RECORD: Pennant, Thomas. 1771. Synopsis of quadrupeds. Chester: J. Monk.
REVISION HISTORY: Transcribed (single key) by AEL Data, prepared by John van Wyhe. RN1
NOTE: See the record for this item in the Freeman Bibliographical Database by entering its Identifier here. This work formed part of the Beagle library. The Beagle Library project has been generously supported by a Singapore Ministry of Education Academic Research Fund Tier 1 grant and Charles Darwin University and the Charles Darwin University Foundation, Northern Territory, Australia. See the introduction to the Beagle library by John van Wyhe. See also The Complete Library of Charles Darwin.
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of
Printed by J. MONK
MDCCLXXI.
M. Griffith Delt
R. Murray Sot
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THE following Synopsis was originally intended for private amusement, and as an Index, for the more ready turning to any particular animal in the voluminous history of quadrupeds by M. DE BUFFON: But as it swelled by degrees to a size beyond my first expectation, in the end I was determined to fling it into its present form, and to usher it into the world.
THE Synopsis of our illustrious countryman Mr. RAY has been long out of print; and though from his enlarged knowlege and great industry one might well suppose his Work would for some time discourage all further attempts of the same sort, yet a republication of that Synopsis would not have answered our present design: For, living at a period when the study of Natural History was but beginning to dawn in these Kingdoms, and when our contracted Commerce deprived him of many lights we now enjoy, he was obliged to content himself with giving descriptions of the few Animals brought over here, and collecting the rest of his materials from other Writers. Yet so correct was his genius, that we view a systematic arrangement arise even from the Chaos of Aldrovandus and Gesner. Under his hand the indigested matter of these able and copious Writers assumes a new form, and the whole is made clear and perspicuons.
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FROM this period every Writer on these subjects proposed his own method as an example; some openly, but others more covertly, aiming at the honor of originality, and attempting to seek for same in the path chalked out by Mr. RAY; but too often without acknowleging the merit of the Guide.
MR. KLEIN, in 1751, made his appearance as a Systematic Writer on Quadrupeds, and in his first order follows the general arrangement of Mr. RAY; but the change he has made of separating certain animals, which the last had consolidated, are executed with great judgement. He seems less fortunate in his second order; for, by a servile regard to a method taken from the number of toes, he has jumbled together most opposite animals; the Camel and the Sloth the Mole and the Bat, the Glutton and Apes; happy only in throwing back the Walrus, the Seal, and the Manati, to the extremity of his system: I suppose, as animals nearly bordering on another class.
M. BRISSON, in 1756, favored the world with another system, arranging his animals by the number or defect of their teeth; beginning with those that were toothless, such as the Ant-eater, and ending with those that had the greatest number, such as the Opossum. By this method, laudable as it is in many respects, it must happen unavoidably that some Quadrupeds, very distant from each other in their manners, are too closely connected in his System; a defect, which, however common, should be carefully avoided by every Naturalist.
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IN point of time, LINNÆUS ought to have the precedence; for he published his first System in 1735. This was followed by several others, varying constantly in the arrangement of the animal kingdom, even to the last edition of 1766. It is therefore difficult to defend, and still more ungratefull to drop any reflections on a Naturalist, to whom we are so greatly indebted. The variations in his different Systems may have arisen from the new and continual discoveries that are made in the animal kingdom; from his sincere intention of giving his Systems additional improvements, and perhaps from a failing, (unknown indeed to many of his accusers) a diffidence in the abilities he had exerted in his prior performances. But it must be allowed, that the Naturalist runs too great a hazard in imitating his present guise; for in another year he may put on a new form, and leave the complying Philosopher amazed at the metamorphosis.
BUT this is not my only reason for rejecting the system of this otherwise able Naturalist: There are faults in his arrangement of Mammalia*, that oblige me to separate myself, in this one instance, from his crowd of votaries; but that my secession may not appear the effect of whim or envy, it is to be hoped that the following objections will have their weight.
I reject his first division, which he calls Primates, or Chiefs of the Creation; because my vanity will not suffer me to rank mankind with Apes, Monkies,
* Or animals which have paps and suckle their young; in which class are comprehended not only all the genuine quadrupeds, but even the cetaceous tribe.
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Maucaucos and Bats, the companions LINNÆUS has allotted us even in this his last System.
THE second order of Bruta I avoid for much the same reason: The most intelligent of Quadrupeds, the half-reasoning Elephant is made to associate with the most discordant and stupid of the creation, with Sloths, Ant-eaters and Armadillos, or with Manaties and Walruses, inhabitants of another element.
THE third order of Feræ is not more admissible in all its articles; for it will be impossible to allow the Mole, the Shrew, and the harmless Hedge-hog, to be the companions of Lions, Wolves and Bears: We may err in our arrangement,
Sed non ut placidis Coeant immitia, non ut
Serpentes avibus geminentur; tigribus agni.
IN his arrangement of his fourth and fifth orders we quite agree, except in the single article Noctilio, a species of Bat, which happening to have only two cutting teeth in each jaw, is separated from its companions and placed with squirrels, and others of that class.
THE sixth order is made up of animals of the hoofed tribe; but of genera so different in their nature, that notwithstanding we admit them into the same division, we place them at such distances from each other, with so many intervening links and softening gradations, as will, it may be hoped, lessen the shock of seeing the Horse and the Hippopotame in the same piece. To avoid this as much as possible, we have flung the last into the back ground, where it will appear more tolerable to the Critick than if they were left in a manner conjoined.
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THE last order is that of Whales; which, it must be confessed, have, in many respects, the structure of land animals; but their want of hair and feet, their fish-like form, and their constant residence in the water, are arguments for separating them from this class, and forming them into another independent of the rest.
BUT while I thus freely offer my objections against embracing this System of Quadrupeds, let me not be supposed insensible of the other merits of this great and extraordinary person: His arrangement of fish, of insects, and of shells, are original and excellent; he hath, in all his classes, given philosophy a new language; hath invented apt names, and taught the world a brevity, yet a fullness of description, unknown to past ages; he hath with great industry brought numbers of synonyms of every animal into one point of view; and hath given a concise account of the uses and manners of each, as far as his observation extended, or the information of a numerous train of travelling disciples could contribute: His Country may triumph in producing so vast a Genius, whose spirit invigorates science in all that chilly region, and diffuses it from thence to climates more favorable, which gratefully acknowlege the advantage of its influences.
LET us now turn our eyes to a Genius of another kind, to whom the History of Quadrupeds owes very considerable lights: I mean M. de Buffon, who, in the most beautifull language, and in the most agreeable manner, hath given the amplest descriptions of the œconomy of the whole four-footed
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creation*: Such is his eloquence, that we forget the exuberant manner he treats each subject, and the reflections he often casts on other Writers; the creation of his own gay fancy†. Having in his own mind a comprehensive view of every animal, he unfortunately seems to think it beneath him to shackle his lively spirit with systematic arrangement; so that the Reader is forced to wander thro' numbers of volumes in search of any wished-for subject. The misunderstanding between these two able Naturalists is most injurious to science. The French Philosopher scarce mentions the Suede, but to treat him with contempt; Linnæus, in return, never deigns even to quote M. de Buffon, notwithstanding he must know what ample lights he might have drawn from him.
I shall in a few words mention the plan that is followed in the present distribution of quadrupeds, and at the same time shall clame but a small share of originality.
I copy Mr. RAY, in his greater divisions of animals into hoofed, and digitated; but, after the manner of Mr. KLEIN, form separate genera of the Rhinoceros, Hippopotame, Tapiir and Musk, The Camel being a ruminating animal, wanting the upper fore-teeth, and having the rudiments of hoofs, is placed
* For the anatomical part in the province of M. D'Aubenton.
† This is not advanced without reason: But, from our regard to a Gentleman whose abilities we respect, we forbear producing our proofs; not doubting, but when he has had time to recollect himself he will, by a recantation of a certain gross misrepresentation, convince the Publick that his candor is not inferior to his learning and genius.
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in the first order, after the Musk, a hornless cloven-hoofed quadruped.
THE Apes are continued in the same rank Mr. RAY has placed them, and are followed by the Maucaucos.
THE carnivorous animals deviate but little from his system, and are arranged according to that of LINNÆUS, after omitting the Seal, Mole, Shrew and Hedge-hog.
The herbivorous or frugivorous quadrupeds keep here the same station that our countryman assigned them; but this class comprehends, besides the Shrew, the Mole and the Hedge-hog. The Mole is an exception to the character of this order, in respect to the number of its cutting teeth; but its way of life, and its food, place it here more naturally than with the Feræ, as LINNÆUS has done. These exceptions are to be met with even in the method* of that able Naturalist; nor can it be otherwise in all human systems; we are so ignorant of many of the links of the chains of beings, that to expect perfection in the arrangement of them would be the most weak presumption. We ought, therefore, to drop all thoughts of forming a system of quadrupeds from the character of a single part: but if we take combined characters of parts, manners and food, we bid much fairer for producing an intelligible system, which ought to be the sum of our aim.
* Such as the Trichechus Rosmarus, which has four distinct grinders in every jaw, the Phoca Ursina and Leonina, the Mustela Lutris, and the Sus Hydrochæris; and particularly in the genus of Vespertilio, which consists of numbers of species, many of which vary greatly in the number of their fore teeth.
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THE fourth section of digitated quadrupeds consists of those which are absolutely destitute of cutting teeth, such as the Sloth and Armadillo.
THE fifth section is formed of those which are destitute of teeth of every kind, such as the Manis and Ant-eater.
THE third and fourth orders, or divisions, are the Pinnated and the Winged Quadrupeds; the first takes in the Walrus and the Seals, and (in conformity to preceding Writers) the Manati. But those that compose this order are very imperfect: Their limbs serve rather the use of fins than legs; and their element being for the greatest part the water, they seem as the links between the quadrupeds and the cetaceous animals.
THE Bats again are winged quadrupeds, and form the next gradation from this to the class of Birds; and these two orders are the only additions I can boast of adding in this Work.
So far of System; the rest of my plan comprehends numerous Synonyms of each Animal, a brief description, and as full an account of their place, manners, or uses, as could be collected from my own observations, or the information of others; from preceding Writers on the subject; from printed Voyages of the best authorities, or from living Voyagers*. If it has the fortune to be any-ways
* And it may be added, from the different Museums at home and abroad, particularly from that matchless collection in the British Museum; and, placed as it is under the direction of Gentlemen as much distinguished for their politeness as their love of science, my access to its contents, has been rendered, at all fit times, so easy, as to put this Work under singular obligations to them.
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usefull to my Countrymen, in promoting the knowlege of Natural History, my principal object will be answered; Let it be treated with candor till something better appears; and when that time comes the Writer will chearfully resign it to oblivion, the common fate of antiquated Systems.
DOWNING,
MARCH 20, 1771,
Thomas Pennant.
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METHOD.
Div. I. | HOOFED QUADRUPEDS. |
II. | DIGITATED. |
III. | PINNATED. |
IV. | WINGED. |
Div. I. Sect. I Whole hoofed.
Genus
I. Horse.
Sect. II. Cloven Hoofed.
II. Ox
III. Sheep
IV. Goat
V. Giraffe
VI. Antelope
VII. Deer
VIII. Musk
IX. Camel
X. Hog
XI. Rhinoceros
XII. Hippopotame
XIII. Tapiir
XIV. Elephant.
Div. II. DIGITATED.
Sect. I. Anthropomorphous, frugivorous.
XV. Ape
XVI. Maucauco.
Sect. II. With large canine teeth separated from the cutting teeth. Six or more cutting teeth in each jaw. Rapacious, carnivorous.
XVII. Dog
XVIII. Hyæna
XIX. Cat
XX. Bear
XXI. Badger
XXII. Opossum
XXIII. Weesel
XXIV. Otter.
Sect. III. Without canine teeth, and with two cutting teeth in each jaw. Generally herbivorous, or frugivorous.
XXV. Cavy
XXVI. Hare
XXVII. Beaver
XXVIII. Porcupine
XXIX. Marmot
XXX. Squirrel
XXXI. Jerboa
XXXII. Rat
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XXXIII. Shrew
XXXIV. Mole
XXXV. Hedge-hog.
Sect. IV. Without cutting teeth. Frugivorous, herbivorous.
XXXVI. Sloth
XXXVII. Armadillo.
Sect. V. Without teeth. Insectivorous.
XXXVIII. Manis
XXXIX. Ant-eater.
Div. III. PINNATED. Piscivorous, or herbivorous*.
XL. Walrus
XLI. Seal
XLII. Manati.
Div. IV. WINGED. Insectivorous.
XLIII. Bats.
* Their Element chiefly the Water.
[page] xiv
OF THE
Page | ||
I. HORSE. | ||
1 | GENEROUS | 1 |
2 | Zebra | 2 |
3 | Ass | 3 |
Mule | ibid | |
II. OX. | ||
1 | Bull | 4 |
α. Grunting | 5 | |
β Indian | 6 | |
2 | Buffalo | 7 |
A. Naked | 8 | |
3 | American | ibid |
4 | Dwarf | 9 |
III. SHEEP. | ||
1 | Ram | 10 |
α. Common | 11 | |
β. Cretan | ibid | |
γ. Hornless | ibid | |
δ. Many-horned | ibid | |
ε. African | 12 | |
ζ. Broad-tailed | ibid | |
IV. GOAT. | ||
1 | Wild | 13 |
α. Domestic | 14 | |
β. Angora | 15 | |
γ. Syrian | ibid | |
δ. African | 16 | |
ε. Whidaw | ibid | |
ζ. Capricorn | ibid | |
2 | Chamois | 17 |
3 | Siberian | 18 |
V. GIRAFFE. | ||
1 | Camelo-pard | 20 |
VI. ANTELOPE. | ||
1 | Blue | 24 |
2 | Ægyptian | 25 |
3 | Bezoar | 26 |
4 | Indian | ibid |
5 | Harnessed | 27 |
6 | Guinea | ibid |
7 | Royal | 28 |
8 | Indostan | 26 |
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9 | White-footed | 29 |
10 | Swift | 30 |
11 | Red | ibid |
12 | Striped | 31 |
13 | Common | 32 |
α. Brown | ibid | |
β. Smooth-horned | 33 | |
14 | Barbary | ibid |
15 | Flat-horned | 34 |
16 | White | ibid |
17 | Chinese | 35 |
18 | Scythian | ibid |
19 | Spotted | 37 |
20 | Cervine | ibid |
21 | Senegal | 38 |
22 | Gambian | 39 |
VII. DEER. | ||
1 | Elk | 40 |
2 | Rein | 46 |
3 | Fallow | 48 |
4 | Stag | 49 |
5 | Virginian | 51 |
6 | Axis | ibid |
7 | Great Axis | 52 |
8 | Porcine | ibid |
9 | Roe | 53 |
10 | Mexican | 54 |
11 | Grey | 55 |
VIII. MUSK. | ||
1 | Tibet | 56 |
2 | Brasilian | 58 |
3 | Indian | 59 |
4 | Guinea | ibid |
IX. CAMEL. | ||
1 | Arabian | 60 |
2 | Bactrian | 63 |
3 | Llama | 64 |
4 | Pacos | 66 |
X. HOG. | ||
1 | Common | 68 |
α Guinea | 69 | |
β Chinese | 70 | |
γ Whole-hoofed | ibid | |
2 | Æthiopian | ibid |
3 | Mexican | 72 |
4 | Indian | 73 |
XI. RHINOCEROS. | ||
1 | One-horned | 75 |
α Two-horned | ibid | |
XII. HIPPOPOTAME | ||
1 | Hippopotame | 78 |
XIII. TAPIIR. | ||
1 | Long-nosed | 82 |
2 | Thick-nosed | 83 |
XIV. ELEPHANT. | ||
1 | Great | 85 |
2 | American | ibid |
[page] xvi
Div. II. DIGITATED
QUADRUPEDS.
Sect. I.
XV. APE. | ||
1 | Great Ape | page 96 |
2 | Pygmy | 98 |
3 | Long-armed | 99 |
α. Lesser | 100 | |
β. Silvery | ibid | |
4 | Barbary | 101 |
5 | Tufted | 102 |
6 | Ribbed-nosed Baboon | 103 |
7 | Little | 105 |
8 | Pig-tailed | ibid |
9 | Dog-faced Monky | 107 |
10 | Lion-tailed | 109 |
α. Ouanderou | ibid | |
β. Purple-faced | ibid | |
γ. White | 110 | |
δ. Little | ibid | |
ε. Speckled | ibid | |
11 | Hare-lipped | 111 |
12 | Spotted | 112 |
13 | Green | 113 |
14 | White Eye-lid | 114 |
15 | Mustache | ibid |
16 | Talapoin | 115 |
17 | Negro | ibid |
18 | Egret | 116 |
19 | Red | ibid |
20 | Chinese | 117 |
21 | Varied | 118 |
22 | Cochin-china | 119 |
23 | Tawny | 120 |
24 | Winking | ibid |
25 | Goat | ibid |
26 | Annulated | 121 |
27 | Philippine | ibid |
28 | Preacher | 122 |
α. Royal | 123 | |
29 | Four-fingered | 124 |
30 | Capucin | 126 |
31 | Weeper | 127 |
32 | Orange | 128 |
33 | Horned | 129 |
34 | Antigua | ibid |
35 | Fox-tailed | 130 |
36 | Great-eared | 131 |
37 | Striated | 132 |
38 | Silky | 133 |
39 | Red-tailed | ibid |
40 | Fair | 134 |
XVI. MAUCAUCO. | ||
1 | Tail-less | 135 |
2 | Woolly | 136 |
3 | Ring-tail | 137 |
4 | Ruffed | 138 |
5 | Yellow | ibid |
6 | Flying | 139 |
Sect. II. XVII. DOG. |
||
1 | Faithfull | 141 |
2 | Wolf | 149 |
Mexican Wolf | 151 | |
3 | Fox | 152 |
4 | Arctic | 155 |
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5 | Grey | 157 |
6 | Silvery | ibid |
7 | Jackal | 158 |
8 | Surinam | 260 |
XVIII. HYÆNA. | ||
1 | Striped | 161 |
2 | Spotted | 162 |
XIX. CAT. | ||
1 | Lion | 164 |
2 | Tiger | 167 |
3 | Panther | 170 |
4 | Leopard | 172 |
5 | Lesser Leopard | 173 |
6 | Hunting | 174 |
7 | Once | 175 |
8 | Brasilian | 176 |
9 | Mexican | 177 |
10 | Brown | 179 |
11 | Black | 180 |
12 | Cape | 181 |
13 | Cayenne | 182 |
14 | Common | 183 |
α. Angora | 184 | |
β. Tortoise-shell | ibid | |
γ. Blue | ibid | |
15 | Mountain | 185 |
16 | Lynx | 186 |
17 | Bay Lynx | 188 |
18 | Persian Lynx | 189 |
XX. BEAR. | ||
1 | Black | 190 |
2 | Polar | 192 |
3 | Wolverene | 195 |
4 | Raccoon | 199 |
XXI. BADGER. | ||
1 | Common | 201 |
2 | American | 202 |
XXII. OPOSSUM. | ||
1 | Virginian | 204 |
2 | Murine | 207 |
3 | Mexican | 208 |
4 | Short-tailed | ibid |
5 | Surinam | 209 |
6 | Merian | 210 |
XXII. WEESEL. | ||
1 | Common | 211 |
2 | Stoat | 212 |
3 | Polecat | 213 |
4 | Ferret | 214 |
5 | Martin | 215 |
6 | Pine | 216 |
7 | Sable | 217 |
8 | Fisher | 223 |
9 | Madagascar | 224 |
10 | Pekan | ibid |
11 | Guinea | 225 |
12 | Guiana | ibid |
13 | Ichneumon | 226 |
14 | Four-toed | 228 |
15 | Brasilian | 229 |
16 | Stifling | 230 |
17 | Striated | 232 |
18 | Skunk | 233 |
19 | Zorilla | ibid |
20 | Fizzler | 234 |
21 | Civet | ibid |
β. Zibet | 235 | |
22 | Genet | 236 |
23 | Fossane | 237 |
[page] xviii
XXIV. OTTER. | ||
1 | Greater | 238 |
2 | Lesser | 239 |
3 | Sea | 241 |
Sect. III. XXV. CAVY. |
||
1 | Restless | 243 |
2 | Rock | 244 |
3 | Spotted | ibid |
4 | Long-nosed | 245 |
5 | Olive | 246 |
6 | Javan | ibid |
7 | Cape | 247 |
8 | Musk | ibid |
XXVI. HARE. | ||
1 | Common | 248 |
2 | Alpine | 249 |
3 | Rabbet | 251 |
β. Angora | 252 | |
γ. Russian | ibid | |
4 | Brasilian | ibid |
5 | Baikal | 253 |
6 | Cape | ibid |
XXVII. BEAVER. | ||
1 | Castor | 255 |
2 | Musk | 259 |
3 | Long-nosed | 260 |
XXVIII. PORCUPINE. | ||
1 | Crested | 262 |
2 | Long-tailed | 263 |
3 | Brasilian | 264 |
4 | Canada | 266 |
XXIX. MARMOT. | ||
1 | Alpine | 268 |
2 | Mary land | 270 |
3 | Quebec | ibid |
4 | German | 271 |
β. Vormela | 273 | |
5 | Casan | ibid |
6 | Lapland | 274 |
7 | Earless | 276 |
8 | Podolian | 277 |
9 | Circassian | 278 |
XXX. SQUIRREL. | ||
1 | Common | 279 |
α. Hudson's Bay | 280 | |
β. White-legged | ibid | |
2 | Ceylon | 281 |
3 | Bombay | ibid |
4 | Grey | 282 |
5 | Black | 284 |
α. Cat | ibid | |
6 | Varied | 285 |
7 | Fair | ibid |
8 | Brasilian | 286 |
9 | Mexican | ibid |
10 | Palm | 287 |
β. Barbary | ibid | |
11 | Ground | 288 |
12 | Fat | 289 |
13 | Garden | 290 |
14 | Dormouse | 291 |
15 | Sailing | 292 |
16 | Flying | 293 |
β. Hooded | 294 |
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XXXI. JERBOA. | ||
1 | Ægyptian | 295 |
2 | Siberian | 296 |
3 | Torrid | 297 |
4 | Woolly | 298 |
XXXII. RAT. | ||
1 | Black | 299 |
2 | Brown | 300 |
3 | Water | 301 |
4 | Mouse | 302 |
5 | Field | ibid |
α. American | 303 | |
6 | Harvest | ibid |
7 | Oriental | 304 |
8 | Short-tailed | 305 |
9 | Gregarious | ibid |
XXXIII. SHREW. | ||
1 | Fætid | 307 |
2 | Water | 308 |
3 | Minute | ibid |
4 | Munine | 309 |
5 | Brasilian | ibid |
6 | Mexican | ibid |
XXXIV. MOLE. | ||
1 | European | 311 |
β. Yellow | 312 | |
2 | Siberian | 313 |
3 | Radiated | ibid |
4 | Long-tailed | 314 |
5 | Brown | ibid |
6 | Red | 315 |
XXXV. HEDGE-HOG. | ||
1 | Common | 316 |
2 | Asiatic | 317 |
3 | Guiana | 318 |
XXXVI. SLOTH. | ||
1 | Three-toed | 319 |
2 | Two-toed | 321 |
XXXVII. ARMADILLO. | ||
1 | Three-banded | 323 |
2 | Six-banded | 324 |
3 | Eight-banded | 325 |
4 | Nine-banded | ibid |
5 | Twelve-banded | 326 |
6 | Eighteen-banded | 327 |
XXXVIII. MANIS. | ||
1 | Long-tailed | 328 |
2 | Short-tailed | 329 |
XXXIX. ANT-EATER. | ||
1 | Great | 331 |
2 | Middle | 332 |
3 | Lest | 333 |
XL. WALRUS. | ||
1 | Arctic | 335 |
2 | Indian | 338 |
XLI. SEAL. | ||
1 | Common | 339 |
2 | Great | 341 |
3 | Rough | ibid |
4 | Hooded | 342 |
5 | Harp | ibid |
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6 | Little | 343 |
7 | Ursine | 344 |
8 | Leonine | 348 |
XLII. MANATI. | ||
1 | Manati | 352 |
Sea Ape | 356 | |
Beluga | 357 | |
XLIII. BAT. | ||
1 | Ternate | 359 |
β. Lesser | 362 | |
2 | Spectre | ibid |
3 | Javelin | 363 |
4 | Leaf | 364 |
5 | Cordated | ibid |
6 | Peruvian | 365 |
7 | Bull-dog | 366 |
8 | Senegal | ibid |
9 | Bearded | 367 |
10 | New-York | ibid |
11 | Striped | 368 |
12 | Molucca | ibid |
13 | Horse-shoe | 369 |
14 | Noctule | ibid |
15 | Serotine | 370 |
16 | Pipistrelle | ibid |
17 | Barbastelle | ibid |
18 | Common | 371 |
19 | Long-eared | ibid |
[page] xxi
IN the Title-Page, Head of the Barbary Antelope, No. 26.*
I. Indian Oxen, p. 6. Horns of the Dwarf, No. 7.
II. American Buffalo, No. 6. Naked, A. p. 8.
III. Four-horned Ram, p. 11, Horns of the Iceland Sheep, p. 11, and the Cretan, β. p. 11.
IV. Cape Sheep with pendulous ears. Great-tailed Sheep, the trunk of the tail enveloped with fat, and only a small part of the end appearing out.
V. Two varieties of the Syrian Goats, γ. p. 15. From drawings in the British Museum.
VI. White-footed Antelope, male and female. No. 21, p. 39. Vignet of the Heads of the Blue Antelope, No. 13, and the Senegal, No. 33.
VII. Female Moose Deer, or American Elk, No. 35. Horns of the European.
VIII. Rein Deer, No. 36. From one in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford*. Porcine Deer, No. 42.
IX. Fossil Horns, p. 44. Horns of the Virginian Deer, No. 39. of the Mexican? No. 44.
X. Tibet Musk, No. 46. Indian, No. 48.
XI. Indian Hog, No. 57. Variety of the common Hog, place unknown.
XII. Pygmy Ape, No. 95. Tufted, No. 68.
XIII. Simia Porcaria? From a drawing in the British Museum, p. 102. A new Baboon, communicated by Mr. Paillou, painter.
* The WELCH Motto signifies, Without GOD nothing, with GOD enough.
† The animals, or parts of animals, preserved in the British Museum in London, or the Ashmolean in Oxford, are marked Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
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[page] xxii
XIII. A. Lion-tailed Monky, No. 73. α. Variety of the Tawny M. No. 86.
XIV. Long-tailed Monky, β. p. 109. Dog-faced. From a drawing by Mr. Edwards. No. 72.
XV. Silky Monky, No. 101.
XVI. Tail-less Maucauco, No. 104. Yellow, No. 108.
XVII. Spotted Hyæna, No. 119. Arctic Fox, No. 113.
XVIII. Hunting Leopard, after a Painting by Mr. Stubbs, No. 125. Black Tiger, No. 130.
XIX. Bay Lynx, No. 136. Persian, No. 137.
XX. Polar Bear, No. 139. Wolverene, No. 140.
XXI. Brasilian Weesel, No. 164. Fossane, No. 171.
XXII. Virginian Opossum, No. 144. Lesser Otter, No. 174.
XXIII. Aipine Hare, a Siberian variety, No. 184. Russian Rabbet, γ. p. 252.
XXIV. Brasilian Porcupine, No. 195. Quebec Marmot, 199.
XXV. Casan Marmot, No. 201. Lapland, No. 202. Ægyptian Jerboa, No. 222.
XXVI. Black Squirrel, No. 210. Grey Sq. No. 209. Hudson's Bay, α. P. 280.
XXVII. Sailing Squirrel, No. 220.
XXVIII. Radiated Mole, No. 243. Long-tailed M. No. 314. Hedge-hog, No. 247.
XXIX. Three-toed Sloth, No. 250.
XXX. Lest Ant-Eater, No. 262.
XXXI. Variety of the Ternate Bat, β. p. 362. New-York Bat, No. 283.*
* The Bookbinder is desired to observe that each plate is numbered with the page it is to be placed opposite to.
[page] xxiii
To the Article Ass, p. 3.
The Onager, or Wild Ass; the Tchigetai of Gmelin, Sibir. II. 107, and the Kulan of Ritchkoff Topogr. Orenb. I. 291, are found in herds of thousands in the deserts beyond the river Yaick, about the rivers Yemba and Sarassu; have long erect ears, and thick long mouse-colored hair; run very swift, and are eaten by the Tartars.
Add, the description of ε. another bearded man, &c. p. 10, to that of the Spotted Monky, No. 75.
P. 88. Authorities for the three relations of the fagacity of Elephants. Hamilton's Voy. East-Indies, II. 109. Terry's Voy. 148. De Buffon, xi. 77.
P. 98. Add to Ælian lib.—xvi. c. 21.
Add to p. 104. A new Baboon, from a drawing lately communicated by Mr. Paillou; who informed me, that it was a large species, very deformed, as the figure shews; of a reddish brown color; very long limbed; went often on all fours; had a short pig-like tail, which it carried erect*. Place unknown.
P. 120. A variety of the Tawny Monky, No. 86. communicated by Mr. Paillou: face black, with long white hairs on the cheeks: body of a dull pale green; limbs grey; tail dusky**.
P. 174. No. 125. The Hunting Leopard is called in India, Chittah, and is the same with Le Guepard of M. de Buffon.
* Vide Plate XIII.
** Plate XIII. A.
[page] xxiv
Add after Oriental Mouse, p. 304.
Mus barbarus. M. cauda mediocri corpore fusco, striis decem pallidis, palmis tridactylis, plantis pentadactylis. Lin. syst. tom, I. pars. II. addenda.
Less than the common mouse: of a brown color: marked on the back with ten slender streaks: three toes with claws on the fore feet, with the rudiments of a thumb: tail of the length of the body.
Inhabits Barbary.
No. 163. This animal seems to be the same with the Rattle Mouse of Kolben hist. Cape, II. 124. who says it lives on acorns, nuts, &c. and jumps from tree to tree like a squirrel; and that it makes a rattling noise with its tail, which is neither very long nor hairy.
P. 232. Virginian species, add or skunk.
[page] xxv
Page | In the running title, | |
19. | Giraffe, read | Goat. |
21. | Antelope, | Giraffe. |
1. | quod. | quad. |
38. | Cert, | Cerf. |
76. | are, | is. |
99. | ** Gesner, | ** Strabo. |
† Strabo, | † Gesner. | |
97. | has, | have. |
103. | Full stop after de Buffon, comma after Brisson. | |
138. | make, read | makes. |
162: | Lyneis, | Lyncis. |
Hyæna, | Hyænæ. | |
176. | oruli, | oculi. |
188. | aera, | aere. |
197. | Rofomack, | Rosomack. |
230. | 265 to 272, | 165 to 172. |
236. | Fernanaez, | Fernandez. |
269. | et, | at. |
273. | difficu ty, | difficulty. |
293. | Poulatouche, | Polatouche. |
[page break]
[page 1]
OF
SECT. | I. Whole Hoofed. |
II. Cloven Hoofed |
Hoof consisting of one piece.
Six cutting teeth in each jaw.
SECT. I.
I. HORSE.
1. GENEROUS.
Equus Gesner quod. 404. Raii syu. quod. 62. Pferdt Klein quad. 4. Equus cauda undique setosa. E. caballus. Lin. syst. 100. Hæst. Faun. suec. No. 47.
Equus auriculis brevibus erectis, juba longa. Brisson. quad. 69.
Le Cheval. de Buffon. iv. 174. tab. I. Br. Zool. l. 1.
Wild horse. Leo, Afr. 339. Hakluyt's coll. voy. I. 329. Bell's trav. I. 225.
H. with a long flowing mane; tail covered on all parts with long hairs.
Cultivated in most parts of the world. In a wild state, at present only in the Tartarian deserts, and in S. America; the last from the European breed, escaped from the owners and turned savage. Horses unknown in America before its discovery by the Spaniards. The most generous and useful of quadrupeds,
B
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docil, spirited yet obedient; adapted to all purposes the draught, the chace, the race: its voice, neighing; its arms, hoofs and teeth; its tail of the utmost use in driving off insects in hot weather. Subject to various diseases, many from our abuse, more from our too great care of it. Its exuviæ useful the skin for collars and traces; the hair of the mane for wigs; of the tail, for the bottoms of chairs, and floor-cloths: Tartars feed on its flesh, and drink the milk of mares.
2. ZEBRA.
Pulcher onager. Martial Epig. xiii. 101. Oppian. Cyneg. iii. 183.
Zebra. Nieremberg. 168.
Zecora. Ludolph. Æthiop. 56.
Zebra. Raii syn. quad. 64. Klein quad. 5.
Le Zebre on L'ane rayè. Brisson quad. 70. De Buffon, xii. 1. tab. I. II.
Equus Zebra. Eq. fasciis fuscis versicolor. Lin. syst. 101 Edw. 222.
Wild Ass. Kolben Cape good Hope, ii. 112.
H. with a short erect mane: tail furnished with long hairs at the end: whole body beautifully striped from the back to the belly, with lines of brown, on a very pale buff ground. The most elegant of quadrupeds.
Inhabits Africa, from Congo to the Cape of Good Hope, thence to Æthiopia. Gregarious, useless, untameable, vitious: vastly swift: most probably known to the Romans, being of the same country with the Giraffa, which had been early introduced into their spectacula. Martial seems to hint at it by his pulcher onager; Oppian particularly describes the stripes diverging from the black list on the back.
[page] 3
3. Ass.
Asinus. Gesner quad. 5. Raii syn. quod. 63.
Esel. Klein quad. 6.
L'ane. De Buffon. iv. 377.
Equus auriculis longis flaccidis juba brevi. Brisson quad. 70.
Equus asinus. Eq. caudæ extermitate setosa, cruce nigra supra. Lin. syst. 100 Asna. Faun suec. No. 35. ed. 1746.
Ass. Br. Zool. I. ii.
H. with long slouching ears, short mane, tail covered with long hairs at the end: the body generally of an ash color, with a black bar cross the shoulders.
Wild in* the African and Tartarian deserts; go in small herds; extremely swift in a state of nature: mistakenly called mules. In a tame state, stupid, patient, laborious, obstinate, slow, love mild or hot climates, scarce known in the cold ones. Best in Arabia and the East,
MULE. Mulus. Gesner quad. 702. syn. quad. 64.
Maul esel. Klein quad. 6.
Le Mulet. De Buffon, iv, 401. xiv. 336. Brisson quod. 71.
Equus mulus. Lin. syst. Faun. suec. No. 35. Br. Zool. I. 13.
A spurious offspring of the horse and ass, or ass and mare: does not propagate again; Aristotle in that mistaken. Is very hardy; has more the form as well as disposition of the ass than horse. The finest in Spain, very large ones in Savoy.
* Leo. Afr. 340. Bell's Trav. I. 224.
B 2
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* with Horns.
** without Horns.
II. OX.
Horns bending out laterally.
Eight cutting teeth in the lower jaw, none in the upper.
Skin along the lower side of the neck pendulous.
4. BULL.
Bos Gesner quad. 25. Raii syn. quad. 70.
Ochs. Klein quad. 9.
Bos cornibus levibus teretibus. sursum reflexis. Brisson quad 52.
Bos Taurus. B. cornibus teretibus flexis. Lin. syst. 98. Faun. suec. No. 48.
Le Taureau. De Buffon, iv. 437 tab. xiv.
Br. Zool. I. 15.
O. with rounded horns, with a large space between their bases.
Still found wild in small numbers, in the marshy forests of Poland and Lithuania, and the eastern parts of Siberia. The Urus, Bonasus, and Bison, of the antients; the finest and largest tame cattle in Holstein and Poland; the smallest in Scotland: most useful animals, every part serviceable, the horns, hide, milk, blood, fat. More subject than other animals to the pestilence. Goes nine months with young.
In a wild state, the Bonasus of Aristotle. hist. an. ix. c. 45, and Pliny lib. viii, c. 15. The Urus of Cæsar, lib. vi. c. 28. Gesner quad. 143. Et Bonasus, p. 131, and Bison, 140. Bison and Urus Rzaczinski Polon, 214. 228. Bell's travels, I. 224. the Aurochs of the Germans. The antient Gauls used the horns
[page] 5
to drink out of; in amplissimis epulis pro poculis utuntur says Cæsar: if, according to Pliny, each horn held an urna, or four gallons, it was a goodly draught. Gesner in his Icon. Anim. 34, says, he saw a horn, he supposes of an Urus, hung against a pillpar in the cathedral of Strasbourg, which was six feet long.
α GRUNTING. vacca grunniens villosa cauda equina, Sarluk. Nov. com. Petrop. v. 339. Rubruquis voy. Harris coll. I. 571.
Bos grunniens. B. cornibus teretibus extrorsum curvatis, vellere propendente, cauda undique jubata. Lin. syst. 99.
La vache de Tartarie. De Buffon, xv. 136.
Le bœuf velu. Le Brun. voy. Moscov, I. 120.
Babul. Bell's Travels I. 224. Br. Mus.
A mane on the neck: whole body covered with long hair, reaching almost to the ground: back hunched: tail like that of a horse, covered with full white and long hairs: strikes with its head like a goat: is very unruly: found in the country of the Calmucs, called by them Sarluk. Grunts like a hog.
In the Br. Museum, the tail of a cow from Tibet, covered with fine white silky hairs, six feet long, possibly belonging to one of this kind. Bernier* mentions this species; Rubruquis speaks of the same kind, which he says are very strong, and draw the houses of the Tartars; and that they have a great aversion to red.
A wild species called Bucha, found near the kingdom of Tibet, so fierce that if wounded, will turn on its enemy, and never fail of destroying him.
* P. 124. vol. II.
B 3
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β Indian. O. with a vast lump on the shoulders*, Differ much in size, and in the form of their horns. Some very large, of a reddish color: horns short and bending close to the neck: others very small, with horns almost upright, bending a little forward. In Surat a minute kind, not bigger than a great dog, which have a fierce look, and are used to draw children in small carts.
In Celebes a small species, not larger than a middle sized sheep, called Anoa, very fierce and wild, of a dark ash color, inhabiting the rocks. Mr. Loten, when in India, put some of them into a paddock, and in one night's time they killed 14 or 15 of his deer, by ripping open their bellies.
White cattle with black ears in the isle of Tinian. What species?
Cattle of Abissinia, with horns so soft and flexible that they hang quite pendulous, mentioned by Lobo, p. 70.
A species of ox in Ceylon, called Gauvera: his back stands up with a sharp ridge, his four feet white half way up the legs. Knox's Ceylon, 21.
* The same kind in Senegal. Adanson's voy. 64.
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GREATER AND LESSER INDIAN OX P. 6.
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5. BUFFALO.
βоες αγϱιоι, εγ Aϱαϰωτоις. Arist. hist. lib. ii. c. I.
Bos Indicus, Plin. lib. viii. c. 45.
Bubalus. Gesner quad. 122. Raii syn. quad. 72. Klein quad. 10.
Bull elephants. Ludolph. Æthiop. 52.
Buffalo. Dellon. voy. 72. Faunul. sinens.
Bos cornibus compressis, sursum reflexis, resupinatis fronte crispa. Brisson quad. 54.
Bos cornibus resupinatis intortis antice planis. Lin. syst. 99.
Le Buffle. De Buffon xi. 284. tab. xxv. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
O. with large horns, strait for a great length from their base, then bending inwards; not round but compressed, and one side sharp.
Found wild in many parts of Africa and India: but in both are domesticated: serve for milking and producing cheese: are very common in Italy, originally brought from India, into Lombardy, in the reign of King Agilulf, who reigned from 591 to 616*. They are said to be found wild in Apuglia; and to be very common in hot weather on the sea shore, between Manfredonia and Barletta; serve for the draught and for the saddle instead of horses; grow to an enormous size, twice the bulk of our largest oxen, from which some call them Taurelephantes. A pair of horns in the Br. Museum, probably of this kind: one is 6 feet 6 inches ½ long, weighed 21 lb. and the hollow contained five quarts of water. Lobo mentions some that would hold more than ten. Dellon has seen some in India 10 feet long: they are sometimes wrinkled, but oftner smooth and black: skin almost destitute of hair,
* Tunc primum caballi sylvatici et Bubali in Italiam delati, Italiæ populis miraculo suerunt. Warnefridi de gestis Longobardor. Lib. iv. c. ii. Misson's voy. iv. 392.
B 4
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and black: eyes whitish: very common in Italy, especially the hotter parts, introduced there originally from India: are very fierce when in a state of nature: fond of wallowing in the mud: love the sides of rivers, and swim very well.
Well described by Aristotle, under the title of wild oxen among the Arachotæ, notwithstanding Belon and M. de Buffon say it was unknown to him.
A. NAKED: a small sort exhibited in London some years ago, under the name of Bonasus; of the size of a Welch runt: hair on the body bristly, and very thin, so that the skin appeared: the rump and thighs quite bare: the first marked on each side with two dusky stripes pointing downward, the last with two tranverse stripes: horns compressed sideways, taper, sharp at the point. East Indies.
6. AMERICAN.
Taurus mexicanus. Hernandez. mex. 587. de Laet. 220. Purchas's Pilgrims, iv. 1561.
Bison ex Florida allatus. Raii syn, quad. 71. Klein quad. 13.
Buffalo. Lawson Carol. 115. Catesby App. xxxvii. du Pratz. II. 49.
Bos bison. B. cornibus divaricacatis, juba longissima, dorso gibboso. Lin. syst. 99.
Le Bison d'Amerique. Brisson quad. 56. de Buffon, xi. 305.
Le Bœuf de Canada. Charlevoix v. 193. Br. Mus.
O. with horns very closely united at the base, bending inwards and downwards, and turning outwards at their points; two feet round at the base, and vastly prominent, rising just on the top of the forehead; length only two feet; very sharp at the points: head and shoulders of the bull covered with very long hairs, of a dark color: body naked behind: shoulders very high: flesh scents strong of musk.
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I NAKED BUFFALO P. 8 II AMERICAN B. No. 6. III DWARF? No. 7.
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Common in the interior parts of N. America, in the Savanna's; fond of marshy places: lodges amidst the high reeds: very fierce, but capable of being tamed: will breed with the common kind: the only animal analogous to the domestic creatures found in America by the Europeans: weighs from 1600 to 2400 lb. M. de Buffon gives the figure of some horns of this species, which he thinks came from the Cape of Good Hope.
Le Bœuf Musqué Charlevoix v. 194. musk ox Dobb's Hudson's Bay 19. 25. and Clerk's Voy. II. 260. seem to be the same with the above.
7 DWARF.
Un moult beau petit bœuf d'Afrique. Belon voy. 119, 120.
Bos Indicus. B. cornibus aure brevioribus, dorso gibbo juba nulla. Lin. syst. 99.
Bekker el wash? Shaw's trav. 242.
O. with horns almost close at their base, broad and flat at the beginning: receding in the middle, almost meeting at the points, and standing erect: larger than a roebuck, less than a stag: compact, and well made in all its limbs: hair shining, of a tawny brown: legs short, neck thick, shoulders a little elevated: tail terminated with long hairs, twice as coarse as those of a horse.
The horns of this animal are in the Museum of the royal sociery, described by Grew. p. 26. who mistakes the animal they belong to. M. de Buffon imagines his Zebu xi. 439. tab. xlii. to be Belon's; but that as well as Mr. Edwards's little Buffalo, plate 200, are only varieties of the Indian ox β. Perhaps the Lant or Dant described by Leo Africanus, p. 340, may be of this kind, of whose hide
[page] 10
are made shields and targets, impenetrable by a bullet. He celebrates their swiftness, says their hair is white, hoofs black as jet.
III. SHEEP.
Horns twisted spirally and pointing outwards. Eight cutting teeth in the lower jaw, none in the upper.
8. RAM.
Ovis. Plinii. lib. viii. c. 47. Gesner quad. 771. Raii syn. quad. 73
Widder Schaaf. Klein quad. 13.
La brebis. de Buffon, v. 1. tab. I. II.
Aries Laniger cauda rotunda brevi. Brisson quad. 48.
Ovis aries. O. cornibus compressis lunatis. Lin. syst. 97.
Far. Faun. suec. No. 45. Br. Zool. I. 22.
Subject to vast variety: its origin not certainly known. The Moufflon of M. de Buffon, to be described hereafter, approaches nearest; but still has some distinctions that makes it nearer allied to the goat and deer.
The sheep the most useful of the lesser animals; the source of wealth in civilized nations. England once the envy of Europe for its vast commerce in the products of this creature, now begins to be rivalled by others, thro' the neglect, the luxury, the too great avidity of our manufacturers. The English wool excellent for almost every purpose. The Spanish extremely fine; the œconomy of the shepherds admirable, as is their vast attention to the business; and their annual migrations with their flocks. The finest fleeces in the world are those of Caramania*, reserved entirely for the Moulhaes
* Chardin's Travels in Harris's Coll. ii. 878.
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I CRETAN SHEEP P 11. II MANY HORN'D. III ICELAND P. 12
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[page] 11
and Priests; those of Cachemire* excellent; and the Lamb-skins of Bucharia exquisite.**.
The sheep in its nature harmless and timid; resists by butting with its horns: threatens by stamping with its foot: drinks little: generally brings one at a time, sometimcs two, rarely three: goes about five months with young: is subject to the rot; worms in its liver; the vertigo.
α COMMOX Sh.
With large horns twisting spirally and outwardly. Ovis rustica. Lin. syst. 97.
β CRETAN Sh. Ovis Strepsiceros. Raii syn. quad. 75. Cornibus rectis carinatis flexuoso-spiralibus. Lin. syst. 98.
Le Chevre de Crete. Brisson quad. 48.
Strepsicheros ou Mouton de Crete-Belon voy. 16. Gesner quad. 308. Icon. 15.
Has large horns quite erect, and twisted like a screw; common in Hungary (Kram Austr. 322.) and in Crete.
γ HORNLESS. Ovis Anglica. Lin. syst, 97.
Common in many parts of England; the largest in Lincolnshire, the lest† horned sheep in Wales.
δ MANY HORNED. Ovis polycerata. Lin. syst. 97.
Common in Iceland, and other parts of the North; they have usually four horns: a kind from Spain,
* Bernier's Voy. ii. 94,
** Bell's Travels, I. 46. These skins bear a great price, have a fine gloss and rich look.
† lest a contraction of lesser. vide Wallis Grammat. Linguæ Anglic. 95. and Mr. Edwards's Canons of Criticism, edit. 6th. p. 278.
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with two upright and two lateral horns: body covered with wool: forepart of the neck with yellowish hairs, 14 inches in length: was alive in London about three years ago: very mischievous and pugnacious: the horns the same with those in Grew, tab. 2.: very different from the common sort of polyceratous sheep. Compare the last with Le Belier d'Islande de Buffon, xi. tab. xxxi.
ε AFRICAN. Aries guineensis. Margrave Brasil, 134. Raii syn. quad. 75.
Le Belier des Indes. de Buffon. xi. 362. tab. xxxiv. &c.
Ovis guineensis. O. auribus pendulis, palearibus laxis pilosis. Lin. syst. 98.
La Brebis de Guinee. Brisson quad. 51.
Sheep of Sahara. Shaw's travels, 241.
Carnero or Bell wether. Della Valle trav. 91.
Meagre; very long legged and tall: short horns; pendent ears, covered with hair instead of wool: short hair: wattles on the neck. Perhaps the Adimain of Leo Africanus, 341. which he says furnishes the Lybians with milk and cheese; is of the size of an ass, shape of a ram, with pendent ears. Della Valle tells us, that at Goa he has seen a wether bridled and saddled, which carried a boy twelve years old.
ζ BROAD TAILED. Ludolph. Æthiop. 53. Ovis arabica. Caii opusc. 72. Gesner quad. Icon. 15. Faunul. Sinens.
Ovis laticauda. Raii syn. quad. 74. Lin. syst. 97. Brisson quad. 50. Nov. Com. Petrop, v. 347. tab. 8.
Le Mouton de Barbarie. de Buffon xi. 355. tab. xxxiii. Shaw's travels, 241. Russel's Aleppo, 51.
Common in Syria, Barbary and Æthiopia. Some of their tails end in a point, but oftner square or round.
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I BROAD TAILED SHEEP. II CAPE SHEEP.
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They are so long as to trail on the ground, and the shepherds are obliged to put boards with small wheels under the tails to keep them from galling. These tails are esteemed a great delicacy, are of a substance between fat and marrow, and are eaten with the lean of the mutton. Some of these tails weigh 50 lb. each.
IV. GOAT.
Horns bending backward, and almost close at their base.
Eight cutting teeth in the lower jaw, none in the upper.
The male generally bearded.
9. WILD.
Ibex. Plinii lib. viii. c. 53.
Bouc estain. Belon. obs. 14. Bouc sauvage. Gaston de Foix. 99. Capricorne. Munster Cosmogr. 381.
Ibex. Gesner quad. 303. Raii syn. quad. 77. Brisson quad. 39.
Capra Ibex. C. Cornibus supra nodosis, in dorsum reclinatis, gula barbata. Lin. syst. 95. Klein quad. 16. Le Bouquetin. de Buffon xii. 136. tab. xiii. xiv.
Steinbock. Kram. Austr. 321. Ridinger kleine Thiere, No. 71. Br. Mus. Ashm. M.
G. with large knotted horns, reclining backwards: head very small: on the chin of the male a dusky beard: the rest of the hair tawny, mixed with ash color: females are less, and have smaller horns, more like those of a common she-goat, and have few knobs on the upper surface; bring one young, seldom two at a time*. Inhabit the highest Alps of the Grisons country, and the Vallais; are also found in Crete: are very wild and difficult to be shot, as they always keep on the highest points. Their chace very dangerous: being very strong, they often tum-
* Ridinger.
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ble the incautious huntsman down the precipices, except he has time to lie down, and let the animals pass over him. Its blood much esteemed in pleurisies; are said, not to be long lived.
α DOMESTIC. Capra, Gesner quad. 266. Raii syn. quad. 77.
C. Hircus. C. cornibus carinatis arcuatis. Lin. syst. 94.
Get. Faun. suec. No. 44.
Siegen bock. Siege. Klein quad. 15.
Le bouc, La Chevre. Brisson quad. 38. de Buffon v. 59, tab. viii. Goat Br. Zool. I. 29.
The former is the stock from whence the tame species sprung; the horns of these are smoother and freer from knots, and have a curvature outwards towards their ends. The colors of the tame goats vary; the hair in some is long, and quite trails on the ground: others are smooth.
In Alpine countries is the substitute of the sheep; its flesh, milk and cheese the food of the inhabitants: cannot bear excessive cold: loves temperate and warm climates: is very lively, wanton, active; very libidinous: short lived: its skin useful in many manufactures: the hair for making wigs: the milk restorative in consumptive cases: brouzes more than it grazes; destructive to trees: goes with young four months and a half: generally brings two at a time, sometimes three, rarely four.
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SYRIAN GOATS.
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β ANGORA. Angora Goat. Tournefort's voy, II. 351. Hasselquist, 191. Lin. syst. 94. Brisson quad. 39. de Buffon, v. 71. tab. x. xi.
Found only near Angora, Beibazar and Cougna in Asiatic Turkey*. Those of the last place brown or black; and the two first of a silky fineness and silvery whiteness, in curled locks of eight or nine inches in length; the basis of our fine camblets; the hair imported here in form of thread, for the Turks will not suffer it to be exported raw, as the spinning gives employ to multitudes of poor. This variety is confined to a district of two or three days journey in extent; if they change climate, the hair grows coarser. The Goat-herds are very attentive to them, perpetually combing and washing them; are shorter than our goats and their horns less. Whether Strabo meant this kind? as M. Tournefort conjectures, when he mentions those on the banks of the Halys; very scarce, says he, in other places. The word Strabo uses is ζóϱϰες, which signifies roebucks, not goats**.
γ SYRIAN. Capra mambrina seu syriaca. Gesner quad. 153. Raii syn. quad. 81. C. cornibus reclinatis, auribus pendulis, gula barbata. Lin. syst. 95.
Brisson quad. 47.
Prosper Alp. hist. Ægypt. I. 229. Rauwolff's travels, II. 71. Russel's, Aleppo, 62.
Plentifull in the East: supply Aleppo with milk: their ears of a vast length, hanging down like those
* And according to Nieuhoff, 232, at Gomron. Perhaps that exquisite hair taken from the breast of a wild goat of the great Tibet, called Touz, may be of this kind. Vide Bernier's voy. II. 94.
** Lib. xii.
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of hounds: are from one to two feet long: sometimes they are so troublesome, that the owners cut off one to enable the animal to feed with more ease. The horns are black and short.
δ AFRICAN. Capra depressa. C. cornibus erectis apice recurvis. Lin. syst. 95.
Le bouc d'Afrique, de Buffon, xiii. 154. tab. xviii. xix.
A dwarf variety, found in Africa. The male covered with rough hair, and beneath the chin hang two long hairy wattles: the horns short, very thick, and triangular, and lie so close to the fcull as almost to penetrate it: the horns of the female are much less, neither has it wattles; its hair is smooth.
ε WHIDAW. Capra reversa. C. cornibus depressis incurvis minimis cranio incumbentibus, gula barbata. Lin. syst. 95.
Le bonc de Juda. de Buffon, xii. 154. tab. xx. xxi.
From Juda or Whidaw, in Africa. A small kind: the horns short, smooth, and turn a little forwards. Linnæus says, that this and the preceding came from America; but certainly before its discovery by the Spaniards, the goat and every other domestic animal was unknown there.
ζ CAPRICORN. Le Capricorne. de Buffon, xii. 146. tab. xv.
A variety with short horns, the ends turning forward: their sides annulated: the rings more prominent before than behind.
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10. CHAMOIS.
Rupicapra, Plinii, lib. viii c. 15. Gesner quad. 290. Raii syn. quad. 78 Scheuchzer. It. Alp. I. 155, &c. capra rupicapra. C. cornibus erectis uncinatis. Lin. syst. 95.
Chamois ou Ysard. Belon. obs. 54.
Ysarus ou Sarris. Gaston de Foix, 99*. Brisson quad. 41. de Buffon, xii. 136. tab. xvi.
Gemse, Klein quad. 18. Ridinger Kleine Thiere, No. 72. wild. Thiere, 25.
Antilope rupicapra. Pallas miscel. 4. Spicil. 7. Br Mus.
G. with slender black upright horns, hooked at the end: behind each a large orifice in the skin: forehead white: along the cheeks a dusky bar: rest of the body deep brown: tail short: hoofs long, and much divided.
Inhabits the Alps of Dauphinè, Suitzerland, and Italy; the Pyrænean mountains, Greece, and Crete: does not dwell so high in the hills as the Ibex, and is found in greater numbers. They feed before sunrise and after sun-set: during winter lodge in hollows of the rocks to avoid the falls of the Avelenches: during that season eat the slender twigs of trees, or the roots of plants, or herbs which they find beneath the snow: are very timid and wathfull: each herd has its leader, who keeps centry on some high place while the rest are at food; and if it sees an enemy, gives a sharp sort of a hiss by way of signal, when they instantly take to flight. They have a most piercing eye, and quick ear and scent: are excessively swift and active: are hunted during winter for their skins, which are very useful in manufactures, and for the flesh, which is very well
* Gaston de Foix, Seigneur du Rù, commonly called Roy Phebus, a celebrated writer on hunting, whose works are added to those of Faques de Fouilloux, entitled, La Venerie & Fauconnerie, Paris 1585.
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tasted. The chase is a laborious employ: they must be got at by surprize, and are shot with riffl'dbarrel'd guns: in their stomach is often a hairy ball covered with a hard crust of an oblong form: are said to be long lived: bring two, seldom three young at a time.
11. SIBERIAN
Musimon, Plinii, lib. viii. c. 49. Ophion, Lib. xxviii. c. 9. xxx. c. 15.
Tragelahus, Belon obs. 54. Raii syn. quad. 82. Klein quad. 20.
Musmon seu Musimon, Gesner quad. 823.
Capra Ammon, Lin. syst. 97.
Le Chamois de Siberie, Brisson quad. 42. & la chevre du Levant, 46.
Le Moufrlon, de Buffon, xi. 352. tab. xxix.
Rupicapra cornubus arietinis. Argali, Nov. com. Petrop. iv. 49. 388. tab. 8.
Fishtâil, Lerwee, Shaw's trav. 243. Br. Mus.
G. with large horns bending back, close at their base, distant at their points, with circular rugæ. These animals vary in size and color: the skin of one the British Museum did me the favor of accepting was covered with pale ferruginous hair: on the sides short. on the top of the neck longer, and a little erect: along the lower side of the neck, and on the shoulders, the hair was 14 inches long: beneath the hair was a short wool: on the knees a bare spot, as if by kneeling to lie down; tail very short: horns 25 inches long, 11 in girth in the thickest place, one foot seven inches distant from point to point. I think this skin came from one of the isles of the East Indies.
Those of Corsica are less: their color deep brown mixed with rust color, and a certain hoariness: the hind legs, belly and rump, white: the horns of the females are much less than those of the males.
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Inhabit the north-east parts of Asia; Barbary, Sardinia, Corsica, and Greece: live amidst the mountains, and run with vast swiftness among the rocks. Those of Kamtchatka are so strong that ten men can scarce hold one, and the horns are so large as sometimes to weigh 30 lb. and so capacious that young foxes often shelter themselves in the hollow of such as by accident fall off in the deserts: grow to the size of a young stag: propagate in autumn: bring one young at a time, sometimes two.
Belon very judiciously styles this species the Tragelaphus, from the mixture it seems to have of the goat and deer. Supposed by M. de Buffon to be the sheep in a wild state: doubted by myself, since opportunity has been had of seeing some of these animals from Sardinia and Corsica.
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V. GIRAFFE.
Horns short, upright, truncated at the top.
Neck and shoulders of a vast length.
Eight cutting teeth in the lower jaw, the two outmost bilobated. No teeth in the upper jaw.
12. CAMELOPARD.
Camelopardalis Plinii lib. viii. c. 18. Dion Cassius, lib. 43. Prænest. pavem. apud Shaw suppl. 88. Oppian cyneg. iii. 466.
La Giraffe que les Arabes nomment Zurnapa. Belon obs. 118. 119. Leo Afr. 337. Gesner quad. 160. Raii syn. quad. 90. Brisson quad. 37. De Buffon, xiii. 1.
Cervus camelopardalis. C. cornibus simplicibus, pedibus anticis longissimis. Lin. syst. 92.
Tragus Giraffa. Klein quad. 22.
G. with short strait horns covered with hair, and truncated at the end and tufted with hair: in the forehead a tubercle about two inches high resembling a third horn: height from the crown of the head to the soles of the fore feet 17 feet: that from the top of the rump to the bottom of the hind feet only nine: length of the neck seven: from the withers to the loins only six: the fore legs not longer than the hind legs; but the shoulders of a vast length, which gives the disproportionate height between the fore and hind parts: horns six inches: head like that of a stag: neck slender and elegant, and on the upper side is a short mane: ears large: tail long, with strong hairs at the end: color of the whole animal a dirty white marked with large broad rusty spots.
