length when
the animal is full grown. In the young they are much
shorter during the first year, and during this time the
animal is unable to roll itself into the defensive attitude
of the adult. When the spines become white, with a

10

The Hedgehog

broad band of brown colour halfway from the tips, the
Hedgehog may be said to be proof against its enemies,
for it can then roll itself up on the least sign of danger.
These spines encircle the head, clothe the whole upper
surface of the body, and curve round the root of the
tail.

The animal itself is about lo inches long, half that
in height, and stands about an inch off the soil when
walking. The general colouring over the back is
brown inclined to grey, with a darker streak across the
face, which passes through the region of the eye.
Beneath, the spines give place to hairs of various
textures, some being bristly and others softish, while
the colouring is altogether of a lighter shade compared
with that of the back and sides. A Hedgehog's ears
and eyes are small — the ears short and oval, the eyes
black. For food the animal will practically devour
anything in the shape of animal life, even dining on
carrion when pressed by circumstances.

Nature fashioned the Hedgehog as an insectivorous
animal, but it has long since departed from this original
plan. As an egg-stealer I have known it to carry off a
dozen pheasant eggs from under a brooding hen, and
after purloining the whole clutch, endeavour to kill and
eat the fowl itself While on the hunt, the Hedgehog
is not over-particular where it sleeps during the day-
time. It will curl itself up by a gatepost and feel
quite secure, or crawl into any hole until the darkness
enables it to resume its search for food. Although

II

Insectivorous Land Mammals

not strictly speaking nocturnal, still it is seldom seen
on the move before the darkness falls. On a moist,
dewy evening, when the moon is lighting up the fields,
the Hedgehog may be noted running nimbly along the
grassy bank, intent on catching the unwary beetle,
snail, or even a worm, that may be abroad. While
standing in the shadow of a plantation on such an
evening, with a companion, a couple of field-mice ran
out from the herbage and scudded across the mac-
adamized road. They crossed within a few inches of
where I stood. A second later a much larger animal
appeared, v/hich I took to be a rat. Before exactly
making out the species, the animal struck my boot and
rolled over. On putting my hand down I lifted a
Hedgehog, and as I held it in my hand I could feel
the beating of its little heart through the coil of spikes.
Generally speaking, the Hedgehog is a late breeder.
Few youngsters are seen before midsummer. These
are born in a warm nest of moss, leaves, and fibrous
material, usually in a cavity in some uncultivated bank
or waste ground. The young are blind at birth. In
winter the animal hibernates.

A casual glance at a dead Mole reveals its remark-
able short velvety fur, its peculiarly shaped forearms,
and its apparent want of eyes. These three character-
istics of the Mole cannot but be apparent to anyone
who has seen the carcass of the animal lying by the
roadside, where it is not infrequently found. What

12

The Mole

gives the animal's coat its lustre arises from the fur
being vertical, and when touched by the hand it can
be pressed in either direction, and yet retain its general
soft appearance. Regarding the formation of the fore-
arms, these are admirably adapted to the creature's
mode of life. The Mole owns an extremely muscular
muzzle, with which it bores into the soil, and the arms
clear away the slackened earth as the animal carves its
way underground.

The Mole is not blind, as might be surmised by the
ordinary observer, although its eyes are very tiny, and
almost covered by the creature's fur. So tiny, indeed,
are these openings that the bony cavity in the skull
scarcely indicates their presence. Still, the Mole is by
no means blind, as may be seen when it romps above
ground, as it sometimes does during a warm summer
evening. Apart from the external features named, the
body of the animal is uniquely formed. Running
directly from the point of the nose backwards to the
last rib-bone, the shape is cone-like, and is thus
admirably formed for movement underground. The
forearms have strong broad hands, which tend out-
wards, and are so placed that they act as dredges while
the animal cuts its way through the earth. Moles
have no external ears. The tail is nearly 2 inches long,
and the total length of the animal is about 7 inches.
The colour of the fur varies very much: black and
blue, in dark and pale shades, to a warm buff may
occasionally be seen, dark blue being the more common ;

13

Insectivorous Land Mammals

but I have seen a whole family of Moles almost pure
white in colour.

Of the Mole's work under the ground it is curious
to note that the vertical arrangement of the fur enables
the animal to move forward or backward at will.
The fine adjustment of the individual hairs offers no
hindrance to the animal, whether it be digging its way
ahead or retreating from some real or imaginary danger.
The subterranean " runs " of the Mole are many and
varied. These are of numerous ramifications through-
out the area inhabited, but however far-reaching or
complicated these arteries may be, there is always one
of them at least that has connection with water. This
water may be a river, a pond, or merely a ditch, but
the creature must drink to live. Moles are voracious
feeders, living chiefly on worms, which they hunt for
under the soil. Although not always the case, it is
usually about fields that are said to be " in good
heart " that Moles locate. Fields that have been well
matured, and where the mould is rich by continual and
well-directed husbandry, are favourite places for the
operations of this underground navvy. Hence it
follows that the farmer sees his wheat seed turned up
to the sun as it has just sent up its green blade, or the
gardener finds his pea-row upset by the little Mole's
journey underneath. At other times Moles will be
found in abundance in old meadow-lands, which in
the course of years have proved a harbour for larvas
of all sorts of burrowing insects. In such meadows

14

The Mole

the game preserver often rears his pheasants, and when
Moles gain a footing in such localities they often upset
the calculations of the gamekeeper. The richness of
the soil, caused by the operations on the ground, tends
to an increase of worms and grubs, and, as taught by
Nature, the Mole goes in pursuit. In its perambu-
lations it is liable to burrow underneath the hen-coops,
and the hollows formed by its tunnellings cause the
nest and eggs to sink underground, and thus become
unproductive. Unless the fowl be a very close sitter she
will usually desert her eggs when thus disturbed. For
these and other reasons Moles are considered vermin
in many rural parts, and the picturesque Mole-catcher
of the shires is the direct result of this belief. It is,
however, a problem as to whether the Mole does not
in its lifetime do quite as much good as harm. It
has, at any rate, to be noted that the business of Mole-
catching is a decaying branch of rural industry in the
twentieth century.

In trapping Moles the Mole-catcher does not, as
might naturally be supposed, place his trap in or
around any of the rather unsightly heaps of earth the
Mole casts up. The trapper looks for the " run "
between these places, and throws out a tiny spadeful
of soil where this mark is noted on the soil. This is a
simple crack in the earth denoting a minor upheaval.
On clearing away the soil the "run" may then be
seen, and in this the Mole-catcher places his trap,
covering all carefully to exclude the light from above.

IS

Insectivorous Land Mammals

The Mole's nest is placed under one of the " mole-
hills," as they are commonly termed. One of large
dimensions usually proves the site for a handful of
rootlets, grasses, and leaves, amongst which four
youngsters may usually be found.

i6

PLATE III

Photo, y. Holmes

MOLE

•".'.■_ A', T. Ma'.^och

HEDGEHOG ASLEEP

w

CHAPTER III

BRITISH FLESH-EATING LAND MAMMALS

I. Wild Cat and Fox

It is in the inaccessible fastnesses of Northern Scotland
where the few remaining specimens of Felis Catus are
to be found to-day. Wherever the Wild Cat is located
it is hunted ruthlessly, and its extermination is the
desire of every game-preserver in North Britain.

The capture of this rarity is duly heralded and
recorded in the daily Press, although quite a number
of these newspaper notices, when sifted, turn out to be
none other than the capture of a domesticated cat, run
wild. When a House Cat once takes to hunting in field
and wood it seldom returns to its truly domestic state. ;
Sooner or later its poaching proclivities land it in sofj^e
trap, or the gamekeeper's gun ends its career. Should
this roaming House Cat be a replica of the Wild Cat in
colour, then there is some slight excuse for many of
the reports which are spread via the medium of the
daily Press. But Felis Catus can be easily recognized
as a distinct species. The House Cat owns a tapering
tail, whereas the wild species has a cylindrical appen-
dage quite blunt at the end, and distinctly ringed with
deep brown and dull white markings. The tip of the
tail is also black.

B.L.M. 17 3

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

The fur of the true Wild Cat is dense in texture,
and of a yellowish-grey colour with dusky stripes. The
most prominent markings of the body are the ones
along the back and the transverse lines upon the sides.
There are also two dusky bars along the cheeks. In
most cases the tip of the nose and lips are black. The
claws are large and the whiskers prominent. The head
is very round and bull-shaped, and the limbs massive
for the size of the animal. In length, the head and
body run from 2 feet to 2-| feet, the tail being about
one third in proportion. The female is the larger of
the sexes, and she has five or six kittens in each
litter.

This Cat is a night prowler, and will not scruple to
attack any animal over which Nature has given it power.
For instance, a lamb or even the fawn of a deer may
fall a victim to the claws and teeth of this lynx of the
woods and rocks. Poultry, game-birds, hares and
rabbits, are equally the prey of the Wild Cat when in
need of a meal. The rocky mountain-side where man
seldom throws his shadow is the place the Wild Cat
haunts. In the recesses of some heap of stones thrown
down the steep inland cliff, this animal will take up its
abode, and issue forth as evening enters at the great
gate of the strath. The Wild Cat leaves its cairn an
outlaw, and returns having given and asked no quarter.
Felis Catus fears no enemies within its domain — its
only dread is the iron trap, or the lead poured from
some ambush.

i8

The Fox

In hunting counties the Fox Is a valuable asset of
the sportsman. There is no doubt that Fox-hunting
represents a vast sum of money annually to the district
hunted. Scotland is not a Fox-hunting country to the
same extent as, say, the Midlands of England ; still, a
few packs of hounds are kept north of the Tweed.
Beyond the Tay this sport is practically non-existent,
the Fifeshire pack being the most northerly in the
kingdom.

There is no marfimal in the British Isles that can
compare with the Fox for external beauty, combined
with size and muscular activity and endurance. The
general colouring is a warm nut-brown over the back,
with white front and underparts. The head is broad
at the ears, but goes sharply off towards the muzzle.
The ears are erect, and the tips are marked in black
behind ; over the eyes there are whitish hairs, while the
eyes themselves are shiny and cunning. The glory,
however, of the Fox is his " brush," or tail. In Fox-
hunting circles the rider that is first in at the death of a
Fox is entitled to the "brush" as a trophy of his prowess
in the saddle, in the same manner that the Red Indian
claims the scalp of his victim in warfare. The "brush"
of a Fox is long and bushy, of the same colour as the
animal's back, but the tip is touched with white.
Coloration varies with districts. Low-ground animals
are usually whiter on the underparts than those that
frequent the higher regions, the latter, as a rule, taking
on a greyish tint. Again, it will be found that the tip

19

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

of the tail is black in some specimens, but generally
speaking this is not the normal colouring. Looked at
casually, the Fox is the dog of the woods. If you
open its mouth you will find a still closer resemblance
to that canine. Its teeth are similar, as also its tongue.
In its love for animal food the Fox also resembles the
domesticated dog. It loves flesh in almost any form,
and when hard pressed by hunger will devour carrion
of any kind. In the central counties it is noted for its
raids on poultry, while in the hilly sections of the
country it vexes flock-masters during the lambing
season. Rabbits are, perhaps, the chief source of
supply for the Fox's larder, but mice, birds, etc., irre-
spective of species, are all welcome when Reynard is
rearing a family. There are usually four, five, or six
cubs to a litter, and these are born in what is known as
an " earth," which, in other words, is simply a burrow
in the ground. About the hills or sea-coast not a few
of these " earths " are located amongst rocky debris,
which goes to form a remarkably secure home for old
and young alike.

