re out in a
minute from it, apparently in terror of their large friend. There
were no traces of hoarding in any of the holes, but the soft bark
of the trees was a good deal gnawed in places. I had two of these
dormice alive for some time, but, as they bit and gnawed at everything
intended to keep them in durance, I was obliged to kill both. I
noticed that when their tails were elevated, the hairs were perfectly
erect like a bottle-brush" ('Proc. As. Soc. Beng.' 1859, p. 290).

SUB-FAMILY GERBILLINAE.

Incisors narrow; molars divided into transverse laminae; pterygoid
fossae short; auditory bullae usually large; hind limbs very long;
tail long and hairy.

_GENUS GERBILLUS_.

Form murine, with the exception of the elongated hind-limbs; muzzle
pointed; ears moderate and oval; eyes very large and bright;
occipital region broad; auditory bullae large; upper incisors
grooved; first molar with three laminae, the second with two, and
third with one only; hinder tarsus and toes much elongated; the
fore-limbs small; tail long and hairy, with a tuft at the end.

[Illustration: Dentition of _Gerbillus_ (magnified).]

NO. 317. GERBILLUS INDICUS.
_The Indian Jerboa-Rat, or Kangaroo-Rat_ (_Jerdon's No. 170_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Hirna-mus_, Hindi; _Jhenku-indur_, Sanscrit and
Bengali; _Yeri-yelka_ of the Waddurs; _Tel-yelka_ of the Yanadees;
_Billa-ilei_, Canarese.

HABITAT.--All over India and in Ceylon, but apparently not in Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--Light fulvous brown above or fawn colour, paling on
the sides; under-parts white; the hairs of the back are ashy at the
base, with fulvous tips, a few thin black hairs intermixed chiefly
on the side and cheeks.

The eyebrow is whitish; whiskers long and black and a few grey; the
nose is elongated; the upper jaw projecting nearly half an inch
beyond the lower; tail, which is longer than the body, is blackish
above and below, pale laterally, and terminates with a black tufted
tip; the ears are large and nearly naked; the eye is particularly
large and lustrous, which, with its graceful bounds, have given it
its Indian name of "antelope-rat" (_Hirna-mus_).

SIZE.--Head and body, about 7 inches; tail, 8-1/2 inches; fore-foot,
5/10 inch; hind-foot, 2 inches. Weight, 6-3/4 ounces.

This graceful little creature frequents bare plains and sandy
country in general, where it forms extensive burrows. Hardwicke
writes of it: "These animals are very numerous about cultivated lands,
a