Inhabits the forests of Æthiopia and other interior parts of Africa, is very timid, but not swift: from the strange length of its fore legs, cannot graze without dividing them to a vast distance; it there-
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fore lives by brouzing the leaves of trees: kneels like a camel when it would lie down; is a gentle animal, and is very scarce. I saw the skin of a young one at Leyden well stuffed, and preserved; otherwise might possibly have entertained doubts in respect to the existence of so extraordinary a quadruped. Belon's figure very good.
Known to the Romans in early times; appears among the figures in the assemblage of eastern animals on the celebrated Prænestine Pavement, made by the direction of Sylla, represented both grazing and brouzing in its natural attitudes: exhibited at Rome by the popular Cæsar among other animals in the Circæan games. Finely and justly described by Oppian.
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VI. ANTELOPE.
Annulated or twisted horns.
Eight broad cutting teeth in the lower jaw; none in the upper.
Body and limbs of a light and elegant form.
The several species that compose this genus, two or three excepted, inhabit the hottest part of the globe; or at lest those parts of the temperate zone that lie so near the tropics as to form a doubtfull climate.
None therefore, except the Saiga*, are to be met with in Europe; and, notwithstanding the warmth of South America, is suited to their nature, yet not a single species has ever been discovered in any part of the new world. Their proper climates seems therefore to be those of Asia and Africa, where the species are very numerous.
As there appears a general agreement in the nature of the species that form this great genus, it will prevent a needless repetition to observe here, that the ANTELOPES are animals of a most elegant and active make; of a restless and timid disposition; extremely watchfull; of great vivacity; remarkably swift; remarkably agile; and most of their boundings so light, so elastic, as to strike the spectator with astonishment. What is very singular, they will stop in the midst of their course, for a moment gaze at their pursuers, and then resume their flight**.
* Found between the Don and Dnieper; and, as I have heard, even in Transylvania.
** Shaw's trav. 244.
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As the chace of these animals is a favorite diversion with the eastern nations, from that may be collected proofs of the rapid speed of the ANTELOPE tribe. The Grehound, the fleetest of dogs, is unequal in the course; and the sportsman is obliged to call in the aid of the Falcon, trained to the work, to seize on the animal and impede its motions, to give the dogs opportunity of overtaking it. In India, and in Persia, a sort of Leopard is made use of in the chace: this is an animal that takes its prey not by swiftness of foot, but by the greatness of its springs, by motions similar to that of the ANTELOPE; but should the Leopard fail in its first essay, the game escapes*.
The fleetness of this animal was proverbial in the country it inhabited even in the earliest times: the speed of Asahel** is beautifully compared to that of the† Tzebi; and the Gadites were said to be as swift as the Roes upon the mountains. The inspired writers took their similies from such objects that were before the eyes of the people they addressed themselves to. There is another instance drawn from the same subject: the disciple raised to life at Joppa was supposed to have been called Tabitha, i. e. Dorcas, or the ANTELOPE, from the beauty of her eyes; and this is still a common comparison in the East: Aine el Czazel, or "You have eyes of an ANTELOPE," is the greatest compliment that can be to paid a fine woman††.
* Bernier's trav. iv. 45. Voy. de Boullaye le Gouz. 248.
** Sam. I. ii. v. 18.
† Shaw's trav. suppl. 74. who informs us, that this word should have been translated, the Antelope; not the Roe, as the text has it.
†† Pr. Alp. hist. Ægypet. I. 232.
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Some species of the ANTELOPES form herds of two or three thousands, while others keep in small troops of five or six. They generally reside in hilly countries; tho' some inhabit plains: they often brouze like the goat, and feed on the tender shoots of trees, which gives their flesh an excellent flavor. This is to be understood of those that are taken in the chace; for those that are fattened in houses are far less delicious. The flesh of some species are said to taste of musk, which perhaps depends on the qualities of the plants they feed on.
This preface was thought necessary to point out the difference in nature between this and the Goat kind, with which most of the systematic writers have classed this animal: but the ANTELOPE forms an intermediate genus, a link between the Goat and the Deer. They agree with the first, in the texture of the horns, which have a core in them; and they never cast them: with the last, in the elegance of their form, and great swiftness.
* With arcuated horns.
13. BLUE.
Blue Goat. Kolben's Cape. II. 114.
Antelope Leucophœa. Pallas Miscel. 4. Spicil. Zool. 6. Br. Mus.
A. with sharp-pointed, taper, arcuated horns bending backwards, marked with twenty prominent rings, but smooth towards their points, twenty inches long: ears sharp-pointed, above nine inches in length: larger than a buck: color, when alive, a fine blue; when dead, changes to a bluish grey, with a mix-
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ture of white: hairs long: beneath each eye a large white mark: belly white: tail seven inches long; the hairs at the end six inches. From a skin bought at Amsterdam, brought from the Cape of Good Hope; where they are found, but far up the country. This is the species which, from the length of its hair and form of the horns, connects this genus with that of the Goat.
** Strait horns.
14. ÆGYPTIAN.
Gazella indica cornibus rectis longissimis nigris prope caput tantum annulatis. Raii syn. quad. 79.
Capra Gazella. C. cornibus teretibus rectissimis longissimis annulatis. Lin. syst. 96.
La Gazelle des Indes. Brisson quad. 43.
Le Pasan. De Buffon, xii. 213. tab. xxxiii. fig. 3. xv. 190.
Elk. Kolben, II. 11. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
A. with strait slender horns, near three feet long, annulated; at their base a triangular black spot, bounded on each side with white; a black line extends from the neck to the loins: neck, back and sides, dark grey: breast and belly white: tail about two feet long, terminated with black hairs: length of the whole skin six feet.
Inhabits Ægypt, the Cape, Arabia, the Levant, India. Dwells in the plains.
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15. BEZOAR.
Pasèn, caprieerva. Kæamfer. Amæn. exot. 398.
Cornu ignotum. Gesner quad. 309.
La Gazelle. Belon obs. 120. Alpin. hist. Ægypt. I. 232. tab. xiv. Animal bezoarticum. Raii syn. quad. 80.
La Gazelle du Bezoar. Brisson quad. 44.
Algazel. De Buffon, xii. 211. tab. xxxiii. fig. 1, 2.
Capra bezoartica. C. cornibus arcuatis totis annularis, gula barbata. Lin. syst. 96. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
A. with very long, slender, upright horns, bending at the upper part inward towards each other; some are much annulated, others smoother: size of a goat: red, mixed with ash color.
Inhabits the inhospitable and rough mountains of Laar in Persia: very swift and timid: never descends into the plains: is one of the animals which produce the Bezoar*, celebrated by the Orientalists as an alexipharmic. Found also in Ægypt.
16. INDIAN.
Le Coudous. De Buffon, xii. 357. tab. 47.
Antilope oryx. Pallas Miscel. 9. Spicil. 15.
Nilgaux or gray oxen? Bernier, iv. 47.
Pacasse. Voy. Congo. Churchill's Coll. I. 623. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
A. with thick strait horns, marked with two prominent spiral ribs near two-thirds of their length, smooth towards their end; some are above two feet long: those at the British Museum, with part of the skin adhering, are black: the color of the hair on
* According to Tavernier, ii. 154. it is also found in Cows Goats and Apes.
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the fragment of the head is of a reddish brown, bounded on the cheeks by a dusky line; beneath, of a pale brown. If this animal is the same with the Pacasse of Congo, and the Nilgaux of India, they vary in color; the first being white, spotted with black and red; the last, grey. They grow to a large size.
Inhabit India and different parts of the south of Africa: the flesh is reckoned very good; are very tame, monogamous; roar very loud.
17. HARNESSED.
Le Guib. De Buffon, xii. 327. tab. xl.
Antelope scripta. Pallas Miscel. 17. 8. Spicil. 15.
A. with strait horns nine inches long pointing backwards, with two spiral ribs: ears broad: color a deep tawny: beneath each eye a white spot: sides most singularly marked with two transverse bands of white, crossed by two others from the back to the belly: the rump with three white lines pointing downwards on each side: the thighs spotted with white: tail ten inches long, covered with long rough hairs.
Inhabits the plains and woods of Senegal, living in large herds.
18. GUINEA.
Capra sylvestris Africana Grimmii Raii syn. quad. 80. Klein quad. 19.
Moschus Grimmia. M. capite fasciculo tophoso. Lin. syst. 92.
Le Grimme. De Buffon, xii. 307. tab. xli.
Le Chevrotain d'Afrique. Brisson quad. 67. Seb. Mus. I. tab. 43 C. D.
Antilope Grimmia. Pallas Miscel, 10. tab. I. Spicil. 38. tab. III.
A. with strait black horns, slender and sharp-pointed, not three inches long, slightly annulated
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at the base: height about 18 inches: most elegant form: ears large: eyes dusky; below them a large cavity, into which exuded a strong-scented oily liquid: between the horns a tuft of black hairs: the color of the neck and body brown, mixed with cinerous, and a tinge of yellow: belly white: tail short; white beneath, black above.
I examined this animal a few years ago, in company with Doctor Pallas, at the Prince of Orange's menagery, near the Hague. Several had been brought over from Guinea; but, except this, all died. Dr. Pallas said that the females were hornless: it seems, therefore, that Dr. Grimm, who first described this species, never saw any but the female.
19. ROYAL.
King of the harts. Bosman's voy. 236.
Petite biche. Des Marchais, I. 312.
Cervula parvula Africana. Seb.
Mus. I. 70. tab, xliii.
Adanson's voy. 207.
Le Chevrotain de Guinea. De Buffon, xii. 315. tab. xliii. fig. 2. its horn.
A. with very short strait horns, black and shining as jet: scarce two inches long: ears broad: height not above nine inches: legs not thicker than a goose quil: color a reddish brown: the females want horns.
Inhabits Senegal and the hottest parts of Africa, called in Guinea, Guevei: are very agile, will bound over a wall twelve feet high: are very tame, but so tender as not to endure transportation into our climate.
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M & F. WHITE-FOOTED ANTELOPE No. 21.
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*** Horns bending forwards.
20. INDOSTAN.
Quadruped from Bengal. Ph. Tr. No. 476. Abridg. xi. 398. tab. vi.
Biggel. Mandelstoe's voy. Harris's coll. I. 775.
Antilope Tragocamelus. Pallas Miscel 5. Spicil. 9.
A. with horns seven inches long bending forward: eyes black and lively: neck strong, bending forward like that of a camel; along the top a short mane: on the shoulders a large lump, resembling that of the Indian ox, tufted with hair: hind parts like those of an ass: tail 22 inches long, terminated with long hairs: legs slender: on the lower part of the breast the skin hangs like that of a cow: hair short and smooth, of a light ash-color, in some parts dusky; beneath the breast, and under the tail, white: on the forehead is a black rhomboidal spot. The height of this animal, to the top of the lump on its shoulders, was 12 hands.
Inhabits the most distant parts of the Mogul's dominions; chews the cud; lies down and rises like a camel: its voice a sort of croaking, or like the rattle of deer in rutting time. Doctor Parsons, to whom we are of late years obliged for the best zoologic papers in the Ph. Tr. is the only writer who has described this animal.
21. WHITE-FOOTED.
A. with short horns bending a little forward: ears large, marked with two black stripes: a small black mane on the neck and half way down the back: a tuft of long black hairs on the fore part of the neck; above that a large spot of white; an-
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other between the fore-legs on the chest: one white spot on each fore foot; two on each hind foot: tail long, tufted with black hairs: height to the top of the shoulders about four feet: color a dark grey.
Female of a pale brown color: no horns: with a mane, tuft, and striped ears like the male: on each foot three transverse bands of black and two of white.
Inhabits India. A pair was living last year at Claremont.
22. SWIFT.
Dama. Plinii, lib. xi. c. 37.
Cemas. Ælian. An. lib. xiv. c. 14.
Le Nanguer. De Buffon, xii. 213. tab. xxxiv.
Antilope dama. Pallas Miscel 5. Spicil. 8.
A. with round horns eight inches long reverting at their ends: length of the animal three feet ten inches; height, two feet eight inches: general color tawny: belly, lower part of the sides, rump, and thighs, white: on the fore part of the neck a white spot: but this species varies in color.
Inhabits Senegal; is easily tamed; very swift. Ælian compares its flight to the rapidity of a whirlwind.
23. RED.
Le Nagor. De Buffon, xii. 326. tab. xlvi.
Antilope redunca. Pallas Spicil. 8.
A. with horns five inches and an half long; one or two slight rings at the base: length, four feet; height, two feet three inches: ears five inches long: hairs stiff and bright: in all parts of a reddilh color.
Inhabits Senegal.
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**** With twisted horns.
24. STRIPED.
Strepsiceros. Caii opusc: 56. Gesner quad. 309. Icon. 31.
Le Condoma. De Buffon, xii. 301. tab. xxxix. vol. xv. 142.
Antilope Strepsiceros. Pallas Miscel. 9. Spicil. 17.
Cerf du Cap de Bonne esperance. Hist. et Com. Acad. Palatin. tom. I. 487. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
A. with smooth horns twisted spirally, compressed sideways, with a ridge on one side following the wreaths, consist of three bends, are three feet nine inches long, of a pale brown color, close at the base; two feet seven inches and an half distant at the points, which are round and sharp: in the upper jaw a hard horny substance disposed in ridges: length of the animal nine feet; height, four: body long and slender: legs slender: face brown, marked with two white lines proceeding from the corner of each eye and uniting above the nose: the color in general of a reddish cast mixed with grey: from the tail, along the top of the back, to the shoulders, is a white stripe: from this are seven others, four pointing towards the thighs, and three towards the belly: on the upper part of the neck is a short mane: beneath the neck, from the throat to the breast, are some long hairs hanging down: the breast; and belly are grey: tail two feet long, brown above, white beneath, black at the end.
Inhabits the Cape of Good Hope.
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25. COMMOM.
Strepsiceros et Addax? Plinii lib. viii. c. 54. xi. c. 37.
Gazella Africana, the Antilope. Raii, syn, quad. 79.
Tragus Strepsiceros. Klein. quad. 18.
Capra Cervicapra. C. cornibus teretibus, dimidiato - annulatis, flexuosis contortis. Lin. syst. 96.
L'Antelope. De Buffon, xii. 215. tab. xxxv. xxxvi.
La Gazelle. Brisson. quad. 44.
Antilope cervicapra. Pallas Miscel. 9. Spicil. 18. tab. I. II. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
A. with upright horns, twisted spirally, surrounded almost to the top with prominent rings; about sixteen inches long, twelve inches distance between point and point: in size, rather less than the fallow deer or buck: color, brown mixed with red, and dusky: the belly and inside of the thighs white: tail short, black above, white beneath. The females want horns.
Inhabits Barbary. The form of these horns, when on the scull, not unlike that of the antient Lyre, to which Pliny compares those of his Strepsiceros. The Brachia, or sides of that instrument, were frequently made of the horns of animals, as appears from antient gems. Monfaucon has engraven several. Suppl. Antiq. III. tab. 75.
α BROWN. Lidmeé? Shaw's travels.
Less than a Roebuck: horns like those of the last: face, back and sides of a very deep brown, the last bordered with tawny: belly and inside of the legs white: above each hoof a black spot: tail black above, white beneath. Inhabits Bengal: possibly also Barbary, being nearer the size of the Lidmee than any other.
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β SMOOTH HORNED.
De Buffon, xii. 217. tab. xxxvi. fig. 3.
In my cabinet is a pair of horns twisted like those of the preceding, but quite smooth and black: they are joined together in a parallel direction, the points turned different ways; when thus mounted they are carried by the Faquirs in India, by way of weapon.
***** with horns bending in the middle, and reverting forwards towards their end.
26. BARBARY.
Gazella Africana cornibus brevioribus, ab imo ad summum feré annulatis, et circum medium inflexis. Raii syn, quad. 80.
La Gazelle. De Buffon, xii. 201. tab. xxiii.
La Gazelle d'Afrique, Brisson, quad. 45.
Capra Dorcas. Lin. syst. 96.
Antilope Dorcas. Pallas. Spicil. I. 11.
A. with horns twelve inches long, round, inclining first backwards, bending in the middle, and then reverting forwards at their ends, and annulated with about thirteen rings on their lower part: upper side of the body reddish brown; lower part and buttocks white: along the sides the two colors are separated from each other by a strong dusky line: on each knee a tuft of hair: the Dorcas of Ælian, lib. xiv. c. 14.
Inhabits Barbary, Ægypt, and the Levant.
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27. FLAT-HORNED.
Le Kevel. De Buffon, xii. 204. tab. xxiv.
Antilope Kevella. Pallas Misa 7. Spicil. 12.
A. with horns shaped like those of the last, but flatted on their sides; the rings more numerous, from fourteen to eighteen: the size equal to a small roebuck: in colors and marks resembles the preceding.
Inhabits Senegal.
28. WHITF.
Antilope pygargus. Pallas. Spicil. 10.
A. with horns like those of the Kevel, fourteen inches and an half long: size superior to a common Buck: ears seven inches long: face of a pure white: cheeks and neck of a fine bright bay: back, of a cinereous brown dashed with red: along the middle a dark list: sides, flanks and shoulders a deep brown; separated from the belly by a darker shade: belly and rump white: trunk of the tail seven inches long: hairs black, which reached four inches beyond the end; hoofs short.
From a skin bought at Amsterdam. From the Cape? not the Tzeiran of M. de Buffon, as Dr. Pallas imagines; for the horn which the former has figured as belonging to that animal, is the horn of the Blue Antelope, No. 13.
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29. CHINESE.
Ahu, Tzeiran Olearius's Trav. 226. Kæmpfer amæn. exot. 403. Caprea campestris gutturosa. Nov. Com. Petrop. v. 347. tab. ix. Le Tzeiran de Buffon, xii. 207.
Yellow Goat? Du Halde china. II. 253, 278, 290.
Antilope Bell's travels. I. 311. 319.
A. with slender horns, bending a little in the middle, reverting towards the end; annulated on their lower part, smooth and very black at their ends: size of a roebuck, of the same color, and has the same actions.
Inhabits the vast plains beyond the lake Baikal: the natives eat the flesh, and use the skins for cloathing: the horns are much esteemed by the Chinese, who give a large price for them. These animals love the banks of rivers, and will readily take the water to pass from side to side.
30. SCYTHIAN.
Colus Gesner quad. 361.
Suhak. Rzaczinski hist. Polon. 224.
Ibex imberbis Nov. Com. Petrop. v. tab. xix. vii. 39.
Sayga Phil. Tr. 1767. p. 344. Bell's travels I. 43.
Capra Tatarica. C. cornibus teretibus rectiusculis perfecté annulatis apice diaphanis gula imberbi. Lin. syst. 97.
Le Saiga. de Buffon, xii. 198. tab. xxii. fig. 2.
Antilope scythica. Pallas spicil. 9. Faunul. sineus.
A. with horns a foot long, bending a little in the middle, the points inclining inward, the ends smooth; the other part surrounded with very prominent annuli; of a pale yellow color, and the greatest part semipellucid. Length, four feet nine inches and a quarter: height before, two feet six inches and a half; behind, two feet seven inches and a half: tail three inches: head like that of a sheep: nose very large, and arched; marked the whole length with
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a small line, caused by the elevation of the septum narium; the nostrils tubular and large: the upper lip hangs over the under: the nose is formed of a muscular substance mixed with fat: the cutting teeth are placed so loose in their sockets as to move with the lest touch. The male is covered with rough hair like the he goat, and has a very strong smell. The female is smoother: the hair on the bottom of the sides and the throat is long, and resembles wool: that on the sides of the head and neck is hoary: the back and sides of a dirty white: the breast, belly and inside of the thighs, of a shining white. The females hornless and timid: if attacked by wolves or dogs, the males place them in a circle, and stand round them, with their heads towards the enemy, and will defend them stoutly: bleat like sheep: their common pace a trot: when they go faster it is by leaps: are swifter than roebucks: feed by lifting up the upper mandible and going backward. The skin is soft, and excellent for gloves, belts, &c. Their best season is September: at other times, the skins are penetrated by worms. The fat resembles that of mutton; in taste, like that of a buck: the head is reckoned the most delicate part. Found between the Tanais and Boristhenes, and as far as Astrachan, in flocks of 6 or 10,000; and seem to be the same with those called by Le Brun*, wild Sheep or Ablavos, which are met with among the Burattes, near lake Baikal, in herds of thousands. The young are easily tamed, and will readily return to their master, tho' turned out on the Step, or desert**.
* Le Brun's Trav. I. 115.
** Ritchkoff orenb. Topogr. I. 288.
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31. SPOTTED.
Le Corine de Buffon, xii. 205. tab. xxvii
A. with very slender horns six inches long, surrounded with circular rugæ: less than a roebuck: each side the face a white line: neck, body and flanks, tawny: belly and inside of the thighs white: separated from the sides by a dark line: on the knees is a tuft of hair. Some are irregularly spotted with white. Perhaps these are the spotted goats of Kolben, II. 115.
Inhabits Senegal.
32. CERVINE.
Bubulus Plinii lib. viii. c. 15.
βαλ? Oppian Cyneg. II. Lin. 300.
Bucula cervina Caii opusc. 63.
Buselaphus Gesner quad. 121.
Vache de Barbarie, Memoire de L'acad. I. 205.
Le Bubale de Buffon xii. 294. tab. xxxvii. xxxviii.
Antilope Bubalis Pallas spicil. 12.
A. with horns bending outward and backward, almost close at their base, and distant at their points; twisted and annulated; very strong and black; some are above twenty inches long, and above eleven in girth at the base: head large, and like that of an ox: eyes placed very high and near the horns: the form of the body a mixture of the stag and heifer: the size of the first: the tail rather more than a foot long, terminated with a tuft of hair: color, a reddish brown.
Inhabits Barbary. This the Bubalus of the antients, not the Buffalo, as later writers have supposed. Pliny remarks an error of the same kind in his days, speaking of the Urus, says, Uros, quibus
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imperitum vulgus bubulorum nomen imponit, cum id gignat Africa, vituli potius cervive quadam similitudine.
33. SENBGAL.
Le Koba de Buffon xii. 210. 267. tab. xxxii. fig. 2.
Cert qu'on nomment Temamaçama Seb. Mus. I. 69. tab. xlii. fig. 4. Ash. Mus.
A. with horns almost close at the base, a little above bending out greatly; then approach again towards the ends, and recede from each other towards the points, which bend backwards; the distance in the middle six inches and a half; above that four inches; at the points six; length, seventeen inches; circumference at the bottom eight; surrounded with fifteen prominent rings; the ends smooth and sharp: head large and clumsy, eighteen inches long: ears seven: head and body of a light reddish brown: down the hind part of the neck a narrow black list: rump, a dirty white: on each knee, and above the fetlock, a dusky mark: hoofs small: tail a foot long, covered with coarse black hairs, which hang far beyond the end. Length of the whole skin which I bought at Amsterdam, seven feet.
Inhabits Senegal, where the French call it La grande vache brune. Certainly, neither the Temamaçama of Hernandez, nor even a native of America, as Seba asserts.
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34. GAMBIAN.
Le Kob, ou petite vache brune, de Buffon xii. 210. 267. tab. xxxii. fig. 1.
A. with horns thirteen inches long, five inches and a half round at the bottom, very distant in the middle, and pretty close at the base and points; surrounded with eight or nine rings; smooth at their upper part.
Inhabits Senegal.
R. Murray Sot
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VII. DEER.
Horns upright, solid, branched, annually deciduous. Eight cutting teeth in the lower jaw; none in the upper.
* With palmated horns.
35. ELK.
Alce, machlis, Plinii, lib. viii. c. 15. Gesner quad. I. 3. Munster Cosmog. 883.
Cervus palmatus, Alce, Elant. Klein quad. 24. Ridinger wild. Thiere. 36.
Elk, Raii syn. quad. 86. Scheffer Lapl. 133. Bell's trav. I. 5, 215, 322.
Cervus Alces. C. cornibus acaullibus palmatis, caruncula gutturali, Lin. syst. 92. Ælg. Faun. Suec. No. 39. Los, Rzaczinski Polon. 212.
C. cornibus ab imo ad summum palmatis, Brisson quad. 6. Faunul. Sinens.
L'Elan, de Buffon. xii. 79. tab. vii. viii. Br. Mus. Ash Mus.
D. with horns with short beams spreading into large and broad palms, one side of which is plain, the outmost furnished with several sharp snags. No brow antlers*. The largest I have seen is in the house belonging to the Hudson Bay company, weigh'd 56 lb. length 32 inches; between tip and tip, 34; breadth of the palm 13 ½. There is in the same place an excellent picture of an Elk, which was killed in the presence of Charles XI. of Sueden, and which weighed 1229 lb. It is a very deformed and seemingly disproportioned beast. A young female of
* In the British Museum is a pair of Elk horns, which in all respects resembles the others, except that on the beam of each horn: about four inches from the base is a branch, round and trifurcated: very different from a brow-antler. It is the only one of the kind I ever saw; so, probably, is a meer accident; for neither the many European Elks horns, or the two pair of American Elk or Moose, I have examined, are furnished with brow-antlers. Those in question seem to be the very pair which Mr. Dale describes and figures, Phil. Trans. abridg. ix. 85. tab. 6. fig. 50.
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I FEM MOOSE OR ELK. II ELK'S HORNS No. 35.
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about a year old, was to the top of the withers 5 feet high, or 15 hands; the head alone 2 feet long, length of the whole animal from nose to tail, about 7 feet: the neck much shorter than the head, with a short thick upright mane, of a light brown color. The eyes small: the ears I foot long, very broad and slouching: nostrils very large: the upper lip square, hangs greatly over the lower, and has a deep sulcus in the middle, so as to appear almost bifid: nose very broad: under the throat a small excrescence, from whence hung a long tuft of coarse black hair: the withers very high: fore legs 3 feet 3 inches long: from the bottom of the hoof to the end of the tibia 2 feet 4 inches: the hind legs much shorter than the fore legs: hoofs very much cloven: tail very short; dusky above, white beneath: color of the body in general a hoary black; but more grey about the face than any where else. This was living last spring at the marquis of Rockingham's house, at Parson's-green. It seemed a mild animal; was uneasy and restless at our presence, and made a plaintive noise. This was brought from North America, and was called* the Moose Deer. A male of this species, and the horns of others having been brought over of late years, prove this, on comparison with the horns of the European Elk, to be the same animal. But the accounts that Josselyn and Dudly** give of the size
* From Musu, which in the Algonkin language signifies an Elk. Vide Kalm iter. vol. III. 510. Germ. ed. de Laet. 73. Purchas's Pilgr. iv. 1831.
** Josselyn's voy. New England, 88. New Engl. rarities, 19. Phil. Trans. abridg. vii. 447.
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of the American Moose has all the appearance of being greatly exaggerated; the first asserting, that some an found 12 feet or 33 hands high, and the last make it only one foot lower; but Charlevoix, Diervill and Lescarbot*, with greater appearance of probability, make it the size of a horse, or an Auvergne mule, which is a very large species; and the informations also that I have received from eyewitnesses, make its height from 15 to 17 hands. The writers who speak of the European kind, confine its bulk to that of a horse. Those who speak of the gigantic Moose, say, their horns are six feet high; Josselyn makes the extent from tip to tip to be two fathom, and La Hontan** from hearsay pretends, that they weigh from 300 to 400 lb.; notwithstanding he says that the animal which is to carry them is no larger than a horse. Thus these writers vary from each other, and often are not consistent with themselves. It seems then that Josselyn and Dudly have been too credulous, and taken their evidence from huntsmen or Indians, who were fond of the marvellous; for it does not appear that they had seen it. The only thing certain is, that the Elk is common to both continents; and that the American having larger forests to range in and more luxuriant food, grows to a larger size than the European. In America they are found, tho' rarely, in the back parts of New England; in the peninsula of Nova Scotia, and in Canada; in Europe
* Charlevoix hist. nouvelle France, v. 185. Dierville voy. de L'Acadie 122. Lescarbot hist. nouv. France 810. The French call this animal, Orignal.
** Voy. N. America, I. 57.
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they inhabit Lapland, Norway, Sueden and Russia; in Asia, the N. E. parts of Tartary and Siberia; but in each of those continents inhabit only parts, where cold reigns with the utmost rigor during part of the year.
They live amidst the forests for the conveniency of browzing the boughs of trees, for the great length of their legs and the shortness of their neck prevents them from grazing with any sort of ease; they often feed on water plants, which they can readily get at by wading; and M. Sarrasin* says, they are so fond of the Anagyris fætida, or stinking bean trefoil, as to dig for it with their feet, when covered with snow.
They have a singular gait; their pace is a high shambling trot, but they go with vast swiftness; in old times these animals were made use of in Sueden to draw sledges; but as they were frequently accessary to the escape of murderers and other criminals, the use was prohibited under great penalties. In passing thro' thick woods, they carry their heads horizontally, to prevent their horns being entangled in the branches. In their common walk they raise their fore feet very high; that which I saw stepped over a rail near a yard high with great ease.
They are very inoffensive animals except when wounded, or in the rutting season, when they become very furious, and at that time swim from isle to isle, in pursuit of the females. They strike with both horns and hoofs; are hunted in Canada during win-
* Martyn's abridg. mem. and hist. Acad. iv. 253.
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ter, when they sink so deep in the snow as to become an easy prey: the flesh is much commended for being light and nourishing, but the nose is reckoned the greatest delicacy in all Canada: the tongues are excellent, and are frequently brought here from Russia: the skin makes excellent buff leather*: Linnæus says it will turn a musket ball: the hair which is on the neck, withers and hams, of the full grown Elk, is of great length and very elastic, is used to make matresses: the hoofs were supposed to have great virtues in curing epilepsics. It was pretended, that the Elk being subject to that disease, cured itself by scratching its ear with its hoof.
The Elk was known to the Romans by the name of Alce and Machlis: they believed that it had no joints in its legs; and, from the great size of the upper lip, imagined it could not feed without going backward as it grazed.
Before I quit this subject it will be proper to take some notice of the enormous horns that are so often found fossil in Ireland, and which have always been attributed to the Moose Deer: I mean the Moose Deer of Josselyn; for no other animal could possibly be supposed to carry fo gigantic a head. These horns differ very much from those of the European or American Elk; the beam, or part between the base and the palm, is vastly longer: each is furnished with a large and palmated brow antler, and the snags on the upper palms are longer. The measurements of a pair of these horns are as follow:
* Numbers of the American Elk skins are sent from hence to Bayonne, where they are dressed, and sold to the Gallegas, who make buff waistcoats of them.
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from the insertion to the tips, 5 feet 5 inches; the brow antlers 11 inches; the broadest part of the palm, 18; distance between tip and tip, 7 feet 9: but these are small in comparison of others that have been found in the same kingdom. Mr. Wright, in his Louthiana, tab. xxii. Book III. gives the figure of one that was eight feet long, and fourteen between point and point. These horns are frequent in our Museums, and at gentlemen's houses in Ireland: but the Zoologist is still at a loss for the recent animal. I have been informed by a gentleman long resident in Hudson's Bay, that the Indians speak of a beast of the Moose kind*, but far superior in size to the common one, which they say is found 7 or 800 miles S. W. of York Fort. If such an animal exists, with horns of the dimensions just mentioned, and of proportionable dimensions in other parts, there is a chance of seeing Josselyn's account verified: for if our largest elks of seventeen hands high carry horns of scarce three feet in length, we may very well allow the animal to be thirty-three hands high which is to support horns of 3 or 400 lb. weight.
* Called by the Indians, Waskesseu.
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36. REIN.
Tarandus? Plinii lib. viii. c. 34.
Le Rangier ou Ranglier. Gaston de Foix apud du Fouilloux 98.
Tarandus, Rangifer Gesner quad. 839, 840. Icon. quad. 57, 58.
Cervus mirabilis, Jonston quad. Munster Cosmog. 1054.
Macarib, Caribo, Pohano. Josselin's New England rarities, 20.
Cervus rangifer Raii syn. quad. 88.
Rennthier Klein quad. 23. Ridinger wild. Thiere. 35.
C. Tarandus. C. cornibus ramosis recurvatis teretibus, summitatibus palmatis. Lin. syst. 93.
Rhen. Faun. Suec. No. 41. Amæn. Acad. iv. 144.
Le Renne de Buffon, xii. 79. tab. x. xi. xii. Brisson quad. 63.
Reindeer Schesser Supl. 82. 129.
Le Brun's travels, I. 10. 11. Œuvres de Maupertuis, III. 198. Voyage d'Outhier 141. Hist. Kamtchatka, 228. Bell's travels, I. 213. Martin's Spitzberg, 99. Crantz Greenl. I. 70. Egede Greenl. 60. Dobb's Hudson's bay. 20. 22. voy. Huds. bay. II. 17. 18.
Le Caribou. Charlevoix hist. nouv. France, v. 190. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
D. with large but slender horns bending forwards, the top palmated, with brow antlers broad and palmated: horns on both sex; those of the female less, and with fewer branches. A pair from Greenland was 3 feet 9 inches long, 2—6 from tip to tip; weighed 9 lb. 12 oz. height of a full grown Rein, 4 feet 6; space round the eyes always black; when it first sheds its coat, the hairs are of a brownish ash color; after that changes to white; the hairs are very closely set together; along the fore part of the neck are very long and pendent: hoofs large: tail short. Inhabits the farthest north of any hoofed quadruped; in America, Spitzbergen, and Greenland, but not further south than Canada. In Europe, Samoidea, Lapland, Norway; in Asia, the north coast, as far as Kamtzchatka, and the inland parts as low as Siberia; found in all these places in a state of nature; is domesticated only by the Laplanders, Samoides and Kamtzchatkans; is to the first the substitute of the horse, the cow, the goat and the
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sheep; and is their only wealth; the milk of the Rein affords them cheese; the flesh, food; the skin, cloathing; the tendons, bowstrings; and when split, thread; the horns, glue; the bones, spoons. During the winter it supplies the want of a horse, and draws their sledges with amazing swiftness over the frozen lakes and rivers; or over the snow, which at that season covers the whole country. A rich Laplander is possessed of a herd of a thousand Reins. In autumn they seek the highest hills to avoid che Lapland Gadfly*, which at that time deposies its eggs in their skin; it is the pest of these animals, and numbers die that are thus visited. The moment a single fly appears, the whole herd instantly perceives it, they fling up their heads, toss about their horns, and at once attempt to fly for shelter amidst the snows on the loftiest Alps. In summer they feed on several plants; but during winter, on the rein-liverwort**, which lies far beneath the snow; which they remove with their feet and palmared brow antlers, in order to get at their beloved food. They live only sixteen years.
Horns vary in size, and a little in form: one at Mr. John Hunter's, with two broad four-furcated branches over the brow antlers, bending a little inwards: the whole was stronger and broader, in proportion to the length, than common, and of a dull deep yellow color.
* Œstrus Tarandi Faun. Suec. No. 1731. Flor. Lap. 360.
** Lichen rangiferinus sp. pl. II. 1620. Fl. Lap. 331.
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37. FALLOW.
Πϱоξ. Arislot. hist. An. lib. II. c. 14.
Platyceros Plinii lib. xi. c. 38.
Oppian Cyneg. lib. II. lin. 293.
Platogna. Belon obs. 55.
Dama vulgaris sive recentiorum Gesner quad. 307.
Daniel. Rzaczinski Polon. 217.
Cervus Platyceros, Fallow Deer.
Raii syn. quad. 85.
Cervus palmatus. Dam-tanhirsch Klein quad. 25.
Cervus dama. C. cornibus ramosis recurvatis compressis: summitate palmata Lin. syst. 93. Hasselquist. itin. 290.
Dof, Dofhiort Faun, suec. No. 42.
Le Dain de Buffon vi. 161. tab. xxvii. Brisson quad. 62.
Buck. Br. Zool. I. 34. Pontop. Norway. II. 9. Da Halde China I. 315. Faunul. sinens.
D. with horns palmated at their ends and pointing a little forward, and branched on the hinder side; two sharp and slender brow antlers, and above them two small slender branches. Color of this deer various, reddish, deep brown, white, spotted. Not so universal as the stag; rare in France and Germany. Found in Greece, the Holy Land, and the North of China. In great abundance in England; but, except on a few chases, at present confined in parks. M. de Buffon says, that the fallow deer of Spain are almost as large as stags. None originally in America. What are improperly called by that name will be described hereafter. Are easily tamed: during rutting time, will contest with each other for their mistress; but are less fierce than the stag: during that season, will form a hole in the ground, make the female lie down in it, and then often walk round and smell at her. Moore speaks of a species found on the banks of the Gambia, in the interior parts of Africa, near Barracunda, called Toncong, which he says differed not in form from the English fallow deer; only that its size was equal to that of a small horse, and
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weighed 300 lb. it had also on its neck an erect black mane four or five inches long*.
** With rounded horns.
Cervus Plinii lib. viii. c. 32 Gesner quad. 326.
Jelen. Rzaczinski Polon. 216.
Red Deer, Stag, or Hart. Raii syn. quad. 84.
Cervus nobilis. Hirsch. Klein quad. 23.
C Elaphus. C. cornibus ramoris teretibus recurvatis. Lin. syst. 93. Hiort, Kron-hiort. Faun. suec. No. 4.
Le Cerf de Buffon, vi. 63. tab. ix. x. Brisson quad. 58.
Stag, or Red Deer. Br. Zool. I. 34. Shaw's travels, 243.
Catesby Carolin. App. xxxviii. Lawson Carolin. 123. Faunul. sinens.
38. STAG.
D. with long upright horns, much branched: slender and sharp brow antlers. Color of the stag generally a reddish brown, with some black about the face, and a black list down the hind part of the neck and between the shoulders. Grows to a large size: one killed in the county of Aberdeen weighed 18 stone Scots, or 314 1b. horns of the American stags sometimes weigh 30 lb. and are above four feet high.
Common to Europe, Barbary, North of Asia and North America. Lives in herds: one male generally supreme in each herd. Furious and dangerous in rutting time. Seeks the female with a violent braying. Rutting season in August. Begins to shed its horns the latter end of February, or beginning of March: recovers them entirely by July. Fond of the sound of the pipe; will stand and listen atten-
* Travels up the Gambia, 205.
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tively. The account of the Cervina Senectus*, or vast longevity of the Stag, fabulous. Hinds go with young above eight months, bring one at a time, seldom two: secure the young from the stag, who would destroy it. Flesh of these animals coarse and rank: skin useful for many purposes: from the horns is extracted the celebrated spirit of hartshorn; but the horns of all other deer yield the same salt. The Hippelaphus** of the ancients, only a large race of stags, with longer hair on the neck, giving it the appearance of a mane. This is distinguished by the French with the title of Cerf d'Ardenne: by the Germans, with that of Brandhirtz. Under the same variety may be also brought the Tragelaphus; so called from being more hairy than common†.
Le Cerf de Corse of M. de Buffon, vi. is the lest species, of a deep brown color. Vide p. 95. tab. xi. This may be the same as the small kind of stag, rather larger than the fallow deer, which Dr. Shaw says is found in Barbary, whose female the Moors call in derision Fortass, or Scald head, from having no horns‡. In Ceylon, (as I have been informed by Mr. Loten) are two varieties of stags; one of the common size, the other 14 hands high, and are called there Elks.
Du Halde, I. 122. speaks of a small sort of stag,
* Juvenal Sat. xiv. 251. Pliny lib. viii. c. 33. Speaks of some that were taken about 100 years before his time, with golden collars on their necks, which had been put on them by Alexander the Great.
** Arislot. Hist. An. lib. II. c. 1.
† Gesner quad. 296.
‡ Travels, 243.
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found in Sunnan, a province of China, not bigger than a common dog.
Fallow deer Lawson Carol. 123.
Catesby App. xxxviii. du Pratz, II. 50.
Dama viriginiana Raii syn. quad. 86. Ph. Tr. Abridg. ix. 86. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
39. VIRGINIAN.
D. with slender horns, bending very much forward; have numerous branches on the interior sides; no brow antlers: about the size of the English fallow deer: of a light color, a cinereous brown: tail longer than that of the English Buck: a quite distinct species, and peculiar to America. Are found in vast herds. Those near the shores are lean and bad, and subject to worms in their heads and throats. Are very restless; always in motion: not fierce: their flesh dry; but of the utmost importance to the Indians, who dry it for their winter provision. The skins a great article of commerce, vast numbers annually imported from our colonies. Feed during hard winters on the moss which hangs in long strings from the American trees, in the northern parts.
Axis Plinii lib. viii. c. 21. Belon obs. 119. (Fæm.) Raii syn. quad. 89. speckled deer Nieuhoff voy. 262.
L'Axis de Buffon, xi. 397. tab. xxxviii. xxxix.
40. AXIS.
D. with slender trifurcated horns; the first branch near the base; the second near the top; each pointing upwards: size of the fallow deer: of a light red color: the body beautifully marked with white spots: along the lower part of the sides next the belly is a line of white: the tail long as that of a fallow deer; red above, white beneath.
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Common on the banks of the Ganges, and in the isles of Ceylon and Java: will bear our climate: breed in the Prince of Orange's menagery near the Hague: are very tame: have the sense of smelling: very exquisite: readily eat bread, but will refuse a piece that has been breathed on.
41. GREAT AXIS.
In the British Museum is a pair of large horns, of the same shape with the former, and, like them, trifurcated; are very thick strong, and rugged; of a whitish color; two feet nine inches long; two feet four inches between tip and tip. There is not in any of the catalogues the lest hint of the place they come from; or any history relating to them. From their general appearance, seem to be of a species different from the former.
42. PORCINE.
D. with slender trifurcated horns thirteen inches long; six inches distant at the base: head ten inches and a half long: body, from the tip of the nose to the tail, three feet six inches: height, from the shoulders to the hoof, two feet two inches; and about two inches higher behind: length of the tail eight inches: body thick and clumsy: legs fine and slender: color on the upper part of the neck, body and sides, brown; belly and rump, of a lighter color.
In possession of Lord Clive, brought from some part of India; called, from the thickness of their body, Hog Deer.
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I REIN No. 36. II PORCINE DEER No. 42.
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Caprea Plinii lib. xi. c. 37.
Caprea, capreolus, Dorcas Gesner quad. 296.
Sarn Rzaczinski Polon. 27.
Cervus minimus Klein quad. 24.
Faunul. sinens.
Cervus capreolus. C. cornibus ramosis teretibus erectis, summitate bifida Lin. syst. 94. Radjur. Faun. suec. No. 43.
Le Chevreuil de Buffon, vi. 289. tab. xxxii. xxxiii. Brisson quad. 61. Charlevoix N. France, v. 195.
Roebuk Br. Zool. I. 139. Bell's Trav. I. 200. Br. Mus. Ash. Mus.
43. ROE.
D. with strong upright rugged trifurcated horns from six to eight inches long: length, from nose to tail, three feet nine inches: height before, two feet three inches: behind, two feet seven inches; tail, one inch: weight of a full grown buck near 60 lb. hair in summer very short and smooth; ends of the hairs deep red, bottoms dark grey: in winter, very long and hoary at the tips, except on the back, where it is often very dark: the legs slender; and below the first joint of the hind legs is a tuft of long hair: rump, and underside of the tail, white.
Inhabits most parts of Europe, as far north as Norway: found in Tartary and China; not Africa. Uncertain whether this kind is found in N. America, notwithstanding it is mentioned by Charlevoix: unnoticed by Lawson and Catesby. Frequent in the highlands of Scotland, but in no other part of Great Britain.
Fond of mountainous wooded countries, brouzes very much, and during winter eats the young shoots of fir and beech: is very active; lives in small families: brings two young at a time; conceals them from the buck: the flesh delicate, but never fat.
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44. MEXICAN.
Teutlalmaçame Hernandez An. Mexic 324.
Cuguaca-apara? Marcgrave Brasil. 235. Piso Brasil, 97.
Baieu Bancroft Guiana, 122.
Cervus major, corniculis brevissimis. Biche des bois. Barrere France Æquin. 151.
Chevreuil d'Amerique. de Buffon vi. 210, 243. tab. xxxvii.
Le Cariacou? de Buffon, xii. 324. 347. tab. xliv.
D. with strong thick rugged horns, bending forward; ten inches long; nine between point and point; trifurcated in the upper part; one erect snag about two inches above the base; by accident subject to vary in the number of branches: head large: neck thick: eyes large, and bright: about the size of the European Roe: color of the hair reddish; when young, spotted with white.
Inhabits Mexico, Guiana, and Brasil; not only the internal parts of the country, but even the borders of the plantations: the flesh inferior to that of European venison, A species very distinct from the Roe of the old continent. An accurate account of the hoofed quadrupeds, of the new continent, among the desiderata of the Zoologist.
In the Museum of the Royal Society is a pair of horns of some animal of the Roebuck kind, styled by Grew* horns of the Indian Roebuck: they are sixteen inches long, and the same between tip and tip; are very thick, strong and rugged; near the base of each is an upright forked branch; the ends bend forward, divide into two branches, each furnished with numerous snags.
* Rarities, 24.
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I FOSSIL HORNS P. 44. II VIRGINIAN DEER No. 39. III MEXICAN: No. 44.
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Cervus Guineensis. C. griseus subtus nigricans. Mus. Fr. Ad. 12. Lin. syst. 94.
45. GREY.
An obscure species, doubtful whether a Deer, a Musk, or female Antelope; for the horns were wanting in the animal described by Linnæus.
Size of a cat; of a grey color: between the ears a line of black: a large black spot above the eyes: on each side the throat a line of the same color pointing downwards: the middle of the breast black; the fore legs and sides of the belly, as far as the hams, marked with black: ears rather long: under side of the tail black.
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** Without horns.
VIII. MUSK.
Two long tusks in the upper jaw.
Eight small cutting teeth in the lower jaw; none in the upper.
46. TIBET.
Capreolus Moschi. Gesner quad. 695.
Animal Moschiferum Raii syn. quad. 127. Schrockius hist. Moschi, 1. tab. 1.
Animal Moschiferum, Kabarga. Nov. com. Petrop. iv. 393.
Musk animal. Tavermer's trav. II. 153. Le Brun's Trav. I. 116. Bell's Trav. I. 249. II. 88. Strahtenberg, 339.
Du Halda China, I. 63. 324. Grew's Museum, 21.
Moschus Moschiferus. M. folliculo umbilicali Lin. syst. 91.
Tragulus, sp. 5. Le Musc Brisson quad. 67. Klein quad. 18.
Le Musc de Buffon xii. 361. Faunul. sinens.
M. of the form of a roebuck: length three feet three inches, from the top of the shoulders to the soles of the feet, two feet three inches. From the top of the haunches to those of the hind feet, two feet nine inches.
Upper jaw much longer than the lower, on each side a slender tusk, near two inches long, very short on the inner edge, and hanging out quite exposed to view: in the lower jaw eight small cutting teeth; and in each jaw six grinders: ears long and narrow, inside of a pale yellow, outside deep brown: chin yellow: hair on the whole body, erect, very long, and each marked with short waves from top to bottom: color near the lower part cinereous, black near the end; the tips ferruginous: hoofs slender and black; spurious hoofs of the fore feet very long: tail an inch long, hid in the hair: the scrotum of a
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I TIBET No. 46. II INDIAN MUSK No. 48.
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bright red color; but the penis so hid as scarce to be discovered.
Female less than the male: nose sharper: wants the two tusks, and has two small teats.
Inhabits the kingdom of Tibet, the province of Mohang Meng in China, Tonquin, and Bontan; about the lake Baikal, and near the rivers Jenesea, and Argun. Found from Lat. 60 to 44 or 45; but never wanders so far south, except when forced thro' hunger by great falls of snow, when they migrate south to feed on corn and new-grown rice. Inhabit naturally the mountains that are covered with pines: love solitude: avoid mankind. If pursued seek the highest summits, inaccessible to men or dogs.
That noted drug the musk is produced from the male. It is found in a bag or tumor of the size of a hen's egg on the belly of that sex only. It is furnished with two small orifices; the largest is oblong, the other round; the one is naked, the other covered with long hairs. The musk is contained in this, for Mr. Gmelin tells us, that on squeezing the tumor, the musk was forced thro' the apertures in form of a fat brown matter. The hunters cut off the bag and tie it up for sale; but are very apt to adulterate the contents, by mixing other matter with it to encrease the weight. These animals must be found in great plenty, for Tavernier says, that he bought in one journey 7673 musk bags. The musk of Tibet is far superior to that of other places, and of course much dearer. The flesh of the males is much infected with this drug, but is eaten by the
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Russians and Tartars. It is strongest in rutting time.
47. BRASILIAN.
Cuguacu-ete. Margrave Brasil. 235. Piso Brasil. 97.
Biche de Guiane. des Marchais. III. 295.
Wirrebocerra. Bancroft Guiana. 123.
Cervula surinamensis, subrubra albis maculis notata. Seb. Mus. I. 71. tab. xliv. Klein quad. 22. Brisson quad. 67.
M. about the size of a roebuck: ears four inches long: the veins very aparent: eye large and black; nostrils wide: space about the mouth black: the hind legs longer than the fore legs: tail short: hair on the whole body short and smooth: on the head and neck brown: the throat and lower part of the neck white: body and legs tawny: hoofs black.
Inhabits Guiana and Brasil; are excessively timid, and most remarkably active, and swift; like goats they can stand with all their four legs placed together on the point of a rock. They are frequently seen swimming the rivers, and at that time are easily taken. The Indians hunt them, and their flesh is esteemed very delicate. The French of Guiana call them Biches or Does, because notwithstanding their likeness to deer, both sexes are without horns. M. de Buffon accuses Seba of an error, in placing this animal in Surinam; but the last is vindicated by several authorities, who have had ocular proof of its existence in Guiana, &c.
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Meminna Knox hist. Ceylon. 21. de Buffon. xii. 315. Pissay Hamilton's voy. E. Indies. I. 261.
48. INDIAN.
M. length I foot 5; weight 5 lb. ½; of a cinereous olive color: throat, breast and belly white: sides and haunches spotted, and barred transversely with white: ears large and open: tail very short.
Inhabits Ceylon; a fine drawing of this animal was communicated to me by Mr. Loten, late governor in Ceylon.
Le Chevrotain des Indes. de Buffon, xii. 315. 341. tab. xiii. xliii.
Tragulus Guineensis. Brisson quad. 66. Tr. indicus. 65. Klein quad. 21.
Moschus pygmæus Lin. syst. 92
49. GUINEA.
M. nine inches ½ long: head, legs, and whole upper part of the body tawny: belly white: no spurious hoofs: two very broad cutting teeth in the lower jaw: on each side of them, three others very slender: in the upper jaw two small tusks: ears large: tail an inch long. In possession of Mr. Guy of York Buildings, who said it came from Guinea. M. de Buffon says it is found in the East-Indies. The horns which Linnæus says are sold as belonging to this animal are those of the Royal Antelope, p. 28.
To this genus must be referred a large species mentioned by Nieuhoff, p. 209, found in the isle of Formosa, which he calls stags, less than ours, but without horns.
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IX. CAMEL.
No cutting teeth in the upper jaw. Upper lip divided like that of a hare. Six cutting teeth in the lower jaw.
Small hoofs. No spurious hoofs.
50. ARABIAN.
Kαμηλος Aϱα ος Arist. hist. An. lib. II. c. I.
Camelus Arabicus Plinii lib. viii. c. 18.
Camel called Hugiun Leo Afr. 338.
Camelus Dromas Gesner quad. 159. Pr. Alp. hist. Æypt. I. 223.
Camelus unico in dorso gibbo, seu Dromedarius. Camel, or Dromedary. Raii syn. quad. 143. klein quad. 42.
Camelus Dromedarius. C. topho dorsi unico. Lin. syst. 90.
Le Dromedaire de Buffon, xii. 211. tab. ix. Brisson quad. 33.
Camel with one bunch. Pocock's trav. I. 207. Shaw's trav. 239. Russel's hist. Aleppo. 56. 57. Plaisted's journal, 82.
C. with a bunch on the back: head small: ears short: neck long, slender and bending: height to the top of the bunch six feet six inches: hair soft: longest about the neck, under the throat, and about the bunch: color of that on the protuberance dusky: on the other parts a reddish ash color: tail long: the hair on the middle soft: on the sides coarse, black and long: hoofs small: feet flat, divided above, but not thro': the bottom excessively tough yet pliant: has six callosities on the legs, one on each knee, one on the inside of each foreleg, on the upper joint; one on the inside of the hind leg, at the bottom of the thigh, another on the lower part of the breast, the places that the animal rests on when it lies down.
The riches of Arabia, from the time of Job to the present, the patriarch reckoned 6000 camels
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among his pastoral treasures; the moderns estimate their wealth by the numbers of these useful animals; without them great part of Asia and Africa would be wretched; by them the sole commerce is carried thro' arid and burning tracts, impassible but by beasts which providence formed expressly for the scorched deserts. Their soles are adapted to the sands they are to pass over, their toughness and spungy softness preventing them from cracking. Their great powers of sustaining abstinence from drinking, enables them to pass over unwatered tracts for seven or eight days without requiring the lest liquid; Leo Africanus says for fifteen. They can discover water by their scent at half a league's distance, and after a long abstinence will hasten towards it, long before their drivers perceive where it lies.
Their patience under hunger is such, that they will travel many days fed only with a few dates, or some small balls of bean or barley-meal; or on the miserable thorny plants they meet with in the deserts.
The largest kind will carry a load of 1000 or 1200 lb. weight. They kneel down to be loaded; but rise the moment they find the burthen equal to their strength: they will not permit an ounce more to be put on: are most mild and gentle, at all times, but when they are in heat: during that period, are seized with a sort of madness, that it is unsafe to approach them: are not prevailed on to quicken their pace by blows; but go freely if gently treated, and seem enlivened by the pipe, or any
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musick. In winter they are covered with long hair, which falls off in the spring, and is carefully gathered, being wove into stuffs, and also cloths to cover tents. In summer their hair is short. Before the great heats the owners smear their bodies, to keep off the flies. The Arabs are very fond of the flesh* of young camels. The milk of these animals is their principal subsistence; and the dung of camels is the fuel used by the Caravans in the travels over the deserts.
There are varieties among the camels. The Turkman is the largest and strongest. The Arabian is hardy. What is called the Dromedary, Maihary, and Raguabl, is very swift. The common sort travel about 30 miles a day. The last, which has a less bunch, and more delicate shape, and also much inferior in size, never carries burdens; but is used to ride on. In Arabia, they are trained for running matches: and in many places, for carrying couriers, who can go above 100 miles a day, on them; and that for nine days together,** over burning deserts unhabitable by any living creature. The Chinese call these swift camels, expressively, Fong Kyo to, or camels with feet of the wind. The African camels are the most hardy, having more distant and more dreadfull deserts to pass over than any of the others, from Numidia to the kingdom of Æthiopia. She Chin, a Chinese physician, says, that camels are found wild N. W. of his country†.
* Athenæus relates, that the Persian monarchs had whole camels served up to their table. Lib. iv. p. 130. as the Romans had whole boars.
** Leo Afr. 338.
† Du Halde China II. 225.
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51. BACTRIAN.
Kαγμηλος Bαϰτϱος Arist. hist. An. II. c. 1.
Camelus Bactrianus Plinii lib. vii. c. 18.
Camel called Becheti Leo Afr. 338.
Camelus Gesner quad. 150. Pr. Alp. hist. Ægypt. I. 223. tab. 13.
Camelus duobus in dorso tuberibus, seu Bactrianus. Raii syn. quad. 145.
Camelus Bactrianus. C. dorsi tophis duobus Lin. syst. 90. Klein quad. 41.
Le Chameau de Buffon xi. 211. tab. xxii. Brisson quad. 32.
Persian camel Russel's hist. Aleppo, 57.
C. with two bunches on the back; in all other respects like the preceding; of which it seems to be a meer variety, and is equally adapted for riding or carrying loads,
It is found only in Asia, and even there is rare, the breed being almost confined to some parts of Persia and the southern parts of Tartary. They do not differ in their nature or manners from the other kind.
Camels have been introduced into Jamaica and Barbadoes; but, for want of knowlege of their diet and treatment, have in general been of very little service†.
† Brown's hist. Jamaica, 488. Ligon's hist. Barbadoes, 58.
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52. LLAMA.
Ovis Peruana Hernandez An. Mex. 660. Marcgrave Brasil, 243.
Huanucu-Llama. de Laet. 328.
Allo-camelus Scaligeri. Ovis Indica Gesner quad. 149.
Llama. Ovalle chile. Churchill's Coll. 44, 45. Guanaco ibid. Cieza's Travels, 232. 233.
Frezier's voy. 154. Feuillèe obs. Peru, 23. Ulloa's voy. I 478.
Wood's voyage in Dampier's, IV. 95.
Camelus Glama. C. corpore lævi. vi, topho pectorali. Lin. syst. 91.
Camelus Peruvianus Glama dictus Raii syn. quad. 145.
Le Lanma de Buffon xiii. 16.
Camelus pilis brevissimis. Le Chameau de Perou. Brisson quad. 34.
Camelus spurius Klein quad. 42.
C. with an almost even back, small head, sine black eyes, and very long neck, bending much, and very protuberant* near the junction with the body: in a tame state, with smooth short hair; in a wild state, with long coarse hair**; white, grey and russet, disposed in spots. According to Hernandez, yellowish, with a black line from the head along the top of the back to the tail, and belly white. The spotted may possibly be the tame; the last, the wild Llamas. The tail short: the height from four to four feet and a half: length, from the neck to the tail, six feet. The carcass, divested of skin and offals, according to the editor of Mr. Biron's voyage, weighed 200 lb. in general the shape exactly resembles a camel, only it wanted the dorsal bunch.
It is the camel of Peru and Chili; and before the arrival of the Spaniards, was the only beast of burthen known to the Indians. It is as mild, as gentle, and as tractable. We find, that before the intro-
* Matthiolus observed, at the point of this protuberance, a sort of impostume, with matter distilling from it. This I suspect to be accidental; for the animal he saw was one shewn in Germany. Vide Marcgrave, 243. No writer, who described the Llama in its native country, mentions this circumstance.
** Ulloa. I. 479.
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duction of mules*, they were used by the Indians to plow the land; that at present they serve to carry burthens of about 100 lb. that they go with great gravity, and, like their Spanish masters, nothing can prevale on them to change their pace. They lie down to be loaden; and when wearied, no blows can provoke them to go on. Feuillée says, they are so capricious, that if struck, they instantly squar down, and nothing but caresses can induce them to rise. When angry, have no other method of revenging injuries than by spitting, and they can ejaculate their saliva to the distance of ten paces; if it falls on the skin, it raises an itching and a reddish spot. Their flesh is eaten, and said to be as good as mutton. The wool has a strong disagreeable scent. They are very sure-footed; therefore used to carry the Peruvian ores over the ruggedest hills and narrowest paths of the Andes. They inhabit that vast chain of mountains, their whole length, to the straits of Magellan; but, except where those hills approach the sea, as in Patagonia, never appear on the coasts. Like the camel, they have powers of abstaining long from drink, sometimes for four or five days: like that animal's, their food is coarse and trifling.
As every domestic animal has, or had its stock or origin in a wild state, we believe the Llama and the Guanaco to be the same. The Llama is described as the largest of the two domestic animals the Peruvians have; for, except that, they knew no
* Ovalle 44.
F
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other than the congenerous Pacos. We find two animals similar to these, wild; the larger, or Guanico, may be supposed to be a savage Llama; the lesser, or Vicunna, to be the Pacos in a state of nature: the brief descriptions we have left us of each, give us little room to doubt but that the difference of color and hair arises only from culture.
In a wild state they keep in great herds in the highest and steepest parts of the hills; and while they are feeding, one keeps centry on the pinnacle of some rock: if it perceives the approach of any one, it neighs; the herd takes the alarm, and goes off with incredible speed. They out-run all dogs; so there is no other way of killing them but with a gun. They are killed for the sake of their flesh and their hair; for the Indians weave the last into cloth*. From the form of the parts of generation, in both sexes, no animal copulates with such difficulty: it is often the labor of a day, Antequam actum ipsum venereum incipiant, et absolvant.**.
53. PACOS.
Pacos Hernandez, 663. Paco, vicunna de Laet. 328. 329. Cieza. 233.
Ovis chilensis. Marcgrave 244. Wood's voy. Dampier, iv. 95. Narborough's voy. 32.
Vicunna, Alpaques. Frezier's voy. 153, 154. Ulloa's voy. I. 479.
Camelus seu Camelo congener Peruvianum lanigerum, Pacos dictum. Raii syn. quad. 147.
Camelus laniger. Klein. quad. 42.
Le Paco. de Buffon xiii. 16.
Camelus pilis prolixis toto corpore vestitus. Le vigogne. Brisson quad. 35.
Camelus Pacos. C. tophis nullis, corpore lanato. Lin. syst. 91.
C. with the body covered with long and very fine wool, of the color of dried roses, or a dull purple: the belly white: in a tame state: varies in colo:
* De Laet, 329.
** Hernandez, 662.
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shaped like the former, but much less: the leg of one I saw was about the size of that of a buck.
Are of the same nature with the preceding: inhabit the same places, but are more capable of supporting the rigor of frost and snow: they live in vast herds; are very timid, and excessively swift: sometimes the Guanacoes associate with them. The Indians take the Pacos in a strange manner: they tie cords with bits of wool or cloth hanging to them, above 3 or 4 feet from the ground, cross the narrow passes of the mountains, then drive those animals towards them, which are so terrified by the flutter of the rags as not to dare to pass, but huddling together, give the hunters opportunity to kill with their slings as many as they please. The tame ones will carry* from 50 to 75 lb.
These animals yield a Bezoar: Wafer** says he has taken thirteen out of the stomach of a single beast: they were ragged and of several forms, some round, some oval, others long: they were green at first, but changed to ash color.
* Brewer's voy. chile in Churchill, I. 511.
** Wafer's voy. in Dampier, III. 384.
F 2
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X. HOG.
Cutting teeth in both jaws.
54. COMMON.
(Wild). Sus fera, aper Plinii lib. viii. c. 51. Gesner quad. 918.
Sus agrestis sive aper, wild boar or swine. Raii syn. quad. 96.
Wieprz lesny, Dzik. Rzaczynski Polon. 213.
Wild Schwein. Klein quad. 25.
Le Sangher. de Buffon v. 99. tab. xiv.
Sus caudatus, auriculis Brevibus, subrotundis, cauda pilosa. Brisson quad. 75.
Sus aper. Lin. syst. 102.
(Tame). Sus. Gesner quad. 872. Raii syn. quad. 92.
Schwein. Klein quad. 25.
Le Cochon. de Buffon v. 99. Le verrat. tab. xvi.
Sus caudatus, auriculis oblongis, acutis, cauda pilosa. Brisson quad. 74.
Sus scrofa. S. dorso anticè setoso, caudapilosa. Lin. syst. 102. Swiin. Faun. suec. No. 21. Br. Zool. I. 41.
H. with the body covered with bristles: two large tusks above and below: in a wild state, of a dark brinded color, and beneath the bristles is a soft curled short hair: the ears short, and a little rounded. TAME: the ears long, sharp pointed, and slouching: the color generally white, sometimes mixed with other colors.
In a tame state, universal, except in the frigid zones, and Kamtschatka*, and such places where the cold is very severe. Since its introduction into America, by the Europeans, abounds to excess in the hot and temperate parts. Found wild in most part of Europe, except the British isles, and the countries N. of the Baltic: in Asia, from Syria to the borders of the lake Baikal**: in Africa, on the coast of Barbary. In the forests of S. America† are vast droves, which derive their origin from the Euro-
* Hist. Kamts. 108.
** Bell's trav. I. 279.
† Des Marchais voy. III. 312. Gumilla orenoque II. 4.
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pean kind relapsed into a state of nature, and are what Mr. Bancroft, in his history of Guiana, 126, describes as a particular species, by the name of Warree. Cannot bear excessive cold: inhabit wooded countries: very swift: a stupid, inactive, drowsy animal, fond of wallowing in the mud to cool its surfeited body: greedy, voracious, but not indiscriminate in the choice of its food; has been found to eat 72 species of plants, reject 171; very fond of various roots: so brutal as to eat its own off-spring. Usefull in America, by clearing the country of rattle-snakes, which it devours with safety: restless in high winds: has a natural disposition to grow fat: is very prolific, brings sometime 20 young at a time: its flesh of vast use, takes salt the best of any; furnishes our table with various delicacies; brawn, peculiar to the English. The Romans made a dish
Of the swelling unctuous Paps Of a fat prægnant Sow, newly cut off.
α GUINEA. Porcus guineensis. Marcgrave Brasil. 230. Raii syn. quad. 96.
Sus porcus. S. dorso posticè setoso, cauda longitudine pedum Lin. syst. 103.
Le Cochon de Guinea de Buffon xv. 146. Brisson quad. 76.
H. with a lesser head than the common kind: very long, slender, and sharp pointed ears: tail hanging down to the heels, without hairs: the body covered with short red shining hairs, but about the neck and lower part of the back a little longer: no bristles: a domestic variety of the common kind.
* Alchymist Act. ii. Sc. ii.
F 3
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β CHINESE. Sus chinensis. Lin. syst. 102. Brisson quad. 75.
Le cochon de Siam. de Buffon v. 99. tab. xv.
Javan Hog. Kolben Cape. I. 117.
H. with the belly hanging almost to the ground: legs short: tail reaching to the heels: the body generally bare, as is the case in general with the swine of India.
γ H. with undivided hoofs, only a variety of the common kind.
55. ÆTHIOPIAN.
Engalla. Sorrento's voy. in Church-hill. I. 667. Barbot. 487. Dampier's voy? I. 320.
African wild boar. Adanson's voy. 139. Deslandes Martyns mem. Acad. v. 386.
Sus Æthiopicus, Hardlooper. Pallas miscel. zool. 16. tab. 11. specil fasc. II. 1. tab. I. Flacourt hist. Madagascar. 511.
Sus Æthiopicus. S. sacculo molli sub oculis. Lin. syst. App. Tom. III. 223.
Sanglier du cap vert. de Buffon xiv. 409. xv. 148. Ashm. Mus.
H. with small tusks in the lower jaws; very large ones in the upper; in old boars bending up towards the forehead, in form of a semicircle; no foreteeth: nose broad, depressed, and almost of a horny hardness: head very large and broad: beneath each eye a hollow, formed of loose skin, very soft, and wrinkled; under these a great lobe or wattle, lying almost horizontal, broad, flat, and rounded at the end, placed so as to intercept the view of any thing below from the animal.
Between these and the mouth on each side a hard callous protuberance: mouth small: skin dusky:
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bristles disposed in fasciculi, of about five each; longest between the ears, and on the beginning of the back, and but thinly dispersed on the rest of the back.
Ears large and sharp pointed, inside lined with long whitish hairs: tail slender and flat; does not reach lower than the thighs, and covered with hairs disposed in fasciculi.
Body longer, and legs shorter than in the common swine: its whole length 4 feet 9 inches; height before 2—2; but in a wild state grows to an enormous size.
I saw this animal, 1765, at the Prince of Orange's menagery near the Hague; it was young, and probably had not its full number of teeth; I imagine so, as the head of a boar from Cape Verd, described by M. de Buffon; and jaws of another preserved in the Ashmolean Museum, at Oxford, evidently of the same species with this, had in the upper jaw two cutting teeth; and in the lower six; and in each were six grinders, the farthest of them very large.
These animals inhabit the hottest parts of Africa, from Senegal to Congo, also the island of Madagascar*. We know little of their nature, but they are represented as very fierce and swift; and that they will not breed either with the domestic or Chinese sow, for that at the Hague killed one of the last, and treated the other very roughly, which for experiment were turned to it**.
* Ces sangliers, principalement les masles, ont deux cornes a costez de nez qui sont comme deux callositez. Flacourt hist. Madag. 152.
** Vosmaer Monogr.
F 4
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56. MEXICAN
Quauhtla coymatl. Quapizotl. aper mexicanus Hernandez an. mex. 637.
Hogs with navels on their backs. Purchas's Pilgr. III. 868. 966.
Tajacu. Piso Brasil 98. Barrere France æquin. 161.
Tajacu, Caaigora. Marcgrave Brasil. 229. Ovalle chile Church-hill. III. 2.
Tajàcu seu aper mexicanus moschiferus. Raii syn. quad. 77.
Mexican musk hog. Ph. Tr. abr. II. 876.
Pecary. Wafer's voy. Dampier III. 328. iv. 48. Roger's voy. 345.
Des Marchais voy. III. 312. Gumilla orenoque II. 6. Bancroft Guiana. 124. de Buffon x. 21. tab. iii. iv. Seb. mus. I. 177.
Javaris Rochfort Antilles I. 285.
Sus ecaudatus, folliculum ichorosum in dorso gerens. Brisson quad. 77
Sus dorso cystifero, cauda nulla. S. Tajacu. Lin. syst. 103.
H. with four cutting teeth above, six below; two tusks in each jaw; those in the upper jaw pointing down, and little apparent when the mouth is short; the others hid: length from nose to the end of the rump about three feet: head not so taper as in common swine: ears short and erect: body covered with bristles, stronger than those of the European kind, and more like those of a hedge-hog; they are dusky, surrounded with rings of white; those of the top of the neck and back are near five inches long, grow shorter on the sides; the belly almost naked: from the shoulders to the breast is a band of white: no tail: on the lower part of the back is a gland, open at the top, discharging a fœtid ichorous liquor; this has been mistakenly called a navel.
Inhabits the hottest parts of S. America, and some of the Antilles: lives in the forests on the mountains: not fond of mire or marshy places: less fat than the common hog: goes in great droves: are very fierce: will fight stoutly with the beasts of
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prey: the Jaguar, or American leopard is its mortal enemy; often the body of that animal is found with several of these hogs slain in combat. Dogs will scarce attack it: if wounded will turn on the hunter. Feeds on fruits and roots, on toads, and all manner of serpents, and holding them with the fore-feet, skins them with great dexterity. Is reckoned very good food; but all writers agree that the dorsal gland must be cut out as soon as the animal is killed, or the flesh will become so infected as not to be eatable. The Indian name of this species is Paquiras*, from whence seems to be derived that of Pecary.
57. INDIAN.
Aper in India &c. Plinii lib. viii. c. 52.
υς τετϱάϰεϱως Ælian. an. lib. xviii. c. 10.
Baby-roussa. Bontius India. 61.
Grew's Museum. 27. Raii syn. quad. 96. Klein quad. 25. Seb. Mus. I. 80. tab. 50. Valentyn Amboin. III. 268.
Strange hog. Purchas's Pilgr. II. 1693. v. 566. Nieuhoff's voy. 195.
Susdentibus duobus caninis fronti innatis. S. Babyrussa. Lin syst. 104.
Sus caudatus, dentibus caninis superioribus, ab origine sursum versis, arcuatis, cauda floccosa. Brisson quad. 76.
Le Babiroussa. de Buffon xii. 379. tab. XLVIII. Br. mus. Ashm. mus.
H. with four cutting teeth in the upper, six in the lower jaw; ten grinders to each jaw; in the lower jaw two tusks pointing towards the eyes, and standing near eight inches out of their sockets; from two sockets on the outside of the upper jaw, two other teeth, twelve inches long, bending like horns, their ends almost touching the forehead: ears small, erect, sharp pointed: along the back are some weak
* Gumilla.
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bristles: on the rest of the body only a sort of wool, such as is on lambs: the tail long, ends in a tuft, and is often twisted: the body plump and square; not of the elegant form that Bontius and Nieuhoff give it; as appears by an original drawing Mr. Loten favored me with.
Inhabits Buero, a small isle near Amboina: it is also found in Celebes, but neither on the continent of Asia, or Africa; what M. de Buffon takes for it, is the Æthiopian boar. Is sometimes kept tame in the Indian isles: live in herds: have a very quick scent: live on herbs and leaves of trees; never ravage gardens like other swine: their flesh well-tasted: when pursued and driven to extremities, rush into the sea, swim very well, and even dive, and pass thus from isle to isle: in the forests often rest their head, by hooking their upper tusks on some bough*. The tusks, from their form, useless in fight.
* The natural history of this animal is taken from Valentin's hist. of the East Indies, from ft translation Mr. Loten was so obliging to communicate to me.
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I INDIAN HOG No. 57. II VARIETY OF COMMOM HOG.
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With one, sometimes two, large horns on the nose, Each hoof cloven into three parts.
XI. RHINOCEROS.
58. ONEHORNED.
Rhinoceros. Plinii lib. viii. c. 20. Gesner quad. 842. Raii syn. quad. 122. Klein quad. 26. Grew's museum, 29. Worm mus. 336. de Buffon, xi. 174. tab. vii. Brisson quad. 78. Ph. Tr. Abr. ix. 93. Kolben II. 101.
Rhinoceros or Abbados. Linsecttan Itin. 56 Purchas's Pilgr. II. 1001. 1773. Bontius India. 50.
Borri hist. Cochin-China. 797. Voy. Congo Churchill I. 668. Du Halde China. I. 120. Faunul Sinens.
Rhinoceros unicornis. Lin. syst. 104. Edw. 221. Br. mus. Ashm. mus.
α Two horned. Ursus cornu gemino. Martial spectac. ep. 22. Ph. Tr. Abr. ix. 100. xi. 910. Ph. Tr. vol. LVI. 32. tab. 2. Flacourt hist. Madag. 395. de Buffon xi. 186. Lobo Abiss. 230.
Rhinoceros bicornis. Lin. syst. 104. Br. mus.
Rh. with a single horn, placed near the end of the nose, sometimes three feet and a half long, black, and smooth: the upper lip long, hangs over the lower, ends in a point, is very pliable, and serves to collect ics food, and deliver it into the mouth: the nostrils placed transversely: the ears large, erect, pointed: eyes small and dull: the skin naked, rough, or tuberculated, lying about the neck in vast folds; there is another fold from the shoulders to the forelegs; another from the hind part of the back to the thighs: the skin so thick and so strong as to turn the edge of a scymeter, and resist a musket ball: slender, flatted at the end, covered on the sides with very stiff thick black hairs: the belly hangs low: the legs short, strong and thick: the hoofs divided into three parts, each pointing forward.
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Those which have been brought to Europe have been young and small: Bontius says, that in respect to bulk of body, they equal the elephant, but are lower on account of the shortness of the legs.
Inhabits Bengal, Siam, Cochin-China, Quangsi in China, the isles of Java, and Sumatra, Congo, Angola, Æthiopia, and the country as low as the Cape: loves shady forests, the neighbourhood of rivers, and marshy places: fond of wallowing in mire like the hog; is said by that means to give shelter in the folds of its skin to scorpions, centipes, and other insects. Is a solitary animal: brings one young at a time, very sollicitous about it: quiet and inoffensive; but provoked, furious: very swift, and very dangerous: I knew a gentleman who had his belly ripped up by one, but survived the wound. Is dull of sight; but has a most exquisite scent: feeds on vegetables, particularly shrubs, broom, and thistles: grunts like a hog: is said to consort with the tiger; a fable, founded on their common attachment to the sides of rivers, and on that account are sometimes found near each other. Are said when it has flung down a man, to lick the flesh quite from the bone with its rough tongue; this very doubtfull; that which wounded the gentleman retired instantly after the stroke.
Its flesh is eaten; Kolben says it is very good: the skin, the flesh, hoofs, teeth, and very dung, used in India medicinally; the horn is in great repute as an antidote against poison*, especially that of a
* It was not every horn that had this virtue: some were held very cheap, while others take a vast price.
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virgin Abbada; cups are made of them. Found sometimes with* double horns: Martial alludes to a variety of this kind by his Ursus cornu gemino.
Is the unicorn of HOLY WRIT, and of the antients; the Oryx and Indian ass of Aristotle**, who says it has but one horn; his informers might well compare the clumsy shape of the Rhinoceros to that of an ass, so that the philosopher might easily be induced to pronounce it a whole footed animal. This was also the bos unicornis and fera monoceros of Pliny†; both were of Indian, the same country with this animal; and in his account of the monoceros, he exactly describes the great black horn and the hog-like tail. The unicorn of HOLY WRIT has all the properties of the Rhinoceros, rage, untameableness, great swiftness, and great strength.
It was known to the Romans in very early times: its figure is among the animals of the Prænestine pavement. Augustus introduced one into the shews‡, on his triumph over Cleopatra; and there is extant a coin of Domitian, with a double-horned Rhinoceros on it§.
The combats between the Elephant and Rhinoceros, a fable, derived from Pliny.
* Hamilton, in his voyage to the East Indies, I. 8. says, that he saw brought from Natal, in Africa, three horns growing from one root; the longest 18, the next 12, and the third 8 inches long.
** Hist. An. lib. II. c. 1.
† Lib. viii. c. 21.
‡ Dion. Cassius, lib. 51.
§ Ph. Tr. xi. 913.
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XII. HIPPOPOTAME.
Four cutting teeth in each jaw: two tusks in each. Each hoof divided into four parts.
59. HIPPOPOTAME.
Iππоς πоταμιоς Aristot. hist. An. lib. II. c. 7.
Hippopotamus Plinii, lib. viii. c. 26.
Belon obs. 104. des Poissons 19, 20. Gesner quad. 493. Radzivil iter Hierosol. 142. Raii syn. quad. 123.
River horse, or Hippopotamus, Grew's Museum, 14. tab. I. Ludolph. Æthiop. 60.
Cheropotamus et Hippopotamus Prosp. Alp. hist. Ægypt, I. 245.
Sea horse Leo Afr. 344. Sea oxe ibid. Lobo Abiss. 105. Kolben. Cape. II. 129.
Hippopotamus, or Behemoth. Shaw's. Trav. Suppl. 87.
Sea horse Dampier's Voy. II. 104. Adanson's Voy. 133. Moore's Voy. Gambia, 105, l88, 2l6. River-Paard. Houttuyn Nat. hist. III 405. tab. 28.
Water Elephants, Barbot Voy. Guinea, 113, 73.
Hippopotamus pedibus quadrilobis. H. amphibius. Lin. syst. 101. Hasselquist iter, 201. Klein quad. 34.
L'Hippopotame de Buffon, XII. 22. tab. 111. Brisson quad. 83. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
H. with four cutting teeth in each jaw; those in the lower jaw strait and pointing forward, the two middlemost the longest: four tusks; those in the upper jaw short; in the lower, very long and truncated obliquely: head of an enormous size: its mouth vastly wide: the ears small and pointed, lined within very thickly with short fine hairs: the eyes and nostrils small, in proportion to the bulk of the animal: on the lips are some strong hairs scattered in patches here and there: the hair on the body is very thin, of a whitish color, and scarce discernible at first sight: there is no mane on the neck, as some writers feign; only the hairs on that part are rather thicker: the skin is very thick and strong, and of a dusky color: the tail is about a foot long, taper, compressed and naked: the hoofs are di-
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vided into four parts: but notwithstanding it is an amphibious animal, are unconnected by membranes: the legs short and thick.
In bulk, it is second only to the Elephant: the length of a male has been found to be seventeen feet; the circumference of its body fifteen; its height near seven; the legs near three; the head above three and a half; its girth near nine. Hasselquist says, its hide is a load for a Camel.
Inhabits the rivers of Africa, from the Niger to the Cape of Good Hope. Found in none of the African rivers which run into the Mediterranean, except the Nile, and even there only in the upper Ægypt*, and in the fens and lakes of Æthiopia, which that river passes through: is a mild and gentle animal, unless it be provoked: inhabits equally the land and the water: during night, leaves the rivers to graze, and does great damage to the sugar canes and plantations of rice and millet: it also feeds on the roots of trees, which it loosens with its great teeth; and will prey on small fish: it is a clumsy animal on the land, walks slowly; but when pursued, takes to the water, plunges in and sinks to the bottom, and is seen walking there at full ease: it often rises to the surface, and remains with its head out of water, frequently making a bellowing noise that may be heard at a vast distance: if wounded, will rise and attack boats or canoes with
* Dr. Shaw says, that the present race of Ægyptians are not even acquainted with this animal; none ever appearing below the cataracts of the Nile. It was not so formerly; for Radzivil relates, that he saw and shot at four near Damietta. Hasselquist confirms the account of our countryman.
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great fury, and often sink them by biting large pieces out of the sides, and frequently people are drowned by them; for they are as bold in the water, as they are timid on land: are most numerous high up the rivers; very rarely found near their mouths: sleep on shoals of sand in the midst of the stream.
They are capable of being tamed. Belon says, he has seen one so gentle, as to be let loose out of a stable, and fed by its keeper, without attempting to injure any one. They are generally taken in pit falls, and the poor people eat the flesh. In some parts, the natives place boards, full of sharp irons, in the corn grounds; which these beasts strike into their feet, so become an easy prey. Sometimes they are struck in the water with harpoons fastened to cords; and ten or twelve canoes are employed in the chase*. The teeth are most remarkably hard, even harder than ivory, and much less liable to grow yellow. Des Marchais** says, that the dentists prefer them for the making of false teeth. The skin, when dried, is used to make bucklers, and is of an impenetrable hardness.
A herd of females has but a single male: they bring one young at a time, and that on the land, but suckle it in the water. Among other errors related of them, that of their enmity with the Croco-
* Purchas's Pilgr. II. 1544. Hasselquist gives a strange account of another method of taking them. The natives lay a great heap of peas in the places the Hippopotame frequents: it eats greedily; then growing thirsty, drinks immoderately; tue peas in its belly swell, the animal bursts, and is found dead. p. 188. Engl. Ed.
** II. 149.
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dile, an eye-witness declaring he had seen them swimming together without any disagreement*.
Is the Behemoth of Job: known to the Romans: Scaurus treated the people with the sight of five Crocodiles and one Hippopotame**, during his adileship; and exhibited them in a temporary lake. Augustus produced one at his triumph over Cleopatra†. An antient writer asserts, that‡ these animals were found in the Indus; which is not confirmed by any modern traveller.
* Purchas's Pilgr. II. 1544, 1568.
** Plinii lib. viii. c. 26.
† Dion. Cassius, lib. 51.
‡ Vide Gesner Pisc. 419.
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XIII. TAPIIR.
Fore hoofs divided into four parts.
Hind hoofs into three.
60. LONGNOSED.
Tapiirete Brasiliensibus, Lusitanis Anta Marcgrave Brasil, 229. Piso Brasil, 101. Nieuhoff's voy. 23. Raii syn. quad. 126. Klein quad, 36.
Elephant hog, Wafer's voy. in Dampier, III. 400.
Mountain cow, Dampier, II, 102. Sus aquaticus multisulcus. Barrere France Æquin. 160.
Anta ou grand Bete. Gumilla Orenoque, II. 15. Condamine voy. 82. Species of Hippopotamus, or river horse, Bancroft Guiana, 127.
Le Tapir ou Manipouris Brisson quad. 81. de Buffon, xi. 444. tab. xliii.
Hippopotamus terrestris. H. pedibus posticis trisulcis, Lin. syst. Ed. x. 74.
T. with the nose extended far beyond the lower jaw; slender, and forming a fort of proboscis; capable of being contracted or extended at pleasure; the sides sulcated; the extremities of both jaws ending in a point; ten cutting teeth in each; between them and the grinders, a vacant space: in each jaw ten grinders: ears erect: eyes small: body formed like that of a hog: the back arched: legs short: hoofs small, black and hollow: tail very small: grows to the size of a heifer half a year old: the hair is short: when young, spotted with white; when old, of a dusky color.
Inhabits the woods and rivers of the eastern side of South America, from the Isthmus of Darien to the river of Amazons: sleeps, during day, in the darkest and thickest forests adjacent to the banks: goes out in the night-time in search of food: lives on grass, sugar-canes, and on fruits: if disturbed, takes to the water; swims very well; or sinks be-
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low, and, like the Hippopotame, walks on the bottom as on dry ground. The Indians shoot it with poisoned arrows: they cut the skin into bucklers, and eat the flesh, which is said to be very good: is a salacious, slow-footed, and sluggish animal: makes a sort of hissing noise. Gumilla says, it will make a vigorous resistance if attacked, and scarce fails flaying the dogs which it can lay hold of.
Dampier and Bancroft give very faulty descriptions of this beast, imagining it to be the same with the Hippopotame.
61. THICKNOSED.
Caby-bara Marcgrave Brasil, 230. Piso Brasil, 99. Raii syn. quad. 126.
River hog. Wafer in Dampier, III. 400.
Cochon d'Eau des Marchais, III. 314.
Sus maximus palustris. Cabiai, cabionora. Barrere France Æquin. 160.
Capivard Froger's voy. 99.
Sus hydrochæris. S. plantis tridactylis cauda nulla. Lin. syst. 103.
Hydrochærus, Le Cabiai. Brisson quad. 80. de Buffon, xii. 384. tab. xlix.
Irabubos Gumilla orenoque, III. 238.
T. with a very large and thick head and nose; small rounded ears; large black eyes; upper jaw longer than the lower; two strong and great cutting teeth in each jaw; eight grinders in each jaw; and each of those grinders form on their surface seemingly three teeth, each flat at their ends*; legs short; toes long, connected near their bottoms by a small web; their ends guarded by a small hoof;
* M. de Buffon denies this: his description was taken from a young subject; but Marcgrave and des Marchais, who had opportunities of examining these animals in their native country, agree in this singular construction of the teeth.
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no tail; hair on the body short, rough and brown; on the nose, long and hard whiskers: grows to the size of a hog of two years old.
Inhabits the same countries with the preceding: lives in the fenny parts not remote from the banks of great rivers: runs slowly: swims and dives remarkably well, and keeps for a long time under water: feeds on fruits and vegetables: is very dexterous in catching fish, which it brings on shore and eats at its ease: it sits up, and holds its prey with its fore feet, feeding like an ape: feeds in the night, and commits great ravages in gardens: keeps in large herds, and makes a horrible noise like the braying of an ass: grows very fat: the flesh is eaten, is tender, but has an oily and fishy taste: is easily made tame*, and soon grows very familiar.
* Muratori hist. Paraguay, 258.
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No cutting teeth; rwo vast tusks; a long proboscis. Feet round, terminated by five small hoofs.
XIV. ELEPHANT.
62. GREAT.
Eλεφας Arist. Hist. An. lib. 1. c. 11. IX. c. 1.
Elephas Plinii, lib. viii. c. 1. Gesner quad. 376. Raii syn. quad. 131. Klein quad. 36. Ludolph. Æthiop. 54. Boullaye Le Gouz. 250. Dellon's voy. 71. Leo Afr. 336. Kolben's Cape, II. 98. Bosman's hist. Guinea, 230. Linschottan iter, 55. Du Halde's China. II. 224. Adanson's voy. 138. Moore's trav. 31. Borri's account Cochin China, 795. Barbot's Guinea, 141, 206, 207, 208. Seb. Mus. I. 175. tab. iii. Edw. 221.
L'Elephant Brisson quad. 28. de Buffon, xi. 1. tab. I.
Elephas maximus Lin. syst. 48. Faunul. Sinens. Br. Mus. Ashm. Mus.
E. with a long cartilaginous trunk, formed of multudes of rings, pliant in all directions, terminated with a small moveable hook: the nostrils at the end of the trunk; its use that of a hand, to convey any thing into the mouth: no cutting teeth: four large flat grinders in each jaw; in the upper two vast tusks, pointing forwards, and bending a little upwards; the largest* are seven feet long, and weigh 152 lb. each: the eyes small: ears long, broad and pendulous: back much arched: legs thick and very clumsy and shapeless: feet undivided; but the margins terminated by five round hoofs: tail like that of a hog: color of the skin dusky, with a few scattered hairs on it.
The largest of land animals: there are certain
* To be understood of those imported into England.
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accounts of their attaining the height of twelve feet; others are said to have been three feet higher.
Inhabits India and some of its greater islands Cochin-China, and some of the provinces of China; abounds in the southern parts of Africa, from the river Senegal to the Cape, and from thence as high as Æthiopia on the other side: found in greatest numbers in the interior parts, where there are vast forests, near the sides of rivers: are fond of marshy places, and love to wallow in the mire like a hog: swim very well: feed on the leaves and branches of trees: do great damage to the fields of corn, and to plantations of Coco Palms, tearing up the trees by the roots to get at their tops.
Often sleep standing; are not incapable of lying down as is vulgarly believed: are very mild and harmless, except wounded, or during the rutting time, when they are seized with a temporary madness: are said to go one year with young, bring one at a time: live 120 or 130 years*; are 30 years before they arrive at their full growth. Drink by means of their trunk, sucking water up it, and then conveying it into the mouth; are very careful of the trunk, conscious that their existence depends on it; is to them as a hand; is their organ of feeling and of smell, both which senses it has in the most exquisite degree: notwithstanding its bulk is exceedingly swift: its strength matchless; the tame elephants carry small pieces of artillery, small towers, with numbers or people in them, and also vast loads: is not at pre-
* Tavernier's voy. part II. 96.
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sent domesticated in Africa, only in the more civilized continent of Asia; they are much more numerous in Africa, in some parts swarm, so that the negroes are obliged to make their habitations under ground for fear of them. Are killed and eaten by the natives; the trunk said to be a delicious morsel: caught in pit-falls, covered with branches of trees; sometimes chaced and killed with launces, are instantly killed by a slight wound in the head, behind the ears. All the teeth are brought from Africa; frequently picked up in the woods; uncertain whether shed teeth, or from dead animals; the African teeth* which come from Mosambique are 10 feet lone;; those of Malabar only 3 or 4; the largest in Asia are those of Cochin-China, which even exceed the elephants of Mosambique**. The skin is thick, and when dressed, proof against a musket ball: the flesh, the gall, the skin. The bones, according to Shi Chin, are used in medicine†.
Is, notwithstanding the great dullness of its eye and stupidity of its appearance, the most docil and most intelligent of animals: tractable and most obedient to its master's will: sensible of benefits, resentful of injuries: directed by a slight rod of iron hooked at one end: are in many parts of India the executioners of justice; will with their trunks break every limb of the criminal, or trample him to death, or transfix him with their tusks, according as they are directed: are so modest as never to permit any one to see them copulate: have
* Dellon's voy. 74.
** Borri, 795.
† Du Halde China, II. 224.
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a quick sense of glory. In India, they were once employed in the launching of ships: one was directed to force a very large vessel into the water; the work proved superior to his strength: his master, with a sarcastic tone, bid the keeper take away this lazy beast and bring another: the poor animal instantly repeated his efforts, fractured his scull, and died on the spot*. In Delli, an Elephant passing along the streets, put his trunk into a taylor's shop, where several people were at work; one of them pricked the end with his needle: the beast passed on, but in the next dirty puddle filled his trunk with water, returned to the shop, and spurting every drop among the people who had offended him, spoilt their work.
An Elephant in Adsmeer, which often passed through the Bazar or Market, as he went by a certain herb-woman, always received from her a mouthfull of greens: at length he was seized with one of his periodical fits of rage, broke his fetters, and running through the market, put the crowd to flight; among others, this woman, who in haste, forgot a little child she had brought with her. The animal recollecting the spot where his benefactress was wont to sit, took up the infant gently in his trunk and placed it in safety on a stall before a neighboring house.
Another, in his madness, killed his Cornac or Governor: the wife seeing the misfortune, took her two children and flung them before the Elephant, saying, Now you have destroyed their father, you may as well put an end to their lives and mine. It in-
* Ludolph. Com. in hist. Æthiop. 147.
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stantly stopped, relented, took the greatest of the children, placed him on its neck, adopted him for its Cornac, and never afterwards would permit any body else to mount it.
At the Cape of Good-Hope, it is customary to kill those animals, for the sake of their teeth, by the chace. Three horsemen, well-mounted and armed with launces, attack the Elephant alternately, each relieving the other as they see their companion pressed, till the beast is subdued. Three Dutchmen (brothers) who had made large fortunes by this business, determined to retire to Europe, and enjoy the fruits of their labors; but resolved, before they went, to have a last chace by way of amusement: they met with their game, and began the attack in the usual manner; but unfortunately one of their horses fell down and flung its rider: the enraged animal instantly seized the unhappy man with its trunk, flung him up to a vast height in the air, and received him on one of its tusks; then turning towards the two other brethren, as if it were with an aspect of revenge and insult, held out to them the impaled wretch wreathing on the bloody tooth*.
The Indians have from very early times employed the elephant in their wars: Porus opposed the passage of Alexander, over the Hydaspes**, with eighty-five of these animals; M. de Buffon very justly imagines that it was some of the elephants taken by that monarch, and afterwards transported into Greece, which were employed by Pyrrhus against
* Voyage de la Caille, 160.
** Quint. Curtius, lib. viii. c. 42.
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the Romans. From the time of Solomon, ivory has been used in ornamental works; it was one of the imports of his navy of Tharshish, whose lading was gold and silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks*.
The teeth of this animal is often found in a fossil state; some years ago two great grinding teeth, and part of the tusk of an elephant were given me by some miners, who discovered them at the depth of 42 yards in a lead-mine in Flintshire; one of the strata above them was lime-stone, about 8 yards thick; the teeth were found in a bed of gravel in the same mine; the grinders were almost as perfect as if just taken from the animal; the tusk much decayed, soft, and exfoliating.
The grinders and tusks of the Mammouth, so often found fossil in Siberia, must be referred to this animal, as is evident from the account and figures of those in the Ph. Tr. abridg. ix. 87. by Mr. Breynius†. The Molares differ not in the lest from those recent; but the tusk has a curvature far greater than those of any elephant I have seen; whether this was accidental or preternatural, cannot be determined from a single specimen; Strahlenberg says they are somewhat more crooked‡ than elephants teeth commonly are; and others relate that a pair weighed 400 lb. which exceeds the weight of the largest: recent tusks: there are also found with them fossil grinders of 24 lb. weight; but since, in
* Kings I. 10.
† Who has given very accurate figures of the entire head, the molares, the tusk and the thigh bone.
‡ Hist. Russia, 402. Also Bell's Travels, II. 165. Le Brun's, Travels, I. 63.
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all other respects, those grinders resemble those of the living elephants; and one being found lodged in the skeleton of the same head with the tusks, we cannot deny our assent to the opinion of those who think them to have been once the parts of the animal we have just described.
These are found lodged in the sandy banks of the Siberian rivers; sometimes entire skeletons are found: the tusks are made use of as ivory, formed into combs, and used to inlay cabinets. The Tartars have many wild notions about the Mammouth, such as its being a subterraneous animal, &c.&c. Linnæus* says it is the skeleton of the Walrus flung on shore.
63. AMERICAN.
An animal only known in a fossil state, and that but partially; from the teeth, some of the jaw-bones, the thigh bones and vertebræ, found with many others five or six feet beneath the surface, on the banks of the Ohio, not remote from the river Miame, seven hundred miles from the sea coast.
Some of the tusks near seven feet long, one foot nine inches in circumference at the base, and one foot near the point; the cavity at the root or base nineteen inches deep: the tusks of the true elephant have sometimes a very slight lateral bend, these have a larger twist or spiral curve towards the smaller end; but the great and specific difference consists in the shape of the molares or grinders, which are made like those of a carnivorous animal,
* Syst. Nat. 49.
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not flat and ribbed transversely on their surface like those of the recent elephant, but furnished with a double row of high and conic processes, as if intended to masticate, not to grind their food.
A third difference is in the thigh bone: which is of a great disproportionable thickness to that of the elephant, and has also some anatomical variations.
The tusks have been cut and polished by the workers in ivory, who affirmed, that in texture and appearance they differed not from the true ivory: the molares were indurated to a great degree. Specimens of these teeth and bones are deposited in the British Museum, that of the Royal Society, and in the cabinet of Doctor Hunter*. I should have been less accurate in this description, had not that gentleman favored me with his observations on some particulars, which otherwise might have escaped my notice.
These fossil bones are also found in Peru, and in the Brazils: as yet the living animal has evaded our search; it is more than probable that it yet exists in some of those remote parts of the vast new continent, unpenetrated yet by Europeans. Providence maintains and continues every created species; and we have as much assurance, that no race of animals will any more cease while the Earth remaineth, than seed time, and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day or night.
* Who has obliged the world with an ingenious essay on the subject, vide Ph. Tr. Vol. LVIII. 34. The late worthy Peter Collinson, in the preceding volume, gave us other notices of these bones.
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To this may properly be added a very obscure animal, mentioned by Nieuhoff*, and called by the Chiese of Java, Sukotyro. It is of the size of a large ox: has a snout like a hog: two long rough ears; and a thick bushy tail: the eyes placed upright in the head, quite different from other beasts: on the side of the head, next to the eyes, stand two long horns, or rather teeth, not quite so thick as those of an elephant. It feeds on herbage, and is but seldom taken.
* Nieuhoff's voy. in Churchill's coll. II. 360.
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SECT. I. Anthropomorphous*.
XV. APE.
Four cutting teeth in each jaw, and two canine. Each of the feet formed like hands, generally with flat nails, and, except in one instance, have four fingers and a thumb.
Eye-brows above and below.
A most numerous race; almost confined to the torrid zone: fills the woods of Africa, from Senegal to the Cape, and from thence to Æthiopia: a single species is found beyond that line, in the province of Barbary: found in all parts of India, and its islands; in Cochin-China, in the S. of China, and in Japan; and one kind is met with in Arabia: they swarm in the forests of S. America, from the isthmus of Darien, as far as Paraguay.
Are lively, agile, full of frolick, chatter and grimace: from the structure of their members, have many actions in common with the human kind: most of them are fierce and untameable; some are of a milder nature, and will shew a de-
* Animals approaching the human form: A term to be taken in a limited sense; to be applied to all of this section, as far as relates to their feet, which serve the uses of hands in eating, climbing, or carrying any thing: to the flatness of the nails, in many species; and to some, resemblance of their actions, resulting from the structure of their parts only, not from any superior sagacity to that of most others of the brute creation.
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gree of attachment; but in general are endowed with mischievous intellects: are filthy, obscene, lascivious, thieving: feed on fruits, leaves and insects: inhabit woods, and live in trees: in general are gregarious, going in vast companies: the different species never mix with each other, always keep apart and in different quarters: leap with vast activity from tree to tree, even when loaded with their young, which cling to them. Are the prey of leopards, and others of the feline race; of serpents, which pursue them to the summit of the trees, and swallow them entire. Are not carnivorous, but for mischiefs sake will rob the nests of birds of the eggs and young: in the countries where apes most abound, the sagacity of the feathered tribe is more marvellously shewn in their contrivances to fix their nest beyond the reach of these invaders*.
Apes and parrots (the apes of birds) are more numerous in their species than any other animals; their numbers and their different appearances made it necessary to methodize and subdivide the genus; accordingly Mr. Ray first distributed them into three classes:
Simiæ APES, such as wanted tails.
Cercopitheci, MONKIES, such as had tails.
And from the last he formed another division, viz.
Papiones, BABOONS, those with short tails: to distinguish them from the common monkies, which have very long ones.
From this Linnæus formed his method; M. de Buffon followed the same; but makes a very judi-
* Indian Zoology p. 7. tab. viii.
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cious subdivision of the long-tailed apes, or the true monkies, into such which had prehensile tails*, and such which had not. I shall endeavour in this genus no other reform in the system of our country-man, than what that gentleman has made; in respect to the trivial names of the species, I have in general invented such as I supposed congruous, or in a few instances retained those of M. de Buffon.
Without tails; the true APES.
64. GREAT.
Satyrus Gesner quad. 863.
Pongo Purchas's Pilgr. II. 982. v. 623.
Homo sylvestris, orang outang. Bontius Java. 84. Beckman's Borneo 37.
Baris Nieremberg. 179.
Barrys Barbot's Guinea. 101.
Quojas morrou. idem 115.
Chimpanzee Scotin's print. 1738.
Man of the wood Edw. 213.
Le Jocko de Buffon xiv. 44. tab. I.
Le Pongo ibid.
L'Homme de bois. Simia unguibus omnibus planis et rotundatis cæsarie faciem. cingente. Brisson quad. 134.
Homo Troglodytes. Homo nocturnus Lin. syst. 33. Amæn. Acad. vi. 68. 69. 72.
Simia satyrus. S. ecaudata ferruginea, lacertorum pilis reversis, natibus tectis. Lin. syst. 34. Br. Mus.
A. with a flat face, and a deformed resemblance of the human: ears exactly like those of a man: hair on the head longer than on the body: body and limbs covered with reddish and shaggy hair; longest on the back, thinnest on the fore-parts: face and paws swarthy: buttocks covered with hair.
Inhabits the interior parts of Africa, the isles of Sumatra, Borneo, and Java. Are solitary, and
* Animals with this kind of tail can lay hold of any thing with it, for it serves all the uses of a hand; they can twist it round the branch of a tree, and suspend themselves by it, or keep them secure in their seat, while their feet are otherwise employed. This faculty is common to some Monkies, to Macaucos and one species of Porcupine. Vide plates of yellow Macauco, and Brasilian Porcupine.
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live in the most desert places: grow to the height of six feet: has prodigious strength, will over-power the strongest man. The old ones are shot with arrows; only the young can be taken alive: live entirely on fruits and nuts: will attack and kill the negroes who wander in the woods: will drive away the elephants, and beat them with their fists, or pieces of wood: will throw stones at people that offend them: sleep in trees; make a sort of shelter from the inclemency of the weather: are of a solitary nature, grave appearance, and melancholy disposition, and even when young not inclined to frolick: are vastly swift and agile: go erect: sometimes carry away the young negroes*.
When taken young are capable of being tamed; very docil, are taught to carry water, pound rice, turn a spit. The Chimpanzee shewn in London, 1738, was extremely mild, affectionate, good-natured; like the satyr of Pliny, mitissima natura; very fond of the people it was used to: eat like a human creature: lay down in bed like one, with its hand under its head: fetch a chair to sit down on: drink tea, pour it into a saucer if too hot: would cry like a child; be uneasy at the absence of its keeper. This was only two feet four inches high, and was a young one: that described by Doctor Tyson** two inches shorter. There is great possibility that
* These accounts are chiefly taken from Andrew Battel, an English sailor, who was taken prisoner 1589, and lived many years in the inner parts of Congo; his narrative is plain, and seems very authentic. It is preserved in Purchas's collection.
** Orang outang, sive bomo sylvestris; or the anatomy of a Pygmie. Folio. London 1699.
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these animals may vary in size and in color, some being covered with black, others with reddish hairs.
Not the Satyrs of the antients, which had tails*, and were a species of monkey. Linnæus's Homo nocturnus, an animal of this kind, unnecessarily separated from his Simia Satyrus. Some of the authorities in the Amæn Acad. very doubtfull. Sir John Mandeville, p. 361, certainly meant this large species, when he says he came to another yle where the Folk ben alle skynned roughe heer, as a rough best, saf only the face, and the pawme of the hond.
65. PYGMY.
Πιϑηϰоς. Aristot. hist. an. lib. c. 8.
Simia Gesner quad. 847. Raii syn. quad. 149.
Ape 2d. sp. Bosman's Guinea. 242.
Le Singe. Simia unguibus omnibus planis planis, et rotundatis Brisson quad. 133.
Le Pitheque de Buffon xix. 84.
Simia sylvanus. S. ecaudatus, natibus calvis capite rotundato. Lin. syst. 34.
A. with a flattish face: ears like those of a man: body of the size of a cat: color above of an olive brown, beneath yellowish: nails flat buttocks naked: sits upright.
Inhabits Africa. Not uncommon in our exhibitions of animals: very tractable, and good-natur'd: most probably the pygmy of the antients. Abounds in Æthiopia**, one seat of that imaginary nation:
* Ælian gives them tails, lib. Pliny says they have teeth like dogs, lib. vii. c. 2. circumstances common to many monkies. Ptolomy lib. vii c. 2. speaks of certain islands in the Indian ocean, inhabited by pepole with tails like those with which Satyrs are painted, whence called the isles of Satyrs. Kæping, a Suede, pretended to have discovered these Homines Caudati, that they would have trafficked with him, offering him live parrots; that afterwards they killed some of the crew that went on shore, and eat them, &c. &c. Amæn Acad. vi. 71.
** Ludolph. Æthiop. 57.
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were believed to dwell near the fountains of the Nile*; descended annually to make war on the cranes, i. e. to steal their eggs, which the birds may be supposed naturally to defend; whence the fiction of their combats. Strabo judiciously** observes, that no person worthy of credit ever ventured to assert he had seen this nation: Aristotle speaks of them only by hear-say, ωσπεϱ λεγεται, they were said to be mounted on little horses, on goats, on rams, and even on partridges. The Indians taking advantage of the credulity of people, embalmed this species of ape with spices, and sold them to merchants as true pygmies†: such, doubtless, were the diminutive inhabitants mentioned by Mr. Grose‡ to be fouhd in the forest of the Carnatic.
Feed on fruits; are very fond of insects, particularly of ants; assemble in troops‖, and turn over every stone in search of them. If attacked by wild beasts, take to flight by but if overtaken, will face their pursuers, and by flinging the subtile sand of the desert in their eyes, often escape§.
Le grand Gibbon de Buffon, xiv. 92. tab. ii.
66. LONGARMED.
A. with a flat swarthy face surrounded with grey hairs: hair on the body black and rough: buttocks bare: nails on the hands flat; on the feet,
* Aristot. hist. an. lib. viii. c. 13.
** Gesner quad. 852. From Marco Polo. They take off all the hair, except a little they leave by way of beard.
† Lib. xvii.
‡ Voy. E. Indies. 365.
‖ Ludolph. Æthiop. 57.
§ Idem, 58.
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long: arms of a most disproportioned length, reaching quite to the ground when the animal is erect, its natural posture: of a hideous deformity.
Inhabits India, Malacca, and the Mollucca Isles: a mild and gentle animal: grows to the height of four feet. The great black ape of Mang si, a province in China, seems to be of this kind*.
α LESSER.
Resembling the former, but much less: its colors brown and grey. From Malacca. Le petit gibbon de Buffon xiv. tab. iii.
β A species in possession of Lord Clive about two years ago, much resembling the last, but more elegant in its form, and the arms shorter; but so nearly allied in shape, as not to be separated: face, ears, crown of the head, feet and hands, black: the rest of the body and arms covered with silvery hairs: about three feet high: good-natured, and full of frolick.
67 BARBARY.
Κυνоϰεφαλоς Aristot. hist. an. lib. ii c. 8.
Cynocephalus Plinii, lib. viii. c. 54. Gesner quad. 859.
Simius cynocephalus Pr. Alp. Ægypt, I. 241. tab. xv. xvi.
Le Magot de Buffon, xiv. 109. tab. vii. viii.
Le Singe Cynocephale. Brisson quad.
Simia Inuus. S. ecaudata natibus calvis, capite oblongo. Lin. syst. 35.
Yellow ape? Du Halde China, I. 120. Le Roque voy. Arabia, 210.
A. with a long face, not unlike that of a dog: canine teeth, long and strong: ears like the human: nails flat: buttocks bare: color of the upper part
* Du Halde, I. 118.
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of the body a dirty greenish brown: belly of a dull pale yellow: grows to above the length of four feet.
Inhabits many parts of India, Arabia, and all parts of Africa, except Ægypt, where none of this genus are found. A few are found on the hill of Gibraltar, which breed there: probably from a pair that had escaped from the town; for I never heard that they were found in any other part of Spain.
Are very ill-natured, mischievous and fierce; agreeing with the character of the antient Cynocephali: are a very common kind in exhibitions: by force of discipline, are made to play some tricks; otherwise, are more dull and sullen than the rest of this genus: assemble in great troops in the open fields in India*: will attack women going to market, and take their provisions from them. The females carry the young in their arms, and will leap from tree to tree with them. Apes were worshipped in India, and had magnificent temples erected to them. When the Portuguese plundered one in Ceylon, they found in a little golden casket** the tooth of an ape; a relique held by the natives in such veneration, that they offered 700,000 ducats to redeem it, but in vain; for it was burnt by the Viceroy, to stop the progress of idolatry.
* Dellon's voy. 83.
** Linschottan's voy. 53. In Amadabat are hospitals for apes, and other maimed animals. Tavernier's voy. part II. 48. The same writer says, that they breed in great numbers in India, in the copses of Bamboos, which grow on each side the road. p. 94.
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68. TUFTED.
Mantegar Ph. Tr. No. 290. Abridg. V. 182.
Bradley's Nat. 117. tab. XV. fig. 1.
A. with a nose and head fourteen inches in length: the nose of a deep red, face blue, both naked: black eye-brows: ears like the human: on the top of the head a long upright tuft of hair; on the chin another: two long tusks in the upper jaw: fore feet exactly resembling hands, and the nails on the fingers flat: the hind feet have the thumbs less perfect, and the nails imbricated: the fore part of the body, and the inside of legs and arms, naked: the outside covered with mottled brown and olive hair; that on the back dusky: the buttocks red, and bare: length, from the nose to the rump, three feet two inches.
A species of disgusting deformity; very fierce and salacious; went on all fours; but would sit up on its rump, and support itself with a stick: in this attitude would hold a cup in its hand, and drink out of it: its food was fruits.
Aristotle barely mentions another species of ape under the title of χоιϱоπιϑήϰоς, simia Porcaria. M. de Buffon imagines it to be the baboon; but since the Philosopher expresly says, that his Πιϑηϰοι, or apes, had no tails, we cannot assent to its being the baboon. I rather think it a species we have not at present knowlege of. Among my drawings is the copy of one in the British Museum, with a nose exactly resembling that of a hog, which possibly may be Aristotle's animal; but there is no account attending the painting to enable us to trace its history.
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I PYMY APE No 65. II TUF TED APE No. 68.
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With short tails, or BABOONS.
69. RIBBED NOSE.
Le Mandrill de Buffon, xiv. 154. tab. xvi. xvii.
S. maimon. S. caudata subbarbata genis cæruleis striatis. Lin. syst. 35.
B. with a long naked nose compressed sideways, of a purple color, and ribbed obliquely on each side: on the chin a short picked orange beard: tail very hairy, about two inches long, which it carries erect: buttocks naked: hair soft, dusky mottled with yellow: length, from nose to tail, about two feet.
Inhabits Guinea. Those I have seen sat erect on their rump, but walked on all fours: were good-natured, but not sportive.
By the rude figure in Gesner*, this seems to be the animal he intended, by his Papio: (the Simia Sphinx of Linnæus, 35.) but it must be observed, that able Naturalist here makes a great mistake, in thinking it the Hyæna of the Antients; but his desciption is taken from a drawing, not from nature.
Linnæus places this among the simiæ cauda elongata, and applies to it some of the synonyms of the 72d species: but his description agrees with this so exactly, that there can be no doubt but that it is his Simia maimon.
This animal is well described by M. de Buffon, Mr. Ray, Linnæus, and M. Brisson; and indeed every
* P. 560. Papio, a barbarous name: from whence, the English, Baboon; Italian, Babbuino, and French, Babouin.
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Naturalist, except M. de Buffon, has copied Gesner: but we think the first ought to have applied the name of Baboon to this species, instead of that described by him, p. 133. the one having the character of this section, the other having a length of tail, that constitutes that of the monkey.
The animal called, by Barbot and Bosman*, SMITTEN, is a large species to be referred to this genus: it is described with a great head, short tail, and of a mouse color; that it grows to the size of five feet, is very fierce, and will even attack a man.
The mandrill mentioned by Smith, in his voyage to Guinea, is another kind; probably only a variety of the Smitten. He says it grows to a vast size: the body as thick as that of a man: the teeth large and yellow: head vastly large: face broad and flat, wrinkled, and covered with a white skin: nose always running: body covered with long black hair like a bear. M. de Buffoon makes this last synonymous with his mandrill; but both the size and length of hair, and greatness of the head, shew them to be of a very different species.
The Tretretretre of Madagascar is another animal of this kind; described to be of the size of a calf of two years old; to have a round head, visage and ears of a man, feet of an ape, hair curled: a solitary species: the natives are greatly afraid of it, and fly its haunts as it does theirs**.
* Barbot's Guinea, 212. Bosman's Guinea, 242.
** Flacourt hist. Madug. 154.
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I. SIMIA PORCARIA p. 102 II. NEW BABOON add. XXIII.
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70. LITTLE.
Simia apedia. S. semicaudata, palmarum pollice approximato, unguibus oblongis, pollicum rotundatis, natibus tectis. Lin. syst. 35.
Simia cauda abrupta, unguibus compressis obtusiusculis, pollice palmarum digitis adhærente. Amæn. Acad. I. 558.
B. with a roundish head, mouth projecting, ears roundish, and naked; thumb not remote from the fingers: nails narrow, and compressed; those of the thumbs rounded: color of the hair yellowish tipt with black: face brown, with a few scattered hairs: tail not an inch long: buttocks covered with hairs: size of a squirrel, according to Linnæus. But Mr. Balk, in the Amæn. Acad. says it is as large as a cat.
Inhabits India: is a lively species.
71. PIG-TAIL.
Pig-tailed Monkey. Edw. 214.
Le Maimon de Buffon, xiv. 176. tab. xix.
Simia Nemestrina. S. Semicaudata sub-barbata grisea iridibus brunneis, natibus calvis. Lin. syst. 35. Br. Mus.
B. with a pointed face, not so long as that of the last: eyes hazel: above and beneath the mouth some few black hairs: face naked, of a swarthy redness: two sharp canine teeth: ears like the human: crown of the head dusky: hair on the limbs and body brown inclining to ash color, palest on the belly: fingers black: nails long and flat: thumbs on the hind feet veiy long, connected to the nearest toe by a broad membrane: tail four inches long, slender, exactly like a pig's, and al-
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most. naked: the bare spaces on the rump red, and but small: length, from head to tail, twenty-two inches.
Inhabits the isle of Sumatra and Japan*: is very docil: in Japan is taught several tricks, and carried about the country by mountebanks. Kæmpfer was informed by one of these people, that the Baboon he had was 102 years old.
* Kæmpfer's hist. Japan, I. 126.
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With long tails, or MONKIES.
A. those of the old world, or the continents of Asia and Africa, having within each lower jaw pouches for the reception of their food.
Buttocks (generally) naked.
Tails strait, not prehensile.
72. DOGFACED.
Kυνоϰεφαλоς Aristot. hist. An. II. c. 8.
Cynocephalus Plinii, lib. viii. c. 54 Gesner quad. 862. Clus. exot. 370.
Le Tartarin Belon portraits 102.
Simia Ægyptiaca cauda elongata, clunibus tuberosis nudis. Hasselquist. itin. 189.
Simia Hamadryas. S. caudata cinerea, auribus comosis, unguibus acutiusculis, natibus calvis. Lin. syst. 36.
Cercopithecus cynocephalus, parte anteriore corporis longis pilis obsita, naso violaceo nudo. Le Magot ou le Tartarin. Brisson quad. 152.
Le Babouin de Buffon, xiv. 133. tab. xiii. xiv. Edw. fig. ined.
M. with a long, thick and strong nose, covered with a smooth red skin: eyes small: ears pointed, and hid in hair: head great, and flat: hair on the head, and fore part of the body, as far as the waste, very long and shaggy; grey and olive brinded; that on the sides of the head very full: the hair on the limbs and hind part of the body very short: limbs strong and thick: hands and feet dusky: the nails on the fore feet flat; those on the hind like a dog's: buttocks very bare, and covered with a skin of a bloody color: tail scarce the length of the body, and carried generally erect. The Baboon described
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by M. de Buffon, had lost part of its tail; therefore is imperfectly described and figured. Well represented in Belon.
Inhabits the hottest parts of Africa and Asia: keep in vast troops: are very fierce and dangerous: rob gardens: run up trees when passengers go by; shake the boughs at them with great fury, and chatter very loud: are excessively impudent, indecent, lascivious: most detestable animals in their manners, as well as appearance. Mr. Edwards communicated to me an account and a fine print* of one, which was shewn in London some years ago: it came from Moco, in the Persian gulph; was above five feet high; very fierce, and untameable; so strong, as easily to master its keeper, a strong young man: its inclinations to women appeared in the most violent manner. A Footman, who brought a girl to see it, in order to teize the animal, kissed and hugged her: the beast, enraged at being so tantalized, caught hold of a quart pewter pot, which he threw with such force, and so sure an aim, that had not the man's hat and wig softened the blow, his scull must have been fractured; but he fortunately escaped with a common broken head.
* Engraven by himself, but never published. I should suspect this to the be Smitten of Barbot, did he not expressly say it had a very short tail.
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I DOG FACED MONKEY No. 72. II LION TAILED M. β No. 73.
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73. LION TAILED.
Ceropithecus barbatus primus. Clusii exot. 371. Raii syn. quad. 159 Klein quad. 89.
Wanderow Knox's Ceylon. 26.
Simia veter. S. caudata barbata alba barbs nigra. Lin. syst. 36. Brisson quad. 147.
Simia silenus. S. caudata barbata nigra, barba nigra prolixa. Lin. syst. 36. Brisson quad. 149.
Cercopithecus niger Ægyptiacus, ibid.
Simia Faunus. S. caudata barbata, cauda apice floccosa. Lin. syst. 36.
Cercopithecus barbatus infra albus, barba incana mucronata, cauda in floccum desinente. Brisson quad. 144.
M. with a long dog-like face, naked, and of a dusky color: a very large and full white or hoary beard: large canine teeth: body covered with black hair: belly of a lighter color: nails flat: tail terminated with a tuft of hair like that of a Lion: bulk of a middling sized dog.
Inhabits the East-Indies and the hotter parts of Africa: I think, subject to variety.
α. One shewn in London three years ago: excessively fierce, and ill-natured: the tail not longer than the back, ending with a large tuft: beard reaching quite up the cheeks, as far as the eyes. This is certainly the Ouanderou of M. de Buffon, xiv. 169. tab. xviii. which he makes a sort of Baboon, or Monkey with a short tail; for he seems to have met with a specimen mutilated in that part; and describes it accordingly.
β. with a triangular white beard, pointed at the bottom and on each side the ears, standing out far beyond them: face and hands purple: body black:
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tail long, black, and terminated with a dirty white tuft. Ceylon. Mr. Loten. This is the Cercopithecus barbatus, barba incana mucronata of M. Brisson p. 148. Cercopithecus Barbatus secundus Clusii exot. 371.
γ. with the whole body milk white, but bearded like the others. Ceylon. Knox.
δ. the little bearded men of Barbot voy. Guinea, 212. and Bosman, 242. are about two feet high, and are black as jet, with long white beards. The negroes set a great value on the skins of this species, and sell them to one another at eighteen or twenty shillings each. Of the skins of these they make the caps for the Tie-Tie's, or public Criers.
ε. another bearded man, found on the Gold Coast, with white beard, and black mustachoes; speckled skin, white belly, a broad tawny stroke on the back, black paws, and black tail*.
* Desc. of the golden kingdome of Guinea, translated from the Dutch, in Purchas's Pilgrims, II. 955.
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74. HARELIPPED.
Cercopithecus angolensis major, macaquo. Marcgrave Brasil, 227. Raii syn. quad. 155. Klein quad. 89. Cercopithecus cynocephalus, naribus bifidis elatis, natibus calvis Brisson quad. 152. C. Cynoceph. ex virid. &c. 151.
S. Cynomolgus. S. caudata imberbis, naribus bifidis elatis, cauda arcuata, natibus calvis. Lin. syst. 38. S. cynocephalus. ibid. Le Macaque de Buffon, xiv. 190. tab. xiv.
M. with the nostrils divided, like those of a hare: nose thick, flat, and wrinkled: head large: eyes small: teeth very white: body thick, and clumsy: buttocks naked: tail long: color varies; sometimes like that of a wolf; but others, are brown, tinged with yellow, or olive: the tail is rather shorter than the body, and is always carried arched.
Inhabits Guinea and Angola: is full of frolick, and ridiculous grimaces.
Le Malbrouck of M. de Buffon, xiv. 224. tab. xxix. so much resembles this species, that I place it it here as a variety. That able Zoologist suspected the same; but separates them, on account of some trifling distinctions, and the difference of country: this being a native of India, the other of Africa: but since those very distinctions may arise from the last cause, it seems better to unite them, than to multiply the species already so numerous. A few years ago, one that seemed of this species was shewn in London, equal in size to a small greyhound.
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75. SPOTTED.
Cercopithecus barbatus guineensis, Exquima. Marcgrave Brasil. 227. Raii syn. quad. 156.
Cercopithecus barbatus fuscus punctis albis impersis barba alba. Brisson quad. 147. No. 23. 148. No. 24.
Simia Diana. S. caudata barbata fronte barbaque fastigiata. Lin. syst. 38.
L'Exquima de Buffon, xv. 16.
M. with a long white beard: color of the upper parts of the body reddish, as if they had been singed, marked with white specks: the belly and chin whitish: tail very long: is a species of a middle size.
Inhabits Guinea and Congo, according to Marcgrave: the Congese call it Exquima. M. de Buffon denies it to be of that country: but, from the circumstance of the curl in its tail, in Marcgrave's figure, and the description of some voyagers, he supposes it to be a native of South America.
Linnæus describes his S. Diana somewhat differently: he says it is of the size of a large cat; black, spotted with white; hind part of the back ferrugineous: the hairs on the forehead erect, forming the shape of a crescent: beard pointed; black above, white beneath; placed on a fattish excrescence: breast and throat white: from the rump, cross the thighs, a white line: tail long, strait, and black: face, ears, and feet, of the same color: canine teeth, large.
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76. GREEN.
Simius Callitrichus. Prosp. Alp. Ægypt. I.
Simia fabæa. S. caudata imberbis flavicans, facie atra, cauda cinerea, natibus calvis. Lin. syst. 38.
Cercopithecus ex cinereo flavescens, genis longis pilis albis obsita. Brisson quad. 145. et Cercobarbatus rufus facie nigra, cæsarie alba cincta. 149.
Le Callitriche de Buffon xiv. 272. tab. xxxvii.
M. with a black and flattish face: the sides of it bounded by long white hairs, falling backwards, and almost covering the ears, which are black, and like the human: head, limbs, and whole upper part of the body and tail, covered with soft hair, of a yellowish green color at their ends, cinereous at their roots: under side of the body and tail, and inner side of the limbs, of a silvery color: tail very long and slender: size of a small cat.
Inhabits different parts of Africa: keep in great flocks, and live in the woods: are scarce discernible when among the leaves, except by their breaking the boughs with their gambols, in which they are very agile and silent: even when shot at, do not make the lest noise; but will unite in company, knit their brows, and gnash their teeth, as if they meant to attack their enemy*: are very common in the Cape Verd islands.
* Adanson's voy. 316.
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77. WHITE EYE-LID.
β Simia Æthiops. caudata imberbis, capillitio erecto lunalaque frontis albis. Lin. syst. 39. Hasselquist itin? 190.
Le Mangabey de Buffon, xiv. 244. tab. xxxii. xxxiii.
M. with a long, black, naked, and dog-like face: the upper eye-lids of a pure white: ears black, and like the human: no canine teeth: hairs on the sides of the face beneath the cheeks, longer than the rest: tail long: color of the whole body tawny and black: flat nails on the thumbs and fore-fingers; blunt claws on the others: hands and feet black.
Shewn in London a few years ago: place uncertain: that described by M. de Buffon came from Madagascar: was very good-natured, went on all fours.
Le Mangabey a collier blanc*, is a variety, with the long hairs on the cheeks and round the neck white.
78. MUSTACHE.
Cercopithecus alius Guineensis. Marcgrave Brasil, 228. Raii syn. quad. 156.
S. cephus. S. caudata buccis barbatis, vertice flavescente, pedibus nigris, cauda apice ferruginea. Lin. syst. 39.
Cercopithecus nigricans, genis et auriculis longis pilis ex albo flavicantibus obsitis, ore cærulescente. Brisson quad. 146.
Le Moustac de Buffon, xiv. 283. tab. xxxix.
M. with a short nose, the end marked with a transverse line of pure white: the face naked, and of a dusky blue: on the cheeks, before the ears, two large tufts of yellow hairs, like Mustaches: the hair on the top of the head long and upright: round the
* Of M. de Buffon, tab. xxxiii.
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mouth are some black hairs: the color of the hair on the head yellow; on the body and limbs, a mixture of red and ash-color: the part of the tail next the body of the same color; the rest yellowish: the under part of the body paler than the upper: the feet black: nails flat: its length, one foot; that of the tail, eighteen inches.
Inhabits Guinea.
Le Talapoin de Buffon, xiv. 287. tab. XL.
79. TALAPOIN.
M. with a sharp nose, round head, large black naked ears: eyes, and end of the nose, flesh-colored: hair on the cheeks very long, and reflected towards the ears: on the chin a small beard: the color of the whole upper part of the body, and the outside of the limbs, a mixture of dusky yellow and green: the lower part white tinged with yellow: the tail very long and slender; above, of an olive and dusky color; beneath, cinereous: the paws black: length, about one foot; of the tail, one foot five inches.
Inhabits India.
80. NEGRO.
Middle-sized black monkey Edw. 311.
M. with a round head: nose a little sharp: face, of a tawny flesh color, with a few black hairs: irides, a reddish hazel: hair above the eyes long, uniting with the eye-brows; that on the temples partly covering the ears: breast and belly of a
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swarthy flesh color, almost naked: hair on the body, limbs and tail, black, and pretty long: paws covered with a black soft skin: size of a large cat.
Inhabits Guinea: active, lively, entertaining, good-natured.
81. EGRET.
S. aygula. S. caudata subimberbis grisea, eminentia pilosa verticis reversa longitudinali. Lin. syst. 39. Osbeck's voy. I. 151.
L'Aigrette. de Buffon, xiv. 190. tab. xxi.
M. with a long face, and an upright sharp-poined tuft of hair on the top of the head: hair on the forehead black: the tuft and upper part of the body light grey: the belly white: eye-brows large: beard very small: size of a small cat.
Inhabits Java: fawn on men, on their own species, and embrace each other; play with dogs, if they have none of their own species with them: if they see a monkey of another kind, greet him with a thousand grimaces: when a number of them sleep, they put their heads together; make a continual noise during night.
82. RED.
Le Patas a bandeau noir. de Buffon, xiv. 208. tab. xxv.
M. with a long nose: eyes sunk in the head: ears furnished with pretty long hairs: body slender: over each eye, from ear to ear, extends a black line: the upper part of the body of a most beautifull and bright bay, almost red, so vivid as to appear painted: the lower parts ash-color, tinged with yellow:
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tail not so long as the body: whose length is about one foot six inches.
M. de Buffon gives a variety of this species, tab. xxvi. with a white band cross the face, which he calls Le Patas a bandeau blanc.
Inhabits Senegal: is less active than the other kinds: very inquisitive: when boats are on their passage on the river, will come in crowds to the extremities of the branches, and seem to admire them with vast attention: at length, will become so familiar, as to throw pieces of sticks at the crew: if shot at, will raise hideous cries; some will throw stones, others void their excrements in their hands, and fling them among the passengers*.
Barbot** mentions another sort of red monkey, called in Guinea Peasants, because of their ugly red hair and figure, and their natural stink and nastiness.
83. CHINESE.
Rillow Knox's Ceylon, 26.
Le Bonnet-Chinois. de Buffon, xiv. 190. tab. xxx. Br. Mus.
M. with a long smooth nose, of a whitish color: hair on the crown of the head long, lying flat, and parted like that of a man: color, a pale cinereous brown.
Inhabits Ceylon: keep in great troops: rob the gardens of fruit, and fields of the corn: the natives are obliged to watch the whole day; yet these monkies are so bold, that, when drove from one end of
* De Brue, as quoted by M. de Buffon.
** Descr. Guinea, 212.
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the field, will immediately enter at the other, and carry off with them as much as their mouth and arms can hold. Bosman*, speaking of the thefts of the monkies of Guinea, says, that they will take in each paw one or two stalks of millet, as many under their arms, and two or three in their mouth; and thus laden, hop away on their hind legs; but if pursued, fling away all, except what is in their mouths, that it may not impede their flight: they are very nice in their choice of the millet, examine every stalk, and if they do not like it, fling it away; so this delicacy does more harm to the fields than their thievery.
84. VARIED.
Κη? Arist. hist. An.
Monne? Leo Afr. 342.
Monichus Prosp. Alp. Ægypt. I. 242.
La Mone de Buffon, xiv. 258. tab. xxxvi.
Cercopithecus pilis ex nigro et rufo variegatis vestibus, pedibus nigris, cauda cinerea. Le singe varieè. Brisson quad. 141.
M. with a short thick nose, of a dirty flesh color: hair on the sides of the face, and under the throat, long; the color yellow and black; on the forehead, grey: above the eyes, from ear to ear, a black line: the upper part of the body dusky and red: the belly whitish: outside of the thighs, and the feet, black: the tail of a cinereous brown: length, about a foot and a half; the tail, above two.
Inhabits Barbary, Æthiopia, and other parts of Africa: is the kind which gives the name of Monkey to the whole tribe, from the African word Mon-
* Voy. Guinea, 243.
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ne; or rather its corruption, Monichus. M. de Buffon supposes it to be the Κηоς of Aristotle: but the Philosopher says no more, than that the Cebi are apes furnished with tails.
Of this kind is the Cercopithecus Guineensis alius of Marcgrave Brasil. 228. Brisson quad. 139. which the first describes as being of the color of the back of a hare.
85. COCHIN-CHINA.
Le Douc de Buffon, xiv. 298. tab. XLI.
Cercopithecus cinereus, genis longis pilis ex albo flavicantibus, obsitis, torque ex castanco purpurascente. Le grand singe de la Cochin-chine. Brisson quad. 146.
M. with a short flattish face, bounded on each side by long hairs of a yellowish white color: on the neck a collar of purplish brown: the lower part of the arms, the thighs, and tail, are white: the upper part of the arms, and thighs, black: the back, belly and sides, grey tinged with yellow: above the root of the tail is a spot of white, which extends beneath as far as the lower part of the belly and part of the thighs: the feet black: the buttocks* covered with hair: is a very large species, about four feet long, from the nose to the tail; but the tail not so long.
Inhabits Cochin-China and Madagascar**: lives on beans; often walks on its hind feet.
* All the species of apes of Asia and Africa, except this and No. 64, 70, and 87, have their buttocks naked.
** where it is called Sifac. Flacourt hist, Madag. 153.
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86. TAWNY.
M. with a face a little produced; that and the ears flesh colored: nose flattish: long canine teeth in the lower jaw: hair on the upper part of the body pale tawny, cinereous at the roots: hind part of the back orange: legs cinereous: belly white: size of a cat: tail shorter than the body.
Inhabits India. From one in Mr. Brooks's exhibition, very ill-natured.
87. WINKING.
Simia nictitans. S. caudata imberbis nigra punctis pallidis alpersa, naso albo, pollice palmarum brevissimo, natibus tectis. Lin. syst.
Cercopithecus Angolensis alius*.
Marcgrave Brasil. 227.
White Noses. Purchas's Pilg. II. 955.
M. with a short face covered with hair: nose white: orbits naked: irides yellow: hair on the body black, marked with some circles of a lighter color: tail strait, longer than the body: feet and tail black: buttocks covered: thumbs very short: not quite the size of the Pygmy ape.
Inhabits Guinea: very sportive; perpetually winking.
88. GOAT.
M. with a blue naked face ribbed obliquely: a long beard, like that of a goat: whole body and limbs of a deep brown color: tail long. Described from a drawing in the British Museum, by Kikius, an excellent painter of animals.
* Totus niger at insperso cano nigredini per totum corpus, naso albo. Ibid.
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I. LION TAILED MONKY. N. 73. a. II. TAWNY M. N. 86. P. XXIII.
R. Murray Set
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89. ANNULATED.
M. with a flat face: lone hairs on the forehead and cheeks: upper part of the body and limbs of a tawny brown: belly cinereous: tail shorter than the body, annulated with a darker and lighter brown: from a drawing in the British Museum.
Cercopithecus Luzonicus minimus, magu vel Root Indorum. Pet. Gaz. 21. tab. 13.
Simia syrichta. S. caudata imberbis ore ciliisque vibrissatis. Lin. syst. 44.
90. PHILIPPINE.
M. with its mouth and eye-brows beset with long hairs: an obscure species, mentioned only by Petiver; said to come from the Philippine isles.
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B. monkies of the new world, or the continent of America, having neither pouches in their jaws, nor naked buttocks.
Tails of many prehensile, and naked on the under side, for a certain space next their end.
α. With prehensile tails*.
91. PREACHER.
Guariba Marcgrave Brasil, 226. Raii syn. quad. 153.
Aquiqui De Laet. 486. Grew's Museum, 11.
Howling Baboons, Guareba. Bancroft's Guiana. 133.
Simia Beelzebub. S. caudata barbata nigra, cauda prehensili extremo pedibusque fuscis. Lin. syst. 37.
Cercopithecus niger, pedibus fuscis. Brisson quad. 137.
M. with black shining eyes: short round ears: a round beard under the chin and throat: hairs on the body of a shining black, long, yet lie so close on each other that the animal appears quite smooth: the feet and end of the tail brown; tail very long, and always twisted at the end: size of a fox.
Inhabits the woods of Brasil and Guiana in vast numbers; and makes, a most dreadfull howling: sometimes one mounts on a higher branch, the rest seat themselves beneath; the first begins as if it was to harangue, and sets up so loud and sharp a howl as may be heard a vast way, a person at a distance would think that a hundred joined in the cry; after a certain space, he gives a signal with his hand,
* These M. de Buffon calls Sapajous.
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when the whole assembly joins in chorus; but on another signal, is silent, and the orator finishes his address*: their clamor is the most disagreeable and tremendous that can be conceived, owing to a hollow and hard bone placed in the throat, which the English call the throttle bone**. These monkies are very fierce, untameable and bite dreadfully.
α ROYAL. Cercopithecus barbatus maximus, ferruginosus, stertorosus. Alaoiita, singe rouge. Barrere France Æquin. 150.
Cercopithecus barbatus saturaté rufus. Brisson quad. 147.
Simia seniculus. S. caudata barbata rufa, cauda prehensili. Lin. syst. 37.
Arabata Gumilla Orenoque, II. 8. Bancroft Guiana, 135.
L'Allouatte. de Buffon, xiv. 5.
A variety of a ferruginous or reddish bay color, which the Indians† call the king of the monkies: is large, and as noisy as the former: the natives eat this species, and several other sorts of monkies, but are particularly fond of this; Europeans will also eat it, especially in those parts of America where food is scarce: when it is scalded in order to get off the hair, it looks very white, and has a resemblance shocking to humanity, that of a child of two or three years old, when crying‡.
* A singular account, yet related by Marcgrave and several other writers. Marcgrave is a writer of the first authority, and a most able naturalist, long resident in the Brasils, and speaks from his own knowlege.
** Grew's Rarities, 11.
† De Laet. 486.
‡ Ulloa's voy. I. 113. Des Marchais III. 311. says, they are excellent, eating, and that a soupe aux singes will be found as good as any other, as soon as you have conquered the aversion to the Bouilli of their heads, which look very like those of little children.
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92. FOUR-FINGERED.
Cercopithecus majar niger, faciem humanam referens. Quouata. Barrere France Æquin. 150.
Quato Bancroft Guiana, 131.
Cercopithecus in pedibus anteriobus pollice carens cauda inferius apicem versus pilis destituta.
Le Belzebut. Brisson quad. 150.
Simia Paniscus. S. caudata imberbis atra, cauda prehensili, ad apicem subtus nuda. Lin. syst. 37.
Le Coaita de Buffon xv. 16.
Spider Monkey. Edw. Gleanings. III. 222. Br. Mus.
M. with a long flat face, of a swarthy flesh color: eyes sunk in the head: ears like the human: limbs of a great length and uncommonly slender: hair black, long and rough: only four fingers on the hands, being quite destitute of a thumb: five toes on the feet: nails flat: tail long, and naked below, near the end: body slender: about a foot and a half long: tail near two feet, so prehensile as to serve every purpose of a hand.
Inhabits the neighbourhood of Carthagena, Guiana, Brasil, and* Peru: associate in vast herds: scarce ever are seen on the ground. Dampier** describes their gambols in a lively manner: 'There was, says he, a great company, dancing from tree to tree over my head, chattering and making a terrible noise, and a great many grim faces and antick gestures; some broke down dry sticks and flung them at me, others scattered their urine and dung about my ears; at last one bigger than the rest came to a small limb just over my head, and leaping directly at me, made my leap back, but the monkey caught hold of the bough with the tip of his tail, and there continued swinging to
* De Buffon, xv. 21.
** Voy. II. 60.
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and fro, making mouths at me. The females with their young ones are much troubled to leap after the males, for they have commonly two, one she carries under her arm, the other sits on her back, and claps its two fore paws about her neck: are very sullen when taken; and very hard to be got when shot, for they will cling with their tail or feet to a bough, as long as any life remains; when I have shot at one, and broke a leg or arm, I have pitied the poor creature to see it look and handle the broken limb, and turn it from side to fide.'
They are the most active of monkies, and quite enliven the forests of America: in order to pass from top to top of lofty trees, whose branches are too distant for a leap, they will form a chain, by hanging down, linked to each other by their tails, and swinging in that manner till the lowest catches hold of a bough of the next tree, and draws up the rest* and sometimes they pass** rivers by the same expedient.
Are sometimes brought to Europe: are very tender, and seldom live long in our climate: Mr. Brookes had one or two, which, as long as they continued in health, were so active, and played such tricks, as to confirm the account of voyagers.
* Wafer's voy. in Dampier, III. 330.
** Ulloa. I. 113.
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93. CAPUCIN.
Simia trepida. S. caudata imberbis, capillitio arrecto, manibus pedibusque cæruleis, cauda prehensili villosa. Lin. syst. 39.
Simia capucina. S. caudata imberbis fusca, cauda prehensili hirsuta, pileo artubusque nigris, natibus tectis. Lin. syst. 42. Mus. Ad. Fred. I. tab. ii. S. Apella. S. caudata imberbis cauda subprehensili, corpore fusco, pedibus nigris, natibus tectis. ibid. Mus. Ad. Fred. I. tab. ii.
Cercopithecus fuscus, capitis vertice fusco. Brisson quad. 137.
Le Sajou brun—et gris, de Buffon xv. 37. tab. iv. v.
Bush-tailed Monkey Edw. 312.
Simiolus Ceylonicus Seb. Mus. I. 77. tab. 48. Br. Mus.
M. with round head; and short flesh colored face, with a little down on it: hair on the forehead more or less high and erect in different subjects: top of the head black or dusky, hair on it pretty long: hind part of the neck, and middle of the back, covered with long dusky hairs; rest of the back and the limbs of a reddish brown: hands and feet covered with a black skin: tail longer than the head and body, and often carried over the shoulders; the hair on it very long, of a deep brown color, and appears very bushy from beginning to end: is a species that varies a little in colors, and in the different length of the hair, which induced Linnæus to form three species out of this one.
Inhabits Guiana, not Ceylon, as Seba asserts: is a lively species; but capricious in its affections in a state of captivity, having a great fondness for some persons, and as great a hatred to others.
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94. WEEPER.
Cercopithecus Brasiliensis secundus Clusii exot. 372.
Cay? De Laet. 486. Raii syn. quad. 155.
Cercopithecus totus niger. Brisson quad. 139.
Le Sai—Le Sai a gorge blanc. de Buffon, xv. 51. tab. viii. ix. Br. Mus.
M. with a round and flat face, of a reddish brown color, very deformed: the hair on the head, and upper part of the body, black, tinged with brown; beneath and on the limbs, tinged with red: tail black, and much longer than the head and body: the young excessively deformed; their hair very long, and thinly dispersed; in the British Museum are specimens of old and young. M. de Buffon has a variety with a white throat.
Inhabits Surinam and Brasil: appear as if they were always weeping*: of a melancholy disposition: but very full of imitating what they see done: these probably are the monkies Dampier saw in the Bay of All Saints, which he says are very ugly, and smell strongly of musk**: keep in large companies; and make a great chattering, especially in stormy weather: reside much on a species of tree, which bears a podded fruit, which they feed on†.
* Froger's voy. 116.
** Dampier's voy. III. 53.
† De Laet. 486.
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95. ORANGE.
Caitaia Marcgrave Brasil 227. Raii syn. quad. 175.
Cercopithecus pilis ex fusco, flavescente, et candicante variegatus vestitus, pedibus ex flavo rufescentibus. Brisson quad. 140. Cercopithecus ex albo flavescens, moschum redolens. Brisson 139. Cercopithecus minor luteus; Le sapajou jaune. Barrere France Æquin. 151.
Simia sciurea. S. caudata imberbis, occipite prominulo, unguibus quatuor plantarum subulatis, natibus tectis. Lin. syst. 43.
Le Saimiri de Buffon, xv. 67. tab. x. Br. Mus.
M. with a round head, nose a little pointed; the end dusky: orbits flesh colored: ears hairy: hair on the body short and fine, of a yellow and brown color; but in its native country, when in perfection, of a brilliant gold* color: the feet orange: nails of the hands flat: of the feet like claws: tail very long; less useful for prehensile purposes than that of the rest: body of the size of a squirrel.
Inhabits Brasil and Guiana: when provoked, screams: is a very tender animal: seldom brought here alive: smells of musk**. The Simia Morta of Linnæus, 43; and Cercopithecus cauda murina of Brisson. 143; engraved in Seba, tab. 48. under the name of Simiolus Ceylonicus, is only the fœtus of some monkey: probably, as Linnæaus conjectures, of this species.
* Froger's voy. 116.
** Some of the African monkies have also a strong smell of musk. A Bezoar is sometimes found in certain species.
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96. HORNED.
Cercopithecus ex nigro et fusco variegatus, fasciculis duobus pilorum capitis corniculorum æmulis. Le Sapajou cornu. Brisson quad. 138.
Simia Fatuellus Lin. syst. 42.
M. with two tufts of hair like horns on the top of the head: eyes bright; of a dusky color: ears like the human: face, sides, belly, fore legs brown: top of the head, middle of the back, hind legs, and all the feet black: tail prehensile, covered with short bright hair: body fourteen inches long, tail fifteen.
Inhabits America.
97. ANTIGUA.
M. with a short nose; black face; hair on each side long; back and sides orange and black, intimately mixed; belly white; outside of the legs black; inside ash-colored; tail of a dusky ash: its length twenty inches; that of the body eighteen.
Lately in possession of Richard Morris, Esq; of the Navy-Office: brought from Antigua: but its native place uncertain: very good-natured, lively, and full of tricks: frequently hung by its tail.
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b. with strait tails, not prehensile*.
98. FOX-TAILED.
Cagui major Marcgrave Brasil, 227.
Cercopithecus pilis nigris, apice albido, vestitus, cauda pilis longissimis nigris obsita. Brisson quad. 138. C. pilis cinerescentibus nigro mixtis, cauda rufa. Brisson, 141.
Simia Pithecia. S. caudata imberbis, vellere nigro apice albo, cauda nigra villosissima. Lin. syst. 40.
Le Saki de Buffon, xv. 88. tab. xii.
Saccawinkee Bancroft Guiana, 135. Br. Mus.
M. with a swarthy face, covered with short white down: forehead and sides of the face with whitish, and pretty long hair: body with long dusky brown hairs; white or yellowish at their tips: hair on the tail very long and bushy; sometimes black, sometimes reddish: belly and lower part of the limbs a reddish white: length from nose to tail near a foot and a half: tail longer, and like that of a fox: hands and feet black, with claws instead of nails.
Inhabits Guiana.
* Distinguished from those with prehensile tails, by M. de Buffon, by the name of Sagouins; which, as well as Sapajous, are American names for certain kinds of monkies.
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99. GREAT EARED.
Cercopithecus minimus niger Leontocephalus, auribus elephantinis. Barrere France Æquin. 151.
Simia midas. S. caudata imberbis, labio superiore fisso, auribus quadratis nudis, unguibus subulatis, pedibus croceis. Lin. syst. 42.
Le Tamarin. de Buffon xv. 92. tab. xiii.
Little black monkey. Edw. 196. Br. Mus.
M. with a round head, swarthy, flesh-colored, naked face: upper lip a little divided: ears very large, erect, naked, and almost square: hair on the forehead upright and long; on the body soft, but shaggy: the head, whole body, and upper part of the limbs, black, except the lower part of the back, which was tinged with yellow: hands and feet covered with light orange-colored hairs, very fine and smooth: nails long and crooked: tail black, and twice the length of the body: teeth very white.
Inhabits the hotter parts of South America, and the isle of Gorgona, south of Panama, in the South, sea. There are, says Dampier, a great many little black monkies: at low water, they come to the sea side to take muscles and perriwinkles, which they dig out of the shells with their claws*.
* Voy. I. 173.
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100. STRIATED.
Cagui minor Marcgrave Brasil, Cercopithecus Brasilianus tertius Sagouin. Clusii Exot. 372. Gesner quad. 869. Raii syn. quad. 154. Klein quad. 87. tab. iii. Ludolph. Com. Æthiop. 58.
Cercopithecus tæniis transversis alternatim fuscis et e cincreo albis variegatus, auriculis pilis albis circumdatis. Brisson quad. 143.
Simia Iacchus. S. caudata auribus villosis patulis, cauda hirsutissima curvata, unguibus subulatis; pollicum rotundatis. Lin. syst. 40.
L'Ouistiti de Buffon, xv. 96. tab. xiv.
Sanglin or Cagui minor. Edw. 218. Ph. Tr. abridg. 1751. p. 146. tab. vii. Br. Mus.
M. with a very round head: about the ears two very long full tufts of white hairs standing out on each side: irides reddish: face a swarthy flesh-color: ears like the human: head black; body ash-colored, reddish, and dusky; the last forms striated bars cross the body: tail full of hair, annulated with ash-color and black: body seven inches long: tail near eleven: hands and feet covered with short hairs: fingers like those of a squirrel: nails, or rather claws, sharp.
Inhabits Brasil: feeds on vegetables; will also eat fish*: makes a weak noise: very restless; often brought over to Europe.
* Edw. Gleanings, p. 17.
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SILKY MONKEY No. 101.
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101. SILKY.
Cercopithecus minor dilutè olivaceus, parvo capite, Acarima a Cayenne. Barrere France Æquin. 151.
Cercopithecus ex albo flavicans, fucie circumferentia, saturaté rufa. Le petit singe Lion. Brisson quad. 142.
Simia Rosalia. S. caudata imberbis, capite piloso, facie circumferentia pedibusque rubris, unguibus subulatis. Lin. syst. 41
Le Marikina de Buffon, xv. 108. tab. xvi.
M. with a flat face, of a dull purple color: ears round and naked: on the sides of the face the hairs very long, turning backwards, of a bright bay color; sometime yellow, and the former only in patches: the hair on the body long, very fine, silky, glossy, and of a pale but bright yellow: hands and feet naked, and of a dull purple color: claws instead of nails to each finger: length of head and body ten inches: tail thirteen and a half; a little bushy at the end.
Inhabits Guiana.
Pinche Condamine's voy. 83.
Simia Œdipus. S. caudata imberbis, capillo dependente, cauda rubra, unguibus subulatis. Lin. syst. 41.
Cercopithecus pilis ex fusco et rufo vestitus, facie ultra auriculas usque nigra et nuda, vertice longis pilis obsita. Brisson quad. 150.
Le Pinche de Buffon, xv. 114. tab. xvii.
Little Lion Monkey. Edw. 195.
102. RED-TAILED.
M. with a round head and black pointed face: ears round and dusky: hair on the head white, long, and spreading over the shoulders: shoulders and back covered with long and loose brown hairs: rump and half the tail deep orange-colored, almost red; the remaining part black: throat black:
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breast, belly, and legs, white: insides of the hands and feet black: claws crooked and sharp: length of the head and body eight inches; tail above twice as long.
Inhabits Guiana, Brasil, and the banks of the river of Amazons, whose woods swarm with numberless species: is agile and lively, and has a soft whistling note.
103. FAIR.
A Sagoin, &c. Condamine's voy. 83.
Cercopithecus ex cinereo albus argenteus, facie auriculisque rubris splendentibus, cauda castanei coloris. Brisson quad. 142.
Le Mico. de Buffon, xv. 121. tab. xviii.
M. with a small round head: face and ears of the most lively vermillion color: body covered with most beautifull long hairs of a bright and silvery whiteness, of matchless elegance: tail of a shining dark chesnut: head and body eight inches long; tail twelve.
Inhabits the banks of the Amazons, discovered by M. de Condamine.
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I TAIL-LESS MAUCAUCO No. 104. II YELLOE M. No. 108.
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XVI. MAUCAUCO.
Six cutting teeth, and two canine teeth in each jaw. Sharp pointed fox-like visage.
Feet formed like hands.
104. TAIL-LESS.
Animal elegantissimum Robinsoni. Raii syn. quad. 161.
Animalculum cynocephalum, Ceylonicum, Tardigradum dictum, Simii species. Mas. Seb. Mus. I. tab. 35. Cercopithecus ceylonicus, seu Tardigradus dictus, major Idem. tab. 47. Klein quad. 86.
Lemur tardigradus. L. ecaudatus. Lin. syst. 44.
Simia unguibus indicis pedum posteriorum longis, incurvis, et acutis. Brisson. guad. 134. S. cynocephala unguibus indicis longis incurvis et acutis. Idem. 135.
Le Loris de Buffon, xiii. 210.
M. with a small head; sharp pointed nose: orbits surrounded with a black circle, space between them white: from the top of the head along the middle of the back, to the rump, a dark ferruginous line, which on the forehead is bifurcated: ears small: body covered with short, soft, and silky ash-colored, and reddish fur: toes naked: nails flat: those of the inner toe on each hind foot long, crooked and sharp: length from the nose to the rump sixteen inches.
Inhabits Ceylon and Bengal; lives in the woods, and feeds on fruits: is fond of eggs, and will greedily devour small birds: has the action and inactivity of the sloth*, creeps slowly along the ground: is very tenacious of its hold; and makes a plaintive noise.
M. de Buffon represents his animal with a much longer visage than this; his is the same with that represented by Seba, tab. 35, and each of them
* Vide that article: this animal, notwithstanding its manners, cannot be ranked with the sloth, having both cutting and canine teeth.
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much less than our animal; but whether they are the same I cannot at present determine.
105. WOOLLY.
Macassar fox. Nieuhoff voy. 361. chitote Barbot. 560.
Vary (1). Flacourt. hist. Madag. 153.
Simia-seiurus lanuginosus fuscus Petiv. Gaz. tab. 17.
The Mongooz. Edw. 216.
Prosimia fusca. Pr. fusca naso pedibusque albis. Pr. fusca. ruso admixto, facie nigra, pedibus fulvis. Brisson quad. 156, 157.
Lemur Mongooz. L. caudatus griseus, cauda unicolore. Lin. syst. 44.
Le Monogouz. de Buffon, xiii. 174. tab. xxvi.
M. with orange-colored irides: short rounded ears: end of the nose black: eyes lodged in a circle of black; the space between them of the same color: rest of the nose and, lower sides of the cheeks white: when in full health the whole upper part of the body covered with long, soft and thick fur, a little curled or waved, of a deep brownish ash color: tail very long, covered with the same sort of hair, and of the same color: breast and belly white: hands and feet naked, and dusky: nails flat, except that of the inner toe of the hind feet: size of a cat: varies, sometimes with white or yellow paws, and with a face wholly brown.
Inhabits Madagascar, and the adjacent isles: sleeps on trees: turns its tail over its head to protect it from rain*: lives on fruits: is very sportive and good-natured: very tender; found as far as Celebes, or Macassar. Linnæus confounds this with Mr. Edwards's black maucauco, our 107th.
* Cauche's voy. Madagascar, 53.
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106. RING-TAIL.
Vari Flacourt. hist. Madag. 153.
Mocawk. Grose's voy. 41.
Maucauco. Edw. 197.
Prosimia cinerea, caudâ cinctâ annulis alternatim albis et nigris. Brisson quad. 157.
Lemur Catta. L. caudatus, cauda albo nigroque annulata. Lin. syst. 45. Osbeck's voy. II. 168.
Le Mococo de Buffon, xiii. 173. tab. xxii.
M. with the end of the nose black: ears erect: white face: black circles round the orbits: hair on the top of the head and hind part, deep ash color: back and sides reddish ash color: outsides of the limbs paler: belly and inside of the limbs white: all its hair very soft, close and fine, erect like the pile of velvet: tail twice the length of the body; is marked with numbers of regular rings of black and white; and when sitting twisted round the body, and brought over its head: nails flat, particularly those of the thumbs of the hind feet: inside of the hands and feet black: size of a cat.
Inhabits Madagascar and the neighboring isles: is very good-natured, has all the life of a monkey, without its mischievous disposition: is very cleanly: its cry weak: in a wild state, goes in troops of thirty or forty: is easily tamed when taken young: according to Flacourt sometimes found white; Cauche in his voyage to Madagascar* also speaks of a white kind, which he says grunts like swine, and is called there Amboimenes.
* p. 53.
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107. RUFFED.
Vari ou Varicossi. Flacourt. hist. Madag. 153. Cauche's voy. 53.
Black Maucauco. Edw. 217.
Le Vari. de Buffon, xiii. 174. tab. xxvii.
Lemur caudatus niger, collari barbato. Lin. syst. 44.
M. with orange-colored irides; long hair round the sides of the head, standing out like a ruff: tail long: the color of the whole animal black, but not always, being sometimes white, spotted with black; but the feet black: rather larger than the last.
Inhabits Madagascar: very fierce in a wild state; and make so violent a noise in the woods, that it is easy to mistake the noise of two for that of a hundred: when tamed are very gentle and good-natured. The hind thighs and legs of these three species are very long, which makes their pace sideling, and bounding.
108. YELLOW.
M. with a short dusky nose; small eyes: ears short, broad, and flapping, and placed at a great distance from each other: head flat and broad: cheeks swelling out: tongue very long: legs and thighs short, and very thick: five toes to each foot, separated and standing all forward: claws large, a little hooked, and of a flesh color: the hairs short, soft, glossly, closely set together: on the head, back, and sides a mixture of yellow and black: checks, inside of the legs, and the belly, yellow: half way down the middle of the belly is a broad dusky list, ending at the tail; and another from the head along the
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middle of the back to the tail: tail of a bright tawny, mixed with black; is round, and has the same prehensile faculty as some of the monkies have: length from the nose to the tail nineteen inches; of the tail seventeen: very good-natured and sportive; would catch hold of any thing with its tail, and so suspend itself: lay with its head under its legs and belly.
Shewn about three years ago in London: its keeper said it came from the mountains of Jamaica, and called it a Potto, the name given by some writers to a species of Sloth, found in Guinea.
109. FLYING.
Vespertilio admirabilis. Bontius Juva. 68.
Felis volans Ternatana. Seb. Mus. I. tab. 58.
Lemur volans. L. caudatus, membrana ambiente volitans. Lin. syst. 45.
M. with a long head: small mouth and teeth: small ears, round and membranous: from the neck to the hands, thence to the hind feet, extends a broad skin, like that of a flying squirrel; the same is also continued from the hind feet to the tip of the tail, which is included in it: the body and outside of this skin is covered with soft hairs, hoary, or black and ash color: the inner side of the extended skin appears membranous, with little veins and fibres dispersed thro' it: the legs are cloathed with a soft yellow down: five toes on each foot: the claws slender, very sharp, and crooked, by which it strongly adheres to whatsoever it fastens on: the whole length of this species is near three feet: the breadth the same: the tail slender; a span long.
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Inhabits the country about Guzarat, the Molucca isles, and the Philippines: feeds on the fruits of trees: a species very distinct from the bat, and flying squirrel; but from ignorance of the form of its teeth, its genus very doubtfull: placed here on the authority of Linnæus.
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Div. II. Sect. II. DIGITATED QUADRUPEDS: with large canine teeth, separated from the cutting teeth.
Six, or more cutting teeth in each jaw.
Rapacious: carnivorous.
XVII. DOG.
Six cutting teeth, and two canine in each jaw.
Five toes before; four behind*.
Long visage.
110. FAITHFULL.
D. with its tail bending towards the left: a character common to the whole species, first observed by Linnæus.
Not originally in a wild state: the prædominant passion of the whole race towards an attachment to mankind, prevented these animals from separating themselves from us; till deserted, or by some accident left in places where there was no possibility of re-union: it seems beyond the power of ill usage to subdue the faithfull and constant qualities inherent in them. Found in great numbers wild, or rather without masters, in Congo, Lower Æthiopia, and towards the Cape of Good Hope**: are red haired: have slender bodies, and turned up tails, like grehounds; others resemble hounds. Go in great packs: attack lions, tigers, and elephants, but are often killed by them: the sight of these dogs pleas-
* Invariable in the wild species, such as wolf, &c. in the common dogs, oftimes five toes on each foot.
** Churchill's coll. voy. V. 486. Kolben's hist. Cape, II. 106, 107.
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ing to travellers, who suppose they have conquered the wild beasts, and secured their journey, by driving them away: chace all sort of animals: when they have run down a beast, still preserve that sort of respect to mankind, as to permit part of it to be taken from them without growling: attack the sheep of the Hottentots, and commit great ravages among them.
Multitudes wild in S. America: derived from the European race: breed in holes, like rabbet holes*: when found young instantly attach themselves** to mankind: nor will they ever join themselves to the wild dogs; or desert their masters: these have not forgot to bark†, as Linnæus says: look like a grehound‡: have erect ears: are very vigilant; excellent in the chase.
The dog unknown in America before it was introduced there by the Europeans: the Alco of the Peruvians, a little animal, which they were so fond of, and kept as a lap dog, too slightly mentioned by A-Costa for us to determine what it was: the figure given by Hernandez‖ too rude to form any judgement of: the other animal described by Fernandez is a large species, he calls it Xoloizicuintli, the same name that is given by the first to the Mexi-
* Narrative of the distresses of Isaac Morris, &c. belonging to the Wager Storeship belonging to Commodore Anson's squadron, p. 27.
** The same, p. 28.
† The same, p. 37.
‡ As appears from a drawing communicated to me by Mr. Green-wood, painter, who took it from one that followed an Indian to Surinam from the inland part of the country.
‖ 466.
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can wolf*; as it is certain that the dog of N. America, or rather its substitute, on its first discovery by the English, was derived from the† wolf, tamed and domesticated; so it is reasonable to imagine that of S. America had the same origin: these substitutes cannot bark, but betray their savage descent by a sort of howl: want the sagacity of a true dog; serve only to drive the deer into corners: the wolfish breed to this day detested‡ by European dogs, who worry them on all occasions, retaining that dislike which it is well known all dogs have to the wolf: this reclaimed breed commonly white: have sharp noses, and upright ears.
The dog subject to more variety than any other animal; each will mix with the other, and produce varieties still more unlike the original stock: M. de Buffon, who with great ingenuity has given a genealogical table of all the known dogs, makes the Chien de Berger, the shepherds dog, or what is sometimes called Le chien-loup, or the wolf dog, the origin of all, because it is naturally the most sensible; becomes, without discipline, almost instantly the guardian of the flocks; keeps them within bounds, reduces the stragglers to their proper limits, and defends them from the attacks of the wolves. We have this variety in England; but it is small and weak. Those of France and the Alps, are very large and strong; sharp-nosed, erect, and sharp-eared; very hairy, especially about the neck, and
* Hernandez, 479.
† Smith's hist. Virginia, 27.
‡ Catesby Carolina, II. App. xxvi.
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have their tails turned up or curled; and by accident, their faces often shew the marks of their combats with the wolf.
I shall follow M. de Buffon, in the catalogue of dogs; but add some few remarks, with the synonyms of a few other writers, to each variety.
I. SHEPHERD'S Dog, Le Chien de Berger, de Buffon, v. 201, tab. xxviii. Canis domesticus. Raii syn. quad. Lin. syst. 57.
Its varieties, or nearest allies, are,
α POMERANIAN Dog, Le Chien Loup de Buffon. tab. xxix.*
β SIBERIAN Dog, Le Chien de Siberie. Tab. xxx.
II. Hound, or dog with long smooth and pendulous ears. Le Chien courant. p. 205. tab. xxxii. Canis venaticus sagax. Raii syn. quad. 177. Canis sagax. Lin. syst. 57. This is the same with the blood-hound. Br. Zool. I. 51. and is the head of the other kinds with smooth and hanging ears.
α HARRIER. Le Braque. Tab. xxxiii.
* Notwithstanding M. de Buffon denies the junction of the wolf and bitch, yet there has been lately an instance to the contrary. Mr. Brook, animal-merchant, in Holborn, turned a wolf to a Pomeranian bitch in heat: the congress was immediate, and as usual between dog and bitch: she produced ten puppies. I have since seen one of them that had very much the resemblance of a wolf, and much of its nature; being slipped at a weak deer, instantly caught at the animal's throat and killed it.
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β. DALMATIAN*. Le Braque de Bengal. tab. xxxiv. a beautifull spotted kind, vulgarly called the Danish dog.
γ. TURNSPIT. Le Basset a jambes torses—a jambes droites tab. xxxv.
δ. WATER dog, great and small. Le grand and le petit Barbet. tab. xxxvii. xxxviii. Canis aviarius aquaticus. Raii syn quad. 177. Lin. syst. 57.
From No. II. branches out another race of dogs, with pendent ears, covered with long hairs, and less in size, which form
III. SPANIEL. Canis aviarius, five Hispanicus campestris. Raii syn quad. 177. Canis avicularius? Lin. syst. 57. These vary in size, from the setting dog to the springing spaniels, and some of the little lap dogs, such as
α. KING CHARLES'S**. Le Gredin tab. xxxix. fig. 1.
β. PYRAME. Le Pyrame tab. xxxix. fig. 2. There is no English name for this kind: they are black, marked on the legs with red: and above each eye is a spot of the same color.
* I have been informed, that Dalmatia is the country of this elegant dog. As for those of India, they are generally small and very ugly; or, if the European dogs are brought there, immediately degenerate.
** CHARLES II. never went out, except attended by numbers of this kind.
L
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γ SHOCK. Le chien de malte ou Bichon tab. xl. fig. 1. & Le chien Lion fig. 2. Catulus melitæus canis getulus, seu Islandicus. Raii syn. quad. 177. Lin. syst. 57.
IV. Dogs with short pendent ears: long legs and bodies: of which kind is the
α. IRISH GRE-HOUND. A variety once very frequent in Ireland, and used in the chace of the wolf: now very scarce: a dog of great size and strength. Le Matin†. de Buffon. tab. xxv. Canis grains Hibernicus. Raii syn. quad. 176.
γ. COMMON GRE-HOUND. Le Levrier de Buffon xxvii. Canis venaticus graius. Raii syn. quad. 176. Canis graius Lin. syst. 57. its varieties are, 1. ITALIAN GRE-HOUND, small, and smooth: 2. Oriental, tall, slender, with very pendulous ears, and very long hairs on the tail, hanging down a great length.
γ DANISH DOG. Le grand Danois de Buffon xxvi. of a stronger make than a gre-hound: the largest of dogs: perhaps of this kind were the dogs of Epirus, mentioned by Aristotle, lib. iii. c. 21; or those of Albania, so beautifully described by Pliny. Lib. viii. c. 40.
δ MASTIFF. Very strong and thick made: the head large: the lips great, and hanging down on each
† Not the mastiff, as commonly translated.
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side: a fine and noble countenance: grows to a great size: a British kind. For a further account of this and other British dogs, vide Br. Zool. I. 40, Le Dogue de forte race. de Buffon tab. xlv. mastivus Raii syn. quad. 176. Canis molossus Lin. syst. 57.
V. Dogs with short pendent ears: short compact bodies: short noses: and generally short legs.
α. BULL-DOG: with a short nose, and under jaw longer than the upper: a cruel and very fierce kind, often biting before it barks: peculiar to England: the breed scarcer than it has been since the barbarous custom of bull-baiting has declined. Le Dogue de Buffon tab. xliii.
β. PUG DOG. A small species: an innocent resemblance of the last. Le Doguin de Buffon. tab. xliv.
γ. BASTARD PUG. Le Roquet de Buffon. xli. fig. 2.
̄. NAKED. Le chien Turc. de Buffon xlii. a degenerate species, with naked bodies; having lost its hair by the heat of climate.
* The most faithfull of animals: is the companion of mankind: fawns at the approach of its master: will not suffer any one to strike him: runs before him in a journey; often running backward and for-
* This part is almost entirely translated from Linnæus.
L 2
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ward over the same ground: on coming to cross ways, stops and looks back: very docil: will find out what is dropt: watchfull by night: anounces the coming of strangers: guards any goods committed to its charge: drives cattle home from the field: keeps herds and flocks within bounds: protects them from wild beasts: points out to the sportsman the game, by virtue of its acute sense of smelling: brings the birds that are shot to its master: will turn a spit: at Brussels and in Holland draws little carts to the herb market: in Siberia draws a sledge with its master in it, or loaden with provisions: sits up and begs*: when it has committed a theft slinks away with its tail between its legs: eats enviously with oblique eyes: is master among its fellows: enemy to beggars: attacks strangers without provocation: fond of licking wounds: cures the gout and cancers: howls at certain notes in musick, and often urines on hearing them: bites at a stone flung at it: is sick at the approach of bad weather: gives itself a vomit by eating grass: is afflicted with tape-worms: spreads its madness: grows blind with age: sæpe gonnorbæa infectus: driven as unclean from the houses of the Mahometans; yet the same people establish hospitals for them, and allow them a daily dole of food: eats flesh, carrion, farinaceous vegetables not greens: fond of rolling in carrion: dungs on a stone; its dung the greatest of Septics: drinks by lapping: makes water side-ways, with its leg held up; very
* The French Academicians record a marvellous tale of a dog that could speak and call for tea, coffee and chocolate.
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apt to repeat it where another dog has done the same: odorat anum alterius: menstruans catulit cum variis; mordet illa illos; cahæret copula junctus. Goes 63 days with young; brings from four to ten; the males like the dog, females like the bitch: its scent exquisite: goes obliquely: foams when hot, and hangs out its tongue: scarce sweats: about to lie down, often goes round the spot: its sleep attended with a quick sense of hearing: dreams.
111. WOLF.
Lupus Gesner quad. 634. Raii syn. quad. 173
Welf Klein quad. 69. Kram. Aust. 313
Canis ex griseo flavescens. Brisson quad. 170.
Canis Lupus. C. cauda incurvata. Lin. syst. 58.
Warg, Ulf Faun. suec. No. 6.
Le Loup de Buffon, vii. 39. tab. I.
Wolf. Br. Zool. I. 61. tab. I.
D. with a long head: pointed nose; ears erect and sharp: tail long, bushy, bending down: long leg'd: hair pretty long: teeth large: color generally pale brown, tinged with yellow; sometimes found white*; in Canada sometimes black: taller than a large grehound.
Inhabits the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa, and America; but not so high as the Arctic circle: have been long extirpated in Great Britain**: the vast forests on the European continent will always preserve them: the wolves of N. America the smal-
* Such are found near the Jenesea, and sold to the Russians on the spot for twenty shillings a skin. Muller Russ. Samlung. III. 527, 529.
** Many centuries have past since they have been destroyed in England; and it is at lest one since they have been extirpated out of Scotland. M. de Buffon must have been greatly misinformed on this point. Les Anglois preténdent en avoir purgè leur isle, cependant on m'a assurè qu'il y en avoit en Ecosse vii. 50.
L 3
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lest; when reclamed, are the dogs of the natives the wolves of Senegal the largest and fiercest; they prey in company with the lion*.
Are cruel, but cowardly animals: fly from man except pressed by hunger, when they prowl by night in vast droves thro' villages, and destroy any persons they meet: such that once get the taste of human blood, give it the preference: such were the wolves of the Gevaudan, of which so many strange tales were told: the French peasants call this Loupgarou, and suppose it to be possessed with some evil spirit: such was the Were Wulf of the old Saxons†. The wolf preys on all kind of animals; but in case of necessity will feed on carrion: in hard weather assemble in vast troops, and join in dreadfull howlings: horses generally defend themselves against their attacks; but all weaker animals fall a prey to them: throughout France the peasants are obliged nightly to house their flocks: wolves are most suspicious animals; sally forth with great caution: have a fine scent, hunt by nose: are capable of bearing long abstinence: to allay their hunger will fill their bellies with mud: a mutual enmity between dogs and them: are in heat in winter, followed by several males, which occasions great combats: goes with young ten weeks: near her time prepares a soft bed of moss, in some retired place: brings from five to nine at a time: the young born blind: teeth of the wolf large and sharp: its bite terrible, as its strength is great: the hunters therefore cloath
* Adanson's voy. 209.
† Verstegan's Antiq. 236.
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their dogs, and guard their necks with spiked collars: wolves are proscribed animals, destroyed by pit-falls, traps or poison: a peasant in France, who kills a wolf, carries its head thro' the villages, and collects some small reward from the inhabitants: the Kirghis-Khaissacks take the wolves by the help of a large sort of hawk called Berkut, which is trained for the diversion, and will fasten on them and tear out their eyes*.
The Coyotl** of New Spain is a small species of wolf; very fierce and ravenous: of a size between a wolf and a fox.
MEXICAN WOLF. Xoloizcuintli Hernandes Mex. 479.
Cuetlachtli, seu lupus indicus. Fernandez An. Nov. Hisp. 7.
Canis cinereus, maculis fulvis variegatus, tæniis subnigris a dorso ad latera deorsum hinc inde deductis. Brisson quad. 172.
Canis mexicanus. C. cauda deflexa lævi, corpore cinereo, fasciis fuscis, maculisque fulvis variegato. Lin. syst. 60.
Le Loup de Mexique. de Buffon, xv. 149.
D. with a very large head: great jaws: vast teeth: on the upper lips very strong bristles, reflected backwards, not unlike the softer spines of a porcupine; and of a grey and white color: large, erect, cinereous ears; the space between marked with broad tawny spots: the head ash colored, striped transversely with bending dusky lines: neck fat and thick, covered with a loose skin, marked with a long tawny stroke: on the breast is another of the same kind: body ash colored, spotted with black;
* Ritchkoff Topog. Orenb. I. 282.
** Coyotl seu vulpes indica. Fernandez Nov. Hisp. 4.
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and the sides striped from the back downwards, with the same color: belly cinereous: tail long, of the color of the belly, tinged in the middle with tawny: legs and feet striped with black and ash color: sometimes this variety (for Fernandez, who has described the animals of Mexico, thinks it no other) is found white.
Inhabits the hot parts of Mexico, or New Spain: agrees with the European wolf in its manners: attacks cattle, and sometimes men. No wolves found farther South, on the new continent.
112. FOX.
Vulpes Gesner quad. 966. Raii syn. quad. 177.
Fuchs Klein. quad. 73. Meyer's An. I. tab. 36.
Canis vulpes. C. cauda recta apice albo. Lin. syst. 59. Hasselquist. itin. 191.
Raef Faun. suec. No. 7.
Canis fulvus, pilis cinereis intermixtis. Brisson quad. 173.
Le Renard. de Buffon, vii. 75. tab. vi.
Fox. Br. Zool. I. 58.
D. with a sharp nose: lively hazel eyes: sharp erect ears: body tawny red, mixed with ash color: fore part of the legs black: tail long, strait, bushy, tipt with white: subject to much variety in color.
α. Fox: with the tip of the tail black. Canis alopex, vulpes campestris. Lin. syst. 59.
β. CROSS FOX: with a black mark, passing transversely from shoulder to shoulder; and another along the back, to the tail. Vulpes crucigera. Gesner quad. 90. Jonston. quad. I. 93. Schæffer Lapl. 135. Hist. Kamtschatka. 95. Klein quad. 71.
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Le Renard croisé. Brisson quad. 173. de Buffon xiii. 276.
Korsraef. Faun. suec. p. 4.
Inhabits the coldest parts of Europe, Asia, and North America: a valuable fur; thicker and softer than the common sort: great numbers of the skins imported from Canada. Not a variety of the Isatis or Arctic fox.
γ. BLACK FOX. The most cunning of any: and its skin the most valuable; a lining of it esteemed in Russia preferable to that of the finest sables: a single skin will sell for 400 rubels: inhabits the northern parts of Asia, and N. America: the last of inferior goodness.
δ. BRANT FOX. That described by Gesner* and Linnæus** is of a fiery redness; and called by the first Brand-fuchs, by the last Brandraef: one that was the property of Mr. Brook, was scarce half the size of the common fox: the nose black, and much sharper: space round the ears ferruginous: forehead, back, shoulders, sides and thighs, black, mixed with red, ash color, and black; the ash color predominated, which gave it a hoary look: the belly yellowish: tail black above, red beneath: cinereous on its side. This Mr. Brook received from Pensylvania, under the name of Brant fox.
* Gesner quad. 967. who likewise says it is less than the common kind.
** Faun. suec. No. 7.
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ε CORSAK FOX. Canis corsac. C. cauda fulva basi apiceque nigra. Lin. syst. III. 223.
D. with upright ears: soft downy hair: tail bushy, the length of the body: throat white: irides yellowish green: color in summer pale tawny; in winter grey: base, and tip of the tail, black: a small kind.
Inhabits the deserts beyond the Yaik: lives in holes: howls and barks: caught by the Kirghis-Khaissacks, with falcons and gre-hounds: 40 or 50,000 are taken annually, and sold to the Russians, at the rate of 40 Kopeiks, or 20 pence each: the former use their skins instead of money: great numbers are sent into Turky*.
COMMON FOX inhabits all Europe, the cold and temperate parts of Asia**, Barbary, but not the hotter parts of Africa; abounds in N. America; and are also found in S. America†: in all countries have the same cunning disposition; the same eagerness after prey; and commit the same ravages among game, birds, poultry, and the lesser quadrupeds: are very fond of honey; attack the wild bees, and nests of wasps, for sake of the magots: will eat any sort of insects: devour fruit; and are very de-
* Ritchkoff Topogr. Orenb. I. 296.
** In great numbers in the Holy Land, especially in the season of grapes; their ravages among the vines mentioned in the Song of SOLOMON, II. 15.
† Garcilasso de la Vega says, that the foxes of Peru are much less than those of Spain, and are called Atoc. p. 331.
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structive in vineyards: bury what they cannot eat: fond of basking in the sun.
Lodge under ground; generally making use of a badger's hole, which they enlarge, adding several chambers, and never neglecting to form another hole to the surface to escape at, in cases of extremity: prey by night: females in heat in winter; bring five or six at a time; if the young are disturbed, will remove them one by one to a more secure place: their voice a yelp, not a bark: their bite like that of the wolf, is very hard and dangerous: their scent excessively strong; the chace on that account more keen, more animating: when chased first attempt to recover their hole, but finding that stopped generally fly the country.
Vulpes alba, Jonston quad. 93.
Fox, Marten's Spitzberg. 100. Egede Greenl. 62. Crantz Greenl. I. 72.
Ashen-colored Fox, Schæffer Lapland, 135.
Canis Lagopus. C. cauda recta, apice concolore. Lin. syst. 59.
Fial racka, Faun. suec. No. 8.
Canis hieme alba, æstate ex cinereo cærulescens. Brisson quad. 174.
Isatis. Nov. Com. Petrop. V. 358. de Buffon, xiii. 272. Ash. Mus.
113. ARCTIC.
D. with a sharp nose: short rounded ears: almost hid in the fur: long and soft hair, somewhat woolly: short legs: toes covered on all parts, like that of a hare, with fur: tail shorter than that of the common fox, and more bushy: of a bluish grey, or ash-color; sometimes white: the young of the grey are black before they come to maturity: hair much longer in winter than summer, as usual with animals of cold climates.
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Inhabits the countries bordering on the frozen sea; Kamtschatka, the isles between it and America, and the opposite parts of America discovered in Captain Bering's expedition, 1741; is again found in Greenland, Iceland, Spitzbergen, Nova Zembla, and Lapland: burrows under ground; forms holes many feet in length; strews the bottom with moss: in Greenland and Spitzbergen, lives in the cliffs of rocks, not being able to burrow, by reason of the frost: two or three pair inhabit the same hole: are in heat about Lady-Day; during that time continue in the open air; afterwards take to their holes: go with young nine weeks: like dogs continue united in copulation: bark like that animal; for which reasons the Russians call them Peszti*: have all the cunning of the common fox: prey on the young of geese, ducks, and other water fowl, before they can fly; on grouse of the country, and hares, on the eggs of birds; and in Greenland (through necessity) on berries, shell fish, or any thing the sea flings up; but their principal food in the North of Asia, and in Lapland, is the Leming†, or Lapland Marmot: those of the countries last mentioned are very migratory, pursuing the Leming, a very wandering animal: sometimes these foxes will desert the country for three or four years, probably in pursuit of their prey; for it is well known that the migrations of the Leming is very inconstant, appearing in certain countries only once in several years: the people of Jenesea suspect they
* Or dogs, Strahlenberg hist. Russia, 363.
† No. 202.
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go to the banks of the Oby: are taken in traps: oft-time the glutton and great owl destroys them, before the hunter can take them out: the skins of small value: the great rendezvous of these animals on the banks of the frozen sea, and the rivers that flow into it, being found there in great troops.
Grey fox. Smith's voy. Virginia, 27. Josselyn's voy. 82. rarities, 21.
Lawson's Carolina, 125. Catesby Carolina, II. 78.
Canis ex cinereo argenteus Brisson quad. 174.
114. GREY.
D. with a sharp nose: sharp, long upright ears: legs long: color grey, except a little redness about the ears.
Inhabits Carolina, and the warmer parts of N. America: differs from the arctic fox in form; and in nature of its dwelling: agrees with the common fox in the first, varies from it in the last: never burrows; lives in hollow trees: gives no diversion to the sportsman, for after a mile's chace takes to its retreat: has no strong smell: feeds on poultry, birds, &c. easily made tame: their skins, when in season, made use of for muffs.
Le renard argentè. Charlevoix Nouv. France, V. 196. Du Pratz. Louisian. II. 64.
115. SILVERY.
In form resembling the common fox: abound in the wooded eminencies, in Louisiana, which are every where pierced with their holes: their coat very beautifull: the short hairs of a deep brown; over them spring long silvery, hairs which give the animal a very elegant appearance: as they live in fo-
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rests abounding with game, never attempt the poultry, which run at large.
116. JACKAL.
Adil, Squilachi Græc. modern. Belon obs. 163.
Lupus Aureus. Kæmfer. Amæn. exot. 413. Raii syn. quad. 174.
Klein quad. 70.
Canis aureus. Lin. syst. 59.
Canis flavus Brisson quad. 171.
Le Chacal & L'Adive. de Buffon, xiii. 255.
D. of the form of a wolf, but much less: the color a bright yellow.
Inhabits all the hot and temperate parts of Asia; is found in Barbary, and other parts of Africa, as low as the Cape of Good Hope. They go in packs of 40, 50, even of 200, and hunt like hounds in full cry, from evening to morning*: they destroy the flocks, and poultry, ravage the streets of villages and gardens, near towns, and will even destroy children** that happen to be unprotected: they will enter stables and out-houses, and devour skins, and any thing else formed of that material: there is scarce an animal they will leave unmolested: in default of living prey, will feed on roots, fruits, and the most infected carrion: will greedily disinter the dead†, and feed on the putrid corpses; for which reason, in many countries, the graves are made of a great depth, and well secured against their attacks: they attend caravans, and follow armies, in hopes that death will provide them a banquet: their howls and clamors are dreadfull, and
* Belon obs. 163.
** Russel's Aleppo, 60. Dellon's voy. 81.
† Boullaye-le-Gouz, 254.
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so loud that people can scarce hear one another speak: during day they are silent, and retire to their dens. Dellon says that they are sometimes tamed, and kept among other domestic animals.
This animal is vulgarly called the Lion's provider, from an opinion that it rouzes the prey for that bad nosed quadruped. The fact is, every creature in the forest is set in motion by the fearfull cries of the Jackals; the Lion, and other beasts of rapine, by a sort of instinct, attend to the chase, and seize such timid animals that betake themselves to flight at the noise of this nightly pack. Described by Oppian* under the name of λυϰ Ξзϑоς, or Yellow wolf; who mentions its horrible howl. It is strange, that an animal so common in the Levant, should never have been brought over to be described by any modern Naturalist. The descriptions yet remain very obsure; and there is still great uncertainty, whether the Jackal, and the Adive of M. de Buffon, are the same, or different animals. A stuft skin of one in the Ashmolean Museum (in very ill preservation) had none of that brilliant color ascribed to it by Belon.
May, as M. de Buffon conjectures, be the Θως of Aristotle**, who mentions it with the wolf, and says that it has the same internal structure as the wolf, which is common with congenerous animals. The Thoes of Pliny may also be a variety of the same animal; for his account of it agrees with the modern history of the Jackal, except in the last article†.
* Cyneg. III. 296.
** Hist. An. lib. II. c. 17. lib. ix. c. 44.
† Thoes, Luporum id genus est procerius longitudine, breviate crurum dissimilo, Velox saltu, venatu vivens, innocuum homini. Lib. viii. c. 34.
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117. SURINAM.
Canis Thous. C. cauda deflexa lævi, corpore subgriseo subtus albo. Lin. syst. 60.
D. with upright ears: little warts on the cheeks, above the eyes, and under the throat: the tongue fringed on the sides: size of a large cat: color of the upper part of the body greyish; the lower white: tail bending downwards, and smooth: five toes before, four behind.
According to Linnœus, inhabits Surinam: mentioned by no other Naturalist.
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Six cutting teeth and two canine in each jaw.
Four toes on each foot.
Short tail; a transverse orifice between it and the anus.
XVIII. HYÆNA.
υαινα Aristot. hist. An. lib. vi. c. 32. Oppian Cyneg. III. 263.
Hyæna Plinii, lib. viii. c. 30.
Lapus marinus Belon aquat. 33. Gesner quad.
Taxus porcinus, sive Hyæna veterum. Kaftoar. Kœmfer Amœn. Exot. 411.
Dubha Shaw's travels, 246.
Hyæna Russel's Aleppo, 59.
Canis Hyæna. C. cauda recta annulata, pilis cervicis erectis, auriculis nudis, palmis tetradactylis. Liu. syst. 58.
L'Hyæne de Buffon, ix. 268. tab. xxv. Brisson quad. 169.
118. STRIPED.
H. with long sharp pointed naked ears: upright mane: high shoulders: fore legs longer than the hind legs: hair on the body course, rough, and pretty long, of an ash color, marked with long black stripes, from the back downwards; others cross the legs: tail very full of hair, sometimes plain, sometimes barred with black: size of a large dog, but very strongly made.
Inhabits Asiatic Turky, Syria, Persia, and Barbary: like the jackal violates the repositories of the dead, and greedily devours the putrid contents of the grave; like it, preys on the herds and flocks; yet, for want of other food, will eat the roots of plants*, and the tender shoots of the palms; but contrary to the nature of the former, is an unsociable animal; is solitary, and inhabits the chasms of the rocks. The superstitious Arabs, when they kill one, care-
* Shaw's Travels, 246.
M
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fully bury the head*, least it should be applied to magical purposes; as the neck was of old by the Thessalian sorceress.
Viscera non Lyneis, non diræ nodus Hyæna Defuit**.
The antients were wild in their opinion of the Hyæna: they believed that it changed its sex, imitated the human voice; that it had power of charming the shepherds, and as it were rivetting them to the place they stood on: no wonder that an ignorant Arab should attribute to its remains preternatural powers.
They are cruel, fierce, and untameable animals, with a most malevolent aspect: have a sort of obstinate courage, which will make them face stronger quadrupedsthan themselves; Kæmpfer relates that he saw one which had put two lions to flight, regarding them with the utmost coolness. Their voice is hoarse, a disagreeable mixture of growling and roaring.
119. SPOTTED.
Jackal, or wild Dog, Bosman's Guinea, 293.
Quumbengo Churchill's coll. voy. v. 486.
Tiger wolf Kolben's Cape, II. 108.
Hyæna or Crocuta? Ludolph. Æthiopia, 57.
Cani-apor-lupo-vulpes? Deslandes Hist. de l' Acad. tom. xxviii. 50. octavo ed.
H. with a large and flat head: above each eye some long hairs: on each side of the nose very long whiskers: short black mane: hair on the body short and
* Shaw's Travels, 246.
** Lucan, lib. vi. 672. The antients believed that the neck of the Hyæna consisted of one bone without any joint.
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I ARCTIC FOX No. 113. II SPOTTED HYÆNA No. 119.
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smooth: ears short, and a little pointed; their outside black, inside cinereous: face, and upper part of the head black: body and limbs reddish brown, marked with distinct round black spots: the hind legs with transverse black bars; tail short, black, and full of hair.
Inhabits Guinea, Æthiopia, and the Cape: lives in holes in the earth, or cliffs of rocks: preys by night: howls horribly: breaks into the folds, and kills two or three sheep: devours as much as it can, and carries away one for a future repast: will attack mankind; scrape open graves, and devour the dead. M. de Buffon, misled by Bosman's name of this animal, makes it synonymous with the common jackal. Has, till the present time, been undistinguished by naturalists. This description taken from one shewn some years ago in London.
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XIX. CAT.
Six cutting teeth, and two canine in each jaw.
Five toes before; four behind.
Sharp hooked claws, lodged in a sheath that may be exerted or drawn in at pleasure.
Round head, and short visage: rough tongue.
* With long tails.
120. LION.
Leo Plinii, lib. viii. c. l6. Gesner quad. 572. Raii syn. quad. 162.
Lowe Klein quad. 81.
Felis cauda in floccum desineute. Brisson quad. 194.
Felis Leo. F. cauda elongata, corpore helvulo. Lin syst. 60.
Le Lion de Buffon, ix. 1. tab. I. II.
C. with a large head: short rounded ears: face covered with short hairs: upper part of the head, chin, whole neck and shoulders, with long shaggy hairs, like a mane: hair on the body and limbs short and smooth; along the bottom of the belly long: limbs of vast strength: tail long, with a tuft of long hairs at the end: color tawny, but on the belly inclines to white: length of the largest lion from nose to tail above eight feet: the tail four feet: the lioness or female is less, and wants the mane.
An inhabitant of all parts of Africa; and the hot parts of Asia, such as India and Persia, and a few are still met with in the deserts between Bagdat and Bassorah, on the banks of the Euphrates; but they are found in greatest numbers in the torrid zone, where their size is the largest, and their rage more
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tremendous, being enflamed by the influence of a burning sun, on a most arid soil. In the interior parts of Africa*, amidst the scorched and desolate deserts of Zaara, or Biledulgerid, they reign sole masters; they lord it over every beast, and their courage never meets with a check, where the climate keeps mankind at a distance: the nearer they approach the habitations of the human race, the less their rage, or rather the greater is their timidity**; they have often experienced the unequal combat, and finding that there exists a being superior to them, commit their ravages with more caution: a cooler climate again has the same effect; for in the burning deserts, where rivers and fountains are denied, they live in a perpetual fever, a sort of madness fatal to every animal they meet with: the author of the œconomy of nature gives a wonderful proof of the instinct of these animals in those unwatered tracts. There the Pelican makes her nest; and in order to cool her young ones, and accustom them to an element they must afterwards be conversant in, brings from afar, in their great gular pouch, sufficient water to fill the nest; the lion, and other wild beasts, approach and quench their thirst, yet never injure the unfledged† birds, as if conscious that their destruction would immediately put a stop to those gratefull supplies.
The courage of the lion is tempered with mercy‡,
* Leo Afr. 342.
**Purchas's Pilg. II. 809.
† Amœn. Acad. II. 37.
‡ Leoni tantum feris clementia in supplices: prostratis parcit: et ubi savit, in viros prius, quam in fœminus fremit, in infantes non nifi magna fame. Plinii, lib. viii. c. 16. Misson, vol. III. 292. confirms the last.
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and has been known to spare the weaker animals, as if beneath his attention: there are many instances of its gratitude; relations so strange, that the reader is referred to them in the notes* to the authorities themselves. Lions are capable of being tamed: the monarch of Persia, full of savage state, has, on days of audience**, two great ones chained on each side of the passage to the room of state, led there by keepers, in chains of gold. As they have been so far subdued, why may we not credit the story of their being harnessed for the triumphal car of the conqueror Bacchus?
The lion preys on all kinds of animals: as his scent is bad, his peculiar and tremendous roar strikes terror into every beast of the desert, and sets them in motion, in open view; he then selects his object, and takes it not so much by pursuit, as by a vast bound, striking it with his talons, and tearing it to pieces: in inhabited countries he invades the folds, leaps over the fences with his prey; and such is his strength, that he can carry off a middling ox with the utmost ease†: in many places it takes its prey by surprize, lurking in the thickets, and springing on it: oft-times mankind falls a victim to his hunger, but then it is rather thro' necessity than choice. The Arabs have a notion of his sparing the tender sex, but Doctor Shaw informs us‡ that they make no distinction in these days: the same writer ac-
* A. Gellius. Ælian. Pliny.
** Bell's travels, I. 102.
† La Caille, 294.
‡ Travels, 244.
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quaints us, that the flesh of the lion is often eaten in Barbary, and it resembles veal in taste.
Formerly found in Europe, between the rivers Achelous and Nessus*; none in America; the animal called Puma†, which is mistaken for the lion, is our 129th species.
Tigris Plinii, lib. viii. c. l8. Bontius Java, 53. Gesner quad. 936. Raii syn. quad. 165. Klein. quad. 78.
Felis Tigris. F. cauda elongata, corpore maculis omnibus virgatis. Lin. syst. 61.
Felis flava, maculis long is nigris variegata. Busson quad. 194.
Le Tigre de Buffon, ix. 129. tab. ix.
121. TIGER.
C. with a smooth head and body; vast strength in its limbs; of a pale yellow color, beautifully marked with long stripes of black from the back, pointing to the belly, with others cross the thighs: the tail shorter by a third than the body; annulated with black: often superior in size to a lion; that called the Royal‡ Tiger of a tremendous bulk. M. de Buffon mentions one that was (tail included) fifteen feet long. Du Halde II. 254, says, that the Chinese tigers vary in color, some being white, striped with black and grey.
The tiger is peculiar to Asia§; and is found as far North as China, and Chinese Tartary; it inhabits mount Ararat, and Hyrcania of old, famous for its
* Arislot. hist. An. lib. vi. c. 31.
† Garcilasso de la vega, 332.
‡ Dellon. voy. 78.
§ M. de Buffon says they are found in the South of Africa. I can meet with no authority for it; the animals so called by Ludolphus and Kolben, being only Panthers, or Leopards, which are generally confounded with the Tiger by most voyagers.
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wild beasts; but the greatest numbers, the largest, and the most cruel, are met with in India, and its islands: they are the scourge of the country; they lurk among the bushes, on the sides of rivers, and almost depopulate many places: they are insidious, blood thirsty, and malevolent; and seem to perfer preying on the human race preferable to any other animals: they do not pursue their prey, but bound on it from their ambush, with an elasticity, and from a distance that is scarce credible: if they miss the object, they make off; but if they succeed, be it man, or be it beast, even one as large as a Buffalo*, they carry it off with such ease, that it seems not the lest impediment to their flight: if they are undisturbed, they plunge their head into the body of the animal up to their very eyes, as if it were to satiate themselves with blood, which they exhaust the corps of before they tear it to pieces**: there is a sort of cruelty in their devastations, unknown to the generous lion; as well as a poltronery in their sudden retreat on any disappointment. I was informed, by very good authority, that in the beginning of this century, some gentlemen and ladies, being on a party of pleasure, under a shade of trees, on the banks of a river in Bengal, observed a tiger preparing for its fatal spring; one of the ladies, with amazing presence of mind, layed hold of an umbrella, and furled it full in the animal's face, which instantly retired, and gave the company opportunity of removing from so terrible a neighbor.
* Bontius, 53. Strabo. lib. xv. relates much the same of the Tigers of the country of the Prasii.
** Bontius, 53.
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Another party had not the same good fortune: a tiger darted among them while they were at dinner, seized on one gentleman, and carried him off, and he never was more heard of. They attack ail sorts of animals, even the lion; and it has been known that both have perished in their combats: there is in some parts of India a popular notion*, that the rhinoceros and the tiger are in friendfhip, because they are often found near each other: the fact is, the rhinoceros, like the hog, loves to wallow in the mire; and on that account frequents the banks of rivers; the tiger, to quench its raging thirst, is met with in places contiguous to them.
Pliny has been frequently taken to task by the moderns, for calling the tiger, animal tremendaœ velocitatis**; they allow it great agility in its bounds, but deny it swiftness in pursuit: two travellers of authority, both eye-witnesses, confirm what Pliny says; the one indeed only mentions, in general its vest fleetness; the other saw a tryal between one and a swist horse, whose rider escaped meerly by getting in time amidst a circle of armed men. The chase of this animal was a favorite diversion with the great CAM-HI, the Chinese monarch, in whose company our countryman, Mr. Bell, that faithfull traveller; and the Pere Gerbillon, saw these proofs of the tiger's speed†.
* Bontius, 53.
** Plinii, lib. viii. c. 18.
† Bell's Travels, II. 91. Du Halde, II. 343.
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They are said to roar like a lion; but those I have seen in captivity, emitted only a surly growl.
122. PANTHER.
Varia et Pardus? Plinii, lib. viii. c. 17.
Παϱδαλις μ∊ιζων? Oppian Cyneg. lib. III. l. 63.
Panthera, Pardus, Pardalis, Leopardus Gesner quad. 824. Raii syn. quad. 166. Klein. quad. 77.
Felis Pardus. F. cauda elongata, corpore maculis superioribus orbiculatis; iuferioribus virgatis. Lin. syst. 61*. Brisson quad. 198.
La Panthere de Buffon, ix. 151. tab. xi. xii.
C. with short smooth hair, of a bright tawny color: the back, sides, and flanks elegantly marked with black spots, disposed in circles from four to five in each, with a single black spot in the centre of each: on the face and legs single spots only: on the top of the back is a row of oblong spots; the longest next the tail: the chest and belly white; the first marked with transverse dusky stripes: the belly and tail with large irregular black spots: ears short and pointed: end of the nose brown: limbs very strong: the skin of one I measured, was, from the end of the nose to the origin of the tail, six feet ten inches; the tail near three.
Inhabits Africa, from Barbary to the remotest parts of Guinea†. This species is next in size to the tiger; next to it in cruelty, and in its general enmity to the animal creation: it is to Africa what the former is to Asia, with this alleviation, that it prefers the flesh of brutes to that of mankind; but when pressed with hun-
* A description that does not suit any known animal of this genus.
† Shaw's Travels, 244. des Marchais, I. 204. the last mistakenly calls them Tigers.
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get, attacks every living creature without distinction: its manner of taking its prey is the same with that of the tiger, always by surprize, either lurking in thickets, or creeping on its belly till it comes within reach: it will also climb up trees in pursuit of monkies, and lesser animals; so that nothing is secure from its attacks: it is an untameable species, always retains its fierce, its malevolent aspect, and perpetual growl or murmur.
The antients were well acquainted with these animals; these and the leopards were the Variœ, and Pardi of the old writers: one should think that the Romans would have exhausted the deserts of Africa, by the numbers they drew from thence for their public shews: Scaurus exhibited at one time 150 Panthers; Pompey the great 410; Augustus 420*: probably they thinned the coasts of Mauritania of these animals, but they still swarm in the Southern parts of Guinea.
Oppian describes two species of Panthers; a large species and a small one; the first of which has a shorter tail than the lesser, and may possibly be this kind.
An animal of this species is found in Buckharia, called there Babr; is seven seet long; very destructive to horses, and even camels: the skin is fine, and valued in Russia at Il. sterling†.
* Plinii, lib. viii. c. 17.
† Ritchkoff Orenb. Topogr. I. 28. In China is a most beautifull Kind, called there Louchu, whose skins sell for six pounds, sterling, apiece. Muller Russ. Samlung. III. 549, 608. I must here observe, that there are, in the Furriers shops in London, skins in most respects resembling those of the Panther; which, they have assured me, came from the Spanish settlements in the Weft Indies: These skins equaled those of the old continent, in beauty and size. Notwith-standing M. de Buffon denies this animal to be a native of America, yet I cannot help thinking, that the same, or a variety at lest, inhabits the hot parts of that country. 1. The figure of the species, described by Faber hist. An. Nov. Hisp. 498, under the name of Tigris Mexicana, agrees exactly with that of the Panther; as does the description in general, given p. 507. 2. Every other animal of this genus, which has been yet discovered in America, is far inferior in size and strength to this; whose common height, Faber says, is four or five feet, and whose prey is wild cattle, horses, &c. M. Condamine*, and Le Pere Cajetan Cattaneo**, speak of the Tigers (i. e. the Panthers) of America, as equal, and even superior, in size, to those of Africa; and the color as bright as gold; and Ulloa† describes them as big as little horses. 3. Notwithstanding the venders of furs are not entirely to be relied on, as to the countries their goods come from; yet the general opinion of the whole trade, that these skins were the product of Spanish America, is a further proof of their being common to both continents.
But the new world, especially the part possessed by the jealous Spaniards, is still very imperfectly explored: sufficient space is still left for the conquest of the naturalist; so at present he has no reason to weep, like Alexander, for want of other globes.
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123. LEOPARD.
Uncia Caii opusc. 42. Gesner quad. 825.
Le Leopard des Marchais voy. I. 202.
Le Leopard de Buffon, ix. 151. tab. xiv.
C. with hair of a lively yellow color; marked on the back and sides with small spots, disposed in circles, and placed pretty closely together: the face and legs marked with single spots: the breast and belly covered with longer hairs than the rest of the body, of a whitish color: the spots on the tail large and oblong: the length of this species, from nose to tail, four feet; the tail two and a half.
* Voy. 81.
** Vide three very entertaining Letters added to Muratori's Missions of Paraguay, 259.
† Vol. I. 56.
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Inhabits Senegal and Guinea; spares neither man nor beast: when beasts of chase fail, descends from the internal parts of Africa in crowds, and makes great havoke among the numerous herds that cover the rich meadows of the lower Guinea: it tears its prey to pieces with both claws and teeth; is always thin, tho' perpetually devouring. The Panther is its enemy, and destroys numbers of them. The Negresses make collars of their teeth, and attribute to them certain virtues. The Negroes take these animals in pit-falls, covered at the top with slight hurdles, on which is placed some flesh as a bait. The Negroes make a banquet of these animals, whose flesh is said to be as white as veal, and very well tasted. The skins are often brought to Europe, and reckoned very valuable.
124. LESSER LBOPARD.
C. with the face spotted with black: chin white: a great black spot each side of the upper lip: breast marked with small spots: belly white, spotted with black: back, sides and rump, covered with hair of a bright yellow color: marked with circles of spots, like the former; but the spots much less: not half the bulk of the last; but the tail shorter in proportion, and tapering to a point, and the hair on it short. The tails of the two last species are of equal thickness from top to bottom.
Inhabits the East Indies? kept a few years ago in the Tower: seemed a good-natured animal.
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125. HUNTING.
Le Leopard voy. de la Boullaye-le-gouz. 248.
C. with a small head: irides pale orange: end of the nose black: from each corner of the mouth to that of each eye, a dusky line: ears short, tawny, marked with a brown bar: face, chin and throat, of a pale yellowish brown: the face slightly spotted: body of a light tawny brown, marked with numbers of small round black spots; not in circles, but each distinct: the spots on the rim and outside of the legs were larger: the inside of the legs plain: hair on the top of the neck longer than the rest: that on the belly white, and very long: tail longer than the body; of a reddish brown color; marked above with large black spots; the hair on the under side very long.
Size of a large gre-hound: of a long make: chest narrow: legs very long.
Inhabits India: is tamed and trained for the chace of antelopes: carried in a small kind of waggon, chained and hoodwinked, till it approaches the herd: when first unchained does not immediately make its attempt, but winds along the ground, stopping and concealing itself till it gets a proper advantage, then darts on the animals with surprizing swiftness; overtakes them by the rapidity of its bounds: but if it does not succeed in its first efforts, consisting of five or six amazing leaps, misses its prey: losing its breath, and finding itself unequal in speed, stands still: gives up
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the point for that time*, and readily returns to its master.
Παϱδαλις. Oppian Cyneg. III. l. 95.
Panthera? Plinii, lib. viii. c. 17.
L'Once de Buffon, ix. 151. tab. xiii.
126. ONCE.
C. with a large head: short ears: long hair on the whole body: color a whitish ash, tinged with yellow: on the breast and belly with a smaller cast of yellow: head marked with small round spots: behind each ear a large black spot: the upper part of the neck varied, with large single spots: the sides of the back with longitudinal marks, consisting of several spots, almost touching each other, leaving the ground color of the body in the middle: the spots beneath these irregular, large, and full: those on the legs small, and thinly dispersed: the tail full of hair; irregularly marked with large black spots. This species is of a strong make: long backed: short legged: length from the nose to the tail, about three feet and a half: tail upwards of three feet.
Inhabits Barbary**, Persia, Hyrcania† and China‡; is an animal of a more gentle and mild nature than most of the preceding; is, like the last,
* Bernier's travels, iv. 45. Tavernier's travels, I. 147. Thevenot. voy. v. 34.
** Where it is called Faadh. Shaw's trav. 245.
† Chardin.
‡ Where it is called Poupi. The skins are brought from China into Russia, and sold for twenty shillings apiece. Muller Samlunge rar Russischen Geschicht. III. 549. 608.
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used for the chace of antelopes, and even hares; but, instead of being conveyed in a waggon, is carried on the crupper on horseback; is under as much command as a setting dog, returns at the lest call, and jumps up behind its master*.
Is supposed to be the lesser Panther of Oppian, and the Panthera of Pliny†.
127. BRASILIAN.
Jaguara Marcgrave Brasil, 235. Piso Brasil, 203.
Pardus aut Lynx Brasiliensis Jaguara dicta, Lusitanis onza. Raii syn. quad. 168. Klein. quad. 80.
Le Tigre de La Guiane Des marchais, voy. III. 299.
Tigris americana. Felis flavescens, maculis nigris orbiculatis quibusdam rosam referentibus variegata. Brisson quad. 196.
Felis onça. Felis cauda mediocri, corpore flavescente, ocellis nigris rotundato angulatis medio flavis. Lin. syst. 91.
Le Jaguar de Buffon, ix. 201. tab. xviii.
C. with hair of a bright tawny color: the top of the back marked with long stripes of black: the sides with rows of irregular oblong spots: open in the middle, which is of the ground-color of the hair: the thighs and legs marked with full spots of black: the breast and belly whitish: the tail not so long as the body: the upper part deep tawny, marked with large black spots, irregularly: the lower part with smaller spots: grows to the size of a wolf, and even larger.
Inhabits the hottest parts of S. America, from the isthmus of Darien to Buenos Ayres: fierce and destructive to man and beast. Like the tiger it plunges its head into the body of its prey, and
* Olearius travels into Persia, 218.
† Pantheris in candido breves macularum oruli. lib. viii. c. 17.
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sucks out the blood before it devours it: makes a great noise in the night, like the howling of a hungry dog: is a very cowardly animal; easily put to flight; either by the shepherds dogs, or by a lighted torch, being very fearfull of fire: it lies in ambush near the sides of rivers: there is sometimes seen a singular combat between this animal and the crocodile; when the Jaguar comes to drink, the crocodile, ready to surprize any animal that approaches, raises its head out of the water, the former instantly strikes its claws into the eyes of this dreadfull reptile, the only penetrable part, who immediately dives under the water, pulling his enemy along with it, where they commonly both perish*.
Tlacoozelotl; Tlalocelotl. Catuspardus mexicanus. Hernandez. Mex. 512.
L'Ocelot de Buffon, xiii. 239. tab. xxxv. xxxvi.
Felis sylvestris, americanus, Tigrinus. Seb. Mus. I. 47. tab. XXX. fig. 2, & 77. tab. xlviii. fig. 2.
128. MEXICAN.
C. with its head, back, upper part of the rump and tail of a bright tawny: a black stripe extends along the top of the back, from head to tail: from the nostrils to the corners of the eyes, a stripe of black: forehead spotted with black: the sides whitish, marked lengthways with long stripes of black, hollow, and tawny, in the middle; in which are sprinkled some small black spots: from the neck towards the shoulders point, others of the same colors: the rump marked in the same manner: legs whitish, va-
* Condamine's voy. 81.
N
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ried with small black spots: tail spotted with samll spots near its base; with larger near the end, which is black.
An animal, supposed to be the female*, was shewen two years ago in London: its ground color was cinereous; palest on the legs and belly: irides hazel: tip of the nose red: ears short, and rounded, black on the out-side, grey within: from the nose to the eye, on each side, a black line; above and beneath each eye a white one: sides of the mouth white, marked with four rows of small black spots: from the hind part of the head, to the back and shoulders, ran some long, narrow, hollow stripes: along the top of the back two rows of oval black spots: the marks on the sides long, hollow, and irregular, extending from shoulders to thighs: shoulders both barred and spotted: legs and belly only spotted: tail not so long as the body; had large spots above, small beneath.
It was strongly made: and above four times the size of a large cat.
Inhabits Mexico, the neighborhood of Carthagena, and Brasil: lives in the mountains: is very voracious; but fearfull of mankind: preys on young calves**, and different sorts of game: lurks amidst the leaves of trees; and sometimes will extend itself
* The description of that which M. de Buffon assures us is the male, is taken from a drawing. This I examined at one of Mr. Brooks's exhibitions, and found it the same with the animal described by Hernandez. M. de Buffon supposes the male to be the animal described by that author under the title of Tigris Mexicana, p. 498. but whoever examines that description will be of opinion it is of a species very nearly agreeing with the European Panther.
** Dampier, voy. II. 62.
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along the boughs, as if dead, 'till the monkies, tempted by their natural curiosity, approaching to examine it, become its prey*.
129. BROWN.
Cugacuarana. Marcgrave Brasil. 235. Raii syn. quad. 169.
Cugacuara Piso Brasil, 103.
Panther Lawson Carolina, 117.
Catesby Carolina App.
Tigris fulvus Barrere France Æquin. 166. Du Pratz. II. 63.
Tigris fulva. Felis ex flavo rufescens, mento et infimo ventre albicantibus. Brisson quad. 197.
Le Couguar de Buffon, ix. 216. tab. xix.
C. with a very small head: ears a little pointed: eyes large: chin white: back, neck, rump, sides, pale brownish red, mixed with dusky hairs: breast, belly, and inside of the legs cinereous: hair on the belly long: tail dusky, and ferruginous; the tip black: the teeth of a vast size: claws white: the outmost claw of the fore feet much larger than the others: is long bodied, and high on its legs: the length from nose to tail, five feet three inches; of the tail two feet eight.
Inhabits the continent of America, from Canada to Brazil: in South America is called Puma†, and mistaken for the lion: is the scourge of the colonies of the hotter parts of America; fierce and ravenous to the highest degree: swims over the broad rivers, and attacks the cattle, even in the enclosures; and when pressed with hunger, spares not even mankind. In N. America their fury seems to be subdued by the rigor of the climate; the smallest cur, in company with its master, makes them seek for security, by
* Hernandez Mex. 514.
† Hernandez Mex. 518. Condamine's voy. 81.
N 2
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running up trees: but then they are equally destructive to domestic animals, and are the greatest nusance the planter has: when they lay in wait for the Moose, or other deer*, they lie close on the branch of some tree, 'till the animal passes beneath, when they drop on them, and soon destroy them: they also make wolves their prey: that whose skin is in the Museum of the Royal Society, was killed just as it had pulled down a wolf: conceal such part of the prey which they cannot eat: purr like a cat: the fur soft, and of some value among the Indians, who cover themselves with it during winter: the flesh is also eaten, and said to be as good and as white as veal†.
130. BLACK.
Jaguarete Marcgrave Brasil, 235. Piso Brasil, 103.
Raii syn. quad. 169.
Once des Marchais, III. 300.
C. with the head, back, sides, fore part of the legs, and the tail, covered with short and very glossy hairs, of a dusky color; sometimes spotted‡ with black,
* Charlevoix voy. Nouv. France, V. 189. who, by mistake, calls it Carcajou.
† Mr. Dupont once shewed me, some years ago, the tail of an animal from South America, three quarters of a yard long, covered with short white glossy hair: a piece of the skin of the back was left to it, on which were black hairs near eight inches long. I mention it here as belonging to some plain colored beast of this genus. Perhaps the Tzonyztac seu quadrupes capillorum candentium, brevibus eruribus, colore atro, manibus pedibusque et corporis magnitudine Tigris; ae prolixa cauda. Fernandez quad. nov. Hisp. 3.
‡ For which reason M. de Buffon suspects it to be only a variety of No. 127; but since M. Des Marchais, who describes it very exactly, makes no mention of its being spotted, nor had the two which were shewn in London some years ago any spots on them; it is very probable then, that the Jaguarete, described by Marcgrave, was a variety of this species, and not of his Jaguara, as it agrees with it in the ground color, and in its superior size.
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I HUNTING LEOPARD No. 125. II BLACK TIGER No. 130.
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but generally plain: upper lips white: at the corner of the mouth a black spot*: long hairs above each eye, and long whiskers on the upper lip: lower lip, throat, belly, and the inside of the legs, whitish, or very pale ash-color: paws white: ears pointed: grows to the size of a heifer of a year old: has vast strength in its limbs.
Inhabits Brasil and Guiana: is a cruel and fierce beast; much dreaded by the Indians; but happily is a scarce species.
131. CAPE.
C. with short hair, of a bright ferruginous color: the face marked with black stripes, tending downwards: from the hind part of the head to the tail, the back is marked with oblong stripes of black: the sides with very numerous small, and round spots of black: belly white: tail long, of a bright tawny color, spotted with black: length from the nose to the tail, near three feet.
Described from a skin in a furrier's shop in London, who thought it came from the Cape of Good Hope.
* On the chin of one of those above-mentioned was a round black spot.
N 3
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132. CAYENNE.
Maraguao Marcgrave Brasil, 233.
Felis fera tigrina Barrere France Æquin. 152.
Tepe Maxlaton Fernand. Nov. Hisp. 9. c. 28.
Le Pichou, Cat-a-mount du Pratz Louisian II. 64.
Felis sylvestris tigrina. F. ex griseo flavescens, maculis nigris variegata Brisson quad. 193.
Le Margay de Buffon, xiii. 248. tab. xxxvii.
C. with the upper part of the head, the neck, back, sides, shoulders and thighs of a bright tawny color: the face striped downwards with black: the shoulders and body marked with stripes, and oblong large black spots: the legs with small spots: the breast, and inside of the legs and thighs whitish, spotted with black: the tail very long, marked with black, tawny, and grey: size of a common cat.
Inhabits S. America: lives on the feathered game, and on poultry: is untameable: makes a noise like the common cat.
These small spotted species are called by the general name of tiger-cats: several kinds are found in the Enst-Indies*, and in the woods near the Cape of Good Hope; but so negligently, or so unscientifically mentioned, as to render it impossible for a zoologist to form a description from them: yet a good history of these animals being among the many desiderata of the naturalist; the following maim accounts may serve to direct the enquiries of future voyagers. Kolben** mentions two kinds; one he calls
* Dellon's voy. 77.
** Hist. Cape, II. 126. M. L'Abbé de la Caille abuses poor Kolben for his imperfect history of the Cape: in fact, it is not a good one, yet still is the best we have: but great will be the disappointment of those who seek for fuller information in that of the criticising Abbé.
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The WILD RED CAT, which has a streak of bright red, running along the ridge of the back to the tail, and losing itself in the grey and white on the sides: the skins are said to give ease in the gout, and are much valued on that account at the Cape. The other he calls
The BUSH CAT; of which he says no more, than that it is the largest of wild cats in the Cape countries.
(WILD CAT.) Catus sylvestris.
Boumriitter. Gesner quad. 325.
Catus sylvestris, ferus vel feralis, eques arborum. Klein quad. 75.
Wilde Katze. Kram Austr. 311.
Felis sylvestris. F. pilis ex fusco, flavicante, et albido, variegatis vestita, cauda annulis alternatim nigris et ex sordidé albo flavicantibus cincta. Brisson quad. 192.
Kot Driki, Zbik. Rzaczinski Polon. 217.
Le chat sauvage de Buffon, vi. 1. tab. I. Br. Zool. I. 47.
133. COMMON.
C. with long soft hair, of a yellowish white color, mixed with grey; the grey disposed in streaks, pointing downwards, rising from a dusky list, that runs from the head to tail, along the middle of the back: tail marked with alternate bars of black and white, its tip black: hind part of the legs black: three times as large as the common cat; and very strongly made*.
Inhabits the woods of most parts of Europe: a variety of a blue color is met with at the Cape of Good Hope: most destructive to lambs, kids, and fawns; and to all sorts of feathered game. The
* In the Russian Asiatic dominions is a very elegant race of wild cats, with very soft fur, of the color of a Lynx; the young ones beautifully speckled with black: the Russians call them Stepnia Koskky. Muller Saml. Russ. III. 608.
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stock, or origin of the DOMESTIC CAT*, which is subject to many varieties.
α. ANGORA CAT. With long hair; of a silvery whiteness, and silky texture; very long, especially about the neck, where it forms a fine ruff: the hairs on the tail very long, and spreading: is a large variety: found about Angora; the same country which produces the fine haired goat, p. 15. Degenerates after the first generation in our climate.
β. TORTOISE SHELL CAT: black, white, and orange. Le chat d'Espagne de Buffon vi. tab. III.
γ. BLUE CAT. Le chat des chartreux de Buffon vi. tab. iv. probably descended from the blue wild cats of the Cape.
The cat a usefull but deceitfull domestic: when pleased purrs, and moves its tail: when angry, spits, hisses, strikes with its foot: in walking, draws in its claws: drinks little: is fond of fish: the female very salacious; a piteous, jarring, squaling lover: its urine corrosive: buries its dung: the na-
* Felis Catus. F. cauda elongata fusco annulata, corpore fasciis nigricantibus; dersalibus longitudinalibus tribus; lateralibus spiralibus Lin. syst. 62. Faun. suec. No. 9. Br. Zool. I. 45. de Buffon, vi. tab. ii. Brisson quad. 191.
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tural enemy of mice; watches them with great gravity: does not always reject vegetables: washes its face with its fore feet, Linnœus says, at the approach of a storm: sees by night: its eyes shine in the dark: its hair emits fire, when rubbed in the dark: always lights on its feet: proverbially tenacious of life: very cleanly; hates wet: is fond of perfumes; marum valerian, catmint. The unaccountable antipathy of multitudes: beloved by the Mahometans: Maillet, who says that the cats of Ægypt are very beautifull, adds, that the inhabitants build hospitals for them*.
** With short tails.
Le Chat-pard Memoires pour servir a l'hist. Nat. An. part. I. 110.
Catus Pardus sive Catus Montanus Americanorum. the Cat a mountain. Raii syn. quad. 169.
Felis Pardalis. F. cauda elongata, corpore maculis superioribus virgatis, inferioribus orbiculatis. Lin. syst. 62. Brisson quad. 199.
134. MOUNTAIN.
C. with upright pointed ears, marked with two brown transverse bars: color of the head, and whole upper part of the body, a reddish brown, marked with long narrow spots on the back; and with numerous round small spots on the sides: the belly whitish: the chin and throat of a pure white: the tail barred with black: the length of this animal two feet and a half; that of the tail eight inches.
Inhabits America: grows very fat: is a mild and gentle animal.
* Voy. l' Egypt, 30.
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α. Le Serval de Buffon xiii. 233. tab. xxxiv.
Differs from the preceding in these particulars: the Orbits are white: the spots on the body universally round: in its nature very fierce, and untameable: inhabits the woods in the mountanous parts of India: lives in trees, and scarce ever descends on the ground, for it breeds in them: leaps with great agility from tree to tree: called by the natives of Malabar, the Maraputé; by the Portuguese, the Serval*.
Mr. J. R. Forster informed me, he saw an animal of this species in the Empress's menagery at Petersburg: it's fur was of a whitish yellow: the spots dusky: had a wild and piercing look: was brought from Tibet.
135. LYNX.
Chaus Plinii, lib. viii. c. 19. Lupus cervarius, c. 22.
λυγξ. Ælian. lib. xiv. c. 6. Oppian Cyneg. III. 84.
Lupus cervarius, Lynx, Chaus. Gesner quad. 677, 678.
Lynx sive Leuncia Caii opusc. 50.
Fabri Exp. An. Nov. Hisp. 527.
Lynx, Catus cervarius anglicè, the ounce. Raii syn. quad. 166.
Tournesort's voy. 410. I. 360.
Rys, Ostrowidz. Rzacmski Polon. 222.
Lux Kramer Austr. 311. Ridinger Wilden Thiere 22. Kleine Thiere 65, &c.
Felis Lynx. F. cauda abbreviata; apice atra, auriculis apicebarbatis Lin. syst. 62. Warglo, Kattlo. Faun. suec. No. 10, 11.
Lynx. Felis auriculorum apicibus pilis longissimis præditis, caudâ brevi. Brisson quad. 200.
Catus cervarius, 199.
Le Lynx, or Loup-Cervier, de Buffon, ix. 231. tab. xxi.
C. with a short tail, black at its end: eyes of a pale yellow: hair under the chin long and full: hair on
* De Buffon.
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the body long and soft, of a cinereous color, tinged with red, marked with dusky spots, more or less distinct in different subjects; in some scarce visible: belly whitish: ears erect, tufted with long black hairs, the character of the different species of Lynxes: legs and feet very thick and strong: the length of the skin of a Russian lynx, from nose to tail, was four feet six inches; the tail only six: vary fometimes in their color: the Irbys, from lake Balckash*, or the Kattlo, of the Suedes, is whitish, spotted with black, and larger than the common kind; this large variety is called by the Germans, Wolf-Lucks, and Kalb-Lucks, on account of its size.
Inhabits the vast forests of the N. of Europe, Asia, and America**, not India, tho' poets have harnessed them to the chariot of Bacchus, in his conquest of that country: bring two or three young at a time: is long-lived: climbs trees: lies in wait for the deer, which pass under, falls on them, and seizing on the jugular vein, soon makes them its prey: will not attack mankind; but is very destructive to the rest of the animal creation; the furs of these animals are valuable for their softness and warmth: numbers are annually imported from North America, and the north of Europe, and Asia; the farther North and East they are taken, the whiter they are, and the more distinct the spots; of these the most elegant kind is called Irbys, taken near
* Situated west of the river Irtysh.
** Wild cat, Lawson Carolina, 118. Catesby App. xxv. found as far south as Mexico, the Pinuum Dasypus of Nieremberg. 153.
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lake Balkash, whose skin sells on the spot for on pound sterling*.
The antients celebrated the great quickness of its sight; and feigned that its urine was converted into a precious stone†.
Victa racemifero Lyncas dedit INDIA Baccho:
E quibus (ut memorant) quicquid vesica remisit,
Vertitur in Lapides, et congelat Aëra tacto. Ovid. Met. xv. 413.
136. BAY.
C. with a short tail: irides yellow: ears upright, and sharp pointed, tufted with long black hairs: color of the head, back, sides, and exterior parts of the legs, bright bay, obscurely marked with dusky spots: down the face marked with black stripes, pointing to the nose: each side the upper lip three rows of minute black spots, with long stiff hairs issuing out of them: orbits edged with white: from beneath each eye certain long black stripes, of an incurvated form, mark the cheeks; which with the upper and under lip, whole under side of the body, and insides of the legs, are white: the upper part of the inside of the fore legs marked with two black bars: upper part of the tail barred with dusky strokes; and next the end, one of a deep black; its tip and under side white: about twice the bigness of a large cat: the hair shorter and smoother than that of the last.
Inhabits the inner parts of the province of Newyork.
* Ritchkoff's Orenb. Topog. I. 296.
† Plinii, lib. viii. c. 38. xxviii. c. 8.
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I BAY LYNX No. 136. II PERSIAN LYNX No. 137.
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137. PERSIAN.
Siyah-Ghush, or black ear. Charleton Ex. 21. tab. page 23. Raii syn. quad. 168. Ph. Trans. vol. LI. part. II. 648. tab. xiv.
Le Caracal de Buffon, ix. 262. tab. xxiv.
C. with a lengthened face, and small head: very long slender black ears, terminated with a long tuft of black hairs: inside and bottom of the ears white: nose white: eyes small: the upper part of the body is of a very pale reddish brown: the tail rather darker: belly and breast whitish: limbs strong, and pretty long: tail about half the length of the body.
Inhabit Persia, India, and Barbary*: are often brought up tame, and used in the chace of lesser quadrupeds; and the larger sort of birds, such as cranes, pelecans, peacocks, &c. which they surprize with great address: when they seize their prey, hold it fast with their mouth, and lie for a time motionless on it: are said to attend the lion, and to feed on the remains of the prey that animal leaves**: are fierce when provoked: Dr. Charleton says, he saw one fall on a hound, which it killed and tore to pieces in a moment, notwithstanding the dog defended itself to the utmost.
The Arabian writers call it Anak el Ard: say that it hunts like the panther; jumps up at cranes as they fly; and covers its steps when hunting†.
* Shaw's Travels, 247. The mouth of the Barbary variety is black, and the face fuller.
** Voy. de Thevenot, III. 204. The Arabs, according to Thevenot, call it Kara-Coulac, or Black Ear.
† Dr. Thomas Hyde, in Ulugh Beighi, tab. p. 36. the figure is from an original drawing by Mr. Edwards.
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XX. BEAR.
Six cutting teeth; two canine in each jaw.
Five toes before; five behind.
In walking rests on the hind feet, as far as the heel.
138. BLACK.
Ursus Plinii, lib. viii. c. 36.
Aϱϰτ Oppian Cyneg. III. 139.
Ursus Gesner quad. 941. Agricola An. Subter. 486. Raii syn. quad. 171.
Niedzwiedz Rzaczinski Polon. 225. Bâr. Klein. quad. 82. Schwenckfelt Theriotroph. 131. Ridinger Wild.
Thiere. 31.
Ursus niger, cauda concolore.
Brisson quad. 187.
Ursus cauda abrupta. Lin. syst. 69. Biorn Faun. suec. No. 19.
L'Ours de Buffon, viii. 248. tab. xxxi. xxxii.
B. with a long head: small eyes: short ears, rounded at the top: strong, thick, and clumsy limbs: very short tail: large feet: body covered with very long and shaggy hair, various in its color: the largest of a rusty brown; the smallest of a deep black: some from the confines of Russia black, mixed with white hairs, called by the Germans, silver-bar: and some (but rarely) are found in Tartary of a pure white.
Inhabits the N. parts of Europe, and Asia; the Alps of Suitzerland, and Dauphine; Japan*, and Ceylon**; N. America†, and Peru‡. The brown bears are sometimes carnivorous, and will destroy cattle, and eat carrion; but their general food is roots, fruits, and vegetables: will rob the fields of pease; and when they are ripe, pluck great quan-
* Kæmpfer hist. Japan. I. 126.
** Knox hist. Ceylon. 20.
† Lawson's Carolina, 116. Catesby Carolina App. XXV.
‡ Condamine's voy. 82.
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tities up; beat the pease out of the husks on some hard place, eat them, and carry off the straw: they will also, during winter, break into the farmer's yard, and make great havoke among his stock of oats: are particularly fond of honey. The bears of America are small and black; and confine themselves entirely to vegetables, and are remarkably greedy of Mayz and Potatoes; they will even reject animal food, tho' pressed by hunger*: neither of these varieties will attack mankind, unless wounded, or when they have their young: they strike with their fore feet like a cat; seldom or ever use their mouths in fighting, but seizing the assailant with their paws, and pressing him against their breast, almost instantly by squeeze him to death.
The females after conception retire into the mosft secret places; least, when they bring forth, the males should devour the young: it is affirmed for fact, that out of the several hundred bears that are killed in America, during winter, (which is their breeding season) that scarce a female is found among† them; so impenetrable is their retreat during their pregnancy: they bring two, rarely three young at a time: the cubs are deformed, but not a shapeless mass, to be licked into shape, as the antients pretended‡. The flesh of a bear in autumn, when they are most excessively fat, by feeding on acorns,
* Du Pratz Louisiana. II. 56. 57.
† Out of 500 Bears that were killed in one winter, in two counties of Virginia, only two females were found, and those not prægnant. Lawson, 117.
‡ Hi sunt candida informisque caro, paulo muribus major, sine oculis, sine pilo; ungues tantum prominent: hanc lambendo paulatim figurant. Plinii, lib. viii. c. 36.
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and other mast, is most delicate food; and that of the cubs still finer; but the paws of the old bears are reckoned the most exquisite morsel: the fat white, and very sweet: the oil excellent for strains, and old pains.
The latter end of autumn, after they have fattened themselves to the greatest degree, the bears withdraw to their dens, where they continue for a great number of days in total inactivity, and abstinence from food, having no other nourishment than what they get by sucking their feet, where the fat lodges in great abundance: their retreats are either in cliffs of rocks; in the deepest recesses of the thickest woods; or in the hollows of antient trees, which they ascend and descend with surprizing agility: as they lay in no winter provisions, they are in a certain space of time, forced from their retreats by hunger, and come out extremely lean: multitudes are killed annually in America, for the sake of their flesh, or skins; which last makes a considerable article of commerce.
139. POLAR.
White bear. Martin's Spitsberg. 100. Egede Greenl. 59. Ellis voy. 41. Crantz Greenl. I. 73. Barentz voy. 18. 45. La Hontan voy. I. 235. Catesby Carolina App. xxvi.
Ursus albus Martensii. Klein quad. 82.
L'Ours blanc. Brisson quad. 188. de Buffon, xv. 128.
B. with long head and neck: short round ears: end of the nose black: vast teeth: hair long, soft, white, tinged in some parts with yellow: limbs or great size and strength: grow to a vast size: the skins of some are thirteen feet long.
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This animal is confined to the coldest part of the globe: it has been found as far as navigators have penetrated northwards above lat. 80. The frigid climates only seem adapted to its nature; for we do not learn from any authority that it is met with farther south than Newfoundland. Its bounds in respect to longitude are also very limited; being an animal unknown except on the shores of Hudson's Bay, Greenland, and Spitzbergen, on one side, and those of Nova Zembla on the other; for such as have appeared in other parts, have been brought there involuntarily* on floating islands of ice; so that the intermediate countries of Norway and Iceland are acquainted with them but by accident. We cannot trace them farther East than Nova Zembla; tho' the frozen sea, that is continued from thence as far as the land of Tschukschi, that lies above Kamtschatka, is equally suited to their nature. The late histories of those countries are silent in respect to them.
During summer the white bears are either resident on islands of ice, or passing from one to another: they swim admirably, and can continue that exercise† six or seven leagues; and dive with great agility. They bring two young at a time: the affection between the parents and them is so strong, that they would die rather than desert one another. Their winter retreats are under the snow‡, in which they form deep dens, supported by pillars of the same.
* Horrebow Iceland, 42.
† La Hontan, I.
‡ Egede. 60.
O
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They feed on fish, seals, and the carcasses of whales; and on human bodies, which they will greedily disinter: they seem very fond of human blood; and are so fearless as to attack companies of armed men, and even to board small vessels: where on land they live on birds, and their eggs; and, allured by the scent of the seals flesh, often break into, and plunder the houses of the Greenlanders: their greatest enemy in the brute creation is the Morse*, with whom they have terrible conflicts, but are generally worsted, the vast teeth of the former giving it a superiority.
The flesh is white, and said to taste like mutton: the fat is melted for train oil, and that of the feet used in medicine; but the liver is very unwholsome, as three of Barentz's sailors experienced, who fell dangerously ill on eating some of it boiled.
One of this species was brought over to England a few years ago: it was very furious, almost always in motion, roared loud, and seemed very uneasy, except when cooled by having pail-fulls of water poured on it.
Callixenus Rhodius†, in his description of the pompous procession of Ptolemæus Philadelphus at Alexandria, speaks of one great white Bear, Aϱϰτоς λευϰη μεγαλη μια, among other wild beasts that graced the shew: notwithstanding the local situation of this species at present, it is possible that Ptolomy might procure one; whether men could penetrate,
* Egede Greenl. 60. 83.
† As quoted by Athenæus, lib. v. p. 201.
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in those early times, as far as the present residence of these Arctic animals, I will not venture to affirm, nor to deny; but since my friend, the Hon. Daines Barrington*, has clearly proved the intense cold that in former ages raged in countries now more than temperate, it is most probable that in those times they were stocked with animals natural to a rigorous climate; which, since the alteration, have necessarily become extinct in those parts: the Polar Bear might have been one, but that it was the specics meant by Callixenus is clear to me, by the epithet μεγαλη, or Great, which is very applicable to it; for the white Tartarian land bear (which Ptolomy might very easily procure) differs not in size from the black or brown kind, but the bulk of the other is quite characteristic.
140. WOLVERENE.
Quickhatch, Catesby Carolina App. xxx.
Carcajou, or Quickhatch, Dobbs Hudson's Bay, 40.
Quickhatch, or Wolverene, Ellis Hudson Bay, 42. Clerk's voy. II. 3. Edw. 103.
Ursus luscus. U. cauda elongata, corpore ferrugineo, rostro fusco, fronte plagaque laterali corporis. Lin. syst. 71.
Ursus Freti Hudsonis. U. castanei coloris, cauda unicolore, rostro pedibusque fuscis. Brisson quad. 188.
B. with a black sharp pointed visage: short rounded ears, almost hid in the hair: hairs on the head, back, and belly, reddish, with black tips, so that those parts appear, on first sight, quite black: sides of a yellowish brown, which passes in form of a band
* Phil. Trans. vol. LVIII. p. 58.
O 2
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quite over the hind part of the back, above the tail: on the throat a white spot: on the breast a white mark, in form of a crescent: legs very strong, thick and short, of a deep black: five toes on each foot*, not deeply divided: on the fore foot of that I examined were some white spots: the bottom of the feet covered very thickly with hair: rests like the bear on its foot, as far as the first joint of the leg: claws strong and sharp, white; an their ends: tail cloathed with long coarse hairs; those at the base reddish, at the end black; some of the hairs are six inches long: length from nose to tail twenty-eight inches: length of the trunk of the tail feven inches, but the hairs reach six beyond its end: the whole body is covered with very long and thick hair, which varies in color, according to the season.
Inhabits Hudsor's-Bay, and Canada, as far as the straits of Michilimakinac: is found under the name of the GLUTTON in the N. parts of Europe, and Asia, being a native of the most rigorous climates: described as the GLUTTON under these synonyms:
GULO. Olaii magni gent. Septentr. 138.
GULO, VIELFRASS. Gesner quad. 554. Klein quad. 83. tab. v.
* Mr. Edwards observed only four toes on the fore feet of the animal he describes. My description is taken from an entire skin, in very fine preservation, communicated to me by Mr. Ashton Blackburne, of Orford Lancashire, now resident in North America, who with indefatigable industry and great judgement, annually enriches the cabinets of his friends with the rarest natural productions of that continent: as this work has profited so greatly by that gentleman's labors, it would be ungratefull to omit my acknowlegement.
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I POLAR BEAR No. 139. II WOLVERENE No. 140.
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ROFOMAK. Rzaczinski Polon. 218. Bell's Travels, I. 235.
MULLER's RUSS SAMLUNG. III. 549. 550. Ritchkoff Topogr. Orenb. I. 295.
JERF, FIELDFROSS. Strom Sondmor. 152. Pontopp. Norawy, II. 22. Scheffer's Lapland, 134.
HYÆNA. Brisson. quad. 169. Ysbrandts Ides Trav. Harris's Coll. II. 923.
MUSTELA GULO. M. pedibus fissis, corpore rufo fusco medio dorsi nigro. Lin. syst. 67.
JARF, FILFRESS. Faun. suec. No. 14.
JÆERVEN. Gunner's Act. Nidros. III. 143. tab. iii.
LE GLUTTON. de Buffon, xiii. 278.
A most voracious animal: slow of foot, so is obliged to take its prey by surprize: in America is called the Beaver-Eater, watching those animals as they come out of their houses, and sometimes breaks into their habitations, and devours them: often lurks on trees, and falls on the quadrupeds, that pass under; will fasten on the horse, elk, or stag, and continue eating a hole* into its body, till the animal falls down with the pain; or else will tear out its eyes†: no force can disengage it, yet sometimes the deer, in their agony, have been known to destroy it, by running their head violently against a tree‡: devours the Isatis, or white fox; searches for the traps layed for the sables, and other animals, and often is before hand with the huntsmen, who
* ysbrandts Ides.
† Hist. Kamtschatka, 99, 100.
‡ Ibid.
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sustain great losses by the glutton: authors have pretended, that it feeds so voraciously, that at length it is in danger of bursting; and that it is obliged to ease itself of its load, by squeezing it out between two trees.
In a wild state is vastly fierce; a terror to both wolf and bear, which will not prey on it when they find it dead, perhaps on account of its being so very fœtid, smelling like a pole-cat: makes a strong resistance when attacked, will tear the stock from the gun, and pull the traps it is caught in to pieces notwithstanding this, is capable of being tamed, and of learning several tricks*: burrows†, and has its den under ground. The skin sold in Siberia for four or six shillings; at Jakutsk for twelve; and still dearer in Kamtschatka, where the women dress their hair with its white paws, which they esteem a great ornament: the fur is greatly esteemed in Europe; that of the North of Europe, and Asia, whose skins are sometimes to be seen in the furriers shops, is infinitely finer, blacker, and more glossy than that of the WOLVERENE, or American kind.
The Glutton has, by some authors, bevn confounded with the Hyæna; and Charlevoix, in Hist. Nouv. France v. 189, gives the name of this animal (Carcajou) to our 129th species, the brown panther of N. America.
* Hist. Kamtschatka, 99, 100.
† La Hontan's voy. I. 62.
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141. RACCOON.
Raccoon Lawson Carolina, 121. Catesby Carolina App. xxix.
Mapach, seu animal cuncta prætentante manibus. Fernandez Nov. Hisp. 1. Nieremberg. 175.
Vulpi affinis americana. Raii syn. quad. 179. Sloane Jœmaica, II. 329.
Coati Worm. Mus. 319.
Coati. Ursus cauda annulatim variegata. Brisson quad. 189.
Ursus Lotor. U. cauda annulata, fascia per oculos transversali nigra. Lin. syst. 70.
Le Raton de Buffon, viii. 337. tab. xliii.
Raccoon Kalm's Travels Forster's Tr. I. 96. 208. tab. II.
B. with a sharp pointed black nose: upper jaw the longer: ears short, and rounded: eyes surrounded with two broad patches of black: from the forehead to the nose a dusky line: face, cheeks and chin, white: upper part of the body covered with hair, ash-colored at the root, whitish in the middle, and tipt with black: tail very bushy, annulated with black: toes black, and quite divided.
Inhabits the warm and temperate parts of American: found also in the mountains of Jamaica; and in the isles of Maria, between the S. point of California, and Cape Corientes, in the S. Sea*: an animal easily made tame, very good-natured and sportive, but as unlucky as a monkey, almost always in motion; very inquisitive, examining every thing with its paws; makes use of them as hands: sits up to eat: is extremely fond of sweet things, and strong liquors, and will get excessively drunk: has all the cunning of a fox: very destructive to poultry; but will eat all sorts of fruits, green corn, &c. at low water feeds much on oysters, will watch
* Dampier's voy. I. 276.
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their opening, and with its paw snatch out the fish; sometimes is caught in the shell, and kept there till drowned by the coming in of the tide: fond also of crabs: climbs very nimbly up trees; hunted for its skin; the fur next to that of the beaver, being excellent for making hats.
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Six cutting teeth; two canine in each jaw.
Five toes before, five behind: very long strait claws on the fore feet.
A transverse orifice between the tail and the anus.
XXI. BADGER.
142. COMMON.
Meles Plinii, lib. viii. c. 38. Gestner quad. 327.
Meles, five Taxus Raii syn. quad. 185.
Meles, Taxus, Tassus, Blerellus; Jazwiec, Borsuk. Rzaczinski Polon, 233.
Coati cauda brevi, Coati griseus, Taxus, meles, Tax. Klein quad. 73.
Dachs Kramer Austr. 313.
Meles pilis ex sordide albo et nigro variegatis vestita, capite tæniis alternatim albis et nigris variegato. Brisson quad. 183.
Le Blaireau, ou Taison. de Buffon, viii. 104. tab. vii.