Once a cub is on its legs it is a very pretty and
interesting creature. Cubs a few weeks old may be
seen at the mouth of the " earth " gambolling about
and emitting sharp barks after the manner of dog
puppies. Even at this early stage they are alert to
danger, and on the slightest sign or sound will bolt to
earth for shelter. When a few months old they will
go afield and hunt the local jungle for small birds that

. 20

The Fox

may come in their way, or pick up a stray morsel in
the shape of a flitting insect. Later in life the Fox-
cub becomes a terror to the game-preserver, as then
the coverts must give up a pheasant now and again to
satisfy its appetite. Where no hunt is established
Foxes are shown no quarter. Traps, guns, and poison
are all employed to stay its depredations, if not actually
to extirpate the animal from such localities. Yet all
the ingenuity employed seems to have little effect upon
the numbers inhabiting certain quarters. As the female
Fox (or vixen, as it is termed) only produces one litter
annually, it cannot be said that the presence of Foxes
in such districts is due to any inordinate fecundity.
More than likely the artfulness and cunning of the
animal keeps it in its place.

A Fox does not plunder at home. It goes out into
the wilds, far from its threshold, and carries its victim
to its den, often piece by piece. If it kills a newly
born lamb it will carry a portion to its cubs and return
the following night for another titbit. This is the
flock-master's opportunity. The vixen hunts as well
as the dog-fox, only the latter kills much more than
he eats or carries home. On the other hand, the
vixen, once she has her teeth in the carcass lof her
victim, turns towards the burrow v/here her cubs lie
asleep.

Before March winds blow the hill-slopes have their
crop of lambs, and shepherds must watch their flocks
by night when Reynard roams. From the fireside the

21

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

man rises lazily, leans heavily upon the door-post, and
listens intently for the sounds he knows so well.
The night is clear, the clouds are afar off, and the stars
twinkle coldly as he gazes up into the darkened blue
above. There is music in the pine-wood behind the
shielding, and as the wind dies away the shepherd
passes from his door, followed by his companionable
collies. The winds whistle by the wood edge, and
retard the sounds from the uplands, so he wanders
leisurely to the lee of the pine plantation, and listens
expectantly. He can see the ridge of the hill finely
lined against the sky, and as he intently notes each
passing sound, a tiny spot glides along the crest of the
mountain. Years of observation tell him that the
form which moves just for a m.oment and then
disappears is not a pasturing ewe. The ewes and
lambs are mostly resting lower on the hill-side where the
grasses are more succulent, and where the winds are
less biting. There is no four-footed animal of the
same outward form that roams after the stars are lit
but the Fox. It moves stealthily, and sneaks over the
land as if afraid of being seen. In the hills it has the
heather to cover its presence, and on the low ground it
is seldom seen outside the gorse and broom covers. In
either place a Fox likes to have its back lower than
the vegetation. If it has to cross a ploughed field, it
selects a wide furrow, or slinks down the fence-side,
thus shunning the open spaces. As yet there is no stir
apparent amongst the ewes and lambs, and the Fox

22

The Fox

may be almost a mile from their sleeping-ground.
The Fox keeps closely to its shelter. The whirr of a
disturbed curlew sets his ears tighter, or the snort of a
dozing deer may cause him to crouch just for a
moment ; but on he goes directly towards the pastures,
the bleating of a lamb guiding him directly towards his
quarry. Once he gains the border of the pastures he
stays to listen and reconnoitre. Dotted over the
sloping meadows are the ewes and lambs peacefully
slumbering. Furtively, Reynard draws his body over
the edge of the corrie, and lies silently upon the mossy
bank. The landscape looks bare, cold, and still. He
moves forward to a clump of heather, and halts.
Figures are moving out upon the hill-side, and an owl
screeches as it wings its way across the meadows.
Crouching and silent rests the Fox, with head laid close
upon its outstretched paws. Here the cunning creature
lies while the moving figures draw nearer and nearer.
Then they pass on, and are lost to view in the dark-
ness.

A ewe and lamb rise from the hillock not fifty
yards out from the heather-bed, and with a muscular
movement of its limbs the Fox narrows the distance
down to ten. The bleat of the lamb appears to
intensify the hunter's desire to slay, and with a crafty
leap, the Fox strikes down the frail lambkin, while its
mother rushes frantically around to defend its innocent
offspring. There is a stampede upon the meadow, and
every ewe is alert and bleating.

23

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

The shepherd's dogs look meaningly at their master,
who retraces his steps, hoping the noise arises from
the shifting of some restless ewes, or maybe the
crossing of moving deer. As he strides downhill his
dogs whine ominously, and he discerns that there is
unrest amongst the flock from some external cause.
The dogs give tongue as they scent the trail of the
Fox, and the shepherd chides them in case they disturb
the ewes that lie at peace. A bleating ewe dashes in
front, and as the man calls his dogs to heel he stumbles
upon the carcass of a lamb. The dogs are howling
with a savageness they never show in the presence of a
flock, and in anger the shepherd goads them on to
capture and kill. But the slayer has entered the corrie
once again, and, knowing the path to the hill-crest from
frequent wanderings, soon gains the ridge, and for
a second its dim outline dots the sky-line. The raid
of the Fox thus may end for a night, for Foxes hate a
dog upon their trail, and seldom risk a second foray
under the same stars. But on the morrow the Fox
will again reach the plateau on the hill-top, and look
down that hill -side and listen to the bleating of
sheep. It will crawl through the darkness to the spot
where it slew the lamb, and dine upon the cold car-
cass. The shepherd knows as much, and secretively
places a trap, or impregnates the carcass with poison
against such a visit. Where the trap is deftly set, the
marauder may be found next morning by the side
of its innocent victim. Where the unseen poison

24

PLATE IV.

PINE MARTEN. PiJiie 30.

The Fox

acts the part of destroyer, the dogs may follow the
trail awhile, and maybe locate the offender. But if
the poisoned flesh be carried off and eaten, it means
death to one or two of the sheep - slayers on the
mountain-side.

B.L.M. 25

CHAPTER IV

BRITISH FLESH-EATING LAND MAMMALS {continUed)

2. The Weasel Family

A DEAD Weasel looks a small animal when held in the
hand. You can pull its body through the opening
when you press the thumb and forefinger together.
Yet a dead Weasel is entirely a different subject from
the one that hunts along the hedgerow. It is a brown-
coated creature with a lithe, elongated frame, rather
rudimentary legs and tail, and a front and underparts
of a white colour. A pronounced feature of this little
animal is its deep black beady eyes. As a hunter, it is
endowed with a singularly pliant body, and may be said
to possess the sinuous adaptabilities of the adder.
There is, indeed, no wild animal of the fields that owns
natural endowments superior to the Weasel.

These talents are utilized to the utmost, and are
transmitted from the one generation to the other with
an exactness that is truly striking. The adult Weasel
goes foraging with one aim — that is, to kill. It will
slay a mouse under the hay-heap, and turn from its
quarry to kill the Field Vole whose shadow it sees
amongst the rank grasses a yard away. Once on the
track, the Weasel seldom slackens its pace until it
slays. Through the labyrinth of weeds the creature

26

The Weasel

works its way, leaping now and again in evident enjoy-
ment of the hunt. It is said the animal owns an innate
influence over the victim it pursues, and that once
a Weasel starts upon the trail of its quarry it is certain
to gain its object. This may be true to a certain
extent, but, nevertheless, Weasels often misjudge their
powers, and often fail to secure their coveted victims.

In the fall of the year these animals frequently lodge
about open meadows, and make their raids from the
deserted burrow formed by some other animal. In the
heat of the autumn sun they may then be seen
hunting mice and voles. These they capture by simple
cunning. The chirping of a mouse strikes the ear of
the Weasel, and its lithe form glides round the grassy
tuft and stays awhile ; the little brown back moves
forward as if propelled by some unseen force, and a
soft note is merely uttered as the little hunter carries
the dying mouse to its temporary home.

When winter approaches. Weasels sometimes settle
about outhouses and rickyards, where they hunt for
mice, but, generally speaking, these wild creatures
prefer to be quite apart from human habitations. In
the more open country the presence of a Weasel
generally denotes others of its kind being in the
vicinity. About buildings — such as those named — a
single Weasel will remain for weeks if undisturbed,
and hunt constantly.

Although by nature both cunning and alert. Weasels
are by no means difficult to capture. I remember while

27

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

on an entomological excursion observing a couple of
Weasels basking in the warm sun on a bank-side. I
threw my net deftly over the pair, and turned the
gauze net over as one does when netting insects. The
result was intensely amusing. The two Weasels dashed
frantically about, and by their movements they actually
formed their own shroud out of my tender butterfly-
net. A smart tap on the nose killed both animals.

If armed with a gun one may rely on bagging a
Weasel once the animal appears. Although allowed
to go free, the evident inquisitiveness of the creature
causes it to pop its head out of a crevice, and its beady
eyes sparkle from the adjacent wall ; then it can be
quite easily shot. This same inquisitiveness on the
animal's part enables the game-preserver to encompass
its destruction. The odorous properties of raw flesh
seldom fail to attract any of the carnivorous species,
and this holds good in the case of the Weasel. A
trap carefully set beneath a dangling piece of flesh is
often the " bridge of sighs " to this roamer of the
wilds.

Another method of capturing Weasels can also be
traced to this inbred inquisitiveness on the part of the
animals themselves. Where they are known to abound,
a small rat-trap set upon some rising mound or hillock
is likely to end the career of the little creature.
Weasels somehow love to ascend hillocks and survey
the landscape, and this habit may thus be taken
advantage of by the trapper.

28

The Weasel

Dogs don't care to " mouth " Weasels, owing to the
obnoxious smell they can give ofF when irritated. I
was crossing a moor one day accompanied by a collie
and a terrier, when a Weasel crossed the roadway,
followed by seven young ones. A hunt ensued, but
neither of the dogs would kill any of the vermin. The
Weasels rushed hither and thither about my feet in
sheer fright, until old and young got under cover, and
the hunt proved one of the most unsuccessful I ever
participated in. The same evening I came across a
Weasel dragging a bird along the turnpike. As I
approached, it left its quarry and darted into the bank.
From sheer curiosity 1 sat down to see how it would
act. After a little time it reappeared, and made direct
for the carcass. It did not tackle its burden in a very
masterly or leisurely fashion. It leapt like a tiger on
its prey and shook it again and again, then pulled with
all its strength. Once it had the body under way it
made good progress, and on reaching the bank it went
off as if it had given up the task entirely. I had
surmised it had gone for assistance, but in this I was
wrong, for in a little while it reappeared and darted at
the carcass much in the same fashion it had formerly
done. Then by energetic tugs It pulled the carcass
into the hole, and the little drama was complete.

In length the male is about 8 inches, with a tail of
2^ inches. The female rarely reaches within an inch of
her mate. Weasels make a nest of dead leaves, grasses,
moss, or similar material, and the domicile is usually

29

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

in some hole in the ground, or in a wall or cavity about
a tree-root. Here two or three litters may be seen in
a season, with five to eight young to each nest. In
the wilds of the shires there is no animal that will
defend or protect its offspring so valiantly as a
Weasel — despite the fact that its own life is practically
given over to the invasion of the hearths of other
animals. Nature, in the case of the Weasel, works in
a mysterious way.

The Pine Marten is a woodland rover, living
amongst the branches of the fir-trees. As a rule one
usually hears the animal spoken of simply as the
Marten, but in some districts of Scotland it is referred
to as the Marten- Cat. The latter title seems to
indicate that the rustic mind had classed the Pine
Marten along with the Polecat and Wild Cat, just
in the same way as fieldfares, redwings, and mistle-
thrushes are designated " hill-birds " in many districts
of Scotland.

