they burrow, but can also climb trees. They feed on
small mammals, birds, reptiles and insects, and are partial to honey.

In the Indo-Malay ferret-badger, _Helictis_, the dentition is i. 3/3,
c. 1/1, p. 4/4, m. 1/2; total 38. Upper sectorial with a large
bicusped inner lobe, molar smaller, wider transversely than in the
antero-posterior direction. Lower sectorial with heel about one-third
the length of the tooth. Skull elongated, rather narrow and depressed;
facial portion especially narrow; infraorbital foramen very large.
Head rather small and produced in front, with an elongated, obliquely
truncated, naked snout and small ears. Body elongated, limbs short.
Tail short or moderate, bushy. Several species are described, such as
_H. orientalis, moschata, nipalensis_, and _subaurantiaca_, from
eastern Asia, all small animals, climbing trees with agility and
living on fruits and berries as well as on small mammals and birds.

The African striped zorilles, or _Muis-honds_ (_Ictonyx_), have a
dental formula of i. 3/3, c. 1/1, p. 3/3, m. 1/2; total 34; the teeth
much resembling those of the polecats, and the upper molar being
smaller than the sectorial, and narrow from before backwards. Lower
sectorial with a smalt narrow heel and distinct inner tubercle.
General form of body musteline. Limbs short, fore-feet large and
broad, with five stout, nearly straight, blunt and non-retractile
claws, of which the first and fifth are considerably shorter than the
others. Tail moderate, with longer hairs towards the end, giving it a
bushy appearance. Hair generally long and loose. The best-known
species of this genus, the Cape polecat, _Ictonyx capensis_ (or
_Zorilla zorilla_), is about the size of a polecat, but conspicuous by
its broad, longitudinal bands of dark-brown, alternating with white.
Its odour is said to be as offensive as that of the American skunks.
From the Cape of Good Hope it ranges as far north as Senegal. Another
species, _I. lybicus_, from Sennaar, has been described. The small
striped polecat of southern Africa, _Poecilogale albinucha_,
represents a genus by itself, and is a shorter-haired animal.

The skunks of America are very similar to the two genera last
mentioned in their colouring, and with the latter serve to form a
connecting link with the more typical _Mustelinae_, and the badger
group, or _Melinae_, in which the feet are elongated, wi