Ursus meles. U. cauda concolore, corpore supra cinereo, subtus nigro, fascia longitudinali per oculos auresque nigra. Lin. syst. 70. Meles unguibus anticis longissimis. Graf-suin. Faun. suec. No. 20. Br. Zool. I. 64. Br. Zool. illustr. tab. lii.
B. with small eyes: short rounded ears: short thick neck: with nose, chin, lower sides of the cheeks, and middle of the forehead white: ears and eyes inclosed in a pyramidal bed of black: hair on the body long and rude; their bottoms a yellowish white, middle black, ends ash colored: throat, breast, belly, and legs black: tail covered with long hairs, colored like those on the body: legs very short and thick: claws on the fore feet very long: a fœtid white matter exudes from the orifice beneath the tail: animal of a very clumsy make.
Inhabits most parts of Europe, as far N. as Norway*, and Russia; and the step or desert beyond
* Pontop. hist. Norway, II. 28.
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Orenburgh, in the Russian Asiatic dominions, N. of the Caspian sea*; inhabits also China, and is often found in the butchers shops in Pekin, the Chinese being fond of them†: a scarce animal in most countries: seldom appears in the day; confines itself much to its hole: is indolent and sleepy: generally very fat: feeds by night; eats roots, fruit, grass; insects and frogs: not carnivorous; its flesh makes good bacon: runs slowly, when overtaken comes to bay, and defends itself vigoronsly: its bite hard and dangerous: burrows under ground, makes several appartments, but forms only one entrance from the surface: hunted during night for the skin, which serves for pistol furniture; the hair for making brushes, to soften the shades in painting. The division of this species into two, viz. the swine, and the dog badger, unnecessary, there being only one.
143. AMERICAN.
B. with a white line from the tip of the nose, passing between the ears to the beginning of the back, bounded on each side as far as the hind part of the head, with black; then by a white one, and immediately between that and the ears another of black: hair long: back colored like that of the common badger: sides yellowish: belly cinereous: thighs dusky: tail covered with long, dirty yellow hairs, tipt with white; the end dusky.
* Ritchkoff Orenh. Topograph. I. 281. are found plentifully there, and are eaten by the Khalmucks.
† Bell's Travels, II. 83.
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Described from a skin from Hudson's-Bay, found in a furrier's shop in London: it was less than that of the European badger: the furrier said, he never met with one before from that country. Kalm* says, he saw the European badger in the province of Pensylvania, where it is called the Ground Hog: as the feet were cut from the skin I saw, it is doubtfull whether this is a distinct species from our kind, or only a variety†.
* Kalm's Travels Forster's Tr. I. 189.
† M. Brisson describes a white Badger with a yellowish white belly, and also much inferior in size to that of Europe, which M. Reaumur received from New York. Vide Brisson quad. 185.
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XXII. OPOSSUM.
Two canine teeth in each jaw.
Cutting teeth unequal in number in each jaw*.
Five toes on each foot: hind feet formed like a hand, with a distinct thumb.
Tail very long, slender, and naked.
144. VIRGINIAN.
Tlaquatzin Hernandez Mex. 330
Caragueya (fæm.) Tai-ibi (mas.) Marcgrave Brasil, 222. Raii syn. quad. 182. 185.
Semi-vulpa Gesner quad. 870. icon. An. 90.
Opossum Ph. Tr. abridg. II. 884. tab. 13. III. 593. Lawson Carolina, 120. Beverley's Virginia, 135. Catesby Carolina. App. xxix. Rochefort Antilles, I. 283.
Fara ou Ravall, Gumilla Orenoque, III. 238.
Vulpes major putoria cauda tereti et glabra. Barrere France Æquin. 166.
Le manicou Feuilleè obs. Peru. III. 206.
Wood-rat. du Pratz Louisiana, II. 65.
Mus marsupialis: sylvestris Brasiliensis Beutel ratze. Klein quad. 59.
Philander saturatè spadiceus in dorso, in ventre flavus, maculis fupra oculos flavis. Brisson quad. 207.
Didelphis marsupialis. D. mammis octo intra abdomen. Lin. syst. 71.
Le Sarigue ou L'Oppossum de Buffon, X. 279. tab. xlv. xlvi.
O. with a long sharp pointed nose: large, round, naked, and very thin ears: small, black, lively eyes: long stiff hairs each side the nose, and behind the eyes: face covered with short soft hairs of a dusky color: above each eye a large white spot: cheeks whitish: sides of the neck of a dirty yellow: hind part of the neck and the back covered with hair above two inches long; soft, but uneven; the bottoms of a yellowish white, middle part black, ends whitish; sides covered with dirty and dusky hairs; belly, with soft, woolly, dirty white hair: legs and thighs black: feet dusky: claws white: base of the tail, for near three inches, clothed with long hairs like those on the back; rest of the tail covered
* This species has ten cutting teeth above; eight beneath.
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I. OPOSSUM No. 144. II. LESSER OTTER No. 174.
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with small scales; the half next the body black, the rest white: it has a disagreeable appearance, looking like the body of a snake, and has the same prehensile quality as that of some monkies: body round, and pretty thick: legs short: on the lower part of the belly of the female is a large pouch, in which the teats are lodged, and where the young shelter as soon as they are born. The length of one I examined was seventeen inches; that of the tail fourteen.
Inhabits Virginia, Louisiana, Mexico, Brasil, and Peru: is very destructive to poultry, and sucks the blood without eating the flesh: feeds also on roots and wild fruits: is very active in climbing trees: will hang suspended from the branches by its tail, and by swinging its body, fling itself among the boughs of the neighboring trees: hunts eagerly after birds and their nests: walks very slow: when pursued and overtaken, will feign itself dead: not easily killed, being as tenacious of life as a cat: when the female is about to bring forth, she makes a thick nest of dry grass in some close bush at the foot of a tree, and brings four, five, or six young at a time.
As soon as the young are brought forth, they take shelter in the pouch, or false belly, and fasten so closely to the teats, as not to be separated without difficulty: they are blind, naked, and very small when new-born, and resemble fœtuses: it is therefore necessary that they should continue there till they attain a perfect shape, strength, sight and hair; and are prepared to undergo what may be
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called a second birth: after which, they run into this pouch as into an asylum, in time of danger; and the parent carries them about with her. During the time of this second gestation, the female shews an excessive attachment to her young, and will suffer any torture rather than permit this receptacle to be opened, for she has power of opening or closing it by the assistance of some very strong muscles.
The flesh of the old animals is very good, like that of a sucking pig: the hair is dyed by the Indian women and wove into garters and girdles: the skin is very fœtid.
This genus is not confined to America, as M. de Buffon supposes; who combats the opinion of other naturalists on this subject with much warmth: but the authority of Piso, Valentyn, and of Le Brun*, who have seen it both in Java and in the Mollucca isles, and of numbers of collectors in Holland, who receive it frequently from those places, are sufficient to satisfy me, that a species of the genus, perhaps only a variety of the kind just described, inhabits the Indian isles, as well as the continent of America.
* En Indiis orientalibus, idque solum, quantum hactenus constat, in Amboina, similis Bestia (Carigueya) frequens ad felis magnitudinem accidens, mactata ab incolis comeditur, si rite preparetur, nam alias fætet. nomen illi Cous cous inditum. Piso Brasil, 323. Le Brun, in his voyage to the East Indies, describes it under the name of Filander, I. 347. tab. 213.
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Mus sylvestris americanus Scalopes dictus Seb. Mus. I. 46. tab. xxxi. fig. 1, 2.
Philander saturate spadiceus in dorso, ventre dilutè flavus, pedibus albicantibus Brisson quad. 211.
Didelphis murina. D. cauda semipilosa, mammis senis. Lin. syst. 72.
La Marmose de Buffon, X. 336. tab. lii. liii.
145. MURINE.
O. with long broad ears rounded at the end, thin and naked: eyes encompassed with black: face, head, and upper part of the body, of a tawny color: the belly yellowish white: the feet covered with short whitish hair: toes formed like those of the preceding: tail slender, covered with minute scales to the very rump: length, from nose to tail, about six inches and a half; tail of the same length: the female wants the false belly of the former; but, on the lower part, the skin forms on each side a fold, between which the teats are lodged.
This species varies in color: I have seen one from Guiana, brown above, white beneath.
Inhabits the hot parts of South America: agrees with the others in its food, manners, and the prehensile powers of its tail: it brings from ten to fourteen young at a time; at left, in some species, there are that number of teats: the young affix themselves to the teats as soon as they are born, and remain attached, like so many inanimate things, 'till they attain growth and vigor to shift a little for themselves.
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146. MEXICAN.
Cayopollin Fernandes Nov. Hisp. 10.
Animal caudimanum Nieremberg, 158.
Mus Africanus Kayopollin dictus, mas. Seb. Mus. tab. xxxi. fig. 3.
Philander saturatè spadiceus in dorso, in ventre ex albo flavicans, cauda ex saruratè spadiceo maculata Brisson quad. 212.
Le Cayopollin de Buffon, X. 350. tab. lv.
O. with large, angular, naked and transparent ears: nose thicker than that of the former kind: a slight border of black round the eyes: the hairs on the head and upper part of the body ash-colored at the roots; tawny at the tips: belly and legs whitish: tail long, and pretty thick, varied with brown and yellow; is hairy near an inch from its origin; the rest naked: length, from nose to tail, about seven inches and a half; of the tail, more than eleven.
Inhabits the mountains of Mexico: lives in trees, where it brings forth its young: when in any fright, they embrace their parent closely: the tail is prehensile, and serves instead of a hand.
147. SHORTTAILED.
Mus sylvestris Americana, fœmina. Seb. Mus. I. 50. tab. xxxi.
Philander obscuræ rufus in dorso, in ventre helvus, cauda brevi et crassa. Brisson quad. 213.
O. with naked ears: the back of a dull red; belly of a paler: tail scarce half the length of the body; thick at the base, lessening towards the end: no false belly.
Inhabits South America: the young adhere to the teats as soon as born. Seba says it lives in woods and brings from nine to twelve young at a time.
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148. SURINAM.
Philander ex rufo luteus in dorso, in ventre ex flavo albicans, capite crasso. Brisson quad. 213. Seb. Mus. I. 50. tab. xxxi. fig. 8. Klein quad. 58.
Le Phalanger de Buffon, xiii. 92. tab. x. xi.
O. with a thick nose: short ears, covered with hair: eight cutting teeth in the upper jaw; two in the lower: hair on the upper part of the body reddish, mixed with light ash color, and yellow: the hind part of the head, and middle of the back, marked with a black line: the throat, belly, legs, and part of the tail, of a dirty yellowish white; the rest of the tail brown and yellow: the body of the female marked with white: the first and second toes of the hind feet closely united: the claws large: the thumb on the hind feet distinct, like that of the other species: the bottom of the tail is covered with hair, for near two inches and a half; the rest naked: the length, from nose to tail, near nine inches; the tail ten.
Inhabits Surinam: perhaps may be the species the colonists call the Cane Rat; which is so destructive to the sugar canes*.
* Bancroft Guiana, 143.
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149. MERIAN*.
De zak, of Beurs Rot. Merian insect. Surinam 66. tab. lxvi.
Mus sylvestris americana Seb. Mus. I. 49. tab. xxxi. fig. 5.
Philander ex rufo helvus in dorso, in ventre ex flavo albicans. Brisson quad. 212.
Mus sylvestris Americanus, Catulos in dorso gerens Klein quad. 58.
Didelphis dorsigera. D. cauda basi pilosa corpore longiore, digitis manuum muticis. Lin. syst. 72.
Le Philandre de Surinam de Buffon, xv. 157.
O. with long, sharp pointed naked ears: head, and and upper part of the body of a yellowish brown color: the belly white, tinged with yellow: the fore feet divided into five fingers; the hind into four, and a thumb, each furnished with flat nails: tail very long, slender, and, except at the base, quite naked.
Inhabits Surinam: burrows under ground: brings five or six young at a time, which follow their parent: on any apprehension of danger, they all jump on her back, and twisting their tails round her's, she immediately runs with them into her hole.
* From Merian, a German Paintress, who first discovered this species at Surinam.
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XXIII WEESEL.
Six cutting teeth, two canine teeth in each jaw.
Sharp nose: slender bodies.
Five toes before, five behind.
150. COMMON.
Mustela Agricola An. Subter. 485.
Gesner quad. 752.
Weasel or Weesel, mustela vulgaris; in Yorkshire, the Fitchet, or Foumart. Raii syn. quad. 195.
The Whitred Sib. Scot. III. 11.
Wiesel Klein quad. 62.
Mustela supra rutila, infra alba. Brisson quad. 173.
La Belette de Buffon, vii. 225. tab. xxix.
Weesel Br. Zool. I. 82. Br. Zool. illustr. tab. ci.
W. with small rounded ears: whole upper part of the head and body, pale tawny brown; under side entirely white: a brown spot beneath the corners of the mouth: length, from nose to tail, between six and seven inches; tail two and a half.
Inhabits the temperate parts of Europe; scarce in the North: found also in Barbary*: mentioned once by Linnæus, under the title of Mustela Nivalis, or Snomus**: very destructive to chickens, birds, and young rabbets; a great devourer of eggs: does not eat its prey on the spot; but after killing it, by a bite near the head, carries it off to its retreat: is a great destroyer of field mice; a gentleman informed me he found eighty-five, newly killed, in one hole, which he believed belonged to this animal: very active, runs up the sides of walls with great ease; no place is secure from its ravages: frequents out-
* Shaw's Travels, 249.
** M. nivalis. M. pedibus fissis corpore albo, caudæ apice vix pilis ullis nigris. Lin. syst. 69. Faun. suec. No. 18.
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houses, barns, and granaries: is a great enemy to rats and mice, and soon clears its haunts from those pernicious animals: brings four or five young at a time: its skin and excrements intolerably fœtid: sometimes is found white: in Siberia are called Lasmitska: their skins are sold to the Chinese for three or four rubles the hundred.
151. STOAT.
Mustela Gesner quad. 753.
Wiesel Kramer Austr. 312. Meyer's An. II. tab. 23, 24.
Mustela erminea. M. plantis fissis, caudæ apice albo. Lin. syst. 68.
Wesla Faun. suec. No. 17.
Mustela hyeme alba, æstate supra rutila infra alba, caudæ apice nigro. Brisson quad. 176.
Le Roselet de Buffon, vii. 240. tab. xxix.
Stoat Br. Zool. I. 84.
β. ERMINE, when white. Mus Ponticus Plinii, lib. viii. c. 37.
Agricola An. Subter. 484.
Armelinus, Hermelein. Gesner quad. 754
Gornostay Rzaczinski Polon. 235.
Mustela candida, animal ermineum Raii syn. quad. 198.
L'Hermine de Buffon, vii. 240. tab. xxix. fig. 2. Brisson quad. 176.
Ermine hist. Kamtschatka, 99.
Pontop. Norway, II. 25. Br. Zool. I. 84.
W. with the upper part of the body pale tawny brown: edges of the ears, and ends of the toes, of a yellowish white: throat, breast, and belly white: end of the tail black: length, from nose to tail, ten inches; tail five and a half: in the N. of Europe becomes entirely white at approach of winter, the end of the tail excepted: resumes its brown color in the spring: sometimes found white in Great Britain: one was brought to me last winter, mottled with brown and white, the season not having been severe enough to effect a total change*.
* Br. Zool. illustr. tab. ci.
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Inhabits, in great abundance, the N. of Europe, and of Asia; is met with in Newfoundland, and Canada*: the skins a great article of commerce in Norway and Siberia: is found in the last place in plenty in birch forests, but none in those of fir or pine: the skins are sold on the spot, from two to three pounds sterling per hundred†: taken in Norway in traps, baited with flesh; in Siberia‡ either shot with blunt arrows, or taken in a trap made of two flat stones, propped by a stick, to which is fastened a baited string, which, on the lest touch of the animal, falls down and kills it: its manners and food the same with the former; but does not frequent houses: its haunts are woods and hedges, especialy such as border on some brook.
152. POLECAT.
Putorius Gesner quad. 767.
Yltis Agricola An. Subter. 485.
Pole cat, or Fitchet, Raii syn. quad. 196.
Tchorz. Rzaczinski Polon. 236.
Mustela fœtida. Iltis. Teuffels Kind. Klein. quad. 63.
Mustela putorius. M. pedibus fissis, corpore flavo nigricante; ore auriculisque albis. Lin. syst. 67. Iller Faun. suec. No. 16.
Mustela pilis in exortu ex cinereo albidis, colore nigricante terminatis, oris circumferentia alba. Brisson quad. 186.
Le Putois de Buffon, vii. 199. tab. xxiii.
Pole cat Br. Zool. I. 77.
W. with the space round the mouth; and the tips of the ears white: head, body, and legs, of a chocolate color, almost black; on the sides the hairs are of a tawny cast: tail black: length seventeen inches; tail six.
* Charlevoix hist. Nouv. France, v. 197.
† Muller Ru. Samlung. 516.
‡ Bell's travels, I. 199. Ponton. Norway, II. 25.
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Inhabits most parts of Europe: burrows under ground, forming a shallow retreat, about two yards in length, generally terminating under the roots of some large tree; sometimes forms its lodge under hay-ricks, and in barns: brings five or six young at a time: preys on poultry, game, and rabbets: in winter frequents houses, and will rob the dairy of the milk. This animal is excessively fœtid; yet the skin is dressed with the hair on, and used as other furs, for tippets, &c. and is also sent abroad to line cloaths.
153. FERRET.
Viverra Plinii, lib. viii. c. 55.
Agricola An. Subter. 486.
Mustela rustica, viverra, Furo, Ictis. Gesner quad. 762. Raii syn. quad. 198.
Fret Klein. quad. 63.
Viverra pilis subflavis, longioribus. castaneo colore terminatis (mas.) M. pilis ex albo subflavis vestita. (fæm.) Brisson quad. 177.
Mustela Furo. M. pedibus fissis, oculis rubicundis. Lin. syst. 68.
W. with a very sharp nose: red and fiery eyes: round ears: color of the whole body a very pale yellow: length about fourteen inches; tail five.
Inhabits, in its wild state, Africa*; from whence it was originally brought into Spain**, in order to free that country from the multitudes of rabbets, with which the kingdom was over-run; from thence the rest of Europe was supplied with it: is a lively active animal: the natural enemy of rabbets: sucks the blood of its prey, seldom tears it: breeds in our climate; and brings five, six, or nine at a time:
* Shaw's Travels, 249.
** Κàι γαλας αγϱίας ς η λυυη. Strabo, lib.. iii.
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but is apt to degenerate, and lose its savage nature: warreners* are therefore obliged to procure an intercourse between the female and a pole-cat, by leaving it near the haunts of the last: the produce is a breed of a much darker color than the ferret, partaking more of that of the pole-cat: the ferret has the same disagreeable smell with that animal.
154. MARTIN.
Martes gutture albo. Agricola An. Subter. 485. Gesner quad. 764.
Stein-marter Klein quad. 64.
Martes alias Foyna, Martin or Martlet Raii syn. quad. 200.
Kuna Rzaczinsk Polon. 222.
Mustela pilis in exortu albidis castaneo colore terminatis vestita, gutture albo. Brisson quad. 178.
Mustela martes. M. pedibus fissis, corpore sulvo nigricante, gula pallida. Lin. syst. 67. Mard. Faun. suec. No. 15.
La Fouine de Buffon, vii. 186. tab. xviii.
Martin Br. Zool. I. 79.
W. with broad rounded ears: lively eyes: head brown, with a tinge of red: body, sides, and legs covered with hair, ash colored at the bottoms, bright chesnut in the middle, black at the tips: throat and breast white: belly deep brown: tail full of hair, and of a dusky color: feet broad, covered at bottom with thick down: claws white: length eighteen inches: tail ten.
Inhabits most parts of Europe: is a most elegant lively animal: capable of being tamed: is very good-natured, and sportive: lives in woods; and breeds in the hollow of trees: brings from four to six young at a time: destroys poultry, game, &c. and will eat rats, mice, and moles: the skin and excrements have a musky smell: the fur is of some value, and used to line the robes of magistrates.
* Br. Zool. I. 78. II. 498.
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155. PINE.
Martes gutture Luteo. Agricola An. Subter. 485.
Martes sylvestris Gesner quad. 765.
Martes abietum Raii syn. quad. 200.
Baum-Marter. Klein quad. 64.
Mustela pilis in exortu ex cinereo albidis castaneo colore terminatis, gutture flavo. Brisson quad. 179.
La Marte de Buffon, vii. 186. tab. xxii.
Yellow-breasted Martin Br. Zool. I. 81. Faunul. Sinens.
W. with a yellow breast, and throat: the hair of a dark chesnut color, and of far superior finess to the former; in other respects agreeing with it.
Inhabits the N. of Europe, Asia, and America: found also in Great Britain*: inhabits large forests, especially those of pines: never lodges near houses, as the other species is said† to do: M. de Buffon says, that it brings but two or three young at a time: its prey is the same with the former; its fur of far greater value: the N. of Asia, and of America, abounds with them: their skins a prodigious article of commerce.
* M. de Buffon says we have none of these animals in England, Parce qu'il n'y a pas de bois. That gentleman never did our kingdom the honor or making a progress through it.
† All foreign writers agree in this; but those which inhabit my neighborhood always keep in the woods, except in their nocturnal excursions.
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156. SABLE.
Zobela Agricola An. Subter. 485.
Mustela Sobella Gesner quad. 768.
Mustela Zibellina, the Sable. Raii syn. quad. 201. Klein quad. 64.
Mustela Zibellina, Aristoteli Satherius, Nipho cebalus, Alciato Mus Samarticus et scythicus. Charleton Ex. 20.
Mustela Zibellina. M. pedibus fissis, corpore obscurè fulvo, fronte exalbida, gutture cinereo. Lin. syst. 68.
Mustela Zibellina Nov. Com. Petrop. v. 330. tab. vi.
Martes Zibellina. Mustela obscurè fulvo, gutture cinereo Brisson quad. 180.
La Zibeline de Buffon, xiii. 309.
W. with long whiskers: rounded ears: large feet: white claws: long and bushy tail: color of the hair black at the tips, cinereous at the bottom: chin cinereous: the edges of the ears yellowish: sometimes the hair has a tawny cast, for in spring, after shedding the coat, the color varies: there are instances of their being found of a snowy whiteness*: the usual length, from nose to tail, is about eighteen inches; the tail twelve.
Inhabits Siberia, Kamtschatka, and some of the Kurilski Isles, which lie between Kamtschatka, and Japan: a few are also found in Lapland**.
Sables live in holes in the earth, or beneath the roots of trees: sometimes, like the martin, form nests in the trees, and will skip with great agility from one to the other: are very lively, and much in motion during night: sleep much in the day: one that was kept tame, would, on sight of a cat, sit up on its hind legs: excrements most excessiively fœtid: prey, during summer, on ermines, weesels, and squirrels, but above all on hares; in winter, on
* Strahlenberg hist. Russia, 442.
** Scheffer Lapl. 136.
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birds; in autumn, on hurtleberries, cranberries, and the berries of the service tree: but during that season their skins are at the worst, that diet causing them to itch, and to rub off their fur against the trees: they bring forth at the end of March, or beginning of April, and have from three to five at a time, which they suckle for four or five weeks*.
Their chase was, in the more barbarous times of the Russian empire, the employ, or rather the tasks of the unhappy exiles into Siberia: as that country is now become more populous, the sables have in great measure quitted it, and retired farther North and East, to live in desert forests, and mountains; they live near the banks of rivers, or in the little islands in them†: on this account they have, by some, been supposed to be the Σαϑεϱιоν, of Aristole, Hist. An. lib. viii. c. 5; which he classes with the animals conversant among waters.
At present the hunters of sables form themselves into troops, from 5 to 40 each; the last: subdivide into lesser parties, and each chuses a leader, but there is one that directs the whole: a small covered boat is provided for each party, loaden with provision, a dog and net for every two men, and a vessel to bake their bread in: each party also has an interpreter for the country they penetrate into: every party then sets out according to the course their chief points out. they go against the stream of the rivers, drawing their boats up, till they arrive in
* Hist, Kamtschatka, 109. &c.
† Avril's Travels, 140.
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the hunting country; there they stop, build huts, and wait till the waters are frozen, and the season commences: before they begin the chase, their leader assembles them, they unite in a prayer to the Almighty for success, and then separate: the first sable they take is called GOD'S sable, and is dedicated to the church.
They then penetrate into the woods, mark the trees as they advance, that they may know their way back; and in their hunting quarters, form huts of trees, and bank up the snow round them: near these they lay their traps, then advance farther, and lay more traps, still building new huts in every quarter, and return succeffively to every old one, to visit the traps, and take out the game to skin it, which none but the chief of the party must do: during this time they are supplied with provisions by persons who are employed to bring it on sledges, from the places on the road, where they are obliged to form magazines, by reason of the impracticability of bringing quantities thro' the rough country they must pass. The traps are a sort of pitfall, with a loose board placed over it, baited with fish or flesh: when sables grow scarce, the hunters trace them in the new fallen snow, to their holes, place their nets at the entrance, and sometimes wait, watching two or three days for the coming out of the animal: it has happened that these poor people have, by the failure of their provisions, been so pinched with hunger, that, to prevent the cravings of appetite, they have been reduced to take two thin boards, one of which they apply to
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the pit of the stomach, the other to the back drawing them tight together by cords placed at the ends*: such are the hardships our fellow creatures undergo, to supply the wantoness of luxury.
The season of chace being finished, the hunters re-assemble, make a report to their leader of the number of sables each has taken; make complaints of offenders against their regulations; punish delinquents; share the booty; then continue at the head quarters 'till the rivers are clear of ice; return home, and give to every church the dedicated furs.
COMMERCIAL HISTORY.
The following is the commercial history of this fur trade, which Mr. J. R. Forster was so obliging as to translate for me, from Muller's Samlung Russ. Geschichte III, 495 to 515, being an abstract from above 20 pages.
"SABLE, SOBOL in Russian; ZOBEL in German: their price varies, from 1l. to 10l. sterling, and above: fine and middling sable skins are without bellies, and the coarse ones are with them: forty skins make a collection called Zimmer: the finest sables are sold in pairs, perfectly similar, and are dearer than single ones of the same goodness; for the Russians want those in pairs for facing caps, cloaks, tippets, &c. the blackest are reputed the best. Sables are in season from November to February; for those caught at any other time of the year are short hair'd, and then called Nedosoboli: the hair of sables differs in length and quality: the
* Bell's Travels, I. 245.
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long hairs, which reach far beyond the inferior ones, are called Os; the more a skin has of such long hairs, the blacker they are, and the more valuable is the fur; the very best have no other but those long and black hairs: Motchka is a technical term in the Russian fur trade, expressing the lower part of the long hairs; and sometimes it comprehends likewise the lower and shorter hairs: the above mentioned best sable furs are said to have a black Motchka: below the long hairs are, in the greater parts of sable furs, some shorter hairs, called Podosie, i.e. Under-Os: the more Podosie a fur has, the less valuable: in the better kind of sables the Podosie has black tips, and a grey or rusty Motchka: the first kind of Motchka makes the middling kind of sable furs; the red one the worst, especially if it has but few Os: between the Os and Podosie is a low wooly kind of hair, called Podsada; the more Podsada a fur has, the less valuable, for the long hair will, in such case, take no other direction than the natural one; for the character of sables is, that notwithstanding the hair naturally lies from the head towards the tail, yet will lie equally in any direction, as you strike your hand over it: the various combinations of these characters, in regard to Os, Motchka, Podosie, and Podsada, make many special divisions of the goodness of furs: besides this, the furriers attend to the size, preserving always cæteris paribus the biggest, and those that have the greatest gloss: the size depends upon the animal being a male or female, the latter being always smaller: the gloss vanishes in old furs: the fresh ones have a kind of
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bloomy appearance, as they express it; the old ones are said to have done blooming: the died sables always lose their gloss, become less uniform, whether the lower hairs have taken the dye or not, and commonly the hairs are somewhat twisted or crisped, and not so strait as in the natural ones: some fumigate the skins, to make them look blacker, but the smell, and the crisped condition of the long hair, betrays the cheat; and both ways are detected, by rubbing the fur with a moist linnen cloth, which grows black in such cases."
"The Chinese have a way of dying the sables, so that the colour not only lasts, (which the Russian cheats cannot do) but the fur keeps its gloss, and the crisped hairs only discover it: this is the reason that all the sables, which are of the best kind, either in pairs or separate, are carried to Russia; the rest go to China: the very best sables come from the environs of Nertchitsk and Yakutsk; and in this latter district, the country about the river Ud affords sometimes sables, of whom one single fur is often sold at the rate of 60 or 70 rubles, 12 or 141. The bellies of sables, which are sold in pairs, are about two fingers breadth, and are tied together by forty pieces, which are sold from 1 to 21. sterling: tails are sold by the hundred; the very best sable furs must have their tails, but ordinary sables are often cropped, and a hundred sold from 4 to 81. sterling: the legs or feet of sables are seldom sold separately: white sables are rare, and no common merchandize, but bought only as curiosities: some are yellowish, and are bleached in the spring on the snow."
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157. FISHER.
W. with a black nose: strong and stiff whiskers: six small weesel-like teeth above and below: six large canine teeth: four grinding teeth in each upper jaw; three sharp pointed, the fourth flat: in the lower jaws six; the last flatted, the next tridentated; the next to those bidentated: ears broad and round, dusky on their outsides, edged with white: face and sides of the neck pale brown, or cinereous, mixed with black: hairs on the back, belly, legs and tail, black: brownish at their base: sides brown: the feet very broad; covered with hair even on their soles: five toes on the fore feet; generally four, but sometimes five on the hind feet; with sharp, strong and crooked white claws; fore legs shorter than those behind: tail full and bushy, smallest at the end, seventeen inches long: length, from nose to tail, twenty-eight inches.
Inhabits N. America: notwithstanding its name, is not amphibious: preys on all sorts of lesser quadrupeds*: by the number of skins imported, is not an uncommon animal; not less than 580 being brought in one season from New york and Pensylvania: seems to be the animal, called by Josselyn†, the SABLE; which, he says, is perfectly black. I have seen many of the skins, which vary in color: yet, from the agreement in form and colors in general with the true SABLE, I cannot help thinking them the same animal. Such numbers of quadrupeds are
* By a letter from Mr. Peter Collinson, who received the account from Bartram, of Pensylvania.
† Josselyn's voy. 87.
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found common to the N. of Europe, or of Asia and of America*, that I suspect myself to be too cautious in making this a distinct species from the former.
158. MADAGASCAR.
Le vansire, de Buffon, xiii. 167. tab. xxi.
W. with short ears: the hair on the whole body brown at the roots, and barred above with black, and ferruginous: the tail of the same color: the length, from nose to tail, about fourteen inches; the tail, to the tip of the hairs at the end, near ten.
Inhabits Madagascar.
159. PEKAN.
Le Pekan, et Le Vison, de Buffon, xiii. 304. tab. xlii. xliii.
W. with very long and strong whiskers: ears a little pointed: hair on the head, body, belly and legs cinereous at the roots, of a bright bay at the ends; very soft and glossy: between the fore-legs a white spot: toes covered with thick hair, above and below: claws sharp: tail of a deeper color than the body: in form like a martin, but much less.
Inhabits N. America: described from a skin: the Pekan and Vison of M. de Buffon resemble each other so nearly, that I do not separate them: a fuller account of these animals is to be desired.
* Viz. Elk, Rein, Stag, Wolf, Fox, Arctic Fox, Lynx, Bear, Wolverene, Badger? Stoat, Pine Martin, Sable? Otter, Lesser O. Sea O. Hare, Alpine Hare, Beaver, Common Squairrel, Grey sq. Black Sq. Flying Sq. Ground Sq. Water Rat, Field Mouse, Short-tailed M. Mole? Arctic Walrus, Common Seal, Great S. Manati.
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160. GUINEA.
Galera, subfusca, cauda elongata, auribus subnudis appressis. Browne's Jamaica, 485. tab. xlix.
Le Tayra ou le Galera de Buffon, xv. 155.
W. with the upper jaw much longer than the lower: eyes placed mid-way, between the ears and tip of the nose: ears like the human: tongue rough: tail declining downwards, lessening towards the point: feet strong, and formed for digging: shape of the body like that of a rat: size of a small rabbet: of a dusky color: the hair rough.
Inhabits Guinea: common about the negro settlements: burrows like a rabbet: very fierce; if drove to necessity will fly at man or beast: very destructive to poultry: seems to be the Kokeboe of Bosman*, which only differs in color, being red.
161. GUIANA.
Mustela barbara. M. pedibus fissis atra, collo subtus macula alba triloba. Lin. syst. 67.
Mustela maxima atra moscum redolens. Tayra, grosse Belette. Barrere France Æquin 155.
W. with round ears, covered with down: an ash colored space between the eyes: a trilobated spot on the lower part of the neck: size of a martin: color black: hairs coarse.
Inhabits Brasil and Guiana: when it rubs itself against trees, leaves behind an unctuous matter, that scents of musk.
* Hist. Guinea. 239.
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162. ICHNEUMON.
ιϰνευμωυ. Aristot. hist. An. lib. ix. c. 6. Oppian Cyneg. III. 407.
Ichneumon Plinii, lib. vii. c. 24.
L'Ichneumon, que les Egyptiens nomment Rat* de Pharaon. Belon obs. 95. Portraits 106. Prosp. Alp. I. 234. Gesner quad. 566. Raii syn. quad. 202. Shaw's Travels, 249. 376.
Mustela Ægyptiaca Klein quad. 64.
Meles Ichneumon digitis mediis longioribus, lateralibus æqualibus, unguibus subuniformibus. Hasselquist itin. 191.
Ichneumon: Mus Pharaonis vulgo. Brisson quad. 181.
Viverra Ichneumon. V. cauda e basi incrassata sensim attenuata, pollicibus remotiusculis. Lin. syst. 63.
β. INDIAN. Quil, vel Quirpele Garcia Arom. 214. Raii syn. quad. 197.
Viverra Mungo. Kæmpfer Amæn. 574.
De Mongkos Valentyn Amboin. III.
Serpenticida five Moncus. Rumph. herb. Amboin. App. 69. tab. xxviii.
Indian Ichneumon Edw. 199.
Ichneumon seu vulpecula ceilonica Seb. Mus. I. 66. tab. xli. fig. 1.
La Mangouste de Buffon, xiii. 150. tab. xix.
Viverra indica. V. ex griseo rufescens. Brisson quad. 177. Raii syn. quad. 198.
W. with bright flame-colored eyes: small rounded ears, almost naked: nose long and slender: body thicker than that of others of this genus: tail very thick at the base, tapering to a point: legs short: the hair is hard and coarse: color various in different animals, from different countries; in some, alternately barred with dull yellowish brown and white; in others, pale brown and mouse-colored; so that the animal appears mottled: throat and belly of a uniform brown: beneath the tail is an orifice not unlike that of a badger: differs in size: from twenty-four to forty-two inches in length, from the
* The Ægyptians never style it Phar, or Mouse, but Nems, or Ferret, from its resemblance to that animal. Hasselquist. 196.
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tip of the nose to the end of the tail: the specimen in the Ashmolean Museum was thirteen inches and a half long to the origin of the tail; the tail eleven; the Ægyptian variety, is the largest.
Inhabits Ægypt, Barbary, India, and its islands: a most usefull animal; being an inveterate enemy to the serpents and other noxious reptiles which infest the torrid zone: attacks without dread that most fatal of serpents the Naja, or Cobra di Capello; and should it receive a wound in the combat, instantly retires; and is faid to obtain* an antedote from a certain herb, after which it returns to the attack, and seldom fails of victory: is a great destroyer of the eggs of crocodiles, which it digs out of the sand; and even kills multitudes of the young of those terrible reptiles: it was not therefore without reason, that the antient Ægyptians ranked the
* A fact, as yet, not well established: Botanists are not yet agreed about the species of this sanative plant, whose use, it is pretended, this weesel pointed out to mankind: those who have seen the combats between the Ichneumon and Naia, never could discover it: Kæmpfer, a writer of the first authority, who visited India, and who had a tame Ichneumon, and been witness to its battles with the serpent, says no more than that it retired and eat the roots of any herb it met with. It is from the Indians he received the account of the root, whose veracity he speaks most contemptuously of. Amæn. Exot. 576. Rumphius never saw the plant growing; but describes it from a specimen sent him from Java; for he says the Indians would persuade him, that it had no leaves. Vide Herb. Amboin. App. 71. All that seems certain, is, that the Indians have a plant, of whose alexipharmic virtues they have a high opinion, and are said to use it with success againsst the dreadfull macassar poison, and the bite of serpents. Kæmpfer says he had good success with one spacies, in putrid fevers, and found it infallible for the bite of a mad dog. As there is no doubt but a most usefull plant of this nature does exist in the Indies, it is to be hoped that strict enquiry will be made after it. In order to direct their searches, they are referred to
Garcia ab Horto's Hist. Aromatum in Clus. Exot. 214.
Kæmpfer Amæn. Exot. 573. Rumph. Herb. Amboin. App. 29.
Amæn. Acad. II. 89. Flora Zeylanica, 46, 190, 239.
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Ichneumon among their Deities: is at present do mesticated and kept in houses in India and in Ægypt; for it is more usefull than a cat, in destroying rats and mice: grows very tame: is very active; springs with great agility on its prey; will glide along the ground like a serpent, and seem as if without feet: sits up like a squirrel, and eats with its fore feet: catches any thing that is flung to it: is a great enemy to poultry: will feign itself dead, till they come within reach: loves fish: draws its prey after sucking the blood, to its hole: its excrements very fætid: when it sleeps, brings its head and tail under its belly, appearing like a round ball, with two legs sticking out. Rumphius observes how skilfully it seizes the serpents by the throat, so as to avoid receiving any injury: and Lucan beautifully describes the same address of this animal, in conquering the Ægyptian Asp.
Aspidas ut Pharias cauda solertior hostis
Ludit, et iratas incerta provocat umbra:
Obliquansque caput vanas serpentis in auras
Effusæ toto comprendit guttura morsu
Letiferam citra saniem: tunc irrita Pestis
Exprimitur, faucesque fluunt pereunte veneno.
Lib. iv. 724.
163. FOURTOED.
Le Surikate de Buffon, xiii. 72. tab. viii.
W. with the upper jaw much longer than the lower, and very moveable and pliant: ears rounded: hair pretty long, hard, and upright; varied with black
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and white; the points black: only four toes on each foot, an exception in this genus: tail taper: length, from nose to tail, about one foot; tail six inches.
Inhabits the Cape of Good Hope*, and the island of Java**: is an active, lively animal: sits upright, and drops its fore-legs on its breast: is carnivorous, and preys on the lesser creatures: very playfull: drinks its own urine: when discontented, makes a noise like the barking of a whelp; when pleased, like a rattle swiftly shook. Described only by M. de Buffon, who seems to have been deceived about its native place.
164. BRASILIAN.
Coati Marcgrave Brasil. 228. De Laet. 486. Raii syn. quad. 180. Klein quad. 72.
Vulpes minor, rostro superiore longiusculo, cauda annulatim ex nigro et rufo variegatâ. Quachy.
Barrere France Æquin. 167.
Viverra nasua. V. rufa, cauda albo annulato. Lin. syst. 64.
Ursus naso producto et mobili, cauda annulatim variegata. Brisson quad. 190.
Le Coati brun. de Buffon, viii. 358. tab. xlviii.
Badger of Guiana. Bancroft, 141.
W. with the upper jaw lengthened into a pliant, moveable proboscis, much longer than the lower jaw: ears rounded: eyes small: nose dusky: hair on the body smooth, soft and glossy, of a bright bay color: tail annulated with dusky and bay: breast whitish: length, from nose to tail, eighteen inches; tail, thirteen.
* Pallas Miscell. Zool. 59, 60.
** Rumph. Herb. Amboin. App. 71, speaking of the Ichneumon, or Muncos, says, ac distinguendus est a Suracatje seu javanorum Tupe, quod est Mustela.
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β. DUSKY. Nose and ears formed like the preceding: above and beneath the eye two spots of white: hair on the back and sides dusky at the roots, black in the middle, and tipt with yellow: chin, throat, sides of the cheeks, and belly, yellowish: feet black: tail annulated with black and white: sometimes the tail is of an uniform dusky color*. Le Coati noiratre of M. de Buffon, tab. xlvii. the Coati-mondi of Marcgrave.
Inhabits Brasil and Guiana: feeds on fruits, eggs, and poultry: runs up trees very nimbly: eats like a dog, holding its food between its fore-legs: is easily made tame: is very good-natured: makes a sort of whistling noise: seems much inclined to sleep in the day. Marcgrave observes, that they are very subject to gnaw their own tails.
265. STIFLING.
Yzquiepatl. Hernandez Mex. 332. Raii syn. quad. 181. Klein quad. 72.
Meles surinamensis. Brisson quad. 185.
Ichneumon de Yzquiepatl. Seb. Mus. I. tab. xlii.
Le Coase de Buffon? xiii. 288. tab. xxxviii.
W. with a short slender nose: short ears and legs: black body, full of hair: tail long, of a black and white color: length, from nose to tail, about eighteen inches.
Inhabits Mexico, and perhaps other parts of America. This, and the four following species, re-
* Described as a distinct species, by Linnæus under the title of viverra Narica. V. subfusca, cauda unicolore, 64. and by M. Brisson, under that of ursus naso producto et mobili, cauda unicolore, 190.
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markable for the pestiferous, suffocating, and most fœtid vapour, they emit from behind, when attacked, pursued, or frightened; it is their only means of defence: some turn* their tail to their enemy, and keep them at a distance by a frequent crepitus; and others ejaculate their urine, tainted with the horrid effluvia, to the distance of eighteen feet: the pursuers are stopped with the terrible stench: should any of this liquid fall into the eyes, it almost occasions blindness; if on the cloaths, the smell will remain for several days, in spite of all washing; they must even be buried in fresh soil, in order to be sweetened. Dogs that are not true bred, run back as soon as they perceive the smell; those that have been used to it, will kill the animal; but are often obliged to relieve themselves by thrusting their noses into the ground. There is no bearing the company of a dog that has killed one, for several days.
Professor Kalm was one night in great danger of being suffocated by one that was pursued into a house where he slept; and it affected the cattle so, that they bellowed through pain. Another, which was killed by a maid servant in a cellar, so affected her with its stench, that she lay ill for several days: all the provisions that were in the place were so tainted, that the owner was obliged to throw them away.
Notwithstanding this, the flesh is reckoned good meat, and not unlike that of a pig: but it must be
* Wood's voy. in Dampier, iv. 96. the rest of the account is taken from Catesby and Kalm.
Q 4
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skinned as soon as killed, and the bladder taken carefully out. The Virginian species is capable of being tamed, and will follow its master like a dog: it never emits its vapour, except terrified.
It breeds in hollow trees, or holes under ground, or in clefts of rocks: climbs trees with great agility: kills poultry; eats eggs, and destroys young birds.
266. STRIATED.
Pole-cat, or Skunk, Lawson Carolina.
Pole-cat Catesby Carolina, II.
Mustela Americana fætida Klein quad. 64.
Mustela nigra tæniis in dorso albis. Brisson quad. 181.
Viverra putorius. V. fusca lineis quatuor dorsalibus parallelis albis. Lin. syst. 64.
Le Conepate de Buffon, xiii. 288. tab. xl.
W. with rounded ears: head, neck, belly, legs, and tail, black: the back and sides marked with five parallel white lines; one on the top of the back; the others on each side: the second extends some way up the tail, which is long, and bushy towards the end: size of a European Pole-cat; the back more arched: varies in the disposition of the stripes.
Inhabits N. America: when attacked, bristles up its hair, and flings its body into a round form: its vapour horrid. Du Pratz says, that the male of the Pole cat, or Skunk, is of a shining black: perhaps the Coase. of M. de Buffon is the male; for his description does not agree with the Yzquiepatl, which he makes synonymous.
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267. SKUNK.
Chinche Feuillee obs. Peru, 1714, p. 272.
Skunk, Fiskatta, Kalm's voy. Forster's Tr. I. 273. tab. ii. Josselyn's voy. 85.
Enfant du Diable, Bete puante. Charlevoix Nouv. France, v. 196.
Le Chinche de Buffon, xiii. 294. tab. xxxix.
W. with short rounded ears: black cheeks: a white stripe from the nose, between the ears, to the back: upper part of the neck, and the whole back, white; divided at the bottom by a black line, commencing at the tail and passing a little way up the back: belly and legs black: tail very full of long coarse hair; generally black, sometimes tipt with white: that figured by M. de Buffon entirely white: nails on all the feet, very long, like those on the fore-feet of a badger: rather less than the former.
Inhabits Peru, and N. America, as far as Canada: of the same manners and stench with the others.
268. ZORILLA.
Annas of the Indians, Zorrinas of the Spaniards, Garcilasso de la Vega, 331.
Mariputa, Mafutiliqui, Gumilla Orenoque, III. 240.
W. with the back and sides marked with short stripes of black and white; the last tinged with yellow: tail long and bushy; part white, part black: legs and belly black: less than the preceding*.
* The Weesel, called by the Russians Perewiaska, and the Poles, Przewiaska, or the Girdled Weesel, seems allied to these. It is, says Rzaczinski, less than a Pole-cat, of a whitish color, rayed transversly with yellowish red: it burrows and lives in the woods: its skin is a beautifull fur. Auct. hist. Polon. 328.
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Inhabits Peru, and other parts of S. America: its pestilential vapour overcomes even the Panther of America, and stupifies that formidable enemy.
269. FIZZLER.
Stink-bingsem. Kolben Cape, II. 133.
Blereau puant Voy. de la Caille, 182.
W. with a short-pointed nose: no external ears, only two oblong auditory orifices: middle of the back of a whitish grey: from the eyes to the middle of the tail, on each side, is a stripe of white: the belly, legs, and tip of the tail, black: the claws of the fore feet an inch long; those of the hind feet short: length, from nose to tail, two feet; the tail eight inches.
Inhabits the Cape of Good Hope: as fœtid as the rest.
270. CIVET.
La civette qu'on nommoit anciennement Hyæna. Belon. obs. 94.
Zibettus Caii opusc. 43.
Felis Zibethus Gesner quad. 837.
Animal Zibethicum, mas et fæm. Hernandez Mex. 580, 581.
Civet Cat Raii syn. quad. 178.
Coati civetta vulgo, Klein quad. 73.
Meles fasciis et maculis albis nigris et rufescentibus variegata. Brisson quad. 186.
Viverra Zibetha. V. cauda annulate, dorso cinereo nigroque undatim striato, Lin. syst. 65. La Civette de Buffon, ix 299. tab. xxxiv.
W. with short rounded ears: sky-blue eyes: sharp nose; the tip black: sides of the face, chin, breast, legs and feet, black: the rest of the face, and part of the sides of the neck, white, tinged with yellow: from each ear three black stripes, ending at the throat and shoulders: the back and sides cinereous,
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tinged with yellow, marked with large dusky spots disposed in rows: the hair coarse; that on the top of the body longest, standing up like a mane: the tail sometimes wholly black; sometimes spotted near the base: length, from nose to tail, about two feet three inches; the tail fourteen inches; the body pretty thick.
Inhabits; India*, the Philippine isles**, Guinea†, Æthiopia‡, and Madagascar§: the famous drug musk, or civet, is produced from an overture between the privities and the anus, in both sexes, secreted from certain glands. The persons who keep them procure the musk by scraping the inside of this bag twice a week with an iron spatula, and get about a dram each time; but it is seldom sold pure, being generally mixed with suet or oil, to make it more weighty: the males yield the most; especially when they are previously irritated: they are fed, when young, with pap made of millet, with a little flesh or fish; when old, with raw flesh: in a wild state prey on fowl.
β. ZIBET. Animal Zibethecum Americanum. Hernandez Mex. 538.
Felis Zibethus. Gesner quad. 836. Le Zibet, de Buffon, 299. tab. xxxi.
W. with short rounded ears: sharp long nose: pale cinereous face: head, and lower part of the neck,
* Dellon's voy. 82.
** Argensola, III.
† Bosman, 238. Barbot. 114.
‡ Rauwolff's Travels, II. 482.
§ Flacourt Madagascar, 154. where it is called Falanouc..
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mixed with dirty white, brown and black: sides of the neck marked with stripes of black, beginning near the ears, and ending at the breast and shoulders: from the middle of the neck, along the ridge of the back, extends a black line, reaching some-way up the tail: on each side are two others: the sides spotted with ash-color and black: the tail barred with black and white; the black bars broader on the upper side than the lower.
A variety first distinguished from the other by M. de Buffon; but figured long before by Hernandez and Gesner: unknown in Mexico*, till introduced there from the Philippine isles. These animals seem not to be known to the antients: it is probable the drug was brought without their knowing its origin; for it is certain the fine gentlemen at Rome used persumes,
Pastillos Rufillus olet.
271. GENET.
La Genette Belon obs. 74.
Genetha Gesner quad. 549, 550.
Genetta vel Ginetta. Raii syn. quad. 201.
Coati, ginetta Hispanis. Klein quad. 73.
Mustela cauda ex annulis alternatim albidis et nigris variegata. Brisson quad. 186.
Viverra Genetta. V. cauda annulata, corpore fulvo-nigricante maculato Lin. syst. 65.
La Genette de Buffon, ix. 343. tab. xxxvi.
W. with ears a little pointed: slender body: very long tail: color of the body a tawny red, spotted with black; and the ridge of the back marked with a black line: the tail annulated with black and tawny reet black: sometimes the ground color of
* Fernanaez Nov. Hisp. II.
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I BRASILIAN WEESEL No. 164. II FOSSANE No. 172.
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the hair inclines to grey: about the size of a martin; but the fur is shorter.
Inhabits Turkey, Syria, and Spain; frequents the banks of rivers; smells faintly of musk, and, like the civet, has an orifice beneath the tail: is kept tame in the houses at Constantinople, and is as usefull as a cat in catching mice.
272. FOSSANE.
Le Fossane de Buffon, xiii. 163. tab. xx.
W. with a slender body: rounded ears: black eyes: body and legs covered with cinereous hair, mixed with tawny: sides of the face black: from the hind part of the head, towards the back anel shoulders, extend four black lines: shoulders, sides, and thighs, black: tail annulated with black.
Inhabits Madagascar, and Guinea, Cochin-china, and the Philippine isles: is fierce, and hard to be tamed: in Guinea is called Berbe; by the Europeans, Wine-bibber, being very greedy of Palm-wine*: destroys poultry: is, when young, reckoned very good to eat**.
* Bosman, 239.
** Flacourt's hist. Madagascar, 512. where it is called Fossa.
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XXIV. OTTER.
Six cutting teeth, two canine in each jaw.
Five toes on each foot; each toe connected by a strong web.
173. GREATER.
Lutra Agricola An. Subter. 482. Gesner quad. 687. Raii syn. quad. 187.
Wydra Rzaczinski Polon. 221.
Otter Klein quad. 91.
Mustela Lutra. M. plantis palmatis nudis, cauda corpore dimidio breviore. Lin. syst. 66. Utter, Faun. suec. No. 12.
Lutra castanei coloris Brisson quad. 201.
Le Loutre, Belon Aquat. 26. de Buffon, vii. 134. tab. xi.
Otter, Br. Zool. I. 67. Br. Zool. illustr. tab. c.
O. with short ears: eyes placed near the nose: lips thick: whiskers large: whole color of a deep brown, except two small spots each side the nose, and another beneath the chin: legs short and thick, and loosely joined to the body; capable of being brought on a line with the body, and performing the part of fins; each toe connected to the other by a broad strong web: length twenty-three inches; tail sixteen.
Inhabits all parts of Europe, N. and N. E. of Asia, even as far as Kamtschatka; abounds in North America, particularly in Canada, where the most valuable furs of this kind are produced: dwells in the banks of rivers; burrows, forming the entrance of its hole beneath the water; works upwards towards the surface of the earth, and makes a small orifice, or air hole, in the midst of some bush: swims and dives with great ease; very destructive to fish; if they fail, makes excursions on
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land, and preys on lambs and poultry: sometimes breeds in sinks and drains; brings four or five young at a time: hunts its prey against the stream; frequents not only fresh waters, but sometimes preys in the sea; but not remote from shore: is a fierce animal; its bite hard and dangerous: is capable of being tamed, to follow its master like a dog, and even to fish for him, and return with its prey.
The Latax of Aristotle*; possibly a large variety of otter**.
174. LESSER.
Noerza Agricola An. Subter. 485.
Gesner quad. 768.
Latax; Germ. Nurtz. nobis Nurek Rzaczinski Polon. 218.
Mustela Lutreola. M. plantis palmatis, hirsutis ore albo. Lin. syst. 66. Fennis, Tichurt; Suecis, Mænk. Faun. suec. No. 13.
Norka Ritchkoff orenb. Topogr. I. 295.
O. with roundish ears: white chin: top of the head hoary; in some tawny: body tawny and dusky; the short hairs being yellowish; the long hairs black: the feet broad, webbed and covered with hair: tail dusky, and ends in a point: of the form of an otter, but thrice as small.
* Hist. An. lib. viii. c. 5. vide Br. Zool. I. 69.
** Mr. Banks, on his return from Newfoundland, was so obliging as to communicate to me the following account of some animals seen by a gentleman who went on that voyage, which I take the liberty of inserting here, as they bear some relation to the Otter in their way of life. He observed, sitting on a rock, near the mouth of a river, five animals, shaped like Italian grehounds, bigger than a fox, of a shining black color, with long legs, and long taper tail. They often leaped into the water and brought up trouts, which they gave to their young which were sitting with them. On his appearing, they all toke to the water, and swam a little way from shore, kept their heads out of the water, and looked at him. An old Furrier said, that he remembered the skin of one sold for five guineas; and that the French often see them in Hare Bay.
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Inhabits Poland, and the N. of Europe; and is found on the banks of all the rivers in the country N. of the Yaik; lives on fish, frogs, and water insects: its fur very valuable, next in beauty to that of the sable; caught in Bashkiria with dogs and traps: is most excessively fœetid.
The Minx of N. America is the same animal with this. The late worthy Mr. Peter Collinson* favored me with the following account he received from John Bartram, of Pensylvania: 'The Minx, (says he) frequents the water like the Otter, and very much resembles it in shape and color, but is less; will abide longer under the water than the musk quash, musk rat, or little beaver: yet it will leave its watery haunts to come and rob our hen roosts; bites off their heads and sucks their blood: when vexed it has a strong loathsome smell, so may be called the water pole cat: its length, from nose to tail, twenty inches; the tail four: is of a fine shining dark brown color'.
From the conformity between the names this animal goes by, in America and Sueden, (Minx and Mænk) it seems as if some Suedish colonist, who had seen it in his own country, first bestowed the name it now goes by, a little changed from the original: the skins are often brought over to England.
* By letter dated June 14, 1764. Lawson also gives some account of it, p. 122, hist. Carolina: He says it is a great enemy to the Tortoises, whose eggs it scrapes out of the sand and devours: eats fresh water muscles, whose shells are found in great abundance at the mouth of their holes, high up in the rivers, in whose banks they live: may be made domestic: is a great destroyer of rats ana mice. La Hontan. I. 232. seems to mean the same animal, by his Foutereaux, an amphibious sort of little Pole-cats.
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175. SEA.
Jiya, et Cariguibeiu Marcgrave Brasil, 234.
Lutra Brasiliensis Raii syn. quad. 189.
Loutre ou Cariguibeju des Marchais, III. 306.
Guachi, Gumilla Orenoque, III. 239
Le Saracovienne de Buffon, xiii. 319.
Mustela Lutris. M. plantis palmtis pilosis, cauda corpore quadruplo breviore. Lin. syst. 66.
Lutra atri coloris, macula sub gutture flava. Brisson quad. 202.
Lutra marina, Kalan. Nov. com. Petrop. II. 367. tab. xvi.
Sea otter, hist. Kamtchatka, 122. Muller's voy. 57, 58.
O. with a black nose: upper jaw longer and broader than the lower: long white whiskers: irides hazel: ears small, erect, conic: in each jaw four cutting teeth; the grinders broad, adapted for breaking and comminuting crustaceous animals, and shell fish: skin thick: hair thick and long, excessively black and glossy: beneath that a soft down: color sometimes varies to silvery: legs thick and short: toes covered with hair, and joined by a web: the hind feet exactly like those of a seal, and have a membrane skirting the outside of the exterior toe, like that of a goose: length, from nose to tail, four feet two inches; tail thirteen inches, flat, fullest of hair in the middle; sharp pointed. The biggest of these animals weigh seventy or eighty pounds.
Inhabits, in vast abundance, the coasts of Kamtschatka, and the parts of America discovered by the Russians opposite to it: met with again in a most remote part of the continent of America, in the Brasilian* rivers, and that of Orenoque: are most harmless animals; most affectionate to their young,
* These of Brasil have a yellow spot under the chin.
R
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will pine to death at the loss of them, and die on the very spot where they have been taken from them before the young can swim, they carry them in their paws, lying in the water on their backs: run very swiftly; swim often on their back, their sides, and even in a perpendicular posture: are very sportive; embrace each other, and even kiss: inhabit the shallows, or such which abound with sea weeds: feed on lobsters, fish, Sepiæ and shell fish: breed once a year, bring but one young at a time, suckle it a year, bring it on shore: are dull sighted, but quick scented: hunted for their skins, which are of great value; sold to the Chinese for seventy or a hundred Rubels a-piece: each skin weighs 3 lb. and a half. The young are reckoned very delicate meat, scarce to be distinguished from a sucking lamb.
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XXV. CAVY.
Div. II Sect. III. DIGITATED QUADRUPEDS: without canine teeth; and with two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Generally herbivorous, or frugivorous.
176. RESTLESS.
Two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Generally four toes on the fore feet, three behind. Short ears: no tail, or a very short one.
Cuniculus vel Porcellus indicus Gesner quad. 367.
Cavia Cobaya. Marcgrave Brasil. 224. Piso Brasil, 102.
Mus seu cuniculus Americanus et Guineensis, Porcelli pilis et voce, Cavia Cobaya. Raii syn. quad. 223.
Cavia Cobaya Brasil, quibusdam mus Pharaonis. Tatu pilosus, Klein quad. 49.
Mus porcellus. M. cauda nulla, palmis tetradactylis, plantis tridactylis Lin. syst. 79. Amæn. Acad. iv. 190. tab. ii.
Cuniculus ecaudatus, auritus albus, aut rufus, aut ex utroque variegatus Brisson quad. 102.
Le Cochon d'Inde. de Buffon, viii. 1. tab. i.
C. with the upper lip half divided: ears very large, broad, and rounded at the sides: hair erect, not unlike that of a young pig: color white, or white varied with orange, and black in irregular blotches: no tail: four toes on the fore feet; three on the hind.
Inhabits Brasil: no mention made by writers of is manners in a wild state: domesticated in Europe: a restless, grunting, little animal; perpetually running from corner to corner: feeds on bread grains, and vegetables: breeds when two months old: brings from four to twelve at a time; and breeds every two months: would be innumerable, but numbers of the young are eaten by cats, others killed by the males: are very tender, multitudes of young and old perishing with cold: are called in
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England Guinea-Pigs, being supposed to come from that country. Rats are said to avoid their haunts.
177. ROCK.
Aperea. Brasiliensibus, nobis veldratte, vel Boschratte Marcgrave Brasil, 223. Piso Brasil, 103. Raii syn. quad. 206.
Cavia Aperea Klein quad. 50.
Cuniculus ecaudatus auritus, ex cinereo rufus Brisson quad. 103.
L'Aperea de Buffon, xv. 160.
C. with divided upper lip: short ears: four toes on the fore feet; three on the hind: no tail: color of the upper part of the body like that of the common hare: belly white: length one foot.
Inhabits Brasil: lives in the holes of rocks: is drove out, and taken by little dogs: is superior in goodness to our rabbets: its paces like that of a hare.
178. SPOTTED.
Paca Marcgranve Brasil, 224. Piso Brasil, 101. de Laet. 484.
Mus Brasiliensis magnus, porcelli pilis et voce, Paca dictus. Raii syn. quad. 226.
Cavia Paca. Klein quad. 50.
Cuniculus major, palustris, fasciis albis notatus. Paca Marcgrave. Barrere France Æquin. 152.
Mus Paca. M. cauda abbreviata, pedibus pentadactylss, lateribus flavescenti-lineatis, Lin. syst. 81.
Cuniculus caudatus, auritus, pilis obscure fulvis, rigidis, lineis ex albo flavescentibus ad latera distinctis. Brisson quad. 99.
Le Paca de Buffon, X. 269. tab. xliii.
C. with the upper jaw longer than the lower: nostrils large: whiskers long: ears short and naked: neck thick: hairs short, and hard: color of the upper part of the body dark brown; the lower part, or sides, marked lengthways with lines of grey spots: the belly white; in some, perhaps young ones, the sides and spots are of a pale yellow: five toes on each foot: only the meer rudiment of a tail:
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length about ten inches: is made like a pig, and in some parts is called the Hog-Rabbet*.
Inhabits Brasil, and Guiana: lives in fenny places: burrows under ground: grows very fat: is esteemed in Brasil a great delicacy: grunts like a pig: eats its meat on the ground, not sitting up, as some others of this genus do: are discovered by little dogs, who point out the places they lie in: the master digs over them, and when he comes near transfixes them with a knife; otherwise they are apt to escape: will bite dreadfully. There is a variety quite white, found on the banks of river St. Franas**.
179. LONGNOSED.
Aguti vel Acuti. Marcgrave Brasil, 244. Piso Brasil, 102.
Acuti ou Agoutis. de Laet. 484. Rochefort Antilles, I. 287.
Mus sylvestris americanus cuniculi magnitudine, pilis et voce Porcelli, Aguti. Raii syn. quad. 226. Cavia Aguti Klein quad. 50.
Mus Aguti. M. cauda abbreviata, palmis tetradactylis, plantis tridactylis, abdomine flavescente. Lin. syst. 80.
Cuniculus caudatus, auribus, pilis ex rufo et fusco mixtis, rigidis vestitus. Brisson quad. 98.
L'Agouti de Buffon, viii. 375. tab. L.
Small Indian Coney, Brown's Jamaica, 484.
Long-nosed Rabbet, Wafer's voy. in Dampier, III. 401.
Cuniculus omnium vulgatissimus, Aguti vulgo Barrere France Æquin. 153†.
C. with a long nose: divided upper lip: short rounded ears: black eyes: hair hard and shining; on the body mixed with red, brown and black; on the rump, of a bright orange color: belly yellow:
* Wefer's voy. in Dampier, III. 401.
** De Laet. 484.
† The animal described by Seba under the name of Cuniculus Americanus, I. 67. tab. xli. seems the same with this, notwithstanding he says that the hind feet are tetradactylous.
R 3
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legs almost naked, slender and black: four toes on the fore feet; three on the hind; tail short, and naked: size of a Rabbet.
Inhabits Brasil, Guiana, &c. grunts like a pig: is very voracious: sits on its hind legs, and holds its food with the fore feet when it eats: hides what it cannot consume: hops like a hare: goes very fast: when pursued, takes shelter in hollow trees: is capable of being tamed: when angry, sets up the hair on its back, and strikes the ground with its feet: is eat by the inhabitants of South America.
180. OLIVE.
Cuniculus minor caudatus, olivaceus, Akouchy. Barrere France Æquin. 153. Des Marchais, III. 303.
L'Akouchi, de Buffon, xv. 158.
A species of Aguti, less than the former, and of an olive color: which is the whole account left us by M. Barrere. Des Marchais says it is more delicate food than the other.
Inhabits Guiana.
181. JAVAN.
Java hare Catesby Carolina App. tab. xviii.
Cavia javensis. Klein quad. 50.
Cuniculus caudatus auritus, rufescens, fusco admixto. Brisson quad. 98.
Mus leporinus Lin. syst. 80.
C. with a slender small head: prominent naked ears, rounded at the tops: color of the upper part of the body reddish: breast and belly white: legs long: hind parts large: four toes on the fore feet; three on the hind: tail short: size of a hare.
Inhabits Java and Sumatra.
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182. CAPE.
Cavia capensis, Pallas Miscel. Zool. 30. tab. ii. Spicil. 16. tab. ii.
Africaansch basterd-mormeldier. Vosinaer Monagr.
C. with a thick head, and full cheeks: ears oval, half hid in the fur: head of the color of a hare: along the top of the back dusky, mixed with grey: sides and belly of a whitish grey: four toes on the fore feet, three behind*: tail scarce visible: shape of the body thick and clumsy: length ten inches.
Inhabits the mountains near the Cape of Good Hope, where it is called Kaapsche Dass, Klip Dass**, or Cape Badger: burrows under ground: is esteemed very good meat.
183. MUSK.
Le Rats musquès, Piloris. Roche- hist, Antilles, II. 302. de Buffon, fort Antilles, I. 288. Du Tertre x. 2.
C. of a black or tan color on the upper part of its body: white on the belly: tail very short†: almost as big as a Rabbet.
Inhabits Martinico and the rest of the Antilles: burrows like a rabbet: smells so strong of musk, that its retreat may be traced by the persume: an obscure species, never examined by a naturalist.
* Doctor Pallas says he has seen a variety with five toes behind.
** Kolben Dutch edition, as quoted by Dr. Pallas. La Caille mentions this species under the name of Marmot.
† Nouv. voy. aux isles de l' Amerique, I. 438.
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XXVT. HARE.
Two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Long ears. short tail.
Five toes before, four behind.
184. COMMON.
Lepus, Plinii, lib. viii. c. 55. Gesner quad. 605. Raii syn. quad. 204.
Hase, Klein quad. 51.
Lepus timidus. L. cauda abbreviata auriculis apice nigris? Lin. syst. 77. Hase, Fæun. suec. No. 25.
Lepus caudatus ex cinereo rufus, Brisson quad. 94.
Le Lievre; de Buffon, vi. 246. tab. xxxviii. Br. Zool. I. 87.
H. with ears tipt with black: eyes very large and prominent: chin white: long white whiskers: hair on the face, back and sides, white at the bottom, black in the middle, and tipt with tawny red: throat and breast red: belly white: tail black above, white beneath: feet covered with hair even at the bottom: a large hare weighs eight pounds and a half: its length, from the nose to the tail, two feet.
Inhabits all parts of Europe, most parts of Asia, Japan, Ceylon*, Ægypt**, Barbary†, and North America: a watchfull, timid animal: always lean: swifter in running up hill than on even ground: when started, immediately endeavours to run up hill: escapes the hounds by various artfull doubles: lies the whole day on its seat: feeds by night: returns to its form by the same road that it had taken in leaving it: does not pair: the rutting season is in February or March, when the male pursues the
* Kæmpfer Japan, I. 126. Knox Ceylon, 20.
** Prosp. Alp. I. 232.
† Shaw's Travels, 249.
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female by the sagacity of its nose: breeds often in the year; brings three or four at a time: are very subject to fleas: the Dalecarlians make a cloth of the fur, which preserves the wearer from their attacks: the fur is of great use in the hat manufacture: many thousands of the skins are for that use annually imported here from Russia: feeds on vegetables: fond of the bark of young trees: great lover of birch, parsly and pinks: was a forbidden food among the Britons: the Romans, on the contrary, held it in great esteem.
Inter quadrupedes gloria prima lepus
was the opinion of Martial; and Horace, who was likewise a Bon vivant, says, that every man of taste must prefer the wing
Fœcundi leporis sapiens sectabitur armos.
The hare of North America differs little in form or color, from that of Europe; but is less by a third: the legs are shorter in proportion; and the fur has a tinge of cinereous: when pursued, takes refuge in a hollow tree: frequents marshes and meadows: very deftructive to the turnip and cabbage fields.
Lepus hieme albus. Forster hist. nat. VOLGÆ Ph. Trans. LVII. 343.
Alpine hare, Br. Zool. illustr. 40. 184. tab. xlvii.
H. with soft hair, in summer grey, with a slight mixture of black and tawny: with shorter ears, and more slender legs, than the common hare: the feet
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of those of Siberia most closely and warmly furred. In winter, the whole animal changes to a snowy whiteness, except the tips and edges of the ears, which remain black: less than the common species.
Inhabits the highest Scotish Alps, Norway, Lap land, Russia, Siberia*, and the Banks of the Wolga. In Scotland, keeps on the top of the highest hills; never descends into the vales; never mixes with the common hare, which is common in its neighborhood: does not run fast: apt to take shelter in clifts of rocks: is easily tamed: full of frolick: fond of honey and carraway comfits: eats its own dung before a storm: changes its color in September: resumes its grey coat in April: in the extreme cold or Greenland is always** white. Both kinds of hares are common in Siberia, on the Banks of the Wolga, and in the Orenburg government. The one never changes color: the other, native of the same place, constantly assumes the whiteness of the snow during winter. They also collect together, and are seen in troops of five or six hundred, migrating south in spring, and returning in autumn†. Mr. Muller says he once saw two black hares, in Siberia, of a wonderfull fine gloss, and of as full a black as jet.
The animal called the Hare by our voyagers to Patagonia‡ is at present of a doubtfull genus; perhaps belonging to the last, a sort of Aguti, being
* Vide Pontop. Norway, II. 9. Scheffer Lapland, 137. Strahlnberg Russia, 370. Ritchkoff Orenberg Topog. I. 287. The Russians distingussh the two spceies: they call the common hare Russak; this kind, Zayets.
** Egede. Greenl. 62. Crantz Greenl. I. 70.
† Bell's Travels, I. 238.
‡ Narborough's voy. 33.
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said to have only a naked stump, an inch in length; instead of a tail: some weigh twenty pounds*: they burrow under ground, and run into their holes when chaced.
186. RABBET.
Cuniculus Plinii, lib. viii. c. 55. Gesner quad. 362. Agricola An. Subt. 482.
Rabbet, or Coney, Raii syn. quad. 205.
Lepusculus, cuniculus terram fodiens, Kaninchen, Klein quad. 52.
Lepus cuniculus. L. cauda abbreviata, auriculis nudis. Lin. syst. 77 Kanin, Faun. suec. No. 26. Br. Zool. I. 90.
Lepus caudatus, obscuré cinereus Brisson quad. 95.
Le Lapin, de Buffon, vi. 303. tab. L. LI.
H. with ears almost naked: color of the fur, in a wild state, brown: tail black above, white beneath: in a tame state, vary to black, pied, and quite white: the eyes of the last of a fine red.
Inhabits, in a wild state, the temperate and hot parts of Europe, and the hottest parts of Asia and Africa: not originally British; but succeeds here admirably: will not live in Sueden, or the northern countries, except in houses. Strabo† tells us, that they were first imported into Italy from Spain: not natives of America; but encrease greatly in S. America.‡.
Most prolific animal: breed seven times in a year: produce eight young at a time: supposing that to happen regularly, one pair may bring in four years 1,274,840: in warrens, keep in their holes in the middle of the day; come out morning and night: the males apt to destroy the young: the
* Wood's voy. in Dampier, IV. 85. Voy. of the Dolphin, 33.
† Lib. iii.
‡ About Hudson's Bay are great plenty of what our Colonists call Rabbets: they are grey in summer, white in winter: so probably are the same with the preceding. The common Hare is also found there, but is very scarce; it also changes to white in winter. Manuscript hist. of Hadson's bay.
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skins a great article of commerce; numbers exported to China: the fur of great use in the hat manufacture.
β ANGORA RABBET. With hair long, waved, and of a silky fineness, like that of the goat of Angora, p. 15. and the Cat, p. 184.
γ RUSSIAN RABBET. With a double skin over the back, into which it can withdraw its head: another under the throat, in which it can place its fore feet: has small holes in the loose skin on the back, to admit light to the eyes: color of the body cinereous; head and ears brown.
Described from a drawing and manuscript account, by Mr. G. Edwards, preserved in the Museum.
187. BRASILIAN.
Tapeti, Marcgrave Brasil, 223.
Piso Brasil, 102.
Cuniculus Brasiliensis Tapeti dictus. Raii syn. quad. 205.
Lepus Brasiliensis. L. cauda nulla. Lin. syst 78.
Lepus ecaudus Brisson quad. 97.
Le Tapeti de Buffon, xv. 162.
Collar'd Rabbet, Wafer's voy. in Dampier, III. 401.
H. with very large ears: a white ring round the neck: face of a reddish color: chin white: black eyes: color of the body like the common hare, only darker: belly whitish: no tail: some want the white ring round the neck.
Inhabit Brasil: live in woods: do not burrow: are very prolific: very good meat: found also in Mexico*, where they are called Citli.
* Fernandes An. Nov. Hisp. 2.
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188. BAIKAL.
Cuniculus insigniter caudatus, coloris Leporini. Nov. Com. Petrop. V. 357. tab. xi.
Lepus cauda in supina parte nigra in prona alba. Brisson quad. 97.
Le Tolai de Buffon, XV. 138.
H. with a long tail*: fur of the color of the common hare: red about the neck and feet: tail black above, white beneath: larger than a rabbet.
Inhabits the country beyond lake Baikal: agrees with the common rabbet in nature and color of the flesh. Called by the Mongols, Tolai. The fur is bad, and ot no use in commerce.
189. CAPE.
Lepus Capensis. L. cauda longitudinis capitis, pedibus rubris. Lin. syst. 78.
H. with a tail the length of the head: red feet.
Inhabits the Cape of Good Hope: burrows. This is the whole account Linnsæus gives of the species.
Allied to this seems the Viscachos, or Viscachas, mentioned by Acosta† and Feuillée‡, in their accounts of Peru; they compare them to Hares or Rabbets. The last says they inhabit the colder parts of the country: their hair is very soft, and of a mouse-color: the tail pretty long, and turns up:
* The length of the tail is somewhat greater than that of a Rabbet.
† In Purchas's Pilgrims, III. 966.
‡ obs. Peru, 1725, 32.
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the ears and whiskers like those of the common rabbet. In the time of the Incas, the hair was spun and wove into cloth, which was so fine as to be ufed only by the nobility*.
* Garcilasso de la Vega, 331.
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XXVII. BEAVER.
Two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Five toes on each foot.
Tail compressed, and covered with scales.
190. CASTOR.
Καστως Arist. hist. An. lib. viii. c. 5. oppian. Halieut, I. 398.
Fiber Plinii, lib. viii. c. 30. Agricpla An. subt. 482 Belon Aquat. 25. Castor Gesner quad. 309. Rondel, 236. schoneveld, icth. 34.
Beaver, Raii syn quad. 209.
Bobr Rzaczinski Polon. 215.
Biber Kelin quad. 91. Kramer Austr. 315.
Castor castanei coloris, cauda horizontaliter plana. Brisson quad. 90.
Castor Fiber. C. cauda ovata plana. Lin syst. 78. Bafwer, Biur, Faun. suec. No. 27.
Le Castor, ou Le Bievere, de Buffon, viii. 282. tab. xxxvi.
Beaver Br. Zool. I. 70. tab. ii.
B. with strong cutting teeth: short ears, hid in the fur blunt nose: hair of a deep chesnut brown: tail broad, almost oval, compressed horizontally, covered with scales: the fore feet small; the hind large: length, from nose to tail, about three feet: tail, eleven inches long, three broad.
Inhabits Europe, from Lapland to Languedoc*: in great plenty in the North: a few are yet found in the Rhone† the Gardon, the Danube, the Rhine, and be Vistula: met with in abundance in the Russian Asiatic dominions; but no where in equal multitudes, than in North America.
The most industrious of animals: nothing equals the art with which they construct their dwellings. They chuse a level piece of ground with a small rivalet running through it. This they form into a pond, by making a dam across; first, by driving into the ground stakes five or six feet long, placed
* De Buffon, viii. 286.
† Ibid.
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rows, wattling each row with pliant twigs, and filling the interstices with clay, ramming it down close. The side next the water is sloped; the other perpendicular. The bottom is from ten to twelve feed thick; but the thickness gradually diminishes to the top, which is about two or three. The length on these dams is sometimes not less than a hundred feet.
Their houses are made in the water collected by means of the dam, and are placed near the edge of the shore. They are built on piles; are either round or oval; but the tops are vaulted; so that their inside resembles an oven, the top a dome. The walls are two feet thick, made of earth, stones and sticks, most artificially layed together; and the walls within as neatly plaistered as if with a trowel. In each house are two openings; one into the water, the other towards the land. The height of these houses above the water is eight feet. They often make two or three stories in each dwelling, for the convenience of change, in case of floods. Each house contains from two to thirty beavers; and the number of houses in each pond is from ten to twenty-five. Each beaver forms its bed of moss; and each family forms its magazine of winter provision, which consists of bark and boughs of trees. This they lodge under water, and fetch it into their apartments as their wants require. Lawson says they are fondest of the sassafras, ash, and sweet-gum. Their summer food is leaves, fruits, and sometimes crabs and craw-fish; but they are not fond of fish.
To effect these works, a community of two or three hundred assembles; each bears his share in the
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labor: some fall by gnawing with their teeth trees of greatsize, toform beams or piles; others roll the pieces along to the water; others dive, and with their feet scrape holes, in order to place them in; while others exert their efforts to rear them in their proper places: another party is employed in collecting twigs, to wattle the piles with; a third, in collecting earth, stones and clay; a fourth is busied in beating and tempering the mortar; others, in carrying it on their broad tails to proper places, and with the same instrument ram it between the piles, or plaister the inside of their houses. A certain number of smart strokes with their tail is a signal given by the overseer, for repairing to such or such places, either for mending any defects, or at the approach of an enemy; and the whole society attend to it with the utmost assiduity. Their time of building is early in the summer; for in winter they never stir but to their magazines of provisions, and during that season are very fat. They breed once a year, and bring forth, the latter end of the winter, two or three young at a birth.
Besides these associated beavers, is another sort, which are called Terriers; which either want industry or sagacity to form houses like the others. They burrow in the banks of rivers, making their holes beneath the freezing depth of the water, and work up for a great number of feer. These also form their winter stock of provision.
Beavers vary in their colors: the finest are black; but the general color is a chesnut brown; more or less dark: some have been found, but very rarely,
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white. The Skins are a prodigious article of trade; being the foundation of the hat manufactory. In 1763 were Sold, in a Single Sale of the Hudson's Bay Company, 54,670 Skins. They are distinguished by different names. Coat Beaver is what has been worn as coverlets by the Indians. Parchment Beaver, because the lower Side resembles it. Stage Beaver is the wort, and is that which the Indians kill out of Season, on their Stages or journies. The valuable drug Castoreum* is taken from the inguinal glands of these animals. The antients had a notion it was lodged in the testicles, and that the animal, when hard pressed, would bite them off, and leave them to its pursuers, as if conscious of what they wanted to destroy him for.
Imitatus Castora, qui se Eunuchum ipse facit, cupiens evadere damno Testiculorum. JUVENAL, xii. 34.
* The Russian Castoreum is so much better than the American, that we give two guineas a pound for that, and only 8s. 6d. for the last the first being less waxy and pulverises readier. Notwithstanding we take this drug from Russia, we export there vast numbers of Beaver skins. The flesh is reckoned good eating, being preserved; after the bones are taken out, by drying it in the smoke. M.S. hist. Hudson's Bay.
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191. MUSK.
Mussascus Smith's Virginin, 27.
Musquash, Josselyn's voy. New England, 86.
Musk rat. Lawson Carolina, 120.
Castor Zibethicus. C. cauda longa compresso-lanceolata, pedibus fissis. Lin. syst. 79.
Castor cauda verticaliter plana, digitis omnibus a se invicem separatis. Brisson quad. 93.
L'Ondatra, de Buffon, x. i. tab. i. Rat Musquè, Charlevoix Nouv. France, V. 157. Lescarbot N. Fr. 350.
B. with a thick blunt nose: ears short, and almost hid in the fur: eyes large: toes on each foot separated; those behind fringed on each side with strong hairs, closely set together: tail compressed sideways, and very thin at the edges, covered with small scales, intermixed with a few hairs: color of the head and body a reddish brown: breast and belly, ash-color, tinged with red: the fur very fine: length, from nose to tail, one foot; of the tail, nine inches: in the form of its body, exactly resembles a beaver.
Inhabits N. America: breeds 3 or 4 times in a year*, and brings from 3 to 6 young at a time: during summer, the male and female consort together: at approach of winter, unite in families, and retire into small round ædifices, covered with a dome, formed of herbs and reeds cemented with clay: at the bottom are several pipes, thro' which they pass in search of food; for they do not form magazines like the beavers: during winter, their habitations are covered many feet deep with snow and ice; but they creep out and feed on the roots that lie beneath: they quit their old habitations annually, and build new ones; the fur is soft, and much esteemed: the whole ani-
* M. S. hist. Hudson's Bay.
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mal, during summer, has a most exquisite musky smell; which it loses in winter: perhaps the scent is derived from the Calamus Aromaticus, a favorite food of this animal. Lescarbot says they are very good to eat.
192. LONGNOSED.
Mus aquaticus Clusii exot. 373. Worm. Mus. 334.
Muscovy or Musk rat, Raii syn. quad, 217. Nov. Com. Petrop. iv. 373.
Castor moschatus. C. cauda longa compresso-lanceolata pedibus palmatis, Lin. syst. 79. Dæsman Faun. suec. No. 28.
Castor cauda verticaliter plana, digitis omnibus membranis inter se connexis. Brisson quad. 92.
B. with a long slender nose, like that of a shrew mouse: no external ears: very small eyes: tail compressed sideways: color of the head and back, dusky; the belly, whitish ash-color: length, from nose to tail, seven inches; tail eight.
Inhabits Lapland, Russia, the banks of the rivers Volga and the Yaick: never wanders far from the sides: is very slow in its pace: makes holes in the cliffs with the entrance far beneath the lowest fall of the water; works upwards, but never to the surface, only high enough to lie beyond the highest flow of the river: feeds on fish: is devoured by the Pikes and Siluri, and gives those fish so strong a flavor of musk, as to render them not eatable: has the same scent as the former, especially about the tail; out of which is expressed a sort of musk very much resembling the genuine kind*. The skins are put into chests among cloaths, to drive away moths;-
* Schober's Memorabilia Russ. Asiat. in Muller's Samlung Rass. vii. 41,42.
† Ritchkoff Oreub. Topogr. I. 286.
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At Orenburg, the skins and tails sell for fifteen of twenty copecs per hundred. They are so common near Nizney Novogorod, that the peasants bring five hundred a-piece to market, where they are sold for one rubel per hundred. The German name for these animals is Biesem-ratze; the Russian, Wychozhol.
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XXVIII PORCUPINE.
Two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Body covered with long, hard and sharp quils.
Upper lip divided.
193. CRESTED.
νςζιξ. Aristot. hist. An. lib. i. c. 6. Oppian Cyneg. III. 391.
Hystrix, Plinii, lib. viii. c. 35. Gesner quad. 563. Raii syn. quad. 206.
Acanthion cristatus, klein quad. 66.
Hystrix orientalis cristata, Seb. Mus. I. 79. tab. L.
Hystrix cristata. H. Palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis, capite cristato, cauda abbreviata Lin. syst. 76. Hasselquist. itin. 290.
Hystrix capite cristato. Brisson. quad. 85.
Le Porc-epic de Buffon, xii. 402. tab. li. lii. Faunul. Sinens.
P. with a long crest on the top of the head reclining backwards, formed of stiff bristles: the body covered with long quils; those on the hind part of the body nine inches in length, very sharp at the ends, varied with black and white; between the quils a few hairs: the head, belly and legs, are covered with strong bristles, terminated with soft hair, of a dusky color: the whiskers long: ears like the human: four toes before, five behind: tail short, and covered with quils: length, from nose to tail, two feet; tail, four inches.
Inhabits India, Persia and Palestine, and all parts of Africa: is found wild in Italy; but is not originally a native of* Europe: is brought into the markets of Rome, where it is eat†. The Italian porcupines have fhorter quils and a lesser crest, than those
* Agricola An. Subt. 486.
† Ray's Travels, I. 311. Ph. Tr. abridg. V. 147.
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of Asia and Africa: is an harmless animal: lives on fruits, roots and vegetables: sleeps by day, feeds by night: the report of its darting its quils fabulous: when angry, retires and runs its nose into a corner, erects its spines, and opposes them to its assailant: makes a snorting noise.
Thefe animals produce a Bezoar; but, according to Seba, only those which inhabit Java, Sumatra and Malacca. He has given the figure of one under the name of Porcus aculeatus, seu Hystrix Malaccensis: it differs little from the African and Indian kind, and is allowed by him to be the same species*.
194. LONGTAILED.
Porcus aculeatus sylvestris, seu Hystrix orientalis singularis. Seb. Mus. I. 84. tap. lii.
Acanthion cauda prælonga, acute pilis horrida, in exitu quasi panniculata. Klein quad. 67.
Hystrix cauda longissima, aculeis undique obsita, in extremo panniculata. Brisson quad. 89.
Hystrix macroura. H. pedibus pentadactylis, cauda longissima: aculeis clavatis. Lin. syst. 77.
P. with long whiskers: short naked ears: large bright eyes: body short and thick, covered with long stiff hairs as sharp as needles, of different colors, according as the rays of light fall on them: feet divided into five toes; that which serves as a thumb turns backwards: the tail is as long as the body, very: slender to the end, which consists of a thick tust; me bristles appearing as if jointed; are thick in the middle and rise one out of the other like grains of rice; are transparent, and of a silvery appearance.
* Seb. Mus. I. 81. tab. li. If the same species, it varies from the common kind, having five toes on each foot, pendulous ears, and no crest. Linnuæs ranks it with the hedgehogs, under the title of Erinaceus Malaccensis. E. auribus pendulis.
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Inhabits the isles of the Indian Archipelago, and lives in the forests.
195. BRASILIAN.
Hoitzlacuatzin, seu Tlacuatzin spinosus, Hystrix noviæ Hispaniæ. Hernandez Mex. 322.
Cuandu Brasiliensibns, Lusitanis Ourico cachiero. Marcgrave Brasil, 233. Piso Brasil, 99. 325.
Iron Pig. Nieuhoff, 17.
Hystrix Americanus, Raii syn. quad. 208.
Hystrix prehensilis. H. pedibus tetradactylis, cauda elongata prehensili seminuda. Lin. syst. 76.
Hystrix novæ Hispaniæ H. aculeis apparentibus, cauda brevi et crasso. Brisson quad. 86. H. cauda longissima, tenui, medietate extrema aculeorum experte, 87.
H. Americanus major, 88.
Hystrix longius caudatus, brevioribus aculeis, Barrere France Æquin. 153.
Hystrix minor leucophæus, Gouandou. Ibid.
Chat epineux, des Marchais, III. 303.
P. with a short blunt nose: long white whiskers: beneath the nose a bed of small spines: top of the head, back, sides and base of the tail, covered with spines; the longest on the lower part of the back and tail, are three inches in length, very sharp, white, barred near their points with black; adhere closely to the skin, which is quite naked between them; are shorter and weaker as they approach the belly: on the breast, belly and lower part of the legs, are converted into dark brown bristles: feet divided into four toes: claws very long: on the place of the thumb a great protuberance: tail eighteen inches long, slender and taper towards the end; the last ten inches is almost naked, having only a few hairs on it; has, for that length, a strong prehensile quality.
Inhabits Mexico and Brasil: lives in the woods: preys not only on fruits, but poultry: sleeps in the day, preys by night: makes a noise with its nostrils
[page break]
I BRASILIAN PORCUPINE No. 195.
II QUEBEC MARMOT No. 199.
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as if out of breath: grunts like a sow*: grows very fat: its flesh white, and very good: climbs trees, but very slowly, in descending, twists its tail round the branches, for fear of falling: is no more capable of shooting its quils than the first: may be tamed Piso says there is a greater and lesser kind.
This species is very rarely brought into Europe. I had opportunity of describing it from a specimen some time in possession of Mr. Greenwood; who was so obliging as to permit me to have a drawing made of it, from which a very faithfull figure is here given. M. de Buffon† has made an article of this animal in his work; and M. Daubenton describes and figures one so different from this, and so like that of North America, that it seems to be the same with the species he describes under the name of L'Urson; for he gives both of them four toes before, five behind, and neither of them a tail half so long, and that covered with hairs and quils: each circumstance agreeing with the following species; neither with this.
* Vocem edit ut Sus iii. Marcgrave, 233.
† Under the name of Le Coendou, xii. 421. tab. liv.
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196. CANADA.
Porcupine from Hudson's bay. Edw. 52. Ellis's voy. 42. Clerk's voy. I. 77, 191.
Cavia Hudsouis, Klein quad. 51. Hystrix dorsata. H. palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis, cauda mediocri, dorso solo spinoso. Lin syst. 76.
Hystrix aculeis sub pilis ocultis, cauda brevi et crassa, Brisson quad. 87.
L'Urson, de Buffon, xii. 426. tab. lv.
P. with short ears, hid in the fur: head, body, legs and upper part of the tail, covered with soft, long, dark brown hair: on the upper part of the head, back, body and tail, numbers of sharp strong quils; the longest on the back, the left towards the head and sides; the longest three inches; but all are hid in the hair: intermixed, are some stiff straggling hairs, three inches longer than the rest, tipt with dirty white: under side of the tail white: four toes on the fore feet, five behind, each armed with long claws, hollowed on their underside: the form of the body is exactly that of a beaver; but is not half the size: one, which Mr. Banks brought from New foundland, was about the size of a hare, but more compactly made: the tail about six inches long.
Inhabits N. America, as high as Hudson's Bay: makes its nest under the roots of great trees, and will also climb among the boughs, which the Indians cut down when one is in them, and kill the animal by striking it over the nose: are very plentifull near Hudson's Bay, and many of the trading Indians depend on them for food, esteeming them both wholesome and pleasant: feed on wild fruits and bark of trees, especially juniper: eat snow in winter, drink water in summer.
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but avoid going into it: when they cannot avoid their pursuer, will sidle towards him, in order to touch him with the quils, which seem but weak weapons of offence; for, on stroking the hair, they will come out of the skin, sticking to the hand. The Indians stick them in their noses and ears, to make holes for the placing their ear-rings and other finery: they also trim the edges of their deer-skins habits with fringes made of the quils, or cover with them their bark-boxes.
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XXXI. MARMOT.
TWO cutting teeth in each jaw.
Four toes before, five behind.
Short ears.
Tail covered with hair, and of a middling length; in some very short.
197. ALPINE.
Mus Alpinus, Plinii, lib. viii. c. 37. Agricola An. Subter. 484. Gesner quad. 743. Raii syn. quad. 221. Bobak, Swissez, Rzaczinski polon. 233. Beauplan Ukraine, 600.
Glis marmota, Klein quad. 56. Hist. Mur. Alp. 230.
Murmelthier, Kramer Austr. 317. Mus marmota. M. cauda abbreviata subpilosa, auriculis rotundatis, buccis gibbis, Lin. syst. 81. Forster Nat. Hist. VOLGÆ. Ph. Tr lvii. 343.
Glis pilis e fusco et flavicante mixtis vestitus. Glis flavicans, capite rufescente. Brisson quad. 116. 117.
La Marmotte, de Buffon, viii 219. tab. xxviii. Le Bobak, xiii. 136. tab. xviii.
M. with short round ears, hid in the fur: cheeks large: color of the head and upper part of the body, brownish ash, mixt with tawny: legs and lower part of the body reddish: subject to vary in color; the Bobak, or Polish Marmot, being much more red and of a brighter hue: four toes before, five behind: tail pretty full of hair; length, from nose to tail, about sixteen inches; tail six: body thick.
Inhabits the Alps, Poland, Ukraine, and Chinese Tartary: feeds on insects, roots and vegetables: while they are at food place a centinel, who gives a whistle on seeing any sign of danger, on which they instantly retire into their holes: form holes underground with three chambers of the shape of a Y, with two entrances; line them well with moss and hay; retire into them about Michaelmas, and stopping up the entrances with earth, continue in a torpid state till April: when taken out remain insensi-
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ble, except brought before a fire, which revives them: they lodge in society from five to a dozen in a chamber: will walk on their hind feet: lift up their meat to their mouth with their fore feet, and eat it sitting up: bring three or four young at a time: are very playfull: when angry, or before a storm, make a most strange noise; a whistle so loud and so acute, as quite to pierce the ear: grow very fat about the backs: are sometimes eaten; but generally taken in order to be shewen, especially by the Savoyards: grow very soon tame, and will then eat any thing: are very fond of milk, which they lap, making at the same time a murmuring noise, expressive of their satisfaction: very apt to gnaw any cloaths of linnen they find: will bite very hard.
The inhabitants of Ukraine take them in May and June, by pouring water into the holes, which forces them into nets placed et the entrance.
In Chinese Tartary are the propagators of Rhubarb* which grows among their burrows: the manure they leave about the roots contributes to its increase; and the loose soil they fling up, proves a bed for the ripe seed; which, if scattered among the long grass, perishes without ever being able to reach the ground.
* Bell's Travels, I. 337.
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198. MARYLAND.
Bahama Cony, Catesby Carolina, II. 79.
Monax, catesby carolina App. xxviii.
Monax, or Marmotte of America, Edw. 104.
Glis Marmota, Americanus, Klein quad. 56.
Glis fuscus. Glis fuscus, rostro e cinereo cærulescente. Brisson quad. 115.
Mus Monax. M. cauda mediocri pilosa, corpore cinereo, auriculis subrotundis, palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis. Lin. syst. 81.
M. with short rounded ears: black prominent eyes: nose sharper than that of the last; nose and cheeks of a bluish ash-color: back, of a deep brown color; sides and belly paler: tail half the length of the body, covered with pretty long dusky hair: toes divided and armed with sharp claws: four toes before, five behind: feet and legs black: is about the size of a Rabbet.
Inhabits Virginia and Pensilvania: during winter sleeps under the hollow roots of trees: is found also in the Bahama isles: lives on wild fruits and other vegetables: its flesh is very good, tasting like that of a pig: when surprized retreats to holes in the rocks: whether it sleeps, during winter, in the climate of those isles, is not mentioned.
199. QUEBEC.
M. with a blunt nose: short rounded ears: cheeks pussed, and of a grey color: face dusky: nose black: hair on the back grey at bottom, black in the middle, and the tips whitish: belly and legs of an orange color: toes black, naked, and quite divided; four, and the rudiments of another, on the fore feet; five be-
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hind: tail short, and of a dusky color: was rather larger than a Rabbet.
Inhabits Hudson's Bay and Canada. Mr. Brooks had one alive a few Years ago; it was very tame, and made a hissing noise: perhaps is the species which the French of Canada call Siffleur*.
200. GERMAN.
Hamester, Cricetus, Agricola An. Subster. 486. Gesner quad. Raii syn. quad. 221. Meyer An. I. tab. lxxxi. 82.
Skrzeczek, Chomik, Rzaczinski Polon. 232.
Parcellus frumentarius Schwenkfelde Theriotroph. 118.
Krietsch, Hamster, Kramer Austr. 317.
Muscricetus. M. cauda mediocri, auriculis rotundatis, corpore subtus nigro, lateribus rufescentibus maculis tribus albis. Lin. syst. 82.
Glis ex cinereo rufus in dorso, in ventre niger, maculis tribus ad latera albis. Brisson quad. 117.
Le Hamster, de Buffon, xiii. 117. tab. xiv. xvi.
M. with large rounded ears: full black eyes: color on the head and back, reddish brown: cheeks white: beneath each ear a white spot, another on each shoulder, a third near the hind legs: breast, upper part of the fore legs, and the belly, black: tail short, almost naked: four toes and a fifth claw on the fore feet; five behind: about nine inches long; tail three.
Inhabits Austria, Silesia, and many parts of Germany, Poland, and Ukraine: very destructive to corn; eating great quantities, and carrying still more to its winter's hoard: within its cheeks are two pouches, receptacles for its booty, which it fills till the cheeks seem ready to burst: they live
* La Hontan, I. 233. enumerates, among the animals of Canada, what he calls Siffieurs, from the whizzing noise he says they make.
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under ground; first form an entrance, burrowing down obliquely: at the end of that passage the male sinks one perpendicular hole; the female several: at the end of these are formed various vaults, either as lodges for themselves and young, or store-houses for their winter food; each young has its different apartment; each sort of grain its different vault; the first they line with straw or grass: these vaults are of different depths, according to the age of the animal; a young Hamster makes them scarce a foot deep; an old one sinks them to the depth of four or five; and the whole diameter of the habitation, with all its communications, is sometimes eight or ten feet.
They begin to lay in their provisions in August; and will carry grains of corn, corn in the ear, and peas and beans in the pods, which they clean in their holes, and carry the husks carefully out; the pouches above-mentioned are so capacious as to hold a quarter of a pint English. As soon as they have finished their work, they stop up the mouth of their passage carefully. In winter, the peasants go what they call a Hamster-nesting; and when they discover the reretreat, dig down till they discover the hoard, and are commonly well paid; for, besides the skin of the animals, which are valuable furs, they find commonly two bushels of good grain in the magazine. These animals are very fierce; will jump at a horse that happens to tread near them, and hang by its nose so that it is difficult to disengage them: they make a noise like the barking of a dog: breed twice or thrice a year, and bring five or six at atime: in
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some seasons, are so numerous as to occasion a dearth of corn. Pole-cats are their greatest enemies; for they pursue them into their holes and destroy numbers. It is remarkable, that the hair sticks so close to the skin, as not to be plucked off without the unmost difficulty*.
Agricola describes another animal under the name of Vormela, which seems only a variety. It is, says he less, the belly is black; the whole body marked, with yellow, and tawny spots: the tail cinereous and white, the end black**.
201. CASAN.
Le Souslik de Buffon, xv. 144, 195, 205.
Mus Marmotta. Sp. 15. Forster hist. Nat. Volgæ. Ph. Tr. lvii. 343.
M. with short round ears: smooth hair of a yellowish brown color, marked with faint round spots of white: above and below the eye a bar of white: face, breast, belly and legs of a pale yellow: four toes before, five behind: tail half the length of the body, covered with short hair of the color of the body: size of a large rat.
Inhabits the banks of the Volga, especially near Saratoff†: they burrow, and sit in multitudes near their holes, like rabbets: often sit upright: when alarmed whistle with a low note: are very fond of
* Great part of their history is taken from the account given by M. de Waitz to M. de Buffon.
** Agricola An. Subter. 486.
† The Doctor Kramer, of Vienna, favored me with a specimen of this animal; but I believe it was not a native of Austria, for he omits it in his Fauna of that country.
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salt: numbers taken on board the barges that load with that commodity, at Solikamsky, and fall down into the Volga below Cosan: the skins I have seen from thence are far more beautifull than one I received from Austria, of a deeper color, and the spots more distinct and bright.
202. LAPLAND.
Lemmar vel Lemmus. Olai magni de gent. Septentr. 358.
Leem vel Lemmer. Gesner quad. 731.
Mus norvegicus vulgo Leming worm. Mus. 321, 325. scheffer Lapland, 136. Pontop. Norway, II. 30. Strom Sondmor. 154. Raii syn. quad. 227.
Sable-mice Ph. Tr. abridg. II. 875.
Cuniculus caudatus, auritus, exflavo, rufo et nigro variegatus. Brisson quad. 100.
Mus Lemmus. M. cauda abbreviata, pedibus pentadactylis, corpore fulvo nigro vario. Lin. syst. 80.
Fial-Mus, Sabell-Mus. Lappis Lummick. Faun. Suec. No. 29. Le Leming de Buffon, xiii. 314.
M. with two very long cutting teeth in each jaw: head pointed: long whiskers; six of the hairs on each side longer and stronger than the rest: eyes small and black: mouth small: upper lip divided: ears small, blunt, and reclining backwards: fore legs very short: four slender toes on the fore feet, covered with hairs; and in the place of the thumb, a sharp claw, like a cock's spur: five toes behind: tail about half an inch long; the body and head about five: the skin very thin: the color of the head and body black, and tawny, disposed in irregular blotches: belly white, tinged with yellow*.
* Decribed from two of these animals I received (stuft) from Norway: They agreed in all respects with Wormius's excellent description.
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Appear in numberless troops at very uncertain Periods in Norway, and Lapland: are the pest and wonder of the country: they march like the army of locusts, so emphatically described by the prophet Joel: destroy every root of grass* before them, and spread universal desolation: they infect the very ground, and cattle are said to perish which taste of the grass which they have touched: they march by myriads, in regular lines: nothing stops their progress, neither fire, torrents, lake or morass; they bend their course strait forward, with most amazing obstinacy; they swim over the lakes; the greatest rock gives them but a slight check, they go round it, and then resume their march directly on, without the lest deviation: if they meet a peasant, they persist in their course, and jump as high as his knees in defence of their progress: are so fierce as to lay hold of a stick, and suffer themselves to be swung about before they quit their hold: if struck, they turn about and bite, and will make a noise like a dog: are the prey of foxes, lynxes, and ermines, who follow them in great numbers: at length they perish, either thro' want of food, or by destroying one another, or in some great water, or in the sea: they are the dread of the country: in former times spiritual weapons were exerted against them, the priest exorcised, and had a long form of prayer to avert the evil†: happily it does not occur. frequently,
* Linnæus adds, that they feed on the Rein-deer Liverwort, and Catkins of the Dwarf-birch.
† Worm. Mus. 333. where the whole form is preserved. It was once seriously believed, that these animals were generated in the clouds, and fell in showers upon the ground: Per tempestates et repentinos imbres e cælo decidant, incompertum unde, an ex remotioribus infulis, et buc vento delatæ, an ex nubibus fæculentis natæ deferantur. Olai Magni de Gent. Septentr. 358.
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once or twice in twenty years: it seems like a vast colony of emigrants, from a nation over-stocked; a discharge of animals from the great Northern hive, that once poured out its myriads of human creatures upon Southern Europe. Where the head quarters of these quadrupeds are, is not very certainly known: Linnæus says, the Norwegian and Lapland Alps; Pontoppidan seems to think, that Kolens rock, which divides Nordland from Sueden, is their native place; but wherever they come from, none return. their course is prædestinated, and they pursue their fate.
203. EARLESS.
Mus Noricus aut Citellus Agricola An. Subter. 485. Gesner quad. 737. Raii. syn. quad. 220.
Ziesel Schwenkfelt. Theriotroph. 86. Mus citellus. M. cauda abbreviata, corpore cinereo, auriculis nullis. Lin. syst. 80.
Cuniculus caudatus, auriculis nullis. cinereus. Brisson quad. 101. Le Zisel, de Buffon, xv. 139.
M. without external ears, having only a small orifice on each side the head, for the admittance of sounds: blunt nose: a long, slender body: very short tail: color dark grey, or cinereous brown.
The Yevrashka, or Marmotta Minor*, is the same animal with this, but differs a little in color; the upper part of the body is grey, in some parts reddish speckled with yellow: the feet yellow: the tail bushy, three inches long; above is dusky, speckled with yellow; beneath is red; the end black: length, from nose to tail, one foot: is called by the Russians,
* Gmelin voy. Siberia, II. 448.
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from the slenderness of its body, Yevrashka, i. e. the weesel.
Inhabits Bohemia, Austria, Hungary, and Siberia: burrows and forms its magazine* of corn, nuts, &c. for its winter food: sits up like a squirrel when it eats. By Gmelin's account, some inhabit the flelds in Siberia, others penetrate into the grainaries; the first form holes under ground with a double entrance, and sleep during winter in the centre of their lodge: those which inhabit the grainaries, are in motion during the whole cold season; they couple the beginning of May, and bring from five to eight young, which they bring up in their burrows and cover with hay: whistle like the marmot: are very irascible, and bite very hard: their furs were once used by the ladies of Bohemia to make cloaks.
204. PODOLIAN.
Zits-jan Le Brun voy. Moscov. II. 402.
Le Zemni de Buffon, xv. 142.
M. with the cutting teeth of the lower jaw half as long again as those of the upper: eyes very minute, and as much hid in the fur as those of a mole: four toes, and a claw instead of the fifth on the fore feet; five on the hind: tail short: color cinereous: size of a squirrel.
Inhabits Podolia, Ukraine, Volhinia, and Persia: burrows, and forms magazines for winter provision: feeds on corn, fruits, and garden stuff: lives under
* Raii syn. quad. 220.
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ground during winter, and is often turned up by the Peasants with their ploughs; bites very hard*.
205. CIRCASSIAN.
M. with ears like those of mice: red sparkling eyes: sharp teeth: body long, and of an equal thickness: chesnut-colored hair, long, especially on the back: has sharp claws: tail long and bushy: fore feet shorter than the hind feet: size of the German marmot, No. 200.
Inhabits the neighborhood of the river Terek, which flows out of Circassia and falls into the Caspian Sea: runs fast up hill, very slowly down: burrows, and lives under ground. Described by Doctor Schober†.
* The natural history of this animal is borrowed from Rzaczinski's Auctuarium Historiæ Naturalis Poloniæ, p. 325. The following is Le Brun's description of it:
"Un chien courant que J'avois, Y prit dans la plaine un petit Animal nommè Zits-jan, quil m'apporta en vie, et un autre peru après, lesquels je fis 'eventrer, pour les conserver. C'est un espece de rat de campagne, de la grosseur d'un écureuil, qui a la queuë courte, et le poil et la couleur d'un lapreau, aussi bien que la forme, hors qu'il a la tête plus grosse, et les deux Dents de dessous la moitié plus longues que celles de dessus. II a aussi les pattes de devant plus courtes que celles de derriere, avec quatre grifes, et un plus petite, et cinque à celles de derriere, ressamblant affez à celles d'un finge.
† Memor abilia Russ. Asiat. in Muller's Samlung Russ. vii. 124.
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XXX. SQUIRREL.
With two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Four toes before, five behind.
Long tail, cloathed with long hair.
206. COMMON.
Sciurus, Gesner quad. 845. Raii syn. quad. 214.
Wièwiorka Rzaczinski Polon. 225. Eichhorn Klein quad. 53.
Sciurus vulgaris. Sc. auriculis apice barbatis, Palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis. Lin. syst. 86. Ikorn, Graskin. Faun. suec. No. 37.
Sciurus rufus quandoque griseo admixto. Brisson. quad. 104.
L'Ecureuil de Buffon, vii. 258. tab. xxxii. Br. Zool. I. 93.
Sq. with ears terminated with long tusts of hair: large lively black eyes: head, body, legs and tail, of a bright reddish brown: breast and belly white: hair on each side the tail lies slat. In Sueden and Lapland*, changes in winter into grey. In Russia†, is sometimes found black. In many parts of England is a beautifull variety with milk-white tails.
Inhabits Europe and North America, the northern and the temperate parts of Asia; and a variety is even found as far south as the Isle of Ceylon: is a neat, lively, active animal: lives always in woods: in the spring, the female is seen pursued from tree to tree by the males, feigning an escape from their embraces: makes its nest of moss and dried leaves, between the fork of two branches: brings three or four young at a time: has two holes to its nest: stops up that on the side the wind blows, as Pliny‡
* Fuan. suec. and Scheffer Lapl. 135.
† Rzaczinski Polon. 224.
‡ Lib. viii. c. 38.
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justly remarks: lays in a hoard of winter provision, such as nuts, acorns, &c. in summer, feeds on buds and young shoots: is particularly fond of those of fir, and the young cones: sits up to eat, and uses its fore-feet as hands: covers itself with its tail: leaps to a surprising distance: when disposed to cross a river, a piece of bark is its boat; its tail the sail*.
α. HUDSON BAY SQ Smaller than the European, marked along the middle of the back with a ferruginous line from head to tail: the sides paler: belly of a pale ash-color, mottled with black: tail not so long, or so full of hair, as the common kind; of a ferruginous color, barred with black, and towards the end is a broader band of the same color.
β. WHITE-LEGGED SQ. The head, whole upper part of the body, sides and toes, of a reddish brown: face, nose, under side of the neck, belly, fore-legs, inside of the ears and thighs, white: ears slightly tufted with black: tail long, covered with dusky hairs much shorter than those in the European kind. Br. Mus. by the catalogue, said to be brought from Ceylon.
* Rzaczinski, Klein, Scheffer, Linnæus.
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207. CEYLON.
Sciurus Zeylanicus Pilis in dorso nigricantibus Rukkaia dictus a sono. Raii syn. quad. 215.
Sciurus macrourus, long-tailed Squirrel, Ind. Zool. tab. i.
Sq. with ears tufted with black: nose flesh-colored: cheeks, legs and belly of a pale yellow: between the ears a yellow spot: forehead, back, sides, haunches black: cheeks marked with a bifurcated stroke of black: under side red: tail twice as long as the body, of a light grey, and very bushy: the part next the body quite surrounded with hair: on the rest the body hairs are separated and lie flat. Is thrice the size of the European squirrel.
Inhabits Ceylon; is called there Dandoelana also Roekea from the noise it makes.
208. BOMBAY.
Sq. with tusted ears: head, back, sides, upper part of the legs and thighs and tail of a dull purple: the lower part of the legs and thighs, and the belly, yellow: end of the tail orange: length, from nose to tail, near sixteen inches; tail seventeen.
Inhabits Bombay; described from a stuft skin in Doctor Hunter's cabinet.
β Sq. with a round flesh-colored nose: hair on the upper part of the body of a rusty black: tail a foot and a half long: belly and fore feet grey: foles of the feet flesh-colored. Three times the size of an European squirrel.
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Described from Thevenot*, who says, it was bought at Moco from an Abissinian, that it was very good-natured, and sportive like a squirrel; would eat any thing except flesh, and would crack the hardest almonds, A variety of one of the above?
209. GREY.
Gray squirrel Josselyn's voy. Catesby Carolina, II. 74. Smith's voy. 27. Kalm's voy. 95. 310.
Fox squirrel Lawson's Carolina, 124.
Sciurus cinereus virginianus major Raii syn. quad. 215.
Sciurus cinereus Lin. syst. 86.
Sciurus cinereus. Auriculis exalbo flavicantibus, Brisson quad. 107.
Le Petit-Gris, de Buffon, X. 116. tab. xxv.
Sq. with plain ears: hair of a dull grey color, mixed with black; and often tinged with dirty yellow: belly and insides of the legs white: tail long, bushy, grey, and striped with black, Size of a half grown rabbet.
Inhabits the woods of Northern Asia**, N. America, Peru†, and Chili‡; are very numerous in N. America, do incredible damage to the plantations
* Voyages des Indes orientales, v. 34.
** A large kind of grey squirrel is found about the upper parts of the river Obi, in the district of Kuznetsk, and is called Teleutskaya belka, or the squirrel of the Teleutian Tartars: it is as large again as the common grey squirrels of those parts, and is preferred to them, on account of the silvery gloss of the skin. Few are sent into Russia, the greatest part being sent into China, and sell for 61. or 71. sterling, per thousand. Muller's Russ. Samlung, III. 518, 519.
† Chinchilles are small beasts, like squirrels, with wonderfull smoothe and soft skins, which they weare as a healthfull thing to comfort the stomacke; they make coverings and rugs of the haire of these Chinchilles, which are found on the Sierre of Peru. Acosta in Purchas's Pilg. III. 966.
‡ Ovalle, in his history of Chile says, that the grey or ash-color'd squirrels, of the vally of Guasco, are valuable for the furs. Churchill's Coll. Vol. III. 44.
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of Mayz, run up the stalks, and eat the young ears; descend in vast flocks from the mountains, and join those that inhabit the lower parts; are proscribed by the provinces, and a reward of three pence per head for every one that is killed; such a number was destroyed one year, that Pensylvania alone paid in rewards 80001. of its currency.
Make their nests in hollow trees with moss, straw, wool, &c. Feed on the mayz in the season, and and on pine cones, acorns, and mast of all kinds. Form holes under ground, and there deposit a large stock of winter provision. Descend from the trees and visit their magazines when in want of meat; are particularly busy at the approach of bad weather; during the cold season keep in their nests for several days together; seldom leap from tree to tree, only run up and down the bodies; their hoards often destroyed by swine; when covered with deep snow, the squirrels often perish for want of food; are not easily shot, nimbly changing their place, when they see the gun levelled; have the actions of the common squirrel; easily tamed; their flesh esteemed very delicate. The furs which are imported under the name of petit-gris are valuable, and used as linings to cloaks.
α. LESSER. Upper part of the body and sides mixed with rust color, grey and white; belly white, separated from the sides by a rusty line: lower part of the legs red: sides of the tail whitish, the rest brown mixed with black. Mr. Knaphan's collection.
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210. BLACK.
Quahtechalotl-thlitic. Hernandez Mex. 582. Fernandez Nov. Hisp. 8.
Black squirrel Catesby Car. II. 73. L'Ecureuil noir. Brisson quad. 105. Sciurus niger Lin. syst. 86.
Sq. with plain ears: sometimes wholly black, but often marked with white on the nose. the neck, or end of the tail: the tail shorter than that of the former: the body equal.
Inhabits the N. of Asia*, N. America, and Mexico. I should have placed it as a variety of the last species, did not Mr. Catesby expressly say, that it breeds and associates in separate troops; is equally numerous with the former; commits as great ravages among the Mayz; makes its nest in the same manner, and forms like them, magazines for winter food.
β. Sq. with plain ears: coarse fur mixed with dirty white, and black: throat and inside of the legs and thighs black: tail much shorter than those of squirrels usually are: of a dull yellow color: mixed with black: body of the size of the grey squirrel.
Inhabits Virginia; described from Mr. Knaphan's collection, who told me that the planters called it the Cat squirrel.
* The finest are taken near the lake Baikal, and about Barguzinskoi ostrog, upon the upper Angara, in the district of Nertschinsk, which are the best in all Siberia: these continue black the whole year; the others grow rusty in summer. Muller's Russ. Samlung. III. 518. 519.
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I HUD SON'S BAY SQ. P. 280. II BLACK No. 210. III GREY No. 209.
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211. VARIED.
Quauhtecollotlqapachtli, Fernandez Nov. Hisp. 8.
Le Coquallin. de Buffon, xiii. 109. tab. xiii.
Sq. with plain ears; upper part of the body varied with black, white and brown: the belly tawny*: twice the size of the common squirrel.
Inhabits Mexico; lives under ground, where it brings forth its young, and lays in a stock of winter food; lives on Mayz: is never to be tamed.
These probably vaiy in size; I have seen one that seemed to be of this species, but not superior in size to the common squirrel; the colors were brown, orange, and cinereous: the belly orange.
212. FAIR.
Sciurus flavus. Sc. auriculis subrotundis, pedibus pentadactylis, corpore luteo. Lin. syst. 86. Amæn. Acad. I. 561.
Sq. with the body and tail of a flaxen color: of a very small size, with plain round ears, and rounded tail.
Inhabits the woods near Amadabad, the capital of Guzarat, in great abundance, leaping from tree to tree†. Linnæus says it is an inhabitant of South America.
* Called by the Indians, Coztiocotequallin, or yellow belly.
† L'Ecureuil blond. Della Valla, p. 84.
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213. BRASILIAN.
Sciurus Brafiliensis? Marcgrave Brasil, 230.
Sciurus coloris ex flavo ot fusco mixti tæniis in lateribus albis. Brisson quad. 107.
Sciurus æstuans. Sc. griseus. subtus flavescens, Lin. syst. 88.
Sq. with plain ears, and rounded tail: head, body, and sides covered with soft dusky hairs, tipt with yellow: tail rounded: the hairs annulated with black and yellow: throat cinereous: inside of the legs, and the belly yellow: the belly divided lengthways with a white line; which begins on the breast: is interrupted for a small space in the middle, and is then continued to the tail: length from nose to tail, eight inches one quarter: tail ten.
Inhabits Brasil and Guiana. Mr. Vandeck, captain of a man of war in the Portuguese service, who procured them from their settlements in S. America, favored me with two.
214. MEXICAN.
Tlalmototli Fernandez Nov. Hisp. 9.
Sciurus rarissimus ex Nov. Hispania seb. Mus. I. tab. xlvii. Brissson quad. 108.
Sq. of a moufe color: the male marked on the back with seven white lines, which extend along the tail; the female, with only five: the tail of the male divided into four parts at the end; perhaps accidentally: its scrotum pendulous, like a goat's.
Inhabits New Spain.
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215. PALM.
Mustele Africana Clus. Exot. 112. Raii syn. quad. 216.
Sciurus palmarum. Sc. subgriseus striis tribus flavicantibus, caudaque albo nigroque lineata. Lin. syst. 86.
Sc. palmarum. Sc. coloris ex rufo et nigro mixti, tæniis in dorso flavicantibus Brisson quad. 109.
Le Palmiste, de Buffon, X. 126. tab. xxvi.
Sq. with plain ears: an obscure pale yellow stripe on the middle of the back, another on each side, a third on each side the belly; the two last very distinct: rest of the hair on the sides, back and head, black and red, very closely mixed; that on the thighs and legs more red: belly, pale yellow: hair on the tail does nor lie flat, but encircles it; is coarse, and of a dirty yellow, barred with black. Authors describe this kind with only three stripes: this had five, so possibly they vary.
β. BARDARY. Sciurus getulus caii opusc. 77. Gesner quad. 847. Sc. getulus. Sc. suscus striis quatuor albis longitudinalibus Lin. syst. 87. Klein quad. 84. Brisson quad. 109.
Barbarian squirrel. Edw. 198.
Le Barbaresque de Buffon, X. 126. tab. xxvii.
Sq. with full black eyes and white orbits: head, lody, feet and tail, cinereous, inclining to red: lightest on the legs: sides marked lengthways with two white stripes: belly white: tail bushy, marked regularly with shades of black, one beneath the other: size of the common squirrel.
Both these squirrels inhabit Barbary and other hot countries: live in trees; especially Palms, from which one takes its name.
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216. GROUND.
Mouse squirrel Josselyn's voy. 86. Ground squirrel Lawson Carolina, 124. catesby Carolina, II. 75. Edw. 181. Kalm. I. 322. tab. i. Sciurus Listeri. Raii syn. quad. 216.
Sciurus minor virgatus Nov. Com. Petrop. V. 344.
Boern-doeskie Le Brun. voy. Moscov. II. 432.
Sciurus striatus. Sc. flavus striis quinque fuscis fongitudinalibus. Lin. syst. 87. Klein. quad. 53.