At the present day the Pine Marten is a rarer animal
than either of those named. It may be said, however,
to be more widely distributed, owing doubtless to the
fact that it is a less conspicuous animal, and from its
mode of life is less likely to be detected. Its
wandering movements also, in a sense, guard it from
observation.

As in the case of the Wild Cat, the capture of a
Pine Marten is usually recorded in the daily Press,

30

The Pine Marten

and this alone indicates that it has to be considered a
rare mammal in the British Isles. Less than a hundred
years ago these animals were by no means uncommon.
In the year 1840 one reads of no fewer than two
hundred and forty-six specimens being shot and trapped
during the three preceding years in Glengarry. Since
that time, however, it has to be granted that the Pine
Marten has gradually decreased, and it is only now
and again one hears of the capture of a single specimen.
This extermination is not to be wondered at, considered
from the game-preserver's point of view. Even
flock-masters dread the presence of a Pine Marten, for
the creature will exhibit no signs of fear in the presence
of even a sheep that may stray within the precincts
of its hunting-grounds. Be the quarry animal or fowl,
the Pine Marten pursues it with relentless ferocity,
and the taste of reeking flesh and blood alone can
satisfy the creature's appetite.

Its arboreal habits give it special facilities in
securing a full larder during the whole year. This is
denied to many creatures of the woods, for most of
them cannot climb the tree-trunks or crawl snake-
like along a swaying branch in pursuit of prey. The
Marten, however, is endowed with scissor-like claws
and teeth, and whether amongst the tree-branches or
on terra-firma it is thus provided with deadly weapons
in the securing of its prey. In the tree-tops it is as
agile as a squirrel ; on earth it can vie with the
Polecat or Stoat.

31

Flesh- Eating Land Mammals

The Pine Marten, lying outstretched upon a fir-tree
branch, may be passed unnoticed by the casual way-
farer, so well does the creature's outline blend with the
rough red bark. Even the sitting Wood Pigeon,
incubating her white-shelled eggs on her little platform
of twigs, is usually quite unconscious of the Marten's
presence, until it feels the sharp claws rivet her to
her nest. The Kestrel Hawk, that hunts the fields
for wandering mice, finds in turn that Nature has
fashioned the Pine Marten as its enemy. Nesting in
the deepest recesses of the woods, the Kestrel returns to
sit sullenly by the hearth where its youngsters dream
the hours away. Like a red glint of sunshine, the
Pine Marten springs from its aerial lair, slays the
parent Kestrel, and callously lays waste the homestead
in the trees. In the spring-time, before the Hooded
Crow has laid its clutch, the Pine Marten sees the
Squirrel digging amongst the dead leaves of the
forest. The hunter draws its lithe form along in the
shelter of the pine-needles, and patiently waits the
Squirrel's return. Carrying a nut, the latter ascends
the bole, and nestles in the forking branch to dine.
The hunter has its teeth in its neck before its victim
tastes the kernel. Such is forest law.

This creature's own home is often within the nest
of a Hooded Crow, Magpie, or Squirrel that it has
ejected or devoured. Sometimes it will settle in a
hollow tree-trunk, or in some rocky crevice of an
inland cliff. In such places it generally rears two

3^

PLATE V.

The Polecat

litters annually, and there are usually ^ve or six young
to the litter. In general appearance the Pine Marten
is of a deep brown colour, with a dark buff throat and
white chest. It is larger than either the Polecat or
Stoat, but, unlike these, it has no offensive odour. It
resembles them, however, in form, having a longish
and extremely supple body, with short limbs and
rounded feet. The ears are also rounded and well
furred on both sides, while the tail is flowing and
bushy. Male and female are very similar in outline,
and both are of a like bloodthirsty nature.

Pine Martens are spoken of occasionally as being
denizens of the English woodlands, especially where
there are extensive tracts of heavy timber, but this is
open to serious question. The remote and less
frequented regions of Scotland may be marked down
as the only districts now inhabited by this animal, and,
indeed, in North Britain it is extremely rare, as already
noted.

To-day the Polecat is a rarity in Britain. It used to
be found in the rugged and wilder parts of Scotland,
where it was known as the Foumart. About the
years 1 850-70, it seems to have been noted occasionally,
but since the latter date Polecats have been, in a sense,
erased from the British fauna. While saying so, it
must be recognized that a stray specimen turns up
occasionally, as, for instance, one I knew of personally
that was trapped during its visits to a ferret-hutch

B.L.M. 33 5

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

belonging to a flock-master in the county of Kincardine,
not many years ago.

The Polecat is an animal of some 2 feet in length,
the tail being about 6 inches. It has a heavy neck,
rather pointed muzzle, and prominent upper canines.
The ears are short, eyes small and dark brown in
colour, with a general expression of cruel ferocity
impressed upon its ferret-like head. As a rule, the
colour of the Polecat alters with climatic conditions.
For instance, the summer coat actually overshadows
many of the minor details, which the eye might other-
wise note. Round about the ears and mouth there are
touches of white hair, but when the denser coat appears
these markings almost disappear, and the Polecat at a
glance looks a grizzly blackish-brown colour all over.
In the colder months it becomes paler, and these
marks then appear more prominent.

The animal is a night-prowler, and does not halt at
small game. It will kill almost any creature its own
weight, be the latter clothed in fur or feather. It is
intensely fond of young rabbits and leverets, but
geese, turkeys, or barndoor fowls meet their fate
when the Polecat is on the hunt. During the open
season it takes up its headquarters amongst stony
debris if such is available, or in any hole or crevice in a
bank-side. When winter comes on, it seems to hug
more sheltered places, such as the neighbourhood of
buildings, where the winds are broken and the gales less
irritating. A stone wall where there are many corridors

34

PLATE VI

Photo. R. Fortune

WILD CAT (FELIS CATVS)

FOX CUBS

The Stoat

to traverse suits the Polecat well, after the season of
breeding. These animals have young in May or June,
and usually there are four to six in a litter.

The Polecat has been provided by Nature v^ith a
most offensive odour ; so much so that scarcely any
doubt can arise that this obnoxious and sickening scent
has been given the animal as a protective measure
against its enemies. Perhaps this natural guard may
date back to the time when the Polecat itself was
preyed upon by more warlike mammals than it now has
to contend with. To-day, the Polecat, when it appears,
is master of the situation, bar man and his engines of war.

The Stoat is seldom seen about the habitations of
men. It dwells remote even from the gamekeeper's
cottage when possible, although at times it may rear its
four or five youngsters in a burrow within sound of the
keeper's kennel. Like the Hedgehog, too, it occasion-
ally turns up in the most unsuspected places. For
instance, I have known a full-grown Stoat to enter
a fisherman's cottage, and another locate itself inside a
greenhouse within the precincts of a town. Such
instances, however, are unusual, and may be put down
to the animals having lost their way in some manner or
other. As a rule, Stoats remain in the backwoods,
even more so than weasels. They are — casually looked
at — big weasels, both in shape and colour. Unlike
the weasel, however, the Stoat changes its colour
during the winter season, and its fur is then white,

3S

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

with only the tip of the tail marked in black. The
fur known in the commercial market as ermine is the
winter coating of the Stoat.

It is a larger animal than the weasel, and a very
much more daring one when at close quarters. It is
an extremely bold raider, and when on the trail is a
most determined assailant, be its victim bird or rodent.
The larder of the Stoat means anything in fur or
feather it can capture. The Stoat will dine on a
grouse chick, or carry off a pheasant poult, with the
same assurance that it will enter a rabbit-burrow and
throttle the dam while she suckles her sightless off-
spring. Pressed by weather conditions, the Stoat will
not hesitate to kill a mouse or rat, a hare, or a stray-
ing duck. I have known a Stoat to visit a hen-crib
during successive nights, and destroy not only a great
number of chickens, but also take possession of the nest-
box, where the raider was ultimately found — fast asleep
— in the early morning.

Although Stoats, as Nature has decreed, are robust
hunters, yet they are feeble creatures when pitted
against man. For instance, a smart rap on the head
will "lay out" an adult Stoat. They are easily shot
when found hunting ; and were it not for the contour
of the creature, its death would be encompassed far
more readily than it is at the present time. Like the
weasel, very little cover is required to shield the form
of a Stoat. It passes through the herbage practically
unseen, the grasses being scarcely disturbed by its

36

The Stoat

passage. Hence the gunner in many instances fails
to detect the movements of the creature. To trap a
Stoat is by no means a difficult matter. If one of
these animals is killed and left upon the ground, the
smell will generally attract any of its kind that may
be in the district. In trapping, the contents of the
bladder should be poured over the ground and the
trap set in its place. Where, however, the surrounding
ground has been over-disturbed it is wise to leave the
spot for a time, as this upheaval seems to act as a
warning to these carnivorous creatures.

In the hilly regions of our island. Stoats are perhaps
the worst enemies the game-preserver has to contend
with. Being powerfully built compared with their size,
they are admirably fitted to capture and kill. Any
living creature weaker than themselves they do not
hesitate to slay ; the amount of game even a single
Stoat will kill in a month must be enormous. There
is, indeed, some excuse for the gamekeeper who smiles
complacently to himself as he nails the Stoat's carcass
to the cross, amongst the thieves and robbers of the
woodlands.

Throughout the length and breadth of the British
Isles the Badger is now seldom seen. Yet year after
year scientific and sporting journals print paragraphs
anent the Badger's appearance in localities where the
creature's presence had never been previously noted.
This is one of the most peculiar features of the life-

37

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

history of the Badger. One could overlook this
peculiarity were it an insect, a bird, or even a small
species of rodent ; but when it is remembered that the
Badger measures 2^ feet in length, and boasts of a tail
of almost a quarter as long again, it seems surpassing
strange that it should be found in, say, a rabbit-trap
set by a gamekeeper, who may not have any previous
knowledge of the animal's presence in his preserves.
Added to this, the Badger cannot be said to erase, in
the slightest degree, indications of its being a dweller
in the locality where found. A Badger's "earth," as
its deep burrow is termed, is usually marked by an
enormous amount of soil and debris around its en-
trance, and this alone is a sure and certain sign of
the animal having settled in the district.

There are, no doubt. Badgers in many of our
larger woods and forests, whose presence is well known
to proprietors of such domains, but it is not of these
I speak. I refer more particularly to the animal's
appearance in isolated instances, where it had been
previously unknown. For example, I knew a taxi-
dermist of almost forty years' experience, who had in
his generation " set up " practically the whole of the
fauna of his county, and yet that artist never was asked
to stuff a local Badger except in one solitary instance.
This single specimen turned up quite unexpectedly in
the well-wooded policies of a neighbouring landowner,
and was found by a labourer who chanced to be
passing through the woods one morning. This was

38

PLATE VII

WEASEL

Photo, R. Fo7-tune

Photo, R. Fortune

FALLOW DEER

The Badger

the first and last Badger that taxidermist had seen in
his locality during all the years named. He had
been acquainted with the life of the fields for almost
half a century, and this was the only example of the
Meles taxus he had ever known as an indigenous
animal of his neighbourhood.

Here and there, landowners have tried to reintro-
duce the Badger, and no doubt exists that were such
attempts to be regarded favourably, the animal would
establish itself in the shires. But against such laudable
desires on the part of Nature-lovers the commercial
spirit is arrayed. It is very evident that the disappear-
ance of the Badger from our more northern woods can
be traced to the demand for this animal's hide as an
article of dress. The Highland costume embraces
what is called a "sporran" ; and a sporran fashioned from
the hide of a Badger was, and is still, a valued
ornament of the Highland dress. On the other
hand, Badger-baiting was in former years looked upon
as one of the best of sports, both by the noble and the
peasant. Like cock-fighting, it was at one time con-
sidered " the sport of Kings," but for many years it has
happily fallen into disfavour. Still, while this brutal
form of sport existed in our land, it did much to
exterminate the Badger, if it did not actually erase
the animal's name from many districts. From these
and other causes, the Badger may now be written
down as a rare animal in many counties where it
formerly had its " earth."

