Birds and All Nature, Vol. V, No 5, May 1899

<h2><SPAN name="THE_HAIRY-TAILED_MOLE" id="THE_HAIRY-TAILED_MOLE"></SPAN>THE HAIRY-TAILED MOLE.</h2> <p>IN THE March number of <span class="sc">Birds and All Nature</span> the common American mole, which is the most common species in the eastern portion of the United States, is described, and the habits of moles, which are identical, were rather fully set forth. The hairy-tailed mole (<i>Scapanus breweri</i>) is found principally in the western part of the United States.</p> <p>This little animal has so many enemies besides man, as polecats, owls, ravens, storks, and the like, who watch it as it throws up its hillocks, that it is a wonder it has not been exterminated. It betrays its home by its own handiwork, as it is obliged constantly to construct new hillocks in order to earn its living. These hillocks always indicate the direction and extent of its hunting-grounds. The little weasels pursue it in its conduits, where it also frequently falls a prey to the adder. Only foxes, weasels, hedgehogs, and the birds already mentioned, eat it.</p> <p>"Take the mole out of its proper sphere," says Wood, "and it is awkward and clumsy, but replace it in the familiar earth, and it becomes a different being&mdash;full of life and energy, and actuated by a fiery activity which seems quite inconsistent with its dull aspect and seemingly inert form. The absence of any external indication of eyes communicates a peculiar dullness to the creature's look, and the formation of the fore-limbs gives an indescribable awkwardness to its gait. In the ground only is it happy, for there only can it develop its various capabilities. No one can witness the eagerness with which it flings itself upon its prey, and the evident enjoyment with which it consumes its hapless victim without perceiving that the creature is exultantly happy in its own peculiar way. His whole life is one of fury, and he eats like a starving tiger, tearing and rending his prey with claws and teeth. A mole has been seen to fling itself upon a small bird, tear its body open, and devour it while still palpitating with life. 'Nothing short of this fiery energy could sustain an animal in the life-long task of forcing itself through the solid earth.'"</p> <p>The hidden habitation of the mole is described as a nearly spherical chamber, the roof of which is nearly on a level with the earth around the hill, and therefore situated at a considerable depth from the apex of the heap. Around this are driven two circular galleries&mdash;one just level with the ceiling, and the other at some height above. The upper circle is much smaller than the lower. Five short, descending passages connect the galleries with each other, but the only entrance into the inner apartment is from the upper gallery, out of which three passages lead into the ceiling. It will be seen, therefore, that when a mole enters the house from one of its tunnels, it has first to get into the lower gallery, to ascend thence to the upper gallery, and so descend into its chamber. There is another entrance from below, however, by a passage which dips downward from the center of the chamber, and then, taking a curve upward, opens into one of the larger tunnels.</p> <p>The mole comes from the earth with unsoiled fur, which is due in part to the peculiar character of the hair, and partly to strong membraneous muscles beneath the skin, by means of which the animal gives itself a frequent and powerful shake.</p> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[Pg 231]</SPAN></span></p> <table class="sp2 mc w50" title="HAIRY-TAILED MOLE." summary="HAIRY-TAILED MOLE."> <tbody> <tr> <td colspan="3"><span class="ac w100 figcenter"> <SPAN name="i_075.jpg" id="i_075.jpg"> <ANTIMG style="width:100%" src="images/i_075.jpg" width="600" height="447" alt="" /></SPAN></span> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="xx-smaller ac w30">FROM COL. CHI. ACAD. SCIENCES.<br/>5-99</td> <td class="x-smaller ac w40">HAIRY-TAILED MOLE.<br/> Life-size.</td> <td class="xx-smaller ac w30">COPYRIGHT 1899,<br/> NATURE STUDY PUB. CO., CHICAGO.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <hr class="chap" /> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[Pg 233]</SPAN></span></p> <div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />