Fig. 218.—Badger. Meles taxus. × 1⁄6.

Meles, the Badger, is exclusively Palaearctic in range.[[291]] Dr. Mivart says that Meles has a relatively longer dorsal region than any other Carnivore, and that it is most nearly approached by its allies Ictonyx and Conepatus. The molar formula is, as in Arctonyx, Mydaus, and Helictis, Pm 4/4 M 1/2. The molars differ from those of any other Carnivore in the much greater size of the first molars than of the last premolars. The nose is not grooved; the soles of the feet are naked. The claws of the fore-feet are much longer than those of the hind-feet.

The genus Arctonyx is a "pig-like badger" from Hindostan, Assam, and North China. The epithet "pig-like" is derived from the long and mobile snout, which is truncated and has terminal nostrils. It is remarkable for having a part of the palate formed by the pterygoids, as in Whales and certain Edentata (e.g. Myrmecophaga). There are sixteen dorsal vertebrae. A. collaris lives in

fissures of rocks, or in holes dug by itself. It is a purely nocturnal beast.

The singular genus Mydaus, containing the species M. meliceps, the Teledu or Javanese Skunk, is an inhabitant of Java and Sumatra. It frequents the mountains of these islands, into the soil of which it burrows in search of worms and larvae. There is but one species, which is "like a miniature badger, of rather eccentric colours." It is blackish brown, with a yellowish-white top to its head, and a stripe of the same colour down the back. It may be distinguished by its elongated snout, obliquely truncated, and with inferiorly-placed nostrils. As to osteological characters, it has a more oblique symphysis of the mandible than in any other Carnivore. The secretion of the anal glands is said to rival that of the Skunk in offensiveness and in the distance to which it can be propelled.

Sub-Fam. 2. Mustelinae.—Representatives occur in both the Old and New Worlds; but the genera and even the species are in one or two cases common to both.

Fig. 219.—Tayra. Galictis barbara. × 1⁄7.

Galictis barbara,[[292]] the Tayra, is a brown, elongated, and Weasel-like animal from Mexico and South America. As is the case with the Weasel, it is sometimes gregarious, a herd of twenty having been observed. The soles of the feet are naked, and the molar formula is Pm 3/3 M 1/2. In these characters the Grison (G. vittata) agrees with G. barbara; but it has been referred to a different genus, Grisonia.