39

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

Once the Badger locates in a wood, its " earth "
clearly denotes its presence, and this unmistakable
sign at once leads to its discovery, and probably its
destruction. The steel trap is brought into use, and
the Badger's bulky figure latterly dangles on the
gamekeeper's gallows-tree. No quarter is given to the
creature ; no excuse tendered for its virtues. Its failings
are said to be that it is a most omnivorous feeder on
all sorts and conditions of life and vegetation. In the
spring-time it will suck the pheasant's eggs, and early
summer sees it on the prowl for the straying partridge.
It is said to pull down a newly born lamb and devour
it, or it will plunder any outlying hen-house of both
old and young fowls. When the grain is heavy in the
head, it tramps through the corn-lands and dines
sumptuously. These and similar accusations are
common in every country-side, but such charges
are open to question, and, indeed, may be put
down as in a great measure mere conjecture. As a
purloiner of the eggs of wild birds, the Badger may
at times be an offender, but the animal does not
habitually rob nests of their clutches. It, however,
dotes on young rabbits, and seldom hesitates to dig up
a nest of this rodent when such comes in its way. Yet
Badgers are by no means dainty feeders. They will
accept almost anything of an edible character, from
an insect to a bunny, a ripe strawberry to an apple.
The animal is credited with robbing the wild bee of its
honey, and is said to be impervious to the insect's stings.

40

PLATE VIII.

RED DEER — STAG. Pnee J7.

The Badger

A Badger once seen, its very outline and colouring
unmistakably denote its species. Over the back it is
pale grizzly, with black underparts, while a broad black
streak passes across the ear and eye. The ears are
short, the muzzle pointed, skull somewhat ridged,
and the under-jaw very firmly locked into the socket.
This rather singular formation of the creature's lower
jaw doubtless accounts for what at one time lent zest
to Badger-baiting. The animal's jaw, once it fixes
upon an object, almost defies dislocation, and conse-
quently it took an extremely game terrier to face and
tackle the animal thus armed and underground.

The Badger rears three or four young at a time, and
these are usually nestled amongst an accumulation of
grasses and dead leaves. The burrow is roomy and
kept scrupulously clean, and is generally approached
by several subways. The animal hibernates for some
months when the ground is ice-bound and the succu-
lent vegetation lies sear and damp by the wayside.

Something must now be said about Otters, those
pirates of the streams abhorred by all followers of
Izaak Walton. The presence of these quadrupeds
about a stretch of water is credited with being the
cause of the otherwise inexplicable movements of
fish. There is no reason for doubting that Otters
disturb angling waters. The animal hunts and eats
fish, and this fact alone must act in a measure
against the quiet peacefulness that fish love so well.

B.^.M. 41 6

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

On the other hand, this creature does not confine its
menu to fish, but will devour eels, frogs, water-voles,
and even a stray duckling or a moor-hen. Eels and
frogs are inveterate enemies of fish spawn, and as the
Otter kills the former, it stands to reason that the fish-
beds are thereby benefited. Then, again, crayfish
feed largely upon the larvae of Ephemera and similar
immature developments that go to form fish-food.
Crayfish will be found part of the Otter's food, and in
devouring these the animal may, in this respect, be
written down as a " paying guest." Vast numbers or
coarse fish fall a prey to Otters throughout the season,
and this aspect of the question may be looked upon
as a special service to all angling streams that Otters
frequent. While granting that Otters by nature do
harm, it has to be acknowledged that the weeding out
of the smaller and weaker specimens of aquatic life
must improve the angling resources of a sheet of water.
This quadruped is native to our isles. Its nocturnal
habits naturally account for its being seldom observed
unless by those favourably situated. The "spur" of
an Otter is quite easily distinguished by the side of a
stream or pond. The " spur " is the impress of the
foot, and this has five rounded and well-defined toes,
which, on a soft, muddy bank, is readily detected.
The Otter is fond of traversing the land, and on
issuing from his subterranean quarters he usually
pushes through the herbage before taking to the
water in quest of prey. As a rule, Otters have

42

The Otter

their homes in holes under the stream's banks, and
a very favourite place is just under a tree-root,
where the animal can enter deep down in the
water. Once the Otter gets on land, it shakes the
water off its coat in dog fashion, and for the time
being is a land animal. Though the fact is not
generally understood, the Otter will live and bring up
its family quite apart from the water. A reedy or
ferny bed will answer this purpose, provided its home
is not adjacent to danger. The young, in learning to
swim, practise a good deal before they actually become
expert divers and swimmers. Once, however, the
animal attains proficiency in the art, it can execute
almost lightning evolutions, and catch the swiftest fish
in the stream. It is a very graceful swimmer when
undisturbed. When swimming upon the surface it
uses its fore-paws, merely dragging the hind-legs, and
working its tail in rudder fashion. The animal can,
and does, remain a considerable time under water when
pursued.

As a rule, the Otter's menu consists of fish which it
catches by its own dexterity. Occasionally two or
three Otters may be seen fishing together, but this is
not, as some suppose, by concerted arrangement. It
simply means there are fish about a given place, and
that such environments have for the time become
attractive to the animals.

Looking back almost forty years, I can remember
the two first Otters I captured. One evening I was

43

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

exploring the rocky shore of Forfarshire, and observed
an Otter upon a large flat stone quite a hundred yards
from the water's edge. On observing me, it slid over
the stone and instantly disappeared. Going direct
to the place, I found evidences of the animal, and
decided on trapping it if I could. Returning the
following day with an ordinary rat-trap with an iron
chain attached, I placed this in the crevice where I
thought the animal lodged. I utilized no bait of any
kind, relying solely upon the hidden trap for the
capture of the animal. Allowing a couple of days to
intervene, I then visited the spot. My trap and chain
had mysteriously disappeared. The boulders were too
heavy to move from their places, and I had almost
given up hope of finding either my property or the
Otter, and had turned homewards rather disappointed
and dejected. As I did so, my eye caught sight of one
of the chain-rings pressed firmly against the adjacent
rock. For a time I worked hard to dislodge this from
its place, and would assuredly have failed had not a
passing fisherman lent his assistance. The result was
we pulled the dead Otter from the inner recesses of
the cairn, and I carried the quadruped landwards.
I hid the carcass in some benty grasses, intending
to remove it later in the day ; but on my return to
the spot I discovered some stray dog had mauled the
carcass beyond recognition.

My second Otter I found under entirely different
circumstances. While snipe-shooting along the banks

44

The Otter

of a stream one evening, I had sat down behind a
reedy bed to watch the movements of a pair of teal.
While thus engaged, I thought I heard the whistle of
an Otter, and listened attentively for a few moments
The sound was repeated several times, and I felt sure
I could not be mistaken in concluding the noise pro-
ceeded from such an animal. Then for some minutes
the only sound to break the quiet was the low chatter
of a tomtit in a neighbouring tree. The tension
became irksome, and I rose to move down the bank-
side. As I did so, I saw a big body glide under the
drooping branches that hung over the stream, and I
crouched expectantly behind the reeds. Peering over
the vegetation, I saw a head above water, and my first
impulse was to fire at the object, for it seemed to be
making for the cover of the opposite bank. Un-
decided, I waited, and although the animal held on
its way for some distance, it ultimately wheeled round
and landed upon a shingly island formed by the stream
dividing at this place. As it walked up the sloping
side of the island, I fired. There was no noise once
the echo of the report died down the valley, only the
dead body of a full-grown Otter lay stretched upon
the beach. I waded knee-deep across the stream, and
carried the body ashore, forgetful of the movement of
the teal-ducks. This specimen had a head and body
of 28 inches in length, with a tail fully half as long.
The Otter's head is flat and broad, and its tail strikingly
flat and tapering. The ears are short and rounded,

45

Flesh-Eating Land Mammals

and somewhat hairy. The eyes are rather small, and
of a fine black lustre. There is comparatively no
difference between the neck and the body, while the
limbs are very short and muscular-looking. The toes
are webbed, and well furnished with curved claws.
The " dog " or male Otter is larger than the female,
and the latter usually brings forth four or five young
at a birth.

46

CHAPTER V

BRITISH HOOFED MAMMALS

Scotland is the land of the Red Deer. The wilds of
Westmorland, Exmoor, and Epping Forest doubtless
harboured Red Deer in the past, but to-day the
Grampian range of mountains is the home of this
noble animal. Were one to roll back the years,
perhaps he would find the Red Deer inhabiting the
lowlands and fertile plains and straths, but to-day the
Red Deer seldom ventures far from the well-defined
line where the heather is stayed by the plough and
harrow.

In the days of Queen Mary, a great Deer hunt was
convened in the Athol Country, " with immense pomp
and at great cost," when over 2,000 animals were
driven within a limited area, and some 360 were killed,
along with quite a number of wolves and goats.
Since Queen Mary's time the Red Deer has become
almost a national asset.

This Deer is the largest of all the British species.
In colour it is of a deep red-brown in summer, but as
winter approaches this colouring becomes brownish-
grey. Inside the flanks and thighs the colour tends to
fawn. The muzzle is black, and, as in the case of all

47

British Hoofed Mammals

deer, the tail is extremely short considering the size
and weight of the animal. The horns of the Red
Deer are its crowning glory. It is when a stag (as the
male is termed) has twelve points, or six on each
antler, that it is said to carry a " Royal " head. The
three points nearest the skull are termed the " brow,"
" bay," and " tray tines," while the three higher up
constitute a cluster designated the "cup." This cup
in olden times was supposed to be capable of contain-
ing a glass of usquebaugh.

The age of a stag cannot be properly determined by
the number of points it carries upon its antlers.
Formerly it was believed that a tine represented a year,
in the same way that the woody pulp of a tree denotes
its age. The modern deer-stalker, however, knows
that these points are not fashioned in keeping with the
calendar. Very much depends upon the succulent
nature of the ground over which the animal roams ;
accidents have to be taken into account, as also the
modern system employed in the larger forests of hand-
feeding during severe weather.

A perfect " Royal " must have the three points
formed into a cup-shape, otherwise the head is con-
sidered defective. The antlers of aged deer become
bare, and the much-prized roughness that younger
animals show is lost. The points, too, take on a less
acute shape with age, no doubt the direct result of the
declining vigour of the animal itself. Coveted although
these antlered heads are by the sportsman, and reckoned

48

PLATE IX.

i^ttt'V'^

SQUIRREL. Page 54.

The Red Deer

as worthy trophies of the rifleman's art, they are year
by year becoming scarcer under the more artificial
conditions in which deer are now fostered in the
Highlands of Scotland. These great horns, although
infinitely valuable as modern trophies, may in the
course of years vanish from the hills. In past times
the immense antlers of the noble Red Deer served
to shield it from the attacks of its forest foes, but
the world has in the interval so altered Nature's plan
that these defensive weapons have, in a sense, become
almost useless. It is an open question if the hornless
or hummel deer will or will not in the future become
the monarch of the hills. Certain it is that a hummel
stag can hold its own with the stag that carries the
most unique "Royal " head. The latter cannot possibly
vie with the hummel when it comes to a pitched
battle on the rock-strewn mountain. The antlered
animal wastes his power and strength in his attempts
to strike with his cumbered head, while the hummel
deftly hammers its adversary with its fore-legs and
sends its opponent headlong into the bed of the corrie.
The blood that in former years went to the formation
of these mighty " Royals " may in the case of the
hummelled animal increase the latter's stamina and
weight, and thus give the hornless animal a power
that the animal carrying the finely shaped antlers lacks.
Perhaps, too, the unornamental animal may find it has
to fight to survive ; and Nature — ever kind — has in
the interval sharpened its intellect to a degree far
B.L.M. 49 7

British Hoofed Mammals

beyond that of its antlered opponent. Be that as it
may, it is no uncommon sight to see a hummel stag at
the head of a herd of hinds, and lord of the passes and
the crags.

