Plate Number: II 77

The Flying Squirrel, Its Posture and Manner of Flying

These Squirrels are gregarious, travelling from one Tree to another in Companies of ten, or twelve together. When I first saw them, I took them for dead Leaves, blown one Way by the Wind, but was not long so deceived, when I perceived many of them to follow one another in one Direction: They will fly fourscore Yards from one Tree to another. They cannot rise in their Flight, nor keep in a horizontal Line, but descend gradually, so that in Proportion to the Distance the Tree, they design to fly to, is from them, so much the higher they mount on the Tree they fly from, that they may reach some Part of the Tree, even the lowest Part, rather than fall to the Ground, which exposes them to Peril, but having once recovered the Trunc of a Tree, no Animal seems nimble enough to take them. Their Food is that of other Squirrels, viz. Nuts, Acorns, Pine Seeds, Pishimon Berries, &c.

Viscum Caryophylloides, Aloes foliis viridibus acuminatis, floribus racemosis luteis

The Root of this Plant is tuberous, having many small Fibres, which grow spreading on Rocks, and adhere close to the bare Surface of them, and sometimes to the Truncs and Limbs of Trees: This succulent Plant is maintained only by what Nutriment its Fibres receive from the Crevices of the Bark into which they insinuate: It is usually from one to two Foot in Height: Its Leaves and Manner of growing resemble those of an Aloe, but are more concave, and spotted with White on both Sides, resembling Mould. From the middle of the Leaves arose a stiff Stalk, which divided at the Top into seven or eight smaller Stalks, on which were placed alternately on short Footstalks yellow Flowers, not blown open; and having never seen a Plant that was blown, I can only refer to the Figure of this here exhibited.