Porcupine

Page 79

     It terrified him. The smell was one of rot, some musty rot that made him think only of graves with cobwebs and dust and old death. His nostrils widened and he opened his eyes wider but he could see nothing. It was too dark, too hard dark with clouds covering even the small light from the stars, and he could not see. But the smell was alive, alive and full and in the shelter. He thought of the bear, thought of Bigfoot and every monster he had ever seen in every fright movie he had ever watched, and his heart hammered in his throat.

     Then he heard the slithering. A brushing sound, a slithering brushing sound near his feet - and he kicked out as hard as he could, kicked out and threw the hatchet at the sound, a noise coming from his throat. But he hatchet missed, sailed into the wall where it hit the rocks with a shower of sparks, and his leg was instantly torn with pain, as if a hundred needles had been driven into it. "Unnnngh!"

     . . . . A porcupine had stumbled into his shelter and when he had kicked it the thing had slapped him with its tail of quills.

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     A porcupine is the largest rodent in Canada next to the beaver. It is a medium sized animal with long, pointed spines that grow on its back and sides and from its head and tail. Their bodies are covered with brownish hair which conceal quills that are 2 to 6 inches in length. The spines or quills are sharp and have hundreds of barbs. The porcupine looses its quills easily and can throw them like arrows or darts. Porcupines are 24 to 30 inches. They have a small head and chubby legs. Their color is from dark brown to light black.

     The porcupine is a vegetarian. It eats plants such as grasses, dandelions, twigs and water plants such as water lilies and pond weeds. In the winter it eats bark from birch, maple, pine, beech, oak, cherry, willow, and fir trees. The porcupine especially likes bark that has been touched by human hands.

     Porcupines are most active during the night. In the winter they spend most of their time in evergreen trees. In the summer they wander for food. Porcupines live in the wooded areas from Alaska to the northern part of Mexico.

     Their dens are located in a variety of places like old buildings, logs, caves, and in trees. Their homes are lined with soft materials. They are lined with dropping or scats from the porcupine. The dens may be used for long periods of time.

     The main enemy of the porcupine is the fisher. It is also hunted by great horned owls, coyotes, and wolves.