Early summer sees the Red Deer the most con-
spicuous figure on the Grampian range. Then the
stag gathers around him a herd of hinds ; but once the
rutting season is over he returns to the higher reaches,
somewhat shorn of his grandeur and magnificence. It
is then that he has to prepare for his winter campaign
amid the snows and the hurricanes that sweep these
latitudes. While the snows and icy blasts still en-
compass his sanctuary, Nature decrees that he must
shed his lordly antlers.

Where the antlers of deer were shed was for long a
profound mystery with the residents of the hills.
These discarded relics were seldom discovered even
by those traversing the hills in their daily occupations.
This evident secrecy gave rise to endless superstitions
in the Highlands. As stags not infrequently chew their
cast-ofF horns, this in a measure accounts for their
disappearance, and when it is also recognized that a
deer will naturally seek some sequestered spot to rid
itself of the loosening antlers, it follows that the
wayfarer would not casually locate these articles.

In the more remote districts of the Highlands deer
horns are greatly prized as remedies against sickness
and family troubles. A matron will grind a horn to a
powder and bottle the particles against the visitation of

50

PLATE X

Plwto, T. Malloch

WILD RABBIT

The Fallow Deer

such a disease as diarrhoea, lung or chest troubles.
Everyone knows the value of hartshorn, and the
Highland matron has the knowledge handed down to
her from ages past.

The hind, or female, of the Red Deer is a much
smaller animal than the stag. She breeds when three
years of age, and has one calf at a time. Twins,
however, are not unknown, although rare. The fawn,
or young deer, is not so dull in colouring as its parents,
being more or less spotted with white markings.

The Fallow Deer gains its distinctive title from its
yellowish-brown or faded yellow colour. It is also
marked by white dots or streaks. There are differ-
ences in colouring, however, some being darker than
others, and having few, if any, white spots. All
Fallow Deer have a whitish mark on the buttocks, and
this, again, is bordered with black ; there is also a dark
line running down the back to the extremity of the
tail. The tail itself reaches almost halfway to the
hock. In winter the spotted variety takes on a duller
coat, and the light markings then become partly eclipsed.
During this season, again, the darker-coated variety
becomes greyer.

The spotted variety is the larger animal of the two,
and boasts of more snags on its antlers. These are
large and rounded at the base, and widen out into
broad palmations as they rise. These antlers appear in
the second year, and are then of a simple, rudimentary

SI

British Hoofed Mammals

spike form. The year following, what are called the
brow and trex tines develop, and the palm-like spread
of the horn takes shape. The fourth year sees the
hinder edge serrated ; the fifth season gives these
serrations a more acute shape, while the broadening
of the horn becomes complete. In the sixth year the
serrations become short points or projections, known
as snags. It is only the buck that carries horns, the
doe being hummel. The bucks are also larger than
the does, and the latter breed in their second year,
bringing forth one fawn at a birth.

In a sense the Fallow Deer is the tame deer of
ornamental parks, although there are several wild
herds here and there ; these probably trace their
pedigree to the herds encompassed by stone walls.

The Roe Deer is the smallest of all the British
species. Its height, taken at the withers, is not more
than 26 inches, and the average is somewhat less than
this. The colour is a sort of tawny brown in summer,
verging into a greyish tinge when winter comes on.
The points of the hair then lose their warm red glow,
and this lends a dull leaden hue to the coat. The
female, or doe, is always paler in colour compared
with the buck, while the fawns are warm red, with
white dots on their hide.

The Roebuck's antlers are three-pointed, very up-
right, stout and short, and minus the brow-tine of
bigger game. It sheds these in autumn, and renews

52

The Roe Deer

them before the grasses start in spring. The first
year only a single spike is seen ; in the second season
the horn forks into two ; and in the third year there
are three points, when the head is complete. These
horns seldom exceed i foot in length, and are rounded
in form, with a rough exterior, and sharply pointed.

Roe Deer pair for life, and a family may be seen on
the move, consisting of the buck, doe, and two fawns,
browsing under the boughs of some spreading beech or
chestnut tree, as the evening draws to a close. Where
they are kept in enclosed parks it not infrequently
happens that the surrounding district is furnished with
venison from time to time, via the medium of escapes.
As a rule Roe Deer seldom thrive under limited areas,
and seem to be creatures of the wilds.

Native to Scotland, they have been introduced
across the Border, but although breeding in several
localities, they are truly animals of the northern
latitudes. Any found in England cling tenaciously
to the more northern counties, but a few may be
located about Epping and Windsor Forests, and one
or two other districts in the southern portions of our
Island. In Ireland Roe Deer are practically unknown.

S3

CHAPTER VI

BRITISH GNAWING MAMMALS

I. Squirrels^ Hares ^ and Rabbits

In the woodlands, where the SquuTel has its home,
the landscape always seems to be richer for its presence.
From end to end of our islands this little brown-
coated denizen of the woods may be found. In some
localities it is scarcer than in others, but in some
quarters it actually becomes a distinct species of
vermin. The animal has an intense love for the young
shoots of forest trees, and where these are planted out
Squirrels often do an immense amount of damage. In
the pine- woods of northern Scotland a deadly warfare is
annually carried on against these tree-dwellers. It
appears, however, that towards the more southern
parts of the country the Squirrel does far less harm
than about the mountain-slopes. The animal has a
partiality to the fruit of forest trees, and in the spring-
time it will clear immense tracks of the sprouting buds,
and frequently peel the bark from young trees that
have just started into growth. Vast areas of silver-fir
woods are irretrievably ruined by the concerted
nibbling of Squirrels in the pine-forests of Scotland.
Hence the repeated attempts that are made to thin
their ranks or extirpate the animals. The misdeeds of

54

PLATE XI

/'. i:!och

DORMOUSE

BROWN RAT

The Squirrel

the Squirrel in this respect detract considerably from
the poetic pictures of woodland life.

The Squirrel spends most of its time amongst the
tree-branches, but may occasionally be seen romping
about amongst the fallen leaves of the forest. In
colour it is of a very warm brown, and its tail is
extremely bushy, and curls up along the back of its
body. When on the ground, however, the tail is
always lowered and carried quite straight, similar to
that of any other animal of the woods. It is extremely
quick and nimble even when on the ground, but
intensely so when amongst standing timber. It thinks
nothing of leaping from branch to branch, and can
travel the whole length of a forest without descending,
provided the trees be of ordinary denseness.

In early summer the Squirrel's colour is deep red,
and the ears are adorned by hairy tufts that give the
animal a rather peculiar look. Later in the year the
red coat becomes duller, and by winter it is greyish,
while the tufts then disappear from the ears. The
farther north the Squirrel is located, the greyer its
coat becomes. While warm brown or red above, the
front, from the throat downwards, is pure white, and
these markings go to make this agile climber a striking
figure to the casual observer.

In size, the animal measures something like i6 inches,
including the tail. Both the eyes and ears are large
considering the bulk of the animal. There are four
digits in the hand, with a sort of rudimentary thumb,

55

British Gnawing Mammals

and in the foot there are five toes, resembling the
fingers, having long, sharp claws, and wonderfully
formed for climbing the outer bark of a beech or other
tree.

Squirrels are never found outside the woodland area,
unless by mere chance. They have their nest, or
"dray," in some hole high up the tree-trunk, or in
some cosy fork formed by the larger branches of the
parent stem. The nest is composed of fibres and
roots of a miscellaneous character, with moss and
leaves intermixed. Here the young are reared about
midsummer, and within this domicile there may merely
be a couple of youngsters or as many as seven or even
eight.

As a rule. Squirrels are rather epicurean in taste,
and love to have a full larder against the demands of
autumn and winter. They are given to hiding nuts
and other foods about the woods, and may be seen in
late autumn running about the forest, scratching here
and there for these stores. At such times they also
secure acorns, or other hard-shelled nuts, and it is
quite an interesting scene to watch the animal dining
on one of these encased morsels. The creature gets
the nut in its hands, and at once sets its teeth into
the outer skin and deftly scrapes this off. Then
it splits the shell in two, and catches the kernel in its
teeth. If disturbed at its meal, the Squirrel will mount
the adjacent tree, and finish the nut while lying in the
tree-fork above.

56

PLATE XII.

HARES AND LEVERETS. Page 57.

The Hare

Although the Squirrel hibernates during the severe
weather of winter, still the animal seldom misses a raid
through the woods when there is winter sunshine
lightening the outer branches of the forest.

As an amateur trapper, the Brown Hare proved
my first victim. From observation, I learned that
Hares were distinctly nocturnal feeders, and that they
generally moved from field to field by a well-defined
route. Without any other knowledge as a trapper,
I set a brass looped wire, where I had observed a
Hare passing nightly, and next morning the animal
had the wire round its neck — dead. This is a very
common method of trapping the Brown Hare, and is
carried out by the farmer who does not shoot, but
who finds his turnips broken during the night season.
The poaching ploughman often sets such a snare, and
the wearied shepherd twists a brass wire and amuses
himself by catching the timid creature. Professional
poachers rely to some extent upon this same instrument
to fill their bag, but, nevertheless, these men employ
a surer and more deadly form of capture. As the
twilight approaches, the poacher erects a net upon a
field-gate and orders his lurcher to drive the field.
As the dog quarters the meadow the Hare dashes for
the gateway, strikes the net, rolls over, and a simple
child-like scream ends the career of the hunted.

While it has to be granted that the Brown Hare is
endowed for defensive purposes above many of its

B.L.M. 57 8

British Gnawing Mammals

compeers of field and wood, yet it seems somewhat
strange and puzzling to find the creature almost
defisnceless under special circumstances. A Hare
appears to be entirely devoid of resource. On its
own ground it is usually alert and vigilant, and any
foreign sound or object is sure to disturb the animal
and send it beyond the zone of danger. Its fleetness
of foot is its safety. Taken unawares, however, the
Hare dashes madly about, and often gives up its life
by its blundering tactics. If a Hare is observed on
the move during the daytime, it is a sure sign the
animal has in some way or other been disturbed in its
" form," as its bed is termed. Living as it does
entirely above ground, the animal is accustomed to
rely solely upon its fleetness as a protective measure
against its enemies. For its size no British mammal
can compete with it in this respect.

Tranquil pastures are the Hare's paradise. Quiet-
ness gives the animal confidence, and its innate ner-
vousness seems to be erased where these conditions
prevail. The Ground Game Act has in a measure
thinned the ranks of the animal so far as the lowlands
are concerned, and this Act has to a certain extent sent
the Brown Hare into the more remote regions.
Hares are thus decreasing in the arable lands, and
increasing where pastures alone are in evidence. The
sanctuary of the hills has thus been taken full advantage
of by these animals ; so much so that they have become,
in a manner, a menace to the owners of grouse moors.

S8

The Hare

Hares are not by any means welcome guests where the
Red Grouse breeds. The heather on the mountains Is
burned solely for the sustenance of the birds named,
but where Hares abound on such grounds they feed
voraciously on these young and tender shoots, and thus
rob the Red Grouse of their food. They are also liable
to upset the dogs employed upon such moors during
the shooting season.

