Remarkably for its large head, nude, scaly extremities, and
extremely short, nude, scaly tail. "The structure of the ear, limbs
and tail has special reference to a burrowing animal--the ear being
valvular, so that it may be effectually closed against the entrance
of foreign substances, and the feet devoid of hair, but scaly, and
the tail reduced to very small dimensions. The eye is also
excessively small, and buried deep in the dense silky fur. The hind
feet, contrary to what is almost invariably the case in burrowing
mammals, are larger than the fore feet."--_Anderson_.

NO. 149. ANUROSOREX ASSAMENSIS.
_The Assam Burrowing Shrew_.

HABITAT.--Assam, Thibet.

DESCRIPTION.--General colour dark slaty, faintly washed with
brownish rusty on the long hairs of the rump; fur long and silky,
longest over the rump; occasional long brown hairs with pale tips
are scattered over the body; long whiskers, yellow claws; naked parts
of snout, limbs and tail flesh-coloured.

SIZE.--Head and body nearly 3 inches; tail, 1/2 inch; forefoot, 1/2
inch; hind foot, 3/4 inch.

The skull and dentition of this animal are essentially soricine. The
Thibetan species (_A. squamipes_) is described as being over four
inches in length, of a greyish colour, with a greenish-brown tinge;
feet and nails whitish. It lives in burrows which it digs in the earth.
I think it should properly come after the moles, which it resembles
in some particulars.

FAMILY ERINACEIDAE--THE HEDGEHOGS.

The molar teeth broad; the hinder ones nearly square, the tubercles
on their upper surface rounded; the other teeth are three incisors
on each side, of which the inner one is considerably larger than the
rest; behind these, separated by a little gap, come three premolars
gradually increasing in size, then one having much the appearance
of a true molar, but furnished with a cutting edge; then three molar
teeth, two of which are nearly square with strong tubercles. The last
molar is small. In the lower jaw the lowermost incisor is very large,
and projects almost horizontally forwards, and it is followed by
three small teeth now acknowledged to be premolars, with another
large premolar, which is of the nature of a carnassial or cutting
tooth acting on the one in the upper jaw. Then three molars as above,
two large and one small, but with sharp tubercles. The skull has a
more carnivorous form; it has "a complete zygomatic arch, and the
tympanic bone forms a bundle-l