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Show 282 EXPLORATION OF THE OANONS OF TDE OOLORADO. A brief description of the species, under the name of the Ilamstcr of Georgia, was published in the New York Medical Repository in 1802, and afterward in an appendix to the American edition of Bewick's Quadrupeds. On this description was founded the name Mus tuza, cited in the list of American mammals published by Ord in 1815,* a name which antedates that of Rafinesque by about two years, and which has been adopted by Dr. Cone~. Notwithstanding their great abundance, it is extremely difficult to obtain · specimens of the salamanders. Their acute sense of smell gives them an early warning of the approach of danger, and they easily make their escape in the maze of tunnels. Should one even be driven into a blind passarre it h ' would find little difficulty in baffling its pursuer, for it can burrow faster than a man can follow with a spade; and, since it obliterates its track by throwing the soil behind, it leaves scarcely more trace of its passage in the loose sand than a fish swimming through the water. It is thought quite impossible to dig them out. Occasionally, they are shot, when they come to the surface to throw out sand; but they remain in sight only an instant, and the marksman, to .be s~cccssful, must have his gun bearing upon the opening at which the ammal1s expected to appear, with finger on the trigger, and be ready to pull the moment the head is sighted. By the patie~t use of steel-traps, while in Florida this spring, I obtained a number of spe. Cimens, some of which I succeeded in I{ee pt· ng fio r sevcra1 weeks, t~us havmg an e~cellcnt opportunity of studying their habits.t They may eastly be confined m a wooden box with sides e1'ght 01• t · h 1 · . , cu me es 1w1 1 havmg dry sand two or three inches deep on the bo't N b.' 11 .om. o cover 1:3 necessary; I have never seen one look U[) from the ea ·th 1 h 1 t , an< ave rare v known them to attempt to ~scape. They require no water, and no foo;l except sweet-potatoes. A smgle potato of moderate size will feed a salamancler for three days. The senses of sight and hearin<Y seem in tllc t b A . o m o c very dull n ObJect may be held within a short dist'a nce of th m. r eyes W.i t h out attract-· • Gut!Jrio's Geography, 2d American edition jj 18Lr: nn' ' u, p. ,C,;J2 • t Two of tbom, which I sont to tho Zoolo ical Socio · . at Fnirmoqnt Park. g ty of Philu.dolpbta, may l!o soon iu tho garden GOODE ON TllE llABITS OF GEOMYS TUZA. 283 ing their attention; but the moment one is touched, he turns with a jump, snapping fiercely, much to the detriment of fingers which may be ncar. If two are confinecl in the same cage, the one docs not seem aware of the presence of the other, unless they accidentally come in contact. Their eyes are small, dull, and without expression. 'rheir sense of smell I judge to be very delicate, from the manner in which they approach the hills of potatoes. Their motions are surprisingly quick and energetic; their activity never ceasing from morning to night. They are very pugnacious, and a rough-and-tumble combat between two vigorous males would seem terrific, if their size could be magnified a few diameters in the eye of the spectator. Every muscle of their compact, elastic, stout bodies is brought into action, and they plunge and bite with wonderful ferocity. A battle is usually followed by the death of one or both. I have examined them after death, and found the whole anterior part of the body bruised almost to the consistency of paste, the bones of the legs cru~hed in four or five places. When two come together in the cage, their salutation is a plunge and a bite. I watched their burrowing with much interest. They dig by grubbing with the nose and a rapid shoveling with the long, curved fore paws, assisted by the pushing of the hind feet, which remove the dirt from beneath the body and propel it back with great power a distance of eight or ten inches. When a small quantity of earth has accumulated in the rear of the miner, around he whirls, with a vigorous flirt of the tail, and joining fore paws before his nose, he transmutes himself into a sort of wheelbarrow, pushing the dirt before him to a convenient distance, and repeating the act until the accumulation is removed, then resuming his mining. Any root or twig which blocks his way is quickly divided by his sharp chisel-teeth. I have never ~ecn a sal~mander place sand in his check-pouches, though I have watched thmr burrow1ng hour after hour. It is, of course, impossible to observe them when at work under ground, but. I incline to believe that most of the refuse earth from the burrows is transported in the manner just described. 'rhe negroe told me that they had seen the salamander appear at the mouth of its hoi~ .for an instant and "spit out" the sand which it carried in its pouchc , atdmg the act by inserting the fore paws into the pockets. I have never met any one who , |