The Hare's " form " is a simple depression in the
soil, or it may be within a tuft of grass. Here the
animal rests throughout the day, shielding itself as best
it can from the wind and rain. As evening draws
its curtain over the landscape the Hare leaves its bed
and goes out to the fields to dine on cereal or root-
crop. A single Hare can do an immense amount
of damage when located upon arable land. Just as the
turnip blade is breaking the soil the animal nibbles the
tender shoot and kills the budding germ. Amongst
sprouting grain or clover the animal will practically
retard the growth of such for many square yards before
it returns to its " form " in the dawn. Even in the
dead of the year, the Hare sets its teeth into the skin
of the turnip, and leaves the frost and thaw to complete
the destruction.

About the third month in the calendar of the year
the Brown Hare seeks a mate. It is then the animals
may be seen chasing each other wildly, leaping, skipping,
and gambolling in the grasslands, from which the
expression '* mad as a March hare " has been coined.

59

British Gnawing Mammals

These romping antics last for some weeks, after
which the animals settle down to the ordinary cares
of family-rearing. A pair of Hares will have three
or four litters in a season, with about four young ones
in each nest. The young have their eyes open when
born, and once they gain strength of limb they ramble
beyond the home circle as the day verges into night.

In general appearance the Hare is rabbit-like in
form, with a greater length of limb. In colour it is a
grey-brown over the back with a warmer brown about
the sides, and this, again, fades into white about the
underparts. In winter the brown hue turns to a
brownish-grey. The ears are narrow and concave,
black tipped and rounded, and somewhat longer than
the head itself The tail is black above, and its under-
surface white. Distinctive features of the Hare are
its thick, bristly and deeply cleft upper lip, and the
oblong pupils of the eyes. The latter are very large
and prominent, and set well back into the head. The
build of the frame is lanky and rather compressed in
appearance, and this lankiness is most apparent when
the animal is in motion. The long hind-legs account
for this impression. In length the average Hare
measures 22 inches.

What has been said of the Brown Hare applies in
great measure to the White or Mountain Hare.
Unlike the Brown Hare, however, this species is never
seen upon the lower reaches of the land. It is purely
an Alpine resident. The colour also varies more than

60

The Hare

in the case of the brown species. The summer coat is
a grey of various shades — a buff or light brown being
quite common, but when ice and snow invade the
highlands the fur turns pure white, with the exception
of that on the ears. These are nicely marked in black at
the tips. Throughout the whole year the underparts
retain their white colouring. The head of this hare
is not so flat as in the brown species, while the ears
are shorter in proportion. Both the Brown and
Mountain Hares are equal so far as size is concerned,
but the latter has not so much length of hind-leg as its
compeer.

Although thus handicapped, as it would seem, the
hare of the hills is as fleet of limb as the denizen
of the lowlands. For food, in the warm months of
the year, it finds abundance of grasses upon the
hill-sides and in the shaded corries where the deer
roam. When autumn comes there are the heather fields
at its disposal, and during the inclement weather
around Christmas it crops the lichens and gleans
the pine-seeds in the recesses of the forest.

Given a wild waste of land, a pair of Rabbits, and
solitude, the face of the landscape may be visibly
altered. A perusal of any of the modern treatises on
the fauna of the Shires will show that not a few
localities were of recent times practically free of this
wild rodent. Then, by some erratic movement on the
part of the individual, the Rabbit was introduced, and

6i

British Gnawing Mammals

with the Rabbit a change came over the scene. The
writer, even, can recall special districts that knew not
Rabbits. He can also remember their introduction in
some districts and the consequences. Without printing
names, I can point specially to a Shire where fifty odd
years ago the Rabbit was unknown. Since that date I
can chronicle the animal's devastations, involving
serious loss to both landlord and tenant of grazing lands.
So acute, indeed, in one instance, became the situation
that the landlord would be carting turnips in a severe
winter to keep the Rabbits alive, and in the summer
following he would generously give the tenant his rent
back, because of the damage the animals had done to
the pastures.

Broadly speaking. Rabbits afford good sport for the
gunner, and when kept within due bounds prove a
minor asset to an estate. When allowed to multiply
irrespective of all commercial considerations, this wild
rodent becomes not only a prominent example of
vermin, but proves a distinct nuisance, and con-
sequently a loss to everyone concerned. Considered
as one of the more prominent of the four-footed
denizens of the fields and woods, the Rabbit is an
interesting and engaging animal. One hears it often
spoken of in juvenile language as the " bunny,*' while
the Americans call it the " coney."

In Britain we find the animal thrives best where
there is a sandy or gravelly soil. It loves dry places.
Yet this is not always the case. As an instance

62

The Rabbit

entirely opposed to this natural selection of site, I may
mention that I have found as hardy and robust Rabbits
under entirely diverse circumstances. For instance,
there are quite a number of watery ditches about my
house, where extensive colonies of Rabbits live,
move, and have their being. One of these banks is
so moist even in midsummer that, when walking over
it, the foot actually sinks in the mossy ground. A
glance into the burrows where the Rabbits live gives
one the impression that the corridors leading to the
nests where the young are laid must be of a very damp
and uncongenial character. So engrossed with this
aspect of the Rabbit's life did I become that I decided
on digging up a few of these ditch-side burrows. I
got a spade and set to work. A foot from the water-
edge the soil was still damp and baked hard by the
tread of the animals' feet. Beyond this it became
harder and drier. Here the hedge- rootlets penetrated
the soil, and seemed to suck the moisture from
the ground ; and at the far end where the cavity
deepened, and where the nest was located, the soil
around was absolutely dry. When thus opened up
the real home of the bunny was absolutely dry and
free of all signs of dampness.

The Wild Rabbit is truly wild in the broadest sense
of the word. It is cradled in the bowels of the earth,
where it breathes its first days in a nest of fluffy fur
provided by its wild, yet considerate dam. In its
early days, before even its eyes are open, it lives

63

British Gnawing Mammals

luxuriously within its cushion of fur, fed meanwhile by
its mother's milk. During those days its parent, as
it leaves the dark recesses of the burrow where its
offspring sleeps, carefully throws the loose earth
against the entrance of its tunnel, while it goes out to
feed upon the bulging turnip or succulent blade of
wheat.

Until the hour that her nestlings' eyes are open the
dam acts thus, day after day. From that hour the
young Rabbit is a savage of the wilds. Capture one of
those rodents and place it in a hutch ; in all proba-
bility, eight years hence, if it lives, it will still be
a savage of the wilds. Eight years is about the average
life of a Rabbit. It is seldom the wild rodent takes
kindly to artificial surroundings, although in many
instances it may be found in colonies close upon the
habitations of man.

Like the Blue Rock Pigeon, it retains its colouring,
despite all attempts to introduce an alien marking. It
approaches the artificial surroundings of man, and yet
retains its wild individuality. It is a truly wild
creature, and will ever remain so. Its race is of long
pedigree, not only in blood, but as free rovers of the
woods and meadows.

By its habits the Rabbit is guarded from many
enemies. The open daylight seldom sees it abroad,
unless to lie peacefully in some grassy tuft, awaiting the
afterglow. As twilight draws over the fields it stretches
its limbs after its long siesta, and hops into the turnip-

64

PLATE XIII.

WATER-VOLES. Page 71.

The Rabbit

field or corn-land to dine. In the dense darkness of
night it is again in its burrow, but in the dewy
morning it once more moves afield.

When alone there is no creature of the wilds more
alert than a Rabbit. It observes the slightest motion
on the landscape, and detects any unusual noise, with
an acuteness that is surprising. A Rabbit lying in a
reedy tuft of grass within a stone's-throw of a roadway
will crouch low down while a motor dashes past, but
were it feeding in the open, the instant that machine
comes within its hearing it will dash straight for its
burrow. Let the locomotive steam along its iron
track beside a Rabbit warren, and the animal will
merely set its ears erect and hop a few paces through
the grass blades. The whistle of the schoolboy or the
bark of a frolicking terrier sends terror into the
creature's heart, and it scurries off to the security of
the bank with its earthy tunnels.

Where a colony is feeding, the position is even
more astounding and inexplicable. When in concert,
there appears to be little or no wariness exhibited. In
the clover field, the little rodents will be busily nibbling
the tender tops of the early clover. All is peace,
contentment, and evident security. Clap the hands
loudly, and here and there a head will appear as if
questioning the source. Clap again, and you will see a
single bunny hop nearer its home — that is all. If you
actually disturb the creatures, you will observe a white
tail bounding towards the bank at a quickened pace,

B.L.M. 65 9

British Gnawing Mammals

and if you continue the noise, the whole colony will
ultimately make tracks for their security.

In this they somewhat resemble sheep. Once one is
frightened, the whole colony will make a general
stampede.

66

CHAPTER VII

BRITISH GNAWING MAMMALS {continued)

2. Rats — Real and Unreal

While year succeeds year, scientific and sanitary ex-
perts issue tirades against Rats as being the medium
of spreading disease throughout our islands. In ^this
connection the Rat specially referred to is none other
than Mus decumanus^ alias the Brown, Grey, or House
Rat. This animal is the common scavenger of the
sewers and drains, where it devours much of the
garbage that might otherwise become offensive and
dangerous as disease-hatching material. Feeding, as
the Rat does, on decomposing and other matter, in
such underground quarters, the animal, while in a sense
ridding the sewers of what in itself would undoubtedly
prove dangerous to man, may at the same time carry
infection from one quarter to another. The question,
however, arises whether the Rat really does more
harm than good in this way, and as yet some doubt
exists whether the animal is such a menace to public
health as some investigators seem to make out.

In a general sense, however, Rats have to be written
down as the vilest of vermin. Rural dwellers hate
them, and city folk abhor them. In the country the
outcry against the animal is very pronounced, more

67

British Gnawing Mammals

especially throughout the winter season of the year.
These rodents do not, as a rule, infest buildings or
outhouses during the summer months, for the simple
reason that they can then earn a livelihood about
the ditch-sides or in the fields and woods. When the
vegetation is abundant and the grain crops are upon
the ground. Rats live sumptuously, and do not then
require to forage for provender. About the hedge-
rows they can easily find a callow brood of robins, or
in a rabbit's burrow in the bank-face they can rob
the warm nest of its contents. When, however, the
nestlings can mount the hawthorn twigs, and the
rabbits are able to visit the fields, and the grain is
garnered, the Rat finds its larder bare, and hunger sends
it towards the farm-buildings or similar shelter. Here
the animal finds its winter quarters, and here, too,
it enjoys the greatest variety of food. While the
ploughman builds his massive corn-stacks, the Rat
settles amongst the grain, and will live there throughout
the winter, with abundance of food around him. When
these stacks are thrashed out enormous numbers of
Rats are often dislodged, while the amount of grain
destroyed in the interval becomes a serious loss to the
farmer.

Although Rats take kindly to such shelter, the
animals do not confine themselves absolutely to the
rickyard. They will infest a drain or burrow under
floors, or be equally at home amongst the rafters of a
building. No place is sacred to a Rat.

68

Rats — Real and Unreal

In the city the Rat is not so well known, because
the creature can there secure an abundance of cover
denied it in the open country. Yet it is somewhat
peculiar that Rats, while extremely shy and wary of
noises in the country, will form colonies about ware-
houses or other buildings in the city, and seem quite
unconcerned by the incessant bustle of commerce and
the general commotion incidental to city life. Once a
Rat settles about a city building, it does so practically
for life. Not so in the country. In rural parts it is a
migratory animal, and moves with the seasons. The
gamekeeper may select a secluded spot to hatch and
rear his pheasants, and be satisfied in his own mind that
no vermin are likely to disturb his broody hens. In
his rounds, however, he discovers an egg rolled out
upon the grass, and questions whether the hen had
carried it out accidentally under her wing. On
removing the hen he finds half the clutch gone.
Investigations prove that a Rat has been the thief, and
it is truly wonderful how the animal can carry off eggs
long distances without leaving a chip upon the shell.
Rats are very partial to eggs of every kind, and once a
Rat locates itself near a sitting fowl, it is almost a
certainty it will pillage every egg, or, later, devour
every chicken as it is hatched. While fond of eggs
and chickens, these creatures seem to be extremely so
of young ducks. I have seen a whole brood of duck-
lings carried off, one by one, within the space of half an
hour, and the fluffy mites' remains afterwards dragged

69

British Gnawing Mammals

from under the dog-kennel while the canine slept. At
another time my ducklings — then almost half grown —
were foraging amongst the rank meadow grass in the
dusk, and I observed a number of Rats leaping here
and there, after the fashion of a dog pursuing a hare
or a rabbit in a cornfield. On the ducklings
becoming aware of the presence of the enemy, they
rushed over the meadows towards their pens, with the
Rats in hot pursuit. Had it not been for my presence,
there would certainly have been a tragic ending to the
hunt. Before morning dawned, however, the Rats had
renewed the attack, and killed no fewer than seven out
of the ten ducklings. One or two of them were alive
when I visited the pens in the morning, although the
Rats had actually eaten the major portion of their
backs. Most of them, however, were dead, practically
nothing being left but the bony carcasses and the heads
and legs. While thus doting on duck-flesh. Rats
are in the broadest sense omnivorous in their tastes.
Driven to straits, they will sustain life where many
rodents would die. They rear large families, and are
perhaps the most prolific animals native to Britain.
An average nest will contain a dozen youngsters,
and the earlier born of these will be breeding before
winter comes on. This species is credited with
annihilating the old British Black Rat, Mus Rattus.
From all accounts handed down, it seems the original
Black Rat was less carnivorous than the one previously
named. Although it cannot now be looked upon as a

70

Rats — Real and Unreal

British species, still examples are reported at times.
These are surmised to be importations by means of
sailing-vessels. Specimens may be seen of the true
Black Rat in most museums. It is an animal about
7 inches in the body, with a tail quite as long. The
head is rather slender and the muzzle pointed and
somewhat projecting. The ears are ovate in shape,
inclined to be smooth rather than hairy, and, as its
name implies, it is black in colour, but this fades into
a lighter shade on the underparts. This Black Rat
is said to breed three or four times during the year,
and has six to ten youngsters at each litter.

There is still another Black Rat, so called, which is
not infrequently confused with the one just named.
This is the Water Vole {Arvicola Amphibia)^ and is
aquatic in habits. It is exclusively a vegetable feeder,
and may be seen about the sides of ponds, streams,
and waterways, usually where quietness reigns. In
general colour it is blackish, but a greyish tint may
be discovered upon close inspection. An adult
Water Vole will measure 8 inches, with a tail half
that length. This rodent can be quite easily distin-
guished from the true Rats even by a casual observer,
merely by the colour, if nothing else. Apart from this,
the Water Vole is stouter in build, has a denser coat,
its ears are small and its tail short. True Rats, on the
other hand, have longish bodies, are smoother in the
fur as a rule, and have prominent ears and long tails.

71

British Gnawing Mammals

The burrow of the Water Vole is dug out of the
bank by the animal itself, and usually has an entrance
below the surface of the water. Thus, when disturbed,
the Vole can dive and enter its hidden doorway, and
thus reach its nest at the far end of the burrow. It
is an adept swimmer, yet its feet are not webbed, and
when swimming the animal largely employs its hind-
legs as propellers.

Unlike Rats, Water Voles are slow breeders. They
may have three or four litters annually, but these are
generally limited to two or three young ones, although
seven or eight are occasionally recorded. To put down
five as the average would doubtless be near the mark.

While these Water Voles are found solely about the
borders of streams and waterways, it has to be said
that the Common Brown or Grey Rat is much given to
burrowing in similar localities. Doubtless the presence
of the latter in some measure accounts for the impres-
sion often formed that a black rodent upon a bank-side
must be the almost extinct species referred to. It is
not so, however, but an entirely different animal —
viz., the Water Vole.

72

PLATE XIV

HARVEST MOUSE

LONG-TAILED FIELD MOUSE

CHAPTER VIII

BRITISH GNAWING MAMMALS {cOHtinued)

3. Mice and Voles

The most familiar of all the Mice is the House Mouse.
It certainly calls for little or no introduction, as its
presence is too much impressed in divers ways upon
the average householder. Although in the main
confined to the precincts of inhabited dwellings, still
the House Mouse takes very kindly to outhouses
and fields generally. Its size is about 3|- inches,
measuring the head and body, and the tail is quite as
long. The ears are rather big and rounded, and the
eyes small and coal-black in colour. It is a gourmand
in more senses than one. Nothing appears to come
amiss to this little nibbler, be it cheese or ham, biscuit
or apple-tart. Failing household dainties, it will fall
back on the scraps about the cesspool, or hunt the
plantation for stray nuts. The same cosmopolitan
attributes are shown by the House Mouse in its
selection and furnishing of a home. It will take up
its quarters either under or on the floor, in the wall
crevices, or amongst the rafters. For material to
construct its nest, it will carry cloth, paper, straw,
wood shavings, or any household sundries that may
come in its way. The nest is by no means tidy, but
B.L.M. 73 10

British Gnawing Mammals

it is always warm and comfortable, wherein the female
has five or six litters a year, with perhaps four to eight
at a litter. These youngsters are quite bare when
born, and are blind, but in ten to fourteen days they
are on their feet and roaming in search of scraps and
crumbs. The House Mouse, in its typical colour, is
greyish-brown, but there are very diverse shades and
variations, down actually to the albino and fancy Mice,
as seen at modern exhibitions. In days gone past.
Mice were looked upon, in some districts of the
country, as the medium for the cure of coughs and
colds.

One must journey well south to meet the Dormouse.
At times a specimen turns up in the more northern
regions, but it is in the southern counties of England
that the Dormouse is truly a native. Amongst the
hedge-rootlets, brambles, and thick patches of low
bushes, the nest may be discovered, and in such places
the rodent forages for its food-supply. Fruit, nuts,
and the like, are loved by Dormice, and for these they
will readily climb the stems and dine before returning
to terra-firma. Any sort of grain is also looked upon
as a dainty by these creatures, or, indeed, almost any
seed suffices to quench the hunger of the Dormouse
once it is out in quest of food. Failing vegetable
substances, a stray insect or a caterpillar is not passed
unwittingly. As autumn approaches, the animal takes
on a certain amount of fat, and meantime has built

74

Mice and Voles

a globular nest, wherein it stores food against its
lengthened winter rest. Should it awake during the
colder months it, squirrel-like, dines on its secreted
provisions, and goes once more into slumber-land. The
Dormouse brings forth three or four young at a birth,
and these are born blind. In colour the youngsters
are greyish, but this hue soon gives place to a warmer
tint, and in the adult stage Dormice become pale
tawny-brown above and yellowish underneath. They
have rather pointed noses, with bright, prominent black
eyes, and rather large heads and ears. Including the
tail, the Dormouse measures about 6 inches. Its arms
are much shorter than its legs, and the thumb is
rudimentary. The animal uses its paws much in the
same fashion as the squirrel. A Dormouse in early
spring is a lanky-looking creature, its sleep of some
months usually consuming the fatty matter laid up by
the creature on its retirement from its woodland
activities in the preceding autumn.

The Harvest Mouse is some 2^ inches in length,
and the tail, which is somewhat prehensile, is about
2 inches long. In colour the animal is of a pale,
warm brown over the back and white below. The
ears are broad and rather lengthy. By nature the
creature is a climber, and its paws are formed for this
purpose. It is quite an adept at scaling cornstalks, or
any stem capable of bearing the weight of its tiny
body. As a rule, the Harvest Mouse erects its nest

75

British Gnawing Mammals

in the corn-lands, but this is not always the case. Any-
suitable herbage answers equally well for this purpose.
As winter draws near, these Mice seek shelter in some
earthy burrow, where a store of food is laid up against
the needs of the season. Here the animals hibernate
the greater part of the days of ice and snow, only
feeding at odd times, when awakened by a change of
temperature. Not a few of these Mice, when driven
from the cornfields, secure winter quarters amongst
the farmyard ricks, and here they live in peace and
plenty until the steam-thrasher sounds on the adjacent
ground. While very pretty and entertaining in their
ways, these Harvest Mice are inveterate warriors, and
give and take no quarter from any of their kith or kin.
Not only will they fight tenaciously with one another,
but they will kill their opponents, and devour the
carcasses with evident gusto. Like the Dormouse,
the spring sees the Harvest Mouse a mere shadow
of its autumn proportions. It takes only a few weeks,
however, to fatten this little animal, and fit it once
more for the duties that are its lot, when summer
winds shake the loaded heads of the wheat-fields.

There is another Field Mouse which is almost
double the size of the one just named. This is
known as the Long-tailed Field Mouse, or Wood
Mouse. These two titles are, perhaps, necessary, for
the fact is, the animal takes as readily to the field as to
the wood. There can be no mistaking this Mouse,

76

Mice and Voles

as its size and colour clearly denote its species. Above
it is faint brown, with white underparts, and a brown
patch upon its breast. The feet are long and white,
head long, and ears also long and oval in form.
This Mouse generally builds its nest amongst grass
or matted herbage, and in winter seeks out some hole
wherein to hibernate during the inclement season ot
the year. Against this time of inactivity, the creature
stores up nuts, acorns, grain, and any cereals it can
gather, and it seems not to know when it has enough
laid aside for its winter wants. By the early spring
days the Long-tailed Field Mouse has its garner much
reduced, for it eats ravenously once it is awakened out
of its dormant state. When the dull grey fields are
taking unto themselves their summer greenness, the
Long-tailed Field Mouse is hunting with his mate
amongst the succulent blades, fearing no foe, unless
the furred and feathered bandits of the wilds.

In the chapter " Rats — Real and Unreal" the Water
Vole has been noticed. There are only two others to
note here, but these are most interesting natives of the
woodland wilds.

By way of studying these creatures, let us take the
Field Voles collectively. First of all, we see that
V^oles are somewhat removed from the true Mice by
the arrangement of their teeth, which in mammals is
always a distinctive feature. Again, Voles have shortish
tails, while Mice have longish ones, and the same

77

British Gnawing Mammals

difference holds good as regards nose and ears.
Added to these distinctions, the Voles have smaller
eyes and more dumpy limbs compared with Mice, but
over and above all, the Voles' contour is more plump-
like than the true Mice. A Vole is a rounded animal,
while in comparison a Mouse is of an elongated shape.
The Common Field Vole is an animal that ranges
from the loftiest peaks of our insular mountains to the
lowest grass-lands. Quite an ordinary name for this
rodent is Short-tailed Field Mouse or Vole. It was
this little animal that created the so-called Vole plague
about the Borders in the year 1876, and again an
outcry against its depredations was raised in 1883, and
still later in 1891, when the Board of Agriculture
tackled the question. The distribution of this species
of Vole is wide, and practically unlimited. It devours
every blade of grass within its area, or, failing to eat it,
it so pollutes the ground that no other stock will crop
it. It certainly prefers grass-lands to cultivated fields,
as it seems to love vegetation in any form rather than
places where it has to hunt for its food. It is greyish-
brown above and paler below, but darker again about
the feet. Head and body measure about ^^ inches,
and the rather hairy tail is about a third of this
measurement, but these Voles vary very much in size.
They breed three or four times annually, and have
four to seven in each nest — the nest being formed of
moss, grass, and leaves, usually in some well-protected
hollow of the ground.

78

Mice and Voles

The other Vole Is the Red Field Vole, Bank Vole,
or Red Bank Vole. This is a most lively and pretty
example of the Vole family. In colour it is reddish-
brown, with slate-coloured sides, pale underparts, and
a very bristly tail, of a dull brown tinge above and
white beneath. The body, including the head, is
4 inches, with a tail half that length. The ears are
larger than those of the last named, but in most other
respects it resembles the Short-tailed species. Unlike
the latter, however, this one is frequently found in
woodlands, evidently delighting in quarters where
there are rootlets abounding, under which it can form
its nest. An oak coppice or a well-drained fir-wood
seem likely spots to unearth a specimen of the Red
Field Vole. As a rule, however, this species may
be looked upon as distinctly local in its dispersal
compared with its relative described above. Not so
many years ago this species was considered quite a
rarity, and its capture was chronicled in the daily Press
much in the same way as that of an eagle, a wild cat,
or an ermine is to-day. Still, in many quarters of the
country the Red Field Vole is by no means uncommon,
and may at odd times be found even within the walls
of the rustic garden.

79

CHAPTER IX

YESTERDAY AND TO-DAY

Time was when the Roman soldier hunted the dense
forests of North Britain, and counted the Brown Bear
as a prize. The echo of those days tells of the Brown
Bears of Caledonia being carried to the Courts of Rome
to provide sport for the people. These animals,
however, had roamed the dense jungles of Northern
Britain long before the soldiers of Rome penetrated
these Highland forests, and no doubt Brown Bears
existed many years after the Roman armies had with-
drawn from the land of brown heath.

Then there were Beavers about the inland waterways
in Scotland and towards the southern portions of the
British Isles. Tradition asserts that Beavers lived not
only in England, but that the animals had pushed their
march northwards towards the higher mountain ranges
of Scotland. Giraldus refers to the Beaver as fre-
quenting one of the rivers of Scotland, while Boece
mentions it as being located about the shores of Loch
Ness.

Civilization, even in those rude times, gradually
became irksome to the haunters of the brook-edge and
sedgy swamps, and almost imperceptibly the Beaver
moved backwards to the less frequented districts. By

80

PLATE XV

FIELD VOLE PEEPING OUT OF XEST

Beaver and Reindeer

degrees they became restricted to certain areas, while
their ranks year by year diminished, until ultimately
the Beaver became rare — then extinct.

In recent times attempts have been made to reintro-
duce the Beaver, but, like all other movements of a
similar nature, these have ended in complete failure.
There is no more room in the twentieth century for
the Beaver than there is for the Reindeer on the hills
or the Wild Boar in our woods. The Beaver might
ornament a baronial lake merely as a unique specimen
of a once native mammal of the British Isles, but the
day of the Beaver as a wild animal is numbered with
the things that were.

Of the Reindeer, historians write that this animal
was at one time far more abundant in our island than
even the Red Deer is to-day. It is also said that
Reindeer existed in Britain as late as the middle of the
twelfth century. That Reindeer roamed in Britain is
beyond dispute : history relates so, and the remains
which have been found of extinct animals confirm the
fact. But centuries have rolled away since the Rein-
deer flourished in our island, and although several
instances are recorded of attempts being made to re-
establish the Reindeer as a British mammal, none of
these laudable enterprises have borne fruit. Space
cannot now be given the Reindeer in our insular area.
The Midlands are seething with humanity, the High-
lands with Red Deer and Grouse. The day of the

B.L.M. 8 1 II

Yesterday and To-day-
Reindeer has passed, and cannot return so far as our
sea-girt islands are concerned.

Deep in the recesses of the centuries the ancient
Briton hunted the Wild Boar from the rim of either
shore, for the distribution of this animal appears to
have been extremely wide. Even down to the six-
teenth century the sport of hunting was not complete
without the hunt of the Wild Boar. To-day the only
remnant of the Boar-hunt lingers amid the quaint
place-names of hill and hamlet.

Of all distinctly British mammals the Wolf stands
out most prominently in history, tradition, and
romance. No one can now fix the date when this
animal first appeared upon British soil, but it is very
evident that during its occupation it constantly proved
a source of dreaded danger to the natives.

Passing on to the fifteenth century, one finds Pope
Pius II. writing that "there were no Wolves in Scotland."
Even then, Wolves were by no means scarce in the
more secluded parts of the country. From whatever
source His Holiness had gleaned his information, it was
quite erroneous to write so, because it was not until
the middle of the eighteenth century that the last Wolf
was killed in Britain. Amongst quite a budget of
instances following the above statement by the Pope
named, one finds from ancient records that " WoulfFs "
were included in the lists of animals slain during many
of the sporting excursions undertaken by the nobles of
a much later date. For instance, the hunt provided

82

Wol

ves

by the Earl of AthoU for King James V. entirely
upsets the Pope's declaration. This was in the year
1528, when Wolves were numbered amongst the victims
of the raid then made. Again, in 1563, one reads of
an organized hunt within this same Earl's domains,
when Queen Mary was being entertained in Perth-
shire. This sovereign lady " ordered one of the fiercest
dogs to be slipped at a Wolf " on this occasion ;
and it seems that the miscellaneous bag of game
then captured or slain embraced no fewer than five
Wolves.

In 1577, again, one reads in the old Statistical Account
that " the spittal of Glenshee — an hospital, or house of
refuge for travellers from Wolves — " had been erected
on this frontier of the Grampian range. Many such
havens of security against the attacks of Wolves, it
would appear, had been previously built, clearly
indicating that the animals were even at that day
dreaded by the natives.

Various claims have been put forth anent the slaying
of the last Wolf in Scotland, chief amongst these being
that of Sir Ewen Cameron ; but tradition seems to
cling tenaciously to the name of one Macqueen in this
connection. Macqueen was a small laird at Pollochaig,
and owned allegiance to The Mackintosh. He is said
to have stood almost seven feet in height, and was
proportionately built, yet agile as a Roebuck. The
story goes that one evening a lone woman with her
two children were crossing Strathdearn from Cawdor

83

Yesterday and To-day

when the party was attacked by a ferocious Wolf. The
woman escaped, and made her way to Moy Hall, the
stately residence of The Mackintosh, where she related
her terrible experience. The chief immediately con-
vened his clansmen and vassals, and at dawn set out in
pursuit of the Wolf. Macqueen had been ordered to
attend, but it seems he delayed his coming out. When
he did appear The Mackintosh reproved him for his
dilatoriness. Macqueen questioned the hurried char-
acter of the gathering, when the disappointed and
impatient chief shouted, "The Wolf, man, the Wolf!"
evidently desirous that the mighty hunter should
recognize the importance of the event. " Oh, the
Wolf," retorted Macqueen; " I think I've come soon
enough for all that's to do," meanwhile drawing the
animal's head from under his plaid and tossing it at
his chieftain's feet.

The narrative further proceeds that Macqueen, as he
crossed the ravine, had encountered the Wolf, which
was at once attacked by his hound and despatched by
his strong man's dirk. So pleased was The Mackintosh
at this fortunate turn of events that he rewarded the
hunter by bestowing upon him a ten-acre field beside
Pollochaig. This was in the year 1743, renowned in
traditional lore as the closing scene of the W^olf as an
indigenous animal in the British Isles. Macqueen
himself departed this life 1797. Moy Hall, as named
in this chapter, is situated at the head of Loch Moy, a

• 84

Wild White Cattle

charming sheet of water between Aviemore and Inver-
ness. By this loch-side may still be seen the remains
of ancient Wolf-traps. These are nothing more or less
than secluded pits, wherein were fixed some savoury
bait. The unwary Wolf, once inside the pit, could not
get out, and the hunter then despatched the captive at
his leisure. The passing of the Wolf left the W^ild
White Cattle of the pastures the sole and only link of
the more gigantic land animals between what was and
is. Speaking of this species, history asserts: "In
Boethius's days wild everywhere," and Sibbald, writing of
his times, says : " A wild white breed was found in the
Scottish hills."

Time has passed since then, and to-day only one or
two noted herds of White Cattle represent the ancestors
of the years that have fled. Chief amongst these herds
is that of Chillingham in Northumberland. Confined
although these bovines are within a limited area, they
still retain some of the traits owned by their wild
predecessors. They have the fiery eye, the agile limbs,
the restiveness and suspicion, that truly belong to
creatures of the wild. Like their ancestors, they hide
their calves, and the herd browse only when the sun is
sinking in the west.

As the student peruses the literature of the past he
gradually reaches the date when the old order of things
verges into the new. The animals recognized as
formerly resident in our islands, but which have

85

Yesterday and To-day

ceased to exist, are recorded in history. No doubt,
as time slips silently into the coming ages, several
animals we now write of as existing will in their turn
be only known to future generations by the stuffed
mummies in our national museums and the writings
of naturalists in the intervening years.

86

INDEX

Badger, 37

Bank Vole, 79

Bats, V

Barbastelle, 3
British, I
Daubenton's, 4
Greater Horseshoe, 3
Hairy-armed, 6
Lesser Horseshoe, 3
Long-eared, 3
Noctule, 6
Pipistrellc, 5
Reddish-grey, 4
Serotine, 5
Whiskered, 4

Bear, Brown, 80

Beaver, 80

Boar, Wild, 81, 82

British Black Rat, 70

Brown Bear, 80

Brown Hare, 57

Carnivora, The, v
Cattle, Wild White, 85
Cheiroptera, The, v
Common Field Vole, 78

Deer, Fallow, 51

Red, 47

Roe, 52
Dormouse, 74

Fallow Deer, 51

Felis Catus^ 17

Field Mouse, j6

Field Vole, Common, 78

Flesh-eating Land Mammals, 17*

26
Foumart, 33
Fox, 19

Gnawing Mammals, 54, 67, 73

Hare, Brown, 57

White or Mountain, 60
Harvest Mouse, 75
Hedgehog, 10
Hoofed Mammals, 47
House Cat, 17
House Mouse, 73

Insectivora, The, v
Insectivorous Land Mammals, 7

Land Mammals, Orders of
British, v

Mammals, v

Flesh-eating, v

Gnawing, vi

Hoofed, vi

Insect-eating, v

of the Sea, v

Winged, v
Man, V
Mice, 73

Dormouse, 74

Field, 76

Harvest, 75

House, 73
Mole, 12
Mountain Hare, 60

87

Index

Mus decumanus^ Sy
Mus Rat t us, 70

Otter, 41

Pine Marten, 30
Polecat, 33

Rabbit, 61

Rat, British Black, 70

Brown, 6j

Grey, Sj

House, Gj
Rats, Real and Unreal, 6j
Red Deer, 47
Red Bank Vole, 79
Red Field Vole, 79
Reindeer, 81
Rodentia, The, vi
Roebuck, 52
Roe Deer, 52
Royal Stag, 48

Short-tailed Field Vole, 78
Shrew, Common, 7

Shrew, Lesser, 9

Water, 9
Shrews, v, 7
Squirrel, 54
Stoat, 35

Ungulata, The, vi

Vole, Bank, 79

Field, 77

Red Field, 79

Water, 71, 77
Voles, 73

Water Vole, 71, 77
Weasel, 26

Weasel Family, The, 26
White Hare, 60
Wild Boar, 81, 82
Wildcat, 17
Wild Rabbit, 61
Wild White Cattle, 85
Wolf, 82

Yesterday and To-Day, 80

BILLING AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, GUILDFORD

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British land mammals and
their habits

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