Sciurus Carolinensis, Brisson quad. Le Suisse de Buffon, X. 126. tab. xxviii. Charlevoix Nouv. France, V. 198.
Sq. with plain ears: ridge of the back marked with a black streak: each side with a pale yellow it stripe, bounded above and below with a line of black: head, body and tail, of a reddish brown; the tail the darkest: breast and belly white: nose and feet pale red: eyes full.
Inhabits the North of Asia; but found in the greatest abundance in the forests of North America: they never run up trees except pursued, and find no other means of escaping: they burrow, and form their habitations under ground with two entrances, that they may get access to the one, in case the other is stopped up. Their retreats are formed with great skill, in form of a long gallery, with branches on each side, each of which terminates in an enlarged chamber, as a magazine to store their winter provision in; in one they lodge the acorns, in another the mayz, in a third the hickery nuts, and in the last, their favorite food the chinquapin chesnut. They very seldom stir out during winter, at lest as long as their provisions last; but if that fails, they will dig into cellars where apples are kept, or barns where mayz is stored, and do a great deal of mischief;
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but at that time the cat destroys great numbers, and is as great an enemy to them as to mice.
During the mayz harvest, these squirrels are very busy in biting off the ears, and filling their mouths so full with the corn, that their cheeks are quite distended. It is observable, that they give great preference to certain food; for if, after filling their mouths with rye, they happen to meet with wheat, they sling away the first, that they may indulge in the last. They are very wild, bite severely, and are scarcely ever tamed: the skins are of little use; but are sometimes brought over to line cloaks.
217. FAT.
Gils Gesner quad. 550. Raii syn. quad. 229.
Glis vulgaris Klein quad. 56.
Glis supra obscurè cinereus, infra ex albo cinerescente Brisson quad. 113.
Sciurus Glis. Sc. canus subtus albidus Lin. syst. 87.
Le Loir de Buffon, viii. 158. tab. xxiv.
Sq. with thin naked ears: body covered with soft ash-colored hair: belly whitish: tail full of long hair: from nose to tail, near six inches; tail four and a half: thicker in the body than the squirrel.
Inhabits France and the South of Europe. The late Doctor Kramer favored me with one from Austria. Lives in trees, and leaps from bough to bough, feeds on fruits and acorns: lodges in the hollows of trees: remains in a torpid state during winter, and grows very fat,
Tota mihi dormitur hyems, et Pinguior illo
Tempore sum, quo me nil nisi somnus alit*.
* Mertial Epig. Lib. xiii. Ep. 59.
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Was esteemed a great delicacy by the Romans, who had their Gliraria* places constructed to keep and feed them in. I think that the Italians at present eat them.
218. GARDEN.
Mus avellanarum major Gesner quad. 735.
Greater Dormouse, or Sleeper, Raii syn. quad. 219.
Glis supra obscurè cinereus, infra ex albo cinerescens, macula ad oculos nigra Brisson quad. 114.
Mus quercinus. M. cauda elongata pilosa, macula nigra suboculos. Lin. syst. 84.
Le Lerot de Buffon, viii. 181. tab. xxv.
Sq. with the eyes surrounded with a large spot of black, reaching to the base of the ears, and another behind the ears: head and whole body of a tawny color: the throat and whole under-side of the body white, tinged with yellow: the tail long: the hairs at the beginning very short, at the end bushy: length, from nose to tail, not five inches; the tail four.
Inhabits France and the South of Europe: infests gardens, and is very destructive to fruits of all kind: is particularly fond of peaches: lodges in holes in the walls: brings five or six young at a time: like the former, remains torpid during winter: has a strong smell, like a rat.
* Varro de re rustica, lib. iii.
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219. DORMOUSE.
Mus avellanarum minor, the Dormouse or Sleeper, Raii syn. quad. 220.
Rothe Wald Mauss Kramer Ausria, 317.
Glis supra rufus, infra albicans Brisson quad.
Mus avellanarius. M. cauda elongata pilosa, corpore rufo, gula albicante, pollicibus posticis muticis, Lin. syst. 83. Faun. Suec. No. 35.
Le Muscardin de Buffon, viii. 193. tab. xxvi.
Dormouse Edw. 266. Br. Zool. I. 95.
Sq. with round naked ears: full black eyes: body of a tawny red: throat white: size of a mouse, but plumper: tail two inches and a half long, and pretty hairy, especially towards the end.
Inhabits Europe: lives in thick hedges: makes its nest in the hollow of a low tree, or in a thick bush near the bottom, of grass, moss, or dead leaves: brings three or four young at a time: seldom appears far from its retreat: forms magazines of nuts: eats its food sitting up, like a squirrel: at approach of winter, retires and rolls itself up, lying torpid: sometimes in a warm day revives, takes a little food, and relapses into its former state.
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A. with membranes from fore leg to hind leg.
220. SAILINO.
Sciurus Sagitta. Sc. hypochondriis prolixis volitans, cauda plano-pinnata lanceolata. Lin. syst. 88.
Sciurus petaurista Pallas Miscel. Zool. 54. tab. vi.
Sciurus maximus volans, seu felis volans. Sc. castanei coloris, in parte corporis superiore, in inferiore vero eximié flavescentis; cute ab anticis cruribus ad postica membranæ in modum extensa volans, Brisson quad. 112. Mus. Roy. Society*.
Sq. with a small rounded head: cloven upper lip: small blunt ears: two small warts at the outmost corner of each eye; with hairs growing out of them: neck short: four toes on the fore feet; and instead of a thumb, a slender bone, two inches and a half long, lodged under the lateral membrane, serving to stretch it out: from thence to the hind legs extends the membrane, which is broad, and a continuation of the skin of the sides and belly: five toes on the hind feet, and on all the toes sharp compressed bent claws: tail covered with long hairs disposed horizontally: color of the head, body and tail, a bright bay; in some parts inclining to orange: breast and belly of a yellowish white: length, from nose to tail, eighteen inches; tail fifteen.
Inhabits Java†, and others of the Indian islands: leaps from tree to tree as if it flew: will catch hold of the boughs‡ with the tail: differs in size; that described by Linnæus was the size of our squirrel:
* Where there is the skin of one in fine preservation.
† Hamilton's voy. II. 131.
‡ Sir Edward Michelbourne's voy. in Purchas's Pilgrim. I. 134.
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SAILING SQUIRREL No. 220.
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that killed by Sir Edward Michelbourne, in one of the Indian isles was greater than a hare. Nieuhoff, p. 354, describes this species under the name of the Flying Cat, and says the back is black: he has given two very good figures of it; one in his frontispiece, the other in the page he describes. it in.
221. FLYING.
Mus Ponticus vel Scythicus Gesner quad. 743.
Assapanick Smith's Virginia, 27. Josselyn's voy. 86. de Laet, 88.
Sciurus americanus volans Raii syn. quad. 215.
Sciurus petaurista volans, Klein quad. 54.
Flying squirrel Phil. Trans. abridg. ix. 76. tab. v. Lawson's Carolina, 124. Catesby Carolina, II. 76, 77. Edw. 191. Kalm. I. 321. tab. i. du Pratz, II. 69.
Sciurus volans. Sc. hypochondriis prolixis volitans, cauda rotundata. Lin. syst. 88. Faun. suec. No. 38.
Sciurus volans Brisson quad. 110, iii. No. 12, 13.
La Poulatouche, de Buffon, X. 95.
Sq. with round naked ears: full black eyes: a lateral membrane from fore to hind legs: tail with long hairs disposed horizontally, longest in the middle; color above, a brownish ash: beneath, white, tinged with yellow: much less than the common squirrel.
Inhabits Finland, Lapland, Poland, Russia, North America, and New Spain*: lives in hollow trees: sleeps in the day: during the night very lively: is gregarious, numbers being found in one tree: leaps from bough to bough sometimes at the distance of of ten yards: this action improperly called flying, for the animal cannot go in any other direction than forward; and even then cannot keep an even line,
* Where it is called Quimichpatlan. Fernandez. Nov. Hisp. 8.
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but sinks considerably before it can reach the place it aims at: sensible of this, the squirrel mounts the higher, in proportion to the distance it wishes to reach: when it would leap it stretches out the forelegs, and extending; the membranes, becomes specifically lighter than it would otherwise be; and thus is enabled to spring further than other squirrels that have not this apparatus. When numbers leap at a time, they seem like leaves blown off by the wind. Their food the same as the other American squirrels: are easily tamed: bring three or four young at a time.
β. HOODED. Sciurus virginianus volans. Seb. Mus. I. tab. xliv. Brisson quad. III. Mus volans. Lin. syst. 85.
Sq. with the lateral membrane beginning at the chin and ears, and extending like the former from fore to hind leg: reddish above; cinereous, tinged with yellow, beneath.
Inhabits Virginia, according to Seba; the only person who had seen it: is perhaps a meer variety. Linnæus's synonyms from Ray and Edwards erroneous.
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I CASAN MARMOT No. 201. II LAPLAND MARMOT No. 202. III GERBOA No. 222.
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XXXI JERBOA.
Two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Two very short fore legs: two very long hind legs, resembling those of cloven-footed water-fowl.
Very long tail, tufted at the end.
222. ÆCYPTIAN.
Μυς διπς Theophr. opusc. 295. Ælian bist. an. lib. xv. c. 26.
Mus bipes Plinii, lib. x. c. 65.
Jerboa, or Yerbôa, Shaw's Travels, 248. Texeira's Travels, 21.
Gerbua Edw. 219. Plaisted's journal, 59.
Mus jaculus. M. cauda elongata floccosa, palmis subpentadactylis, femoribus longissimis, brachiis brevissimis. Lin. syst. 85. Hassel quist itin. 198.
Le Jerbo de Buffon, xiii. 141.
J. with thin erect and broad ears: full and dark eyes: long whiskers: fore legs an inch long; five toes on each; the inner, or thumb, scarce apparent; but that, as well as the rest, furnished with a sharp claw: hind legs two inches and a quarter long, thin covered with short hair, and exactly resembling those of a bird; three toes on each, covered above and below with hair; the middle toe the longest, on each a pretty long sharp claw: length, from nose to tail, seven inces and one quarter; tail ten inches, terminated with a thick black tuft of hair; the tip white, the rest of the tail covered with very short cearse hair: the upper part of the body thin, or compressed sideways: the part about the rump and loins large: the head, back, sides and thighs, covered with long hair, ash-colored at the bottom, pale tawny at the ends: breast and belly whitish: the hair long and soft.
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Inhabits Ægypt, Barbary, Palestine, the deserts between Balsora and Aleppo: as singular in its motions as in its form: always stands on its hind feet; the fore feet performing the office of hands: runs fast; and when pursued, jumps five or six feet from the ground: burrows like rabbets: keeps close in the day, lively during night: feeds on vegetables: has great strength in its fore feet. Two that were living last winter in London, burrowed almost through the brick wall of the room they were in; came out of their hole at night for food, and when caught were much fatter and sleeker than when confined to their box: eaten by the Arabs*. The species described by Mr. Edwards seems only to be a variety of this, with a black band cross the upper part of the thighs. Doctor shaw mentions a spur placed about an inch above the toes of the hind feet; which was wanting in these as well as in Mr. Edwards's.
223. SIBERIAN.
Cuniculus pumilio saliens cauda longissima. Nov. Com. Petrop. V. 351. tab. ix. fig. 1.
Cuniculus pumilio saliens, cauda anomola longissima. Brisson quad. 103.
Flying hare. Strahlenberg's hist. Russ. 370.
J. with very long transparent narrow ears: long whiskers: five toes on the fore feet, three on the hind feet pointing forward, and a fourth behind, about an inch above the heel: color of the upper
* Pr. Alpin. Ægypt, I. 232. The Arahs call it the Lamb of the Chlldren of Israd. Bechart thinks this animal the Saphan of HOLY WRIT, and displays a vast deal of learning on the subject. Vide Hierozoicon, lib. iii. c. 33. p. 1001.
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part of the body tawny; lower whitish: in form of the body, legs and tail, agrees with the last.
Inhabits Siberia* where it is called Alagtaga; like the former, very active: digs holes in the ground with vast agility with its fore feet: tears the roots with its teeth, and slings back the earth with its hind feet; if pursued, and finds it cannot escape by leaping, attempts to make a new hole: the burrows, in some places, so thick, as to be dangerous to travellers, the horses perpetually falling in them: provides against winter: cuts grass, and leaves it in heaps a foot square to dry, and afterwards carries it into the burrow.
224. TORRID.
Mus longipes. M. cauda elongata vestita, palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis, femoribus longissimis. Lin. syst. 84.
Mus cauda longa vestita, pedibus posticis longitudine corporis, flavi. Mus. Ad. Tr. 9.
J. with naked oval ears: long whiskers: four toes on the fore feet: the hind feet the length of the body, thick, strong, and thinly haired: five toes on each foot: scarce any neck: tail the length of the body, with very little hair on it: color of the upper part of the body yellow; the lower white: size of a common mouse.
Inhabits, according to. Linnæus, the torrid zone†: mentioned by no other writer.
* Found also in Circassia, and near the river Terek, which borders on that country. Vide Olearius's Travels, 415, and Schober's Memorabilia Russ. Asiat. in Muller's Samlung Russ. vii. 124.
† Habitat in torridis regionibus.
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225. INDIAN.
Le Tarsier de Buffon, xiii. 87. tab. ix.
J. with a slender nose bilobated at the end: eyes large and prominent: ears erect, broad, naked; semitransparent, an inch and an half long: between them on the top of the head a tust of long hairs: two slender cutting teeth and two cauine teeth in each jaw, which is peculiar to this species: long hairs each side the nose and on the upper eyebrow: four long slender toes and a distinct thumb like the ape kind, on each foot: the lower part of the end of each toe tuberous: the claws sharp pointed; but, except on the two interior toes of the hind feet, are attached to the skin: the thumbs of the hind feet, broad and greatly dilated at their ends: hairs on the legs and feet fhorty white and thinly scattered: tail almost naked, on the greater part round and scaly like that of a rat; but grows hairy towards the end which is tusted: penis pendulous: scrotum and testicles of a vast size in proportion to the animal.
Length from nose to tail near six inches: to the hind toes eleven and a half; tail nine and a half.
Hair soft, but not curled, of an ash color mixed with tawny.
Inhabits India: described from two specimens in the Cabinet of Dr. Hunter.
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XXXII. RAT.
Two cutting teeth in each jaw.
Four toes before; five behind.
Very slender taper tail; naked, or very slightly haired.
226. BLACK.
Mus domesticus major quem vulgo Rattum vocant. Gesner quad. 731. Raii syn. quad. 217.
Mus rattus, Mus ciscrinarius. Klein quad. 57.
Ratze. Kramer Austr. 316.
Mus cauda longissima obscuré cinerea. Brisson quad. 118.
Mus Rattus. M. cauda clongata subnuda, palmis tetradactylis cum unguiculo pollicari, plantis pentadactylis Lin. syst. Ratta Faun. suec. No. 33. Br. Zool. I. 97.
Le Rat de Buffon, vii. 278. tab. xxxvi.
R. of a deep iron grey color, nearly black: belly cinereous: legs dusky, almost naked: a claw, in the place of a fifth toe, on the fore feet: length, from nose to tail, seven inches; tail near eight.
Inhabits most parts of Europe of late, the numbers much lessened, and in many places extirpated by the next species: very destructive to corn, furniture, young poultry, rabbets and pigeons: will gnaw the extremities of infants when asleep: breeds often in a year: brings six or seven young at a time: makes its nest, in a hole near a chimney, of wool, bits of cloth, or straw: will destroy and devour one another: its greatest enemy is the weesel. First introduced into America by the Europeans; into S. America*, about the year 1544, in the time of the Viceroy Blasco Nunnez. Is now the pest of all that continent.
* Garcilasso de la Vega, 384.
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227. BROWN.
Mus cauda longissima, supra dilutè fulvus, infra albicans. Le Rat de Bois. Brisson quad. 120.
Le Surmulot. de Buffon, viii. 206. tab. xxvii.
Norway rat. Br. Zool. I. 99.
R. with the head, back and sides, of a light brown color, mixed with tawny and ash-color: breast and belly dirty white: feet naked, and of a dirty flesh-color: fore feet furnished with four toes, and a claw instead of the fifth: length, from nose to tail, nine inches; tail the same: weight eleven ounces: is stronger made than the last.
Inhabits most parts of Europe; but was a stranger to that continent 'till the present century: came into Great Britain about forty years ago: not known in the neighborhood of Paris half that time. The same animal with what is called in the East-Indies a Bandicote, a large rat, which burrows under ground; so probably the species was brought from thence in some of the Indian ships* has reached Prussia, but not the opposite side of the Baltic; for Linnæus takes no notice of it.
Burrows like the water rat on the sides of ponds and ditches: swims well, and dives readily: lives on grain and fruits, and will destroy rabbets, poultry and game: encreases fast; brings from fourteen to eighteen young at a time: is very bold and fierce;
* This may be the species found in Guinea, called by Barbot, 214, Field Rats; which, he says, are as big at cats. Bosman calls these wild rats. Barbot also mentions another, as long, but slenderer than the former; which the Negroes eat, and call Boutees, which do great damage to their corn.
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will turn when close pursued, and fasten on the stick or hand of those who offer to strike it: has destroyed the common black rat in most places.
228. WATER.
Le Rat d'Eau Belon Aquat. 30. tab. xxxi.
Mus aquatilis Agricola An. Subter. 488. Gesner quad. 732. Raii syn. quad. 217. Klein quad. 57.
Wasser-maus Kramer Austr. 316. Mus Amphibius. M. cauda elongata pilosa plantis palmatis. Lin. syst. 82. Faun. suec. No. 32.
M. cauda longa pilis supra ex nigro et flavescente mixtis, infra cinereis vestitus. Brisson quad. 124.
Le Rat d'Eau de Buffon, vii. 348. tab. xliii.
R. with a thick blunt nose: ears hid in the fur: eyes small: teeth yellow: on each foot five toes; inner toe of the fore foot very small; the first joint very flexible: head and body covered with long hairs, black mixed with a few ferruginous hairs: belly of an iron grey: tail covered with short black hairs; the tip whitish: weight nine ounces: length, from nose to tail, seven inches; tail only five: shape of the head and body more compact than the former species*.
Inhabits Europe and North America†: burrows in the banks of rivers, ponds and wet ditches: feeds on small fish and the fry of greater, on frogs, insects and roots: is itself the prey of pike: swims and dives admirably, though it is not web-footed, as Mr. Ray supposed, and Linnæus copied after him: brings six young at a time. This animal and the Otter eat in France on maigre days.
* It has some resemblance to the Beaver, which induced Linnæus, in the first edition of his Fauna Suecica, to style it Castor cauda lineari tereti.
† Lawson bist. Carolina, 122. He also mentions another, which he calls the Marsh Rat, being more hairy than the common rat; but apparently is the same with this. Those of Canada vary to tawny and white. Vide de Buffon, xiv. 401. xv. 146.
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229. MOUSE.
Mus donesticus communis, seu minor. Gesner quad. 714. Raii. syn. quad. 218.
Mus miner, musculus vulgaris. Klein quad.
Mauss. Kramer Austr. 316.
Mus musculus. M. cauda elongata, palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis. Lin. syst. 83. Mus. Faun. suec. No. 34.
Mus cauda longissima, obscurè, cinereus, ventre subalbescente. Brisson quad. 119.
La Souris de Buffon. vii. 309. tab. lix. Br. Zool. I. 105. Br. Zool. illustr. tab. cii.
An animal that needs no description: when found white is very beautifull, the full bright eye appearing to great advantage amidst the snowy fur.
Inhabits all parts of the world, except the Arctic: follows mankind.
230. FIELD.
Mus agrestis minor. Gesner quad. 733.
Mus domesticus medius Raii syn. quad. 218.
Mauss mit weissen bauch. Kramer Austr. 317.
Mus cauda longa supra e fusco flavescens, infra ex albo cinerescens. Brisson quad. 123.
Mus sylvaticus. M. cauda longa palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis, corpore griseo pilis nigris abdomine albo. Lin. syst. 84. Faun. Suec. No. 36.
Le Mulot de Buffon, vii. 325. tab. xli.
Long-tailed field-mouse Br. Zool. I. 103.
R. with full and black eyes: head, back and sides, of a yellowish brown, mixed with some dusky hairs: breast of an ochre color: belly white: length, from the tip of the nose to the tail, four inches and a half; tail four inches, slightly covered with hair.
Inhabits Europe: found only in fields and gardens: feeds on nuts, acorns and corn: forms great magazines of winter provision: hogs, tempted by the smell, do much damage in the fields, by rooting up the hoards: makes a nest for its young very
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near the surface, and often in a thick tuft of grass: brings from seven to ten at a time: called, in some parts of England, Bean mouse, from the havoke it makes among the beans when just sown.
α. AMERICAN. R. with very long whiskers, some white, others black: ears large, naked and open: from the head to the tail, along the middle of the back, a broad dark stripe, ferruginous and dusky: the cheeks, space beneath the ears, and sides, quite to the tail, orange-colored: under-side, from nose to tail, of a snowy whiteness: feet white: hind legs longer than those of the European kind: tail dusky above, whitish beneath. New York.
The less long-tailed field-mouse Br. Zool. II. App. 498.
231. HARVEST.
R. with eyes less prominent than those of the former: ears prominent, of a full ferruginous color above, white beneath: a strait line along the sides divides the colors: tail a little hairy: length, from nose to tail, two inches and a half: tail two inches: weight one-fixth of an ounce.
Inhabits Hampshire; where it appears in greatest numbers during harvest: never enters houses; but is carried into the ricks of corn in the sheaves; and often hundreds are killed on breaking up the ricks: during winter, shelters itself under ground: burrows very deep, and forms a warm bed of dead grass: makes its nest for its young above ground, between
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the straws of standing corn; it is of a round shape, and composed of blades of corn: brings about eight young at a time.
232. ORIENTAL.
Mus orientalis. Seb. Mus. II. 22. tab. xxi. fig. 2.
M. cauda mediocri subnuda, palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis, corporis striis punctatis. Lin. syst. 84.
M. cauda longa, striis corporis longitudinalibus et punctis albis. Mus. Ad. Fred. 10.
Mus cauda longa, rufus, lineis in dorso albicantibus, margaritarum æmulis. Brisson quad. 124.
R. with round naked ears: of a grey color: the back and sides elegantly marked with twelve rows of small pearl-colored spots, extending from the head to the rump: tail the length of the body: in size, half that of a common mouse.
Inhabits India. In the same country and in Guinea is another very small species, which smells of musk. The Portuguese living in India call it Cheroso, and say its bite is venomous. Boullaye la Gouz. 256. Barbot's Guinea, 214.
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233. SHORT-TAILED.
Mus agrestis capite grandi brachiurus Raii syn. quad. 218.
Mus terrestris. M. cauda mediocri subpilosa, palmis subtetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis, auriculis vellere brevioribus Lin. syst. 82. Molle Faun. suec. No. 31*.
Mus cauda brevi, pilis e nigricante et sordidè luteo mixtis in dorso, et saturatè cinereis in ventre vestitis. Brisson quad. 125.
Le Campagnol de Buffon, vii. 369. tab. xlvii.
The short-tailed Field-mouse Br. Zool. 104.
Erdzeisl. Kramer Austr. 316.
R. with a large head: blunt nose: ears short, and hid in the fur: eyes prominent: tail short: color of the head and upper part of the body ferruginous, mixed with black: belly deep ash-color: length, from nose to tail, six inches: tail only one and a half, thinly covered with hair, terminated by a small tuft.
Inhabits Europe: also great abundance in New foundland, where it does much mischief in the gardens: in England, seldom infests gardens: makes its nest in moist meadows: brings eight young at a time: has a strong affection for them: resides under ground: lives on nuts, acorns and corn.
234. GREGARIOUS.
Mus gregarius. M. cauda corpore triplo breviore subpilosa, corpore griseo, subtus pedibusque albis. Lin. syst. 84.
R. with a small mouth and blunt nose: ears naked, and appearing above the fur: hair on the upper part of the body black at the roots and tips, ferruginous
* The species, No. 30. Faun suec. described by the style of Muscauda abbreviata, corpore nigro fusco, abdomine cinerescente, seems the same with this.
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in the middle: throat, belly and feet, whitish: tail thrice as short as the body, covered with thin white hairs; the end black and ash-color: is a little larger than the common mouse.
Inhabits Germany and Sueden: eats sitting up: burrows, and lives under ground.
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XXXIII. SHREW.
Two cutting teeth in each jaw pointing forward.
Long slender nose: small ears.
Five toes on each foot.
235. FÆTID.
Μυγαλη. Ælian hist. An. lib. vi. c. 22. Μυℴγαλη. Dioscorid. lib. ii. c. 42.
Mus Araneus Agricola An. Subter. 485. Gesner quad. 747.
Mus araneus, mus cæcus. Gesner econ. 116.
Mus araneus, Shrew, Shrewmouse, or hardy shrew. Raii syn. quad. 233.
Mus araneus rostro productiore Spitsmaus Klein quad. 57. Kramer Austr. 317.
Sorex araneus S. cauda mediocri, corpore subtus albido. Lin. syst. 74. Nabbmus Faun. suec. No. 24.
Mus araneus supra ex susco rufus infra albicans. Brisson quad. 126.
La Musaraigne. de Buffon, viii. 57. tab. x.
Shrew mouse Br. Zool. I. 112.
Shr. with short rounded ears: eyes small, and almost hid in the fur: nose long and slender, upper part the longest: head and upper part of the body of a brownish red: belly of a dirty white: length, from nose to tail, two inches and a half; tail one and a half.
Inhabits Europe: lives in old walls, heaps of stones, or holes in the earth: is frequently near hay-ricks, dunghills, and necessary-houses: lives on corn, insects, and any filth: is often observed rooting in ordure, like a hog: from its food, or the places it frequents, has a disagreeable smell: cats will kill, but not eat it: brings four or five young at a time. The antients believed it was injurious to cattle, an error now detected. There seems to be an annual mortality of these animals in August, numbers being then found dead in the paths.
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236. WATER.
Mus araneus dorso nigro, ventreque albo. Merret Pinax. 167.
Sorex fodiens Pallas*.
La Musaraigne d'Eau de Buffon, viii. 64. tab. xi.
Water Shrew-mouse Br. Zool. illustr. tab. cii.
Sh. with a long slender nose: very minute ears: very small eyes, hid in the fur: color of the head and upper part of the body black: throat, breast, and belly, of a light ash-color: beneath the tail a triangular dusky spot: much larger than the last: length, from nose to tail, three inches three quarters; tail two inches.
Inhabits Europe: long since known in England, but lost till May 1768, when it was discovered in the fens near Revesly Abby, Lincolnshire: burrows in the banks near the water: is called by the Fen-men the Blind Mouse.
237. MINUTE.
Sorex minutus. S. rostro longissimo Lin. syst. 73.
Sh. with a head near as big as the body: very slender nose: broad short naked ears: whiskers reaching to the eyes: eyes small, and capable of being drawn in: hair very fine and shining; grey above, white beneath: no tail: the lest of quadrupeds, according to Linnæus.
Inhabits Siberia: lives in a nest made of lichens,
* Doctor Pallas favored me with several prints of this animal in 1765, but never published them: he discovered it near Berlin; it is called there Græber, or The Digger.
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in some moist place beneath the roots of trees: lives on seeds: digs: runs swiftly: has the voice of a bat.
238. MURINE.
S. murinus. S. cauda mediocri, corpore fusco, pedibus caudaque cinereis. Lin. syst. 74.
Sh. with a long nose, hollowed beneath: very long hairs about the nostrils: ears rounded, and rather naked: of an ash-color: body of the size of a common mouse: tail a little shorter than the body, and not so hairy.
Inhabits Java.
239. BRASILIAN.
Mus araneus figura muris Marcgrave Brasil, 229.
La musaraigne de Brasil, de Buffon, xv. 160.
Sh. with a sharp nose and teeth: pendulous scrotum: of a dusky color, marked along the back with three broad black strokes: length, from nose to tail, five inches; tail two.
Inhabits Brasil: does not fear the cat: neither does that animal hunt after it.
240. MEXICAN.
Tucan. Fernandez Nov. Hisp. 7.
Le Tucan de Buffon, xv. 159.
Sh. with a sharp nose: small round ears: without sight: two long fore teeth above and below: thick, fat and fleshy body: short legs, so that the belly almost touches the ground: long crooked claws:
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tawny hair: short tail: length, from nose to tail, nine inches.
Inhabits Mexico: burrows, and makes such a number of cavities, that travellers can scarce tread with safety: if it gets out of its hole, does not know how to return, but begins to dig another: grows very fat, and is eatable: feeds on roots, kidney-beans, and other seeds. M. de Buffon thinks it a mole; but by the ears, it should be classed here.
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XXXIV. MOLE.
Long nose: upper jaw much longer than the lower. No ears.
Fore feet very broad, with scarce any apparent legs before: hind feet small.
241. EUROPEAN.
Talpa Agricola An. Subter. 490.
Gesner quad. 931. Klein quad. 60.
Talpa, the mole, mold-warp, or want. Raii syn. quad. 236.
Kret. Rzaczinski Polon. 236.
Scheer, Scheer-mauss, Maulwurf. Kramer Austr. 314.
Talpa Europæus. T. caudata, pedibus pentadactylis. Lin. syst. 73.
Mullvad, Surk. Faun. suec. No. 23. Br. Zool. I. 108.
Talpa caudata, nigricans pedibus anticis et posticis pentadactylis. Brisson quad. 203.
La Taupe de Buffon, viii. 81. tab. xii.
M. with very minute eyes, hid in the fur: long snout: six cutting teeth in the upper, eight in the lower jaw, and two canine in each: no external ears, only an orifice: fore part of the body thick and muscular; hind part taper: fore feet placed obliquely, broad, and like hands: five toes, each terminated by strong claws: hind feet very small, with five toes to each: tail short: skin very tough, so as scarce to be cut through: hair short, close set, softer than the finest velvet; usually black, sometimes spotted* with white; sometimes quite white: length five inches three quarters; tail one.
Inhabits Europe: lives under ground: burrows with vast rapidity with its fore feet; flings the earth back with its hind feet: has the sense of smelling exquisite, which directs it to its food, worms, insects
* Spotted Mole, Edw. 268.
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and roots: does vast damage in gardens, by flinging up the soil and loosening the roots of plants: is most active before rain, and in winter before a thaw, worms being then in motion: breeds in the spring: brings four or five young at a time: makes its nest of moss, a little beneath the surface of the ground, under the greatest hillock: raises no hillocks in dry weather, being then obliged to penetrate deep after its prey: makes a great scream when taken. Palma christi and white hellebore, made into a paste, and laid in their holes, destroys them. None in Ireland.
β. YELLOW. M. in form resembling the European; but larger, being six inches two-tenths long; the tail one inch: hair soft, silky and glossy, of a yellowish brown color at the ends; dark grey at the roots: brightest about the head; darkest about the rump: belly of a deep cinereous brown: feet and tail white.
Inhabits N. America. Described from a skin in which the jaws were taken out.
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242. SIBERIAN.
Talpa sibericus versicolor, Aspalax dictus. Seb. Mus. I. 51. tab. xxxii. fig. 4, 5. Klein quad. 60.
Tapla asiatica. T. ecaudata, palmis tridactylis. Lin. syst. 73.
Tapla ecaudata, ex viridi aurea, pedibus anticis tridactylis, posticis tetradactylis Brisson quad. 206.
La Taupe dorèe. de Buffon, xv. 145.
M. with a very short nose: no ears: three toes on the fore feet, on the outmost toe a very large claw; four toes on the hind feet: body of an equal thickness: rump quite round: no tail: of a beautifull green and gold color, variable with the light.
Inhabits Siberia.
243. RADIATED.
Sorex cristatus. S. naribus carunculatis, cauda breviore Lin. syst. 73.
M. with small but broad fore legs; five long white claws on each: nose long; the edges beset with radiated tendrils: hair On the body dusky, very short, fine and compact; on the nose longer: the hind legs scaly; five toes on each foot: length, from nose to tail, three inches three quarters: tail slender, round and taper, one inch three-tenths long.
Inhabits N. America. Forms subterraneous passages in different directions in uncultivated fields; raises walks about two inches high and a palm broad: the holes often give way and let in the walkers: feeds on roots: has great strength in its legs.
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244. LONG-TAILED.
M. with the fore feet pretty broad, hind feet very scaly, with a few short hairs on them: the claws on the fore feet like those of the common mole; on the hind very long and slender: hair on the nose and and body soft, long, and of a rusty brown color: tail covered with short hair; the length two inches; that of nose and body four inches six-tenths.
Inhabits N. America.
245. BROWN.
Sorex aquaticus, S. plantis palmatis, palmis caudaque breviore albis. Lin. syst. 74.
M. with a slender nose: upper jaw much longer than the lower; two cutting teeth in the upper, four in the lower, the two middle of which are very small: no canine teeth: fore feet very broad: nails long: hind feet small; five claws on each: hair very soft and glossy, brown at the ends, deep grey at the bottom: tail and feet white: length, from nose to tail, five inches and a half: tail very slender, not an inch long.
Inhabits N. America: called there the Brown Mole: sent from New York by Mr. A. Blackburne, with β. Yellow Mole and No. 243 and 244. The black and shining purple Virginian mole, described by Seba*, as the same with the common kind, was not among those that gentleman favored us with. Linnæus places this and our radiated mole in his
* P. 51. tab. xxxii.
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class of SOREX, or SHREW, on account of the difference of the teeth; but as these animals possess the stronger characters of the MOLE, such as form of nose and body, shape of feet, and even the manners, we think them better adapted to this genus than to the preceding.
Talpa rubra americana, Seb. Mus. I. 51. tab. xxxii. fig. 2.
246. RED.
M. of cinereous red color: three toes on the fore feet, four on the hind: form of the body and tail like the European kind.
Inhabits America.
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XXXV. HEDGEHOG.
Five toes on each foot.
Body covered with strong short spines.
247. COMMON.
Erinaceus Agricola An. Subter. 481.
Echinus terrestris Gesner quad. 368.
Echinus sc. Erinaceus terrestris. Urchin, or Hedge-hog, Raii syn. quad. 231.
Jez Rzaczinski Polon. 233.
Acanthion vulgaris nostras. Klein quad. 66.
Igel. Kramer Austr. 314.
Erinaceus Europeus. E. auriculis rotundatis naribus cristatis. Lin. syst. 75. Igelkott. Faun. suec. No. 22. Br. Zool. I. 106.
Erinaceus auriculis erectis. Brisson quad. 128. Seb. Mus. I. 78. tab. xlix.
L'Herisson de Buffon, viii. 28. tab. vi.
H. with a long nose: nostrils bordered on each side with a loose flap: ears rounded, broad and naked: eyes small: legs short, naked and dusky: inner toe the shortest: claws weak: upper part of the face, the sides and rump, covered with strong coarse hair of a yellowish and cinereous color; the back, with strong sharp spines of a whitish color, with a bar of black through their middle: tail an inch long: length, from nose to tail, ten inches.
Inhabits Europe, Siberia*, Madagascar†: is in motion during night; keeps retired in the day: feeds on roots, fruits, worms and insects: erroneously charged with sucking cows and hurting their udders: resides in small thickets, in hedges, and at the bottom of ditches covered with bushes; lies well wrapped up in moss, grass, or leaves, and during winter rolls itself up and sleeps out that dreary sea-
* Seb. Mus. I. 79. Seba describes one from Siberia, that differs so little from this, as not to form a new species.
† Flacourt voy. Madaguscar, 152.
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I RADIATED MOLE No. 243. II LONG-TAILED M. No. 244. III HEDGE HOG No. 247.
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son: a mild and helpless animal; on approach of an enemy, rolls itself into the form of a ball, and is then invulnerable.
Le Tendrac, et Le Tanrec, de Buffon, xii. 438.
248. ASIATIC.
H. with a long slender nose: short rounded ears: short legs: the upper part of the body covered with short spines, white, marked cross the middle with rust color: the face, throat, belly, buttocks and legs, thinly covered with whitish fine but hard hair: tail very short, covered with spines: about the nose some hairs above two inches long: size of a mole. This is the species M. de Buffon calls Le Tendrac.
The other, or the Tanrec, is rather larger: covered with spines only on the top and hind part of the head, the top and sides of the neck, and the shoulders; the longest were on the upper part of the neck, and stood erect: the rest of the body was covered with yellowish bristles, among which were intermixed some that were black, and much longer than the others. Each of these animals, which are varieties of the same species, had five toes on each foot.
Inhabit the isles of India, and that of Madagascar: are, when of their full growth, of the size of* Rabbets: grunt like hogs: grow very fat: multiply greatly: frequent† shallow pieces of fresh or salt
* Dutch voy. East Indies, 203. Those in the cabinet of the French King were much smaller; probably young.
† Cauche voy. Madagascar, 53. Flacourt hist. Madagascar, 152.
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water: they burrow on land: lie torpid during six months, during which time their old hair falls off. Their flesh is eaten by the Indians, but is very flabby and insipid.
249. GUIANA.
American hedge-hog. Bancroft Guiana, 144.
Erinaceus inauris. E. auriculis nullis, Lin. syst. 75. Brisson quad. 131.
Erinaceus americanus albus. Seb. Mus. I. 78. tab. xlix. fig. 3.
H. without external ears, having only two orifices for hearing: has a short thick head: back and sides covered with short spines of an ash-color tinged with yellow: face, belly, legs and tail, covered with soft whitish hair: above the eyes, of a chesnut color; back part and sides of the head of a deeper color: length, from nose to tail, eight inches; tail short: claws long and crooked.
Inhabits Guiana.
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SLOTH No. 250.
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Div. II. Sect. IV. DIGITATED QUADRUPEDS: without cutting teeth.
XXXVI. SLOTH.
Without cutting teeth in either jaw.
With canine teeth and grinders.
Fore legs much longer than the hind.
Long claws.
Arctopithecus Gesner quad. 869. Icon quad. 96.
Ignavus five Per αντιφϱασιν, Agilis, Clus. exot. 110. 372.
Ai, five ignavus Marcgrave Brasil, 221.
Sloth, Raii syn. quad. 245. Edw. 310.
Ignavus americanus, risum fletu miscens. Klein quad. 43.
Tardigradus pedibus anticis et posticis tridactylis Brisson quad. 21.
Ai, five Tardigradus gracilis americanus Seb. Mus. xxxiii. fig. 2.
Ouaikarè, Paresseux. Barrere France Æquin. 154.
Bradypus tridactylus. B. Pedibus tridactylis cauda brevi. Lin. syst. 50.
L'Ai de Buffon, xiii. 34. tab. v. vi. Br. Mus.
250. THREE-TOED.
Sl. with a blunt black nose, a little lengthened: very small external ears; eyes small, black and heavy; from the corner of each a dusky line: color of the face and throat a dirty white: hair on the limbs and body long and very uneven, of a cinereous brown color: tail short, a meer stump: legs thick, long, and aukwardly placed: face naked: three toes and three very long claws on each foot. Length of that in the British Museum, twelve inches; but it grows to the size of a middle-fixed fox*.
* Nieuhoff, 18.
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Inhabits most parts of the eastern side of South America: the most sluggish and most slow of all animals; seems to move with the utmost pain; makes a great progress if it can go a quarter of a league in a day*: ascends trees, in which it generally lives, with much difficulty: its food is fruit, or the leaves of trees; if it cannot find fruit on the ground, looks out for a tree well loaded, and with great pains climbs up: to save the trouble of descending, flings off the fruit, and forming itself into a ball, drops from the branches; continues at the foot till it has devoured all; nor ever stirs, till compelled by hunger**: its motion is attended with a most moving and plaintive cry, which at once produces pity and disgust; is its only defence; for every beast of prey is so affected by the noise, as to quit it with horror†: its note, according to Kircher, is an ascending and descending hexachord‡, which it utters only by night: its look is so piteous as to move compassion; it is also accompanied with tears, that dissuade every body from injuring so wretched a being: its abstinence from food is remarkably powerfull; one that had fastened itself by its feet to a pole, and was so suspended cross two beams, remained forty days without meat, drink or sleep§: the strength in its feet is so great, that whatsoever it seizes on cannot possibly be freed from its claws. A dog was let loose at the above-mentioned animal, when it was
* Gumilla Orenoque, II. 13.
** Ulloa's voy. I. 103.
† Ibid.
‡ Kircher's Musurgia, as quoted by Mr. Stilling fleet, in his miscellaneous tracts, p. 100.
§ Kircher.
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taken from the pole; after some time the Sloth layed hold of the dog with its feet, and held him four days, till he perished with hunger*.
Tardigradus Ceilonicus fæmina. Seb. Mus. I. tab. xxxiv.
Bradypus didactylus. Br. manibus didactylis cauda nulla Lin. syst. 51.
Tardigradus pedibus anticis didactylis, posticis tridactylis. Brisson quad. 22.
L'Unau. de Buffon, xiii. 34. tab. I. Br. Mus.
251. TWO-TOED.
Sl. with a round head: short projecting nose: ears like the human, lying flat to the head: two long strong claws on the fore feet, three on the hind: hair on the body long and rough; on some parts curled and woolly: in some, of a pale red above, cinereous below; in others, of a yellowish white below, cinereous brown above. Length of that in the British Museum eleven inches: I believe a young one; no tail.
Inhabits S. America and the isle of Ceylon. The last is strenuously denied by M. de Buffon, who has fixed the residence of this genus to America only: but, besides the authority of Seba, who expressly says his specimen was brought from Ceylon, a gentleman, long resident in India, and much distinguished in the literary world, has informed me he has seen this animal brought from the Paliacat mountains that lie in sight of Madrass; which satisfies me that it is common to both continents.
There is reason to think that it is met with also in Guinea, or at lest some species of this genus; for
* Kircher.
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Barbot and Bosman describe an animal by the name of Potto, to which they give the attributes of the former, and describe as being grey when young, red, and covered with a sort of hair as thick set as flocks of wool. Both these writers were sensible men, and tho' not naturalists, were too observant of the animals of Guinea to mastake one whose characters are so strongly marked as those of the Sloth*.
* Bosman, 237. Barbot, 212.
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XXXVII. ARMADILLO.
Without either cutting teeth or canine teeth.
Head and upper part of the body guarded by a crustaceous covering; the middle with pliant bands, formed of various segments, reaching from the back to the edges of the belly.
Tatu apara Marcgrave Brasil, 232.
Raii syn. quad. 234.
Armadillo seu Tatu genus alterum Clus. Exot. 109. Klein. quad. 48.
Tatu seu armadillo orientalis. Seb. Mus. I. tab. xxxviii. fig. 2, 3.
Dasypus tricinctus. D. cingulis tribus, pedibus pentadactylis. Lin. syst. 53.
Cataphractus scutis duobus cingulis tribus. Brisson quad. 24.
L'Apar ou le Tatou a trois bandes. de Buffon, X. 206.
252. THREE-BANDED.
A. with short but broad rounded ears: the crust on the head, back and rump, divided into elegant pentangular tuberculated segments: three bands in the middle: five toes on each foot: short tail.
The whole genus inhabits S. America: the manners of all much the same; burrows under ground; the smaller species in moist places, the larger in dry, and at a distance from the sea; keeps in its hole in the day, rambles out at night; when overtaken, rolls itself into the form of a ball, which it does by means of the pliant bands on its middle, and thus becomes invulnerable; when surprized, runs to its hole, and thinks itself secure if it can hide its head and some part of its body. The Indians take it by the tail, when the animal fixes its claws in the earth so strongly that there is no moving it till the Indian tickles it with a stick; is hunted with little dogs,
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who give notice to their master of its haunts by barking, who digs it out; to take it out incautiously is very dangerous, on account of the snakes that commonly lurk in the burrows: feeds on potatoes, melons and roots, and does great damage to plantations: drinks much: grows very fat, and is reckoned very delicious eating when young; but when old, has a musky disagreeable taste: is very numerous, breeds every month, and brings four at a time: is very inoffensive*.
253. SIX-BANDED.
Tatou Belon obs. 211. Portraits, 106.
Tatu et Tatu paba Brasil: Armadillo Hispanis, Lusitanis, Encuberto Marcgrave Brasil, 131.
Cataphractus scutis duobus, cingulis sex Brisson quad. 25.
Dasypus sex cinctus. D. cingulis senis, pedibus pentadactylis Lin. syst. 54.
L'Encourbert, ou Le Tatou a six bandes. de Buffon, X. 209. tab. xlii.
A. with the crust of the head, shoulders and rump, formed of angular pieces: the bands on the back six; between which, also on the neck and belly, are a few scattered hairs: tail not the length of the body, very thick at the base, tapering to a point: five toes on each foot.
Inhabits Brasil and Guiana.
* The authorities for the natural history. Marcgrave, 231. Dampier, II. 61. Gumilla Orenoque, III. 223 to 226. Nieuhoff, 19. Bancroft's Guiana, 145. Rochefort Antilles, I. 286.
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Ayotochtli? Hernandez Mex. 314. Tatuete Brasiliensibus, Verdadeiro Lusitanis Marcgrave Brasil, 231. Clus. exot. 330.
Cataphractus scutis duobus cingulis octo. Brisson quad. 26.
Erinaceus loricatus cingulis septenis palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis. Amæn. Acad. I. 560.
Dasypus septem cinctus Lin. syst. 54.
Le Tatuete, ou Tatou a huit bandes, de Buffon, X. 212.
254. EIGHT-BANDED.
A. with upright ears, two inches long: small black eyes: eight bands on the sides: four toes on the fore feet, five on the hind: length, from nose to tail, about ten inches; tail nine.
Inhabits Brasil. Reckoned more delicious eating than the others.
Armadillo Worm. Mus. 335.
Tatu porcinus, Schildverkel. Klein quad. 48.
Pig-headed Armadillo Grew's rarities, 18. Raii syn. quad. 233.
Tatu five Armadillo Americanus Seb. Mus. tab. xxix. fig. 1.
Dasyrus novem cinctus. D. cingulis novem, palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis Lin. syst. 54.
Cataphractus scutis duobus, cingulis novem. Brisson quad. 27.
Le Cachichame, ou Tatou a neuf bandes de Buffon, X. 215. tab, xxxvii.
American Armadillo Phil. Trans. LIV. 57. tab. vii.
255. NINE-BANDED.
A. with long ear: crust on the shoulders and rump marked with hexangular figures: nine bands on the sides, distinguished by transverse cuneiform marks: breast and belly covered with long hairs: four toes on the fore feet, five on the hind: tail long and taper: length of the whole animal three feet.
Inhabits South America. One was brought a few years ago to England, from the Mosquito shore, and
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lived here some time: it was fed with raw beef and milk, but refused our grains and fruit*.
256. TWELVE BANDED.
Tatu five Armadillo Africanus seb. Mus. I. tab. xxx. fig. 3, 4.
Le Kabassou, ou Tatou a douze bandes de Buffon, X. 218. tab. xl.
Cataphractus scutis duobus, cingulis duodecim Brisson quad. 27.
A. with broad upright ears: the crust on the shoulders marked with oblong pieces; that of the rump hexangular: twelve bands on the sides: five toes, with very large claws, on the fore feet; five lesser on the hind: tail shorter than the body: some hairs scattered over the body.
M. de Buffon† mentions another of twelve bands, with a tail covered with rhomboid figures, which he is doubtfull whether to refer to this species. It is the largest I ever heard of, being from nose to tail two feet ten inches long; the tail about one foot eight: by the figure, (for I never saw the animal) it varies greatly from the other.
* This corroborates what Marcgrave says of one of these animals, Cuniculos, aves mortuas aliaque devorant; which is very extraordinary in quadrupeds which want both cutting and canine teeth.
† P. 256. tab. xli.
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Weesle-headed Armadillo, Grew's rarities, 19.
Tatu Mustelinus Raii syn. quad. 235.
Dasypus unicinctus. D. tegmine tripartito, pedibus pentadactylis. Lin. syst. 53.
Cataphractus scuto unico, cingulis octodecim Brisson quad. 23.
Le Cirquinçon, ou Tatou a dixhuit bandes de Buffon, X. 220. tab. xlii.
257. EIGHTEEN-BANDED.
A. with a very slender head: small erect ears: the crust on the shoulders and rump consisting of square pieces: eighteen bands on the sides: five toes on each foot: length, from nose to tail, about fifteen inches; tail five and a half.
Inhabits South America.
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XXXVIII. MANIS.
Div. II. Sect. V. DIGITATED QUADRUPEDS, without teeth.
Back, sides, and upper part of the tail, covered with large strong scales.
Small mouth. long tongue: no teeth.
258. LONG-TAILED.
Lacertus peregrinus squamosus, Clus. exot. 374. Raii syn. quad. 274.
Scaly Lizard, Grew's rarities, 46.
Manis tetradactyla. M. pedibus tetradactylis, Lin. syst. 53.
Pholidotus pedibus anticis et posticis tetradactylis, squamis mucronatis, cauda longissima, Brisquad. 19.
Le Phatagin de Buffon, X. 180. tab. xxxiv. Ash. Mus.
M. with a slender nose; that and the head smooth: body, legs and tail, guarded by large sharp-pointed striated scales: the throat and belly covered with hair: short legs: four claws on each foot, one of which is very small: tail a little taper, but ends blunt: length, from nose to tail, fourteen inches and a half: tail three feet four inches and a half.
Inhabits Guinea? These animals approach so nearly the genus of Lizards, as to be the links in the chain of beings which connect the proper quadrupeds with the reptile class.
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Lacertus squamosus, Bontius Java, 60. Pet. Gaz. tab. xx. fig. 11.
Armadillus squamatus major, Cellanicus, seu Diabolus Tajovanicus dictus Seb. Mus. I. tab. liii. liv. Klein quad. 47.
Pholidotus pedibus anticis et posticis pentadactylis, squamis subrotundis. Brisson quad. 18.
Manis pentadactyla, Lin. syst. 52.
Le Pangolin de Buffon, X. 180. tab. xxxiv. Ash. Mus.
259. SHORTTAILED.
M. with back, sides and legs, covered with blunt scales, with bristles between each: five toes on each foot: tail not longer than the body: ears not unlike the human: chin, belly and inside of the legs, hairy.
Inhabits the islands of India, and that of Formosa. The Indians call it Pangoelling; and the Chinese Chin Chion Seick*. Feeds on lizards and insects: turns up the ground with its nose: walks with its claws bent under its feet: grows very fat: is esteemed very delicate eating: makes no noise, only a snorting.
Perhaps is a native of Guinea: the Quogelo of the Negroes; which Des Marchais† says grows to the length of eight feet, of which the tail is four: lives in woods and marshy places: feeds on ants, which it takes by laying its long tongue cross their paths, that member being covered with a sticky saliva, so the insects that attempt to pass over it cannot extricate themselves: walks very slowly: would be the prey of every ravenous beast, had it not the power of rolling itself up, and opposing to its adversary a
* Dalhman in Act. Stockh. 1749. 265.
† Voyage du des Marchais, I. 200. Barbot, 114.
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formidable row of erected scales. In vain does the Leopard attack it with its vast claws, for at last it is obliged to leave it in safety*. The Negroes kill these animals for the sake of the flesh, which they reckon excellent.
* Is said to destroy the Elephant by twisting itself round the trunk, and compressing that tender organ with its hard scales.
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XXXIX. ANT-EATER.
Body covered with hair.
Small mouth: long cylindric tongue.
No teeth.
Tamandua-guacu, Marcgrave Brasil, 225.
Tamandua guacu five major, Piso Brasil, 320.
Pismire-eater, Nieuhoff, 19.
Tamandua major cauda panniculata Barrere France Æquin. 162.
Mange-fourmis des Marchais, III. 307.
Great Ant-Bear, Raii syn. quad. 241.
Myrmecophaga rostro longissimo, pedibus anticis tetradactylis, posticis pentadactylis, cauda longissimis pilis vestita. Brisson quad. 15.
Myrmecophaga jubata. M. Palmis tetradactylis, plantis pentadactylis, Lin. syst. 52. Klein quad. 45. tab. v.
Le Tamanoir, de Buffon, x. 141. tab. xxix. Br. Mus.
260. GREAT.
A. E. with a long slender nose: small black eyes: short round ears: slender tongue, two feet and a half long, which lies double in the mouth: legs slender: four toes on the fore feet, five on the hind: the two middle claws on the fore feet very large, strong and hooked; the hair on the upper part of the body is half a foot long, black mixed with grey: from the neck cross the shoulders to the sides is a black line bounded above with white: the fore legs are whitish, marked above the feet with a black spot: the tail is cloathed with very coarse black hairs a foot long: length, from nose to tail, about three feet ten inches; the tail two and a half.
Inhabits Brasil and Guiana: runs slowly: lives on ants; as soon as it discovers their nests, overturns them, or digs them up with its feet; then thrusts its long tongue into their retreats, and penetrating all the passages of the nest, withdraws it into its
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mouth loaded with prey: is fearfull of rain, and protects itself against wet by covering its body with its long tail. The flesh has a strong disagreeable taste, but is eaten by the Indians. Notwithstanding this animal wants teeth, it is fierce and dangerous; nothing that gets within its fore feet can disengage itself. The very Panthers of America* are often unequal in the combat; for if the Ant-eater once has opportunity of embracing them, it fixes its talons in their sides, and both fall together, and both perish; for such is the obstinacy and stupidity of this animal, that it will not extricate itself even from a dead adversary†: sleeps in the day; preys by night.
261. MIDDLE.
Tamandua-i, Marcgrave Brasil, 225. Raii syn. quad. 242.
Tamandua minor, Piso Brasil, 320.
Barrere France Æquin. 162.
Tamandua-guacu, Nieuhoff, 19.
Myrmecophaga rostro longissimo, pedibus anticis tetradactylis, posticis pentadactylis, cauda ferè nuda, Brisson quad. 16.
Myrmecophaga tetradactyla, Lin. syst. 52. Zooph. Gronov. No. 2.
Le Tamandua, de Buffon, x. 144.
A. E. with a long slender nose, bending a little down: small black month and eyes: small upright ears: bottoms of the fore feet round; four claws on each, like those of the former; five on the hind feet: hair shining and hard, of a pale yellow color: along the middle of the back, and on the hind legs, dusky: each side the neck is a black line, that crosses the shoulders and meets at the lower end of the back: the tail is covered with longer hair than the
* Gumilla Orenoque, III. 232.
† Piso Brasil 320.
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back, is taper and bald at the end: length, from nose to tail, one foot seven inches; the tail ten inches.
Inhabits the same country with the last; its manners much the same: when it drinks, part spurts out of the nostrils: climbs trees, and lays hold of the branches with its tail.
262. LEST.
Tamandua minor flavejcens; Ouatiriouaou, Barrere France Æquin. 163.
Tamandua five Coati Americana alba. Seb. Mus. I. tab. xxxvii.
Myrmecophaga rostro brevi, pedibus anticis didactylis, posticis tetradactylis, Brisson quad. 17.
Myrmecophaga didactyla. M. palmis didactylis, plantis tetradactylis cauda villosa, Lin. syst. 51. Zooph. Gronov. No. I.
Little Ant-eater, Edw. 220.
Le Fourmillir, de Buffon, x. 144. tab. xxx.
A. E. with a conic nose, bending a little down: ears small, and hid in the fur: two hooked claws on the fore feet, the exterior much the largest; four on the hind feet: head, body, limbs, and upper part and sides of the tail, covered with long soft silky hair, or rather wool, of a yellowish brown color: from nose to tail seven inches and a half; tail eight and a half; the last four inches of which, on the under-side, naked: the tail is thick at the base, and tapers to a point.
Inhabits Guiana: climbs trees, in quest of a species of ants which build their nests among the branches: has the same prehensile power with its tail as the former.
There is a fourth species found at the Cape of Good Hope and in Ceylon; but being described from
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a meer fætus*, we shall avoid giving a transcript of Dr. Pallas's account of it, but wait for further information. We shall only say, that it has four toes on the fore feet and pendulous ears, which distinguishes it from other kinds. Kolben† describes their manners particularly, and says they have long heads and tongues, and are toothless; and that they sometimes weigh 100 lb.‡ That if they fasten their claws in the ground, the strongest man cannot pull them away: that they thrust out their clammy tongue into the ants nest, and draw it into their mouth covered with insects. Mr. Stracban, in his account of Ceylon§, gives the same account of what the natives call the Talgoi, or Ant-Bear: it is not therefore to be doubted, but that these animals are common to the old and new continents.
* Pallas Miscel. Zool. 64.
† Hist. Cape, 118. Where they are called Earth-Hogs.
‡ As quoted by Dr. Pallas; I suppose from the Dutch edition.
§ Phil. Trans. abridg. V. 180.
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Div. III. PINNATED QUADRUPEDS: having fin-like feet: fore legs buried deep in the skin: hind legs pointing quite backwards.
XL. WALRUS.
With two great tusks in the upper jaw, pointing downwards.
Four grinders on both sides, above and below.
No cutting teeth.
Five palmated toes on each foot.
263. ARCTIC.
Rosmarus, Gesner Pisc. 211. Klein quad. 92.
Walrus, Mors, Rosmarus, Worm. Mus. 289. Raii syn. quad. 191.
Sea-horse, or Morse, Marten's Spitzberg, 107, 182. Egede Greenland, 82.
Sea-Cow, Crantz Greenl. I. 125.
Odobenus, La vache marine, Brisson quad. 30.
Trichechus Rosmarus. T. dentibus laniariis superioribus exsertis, Lin. syst. 49.
Le Morse, de Buffon, xiii. 358. tab. liv. Br. Mus. Ash. Mus.
W. with a round head: small mouth: very thick lips, covered above and below with pellucid bristles as thick as a straw: small fiery eyes: two small orifices instead of ears: short neck: body thick in the middle, tapering towards the tail: skin thick, wrinkled, with short brownish hairs thinly dispersed: legs short; five toes on each, all connected by webs, and small nails on each: the hind feet very broad; each leg loosely articulated: the hind legs generally extended on a line with the body: tail very short: penis long: length, from nose to tail, sometimes eighteen feet, and ten or twelve round in the
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thickest part: the teeth have been sometimes found of the weight* of 20 lb. each.
Inhabit the coast of Spitzbergen, Nova Zembla Hudson's Bay, and the gulph of St. Laurence; and the Icy Sea, as far as Cape Tschuktschi: are gregarious: in some places appear in herds of hundreds; are shy animals, and avoid places which are much haunted by mankind†: are very fierce; if wounded in the water, they attempt to sink the boat, either by rising under it, or by striking their great teeth into the sides; roar very loud, and will follow the boat till it gets out of sight: numbers of them are often seen sleeping on an island of ice; if awoke, fling themselves with great impetuosity into the sea; at which time it is dangerous to approach the ice, least they should tumble into the boat and overset it: do not go upon the land till the coast is clear of ice. At particular times, they land in amazing numbers: the moment the first gets on shore, so as to lie dry, it will not stir till another comes and forces it forward by beating it with its great teeth; this is served in the same manner by the next, and so in succession till the whole is landed, continuing tumbling over one another, and forcing the foremost, for the sake of quiet, to remove further up. The method of killing them on the Magdalene isles, in the
* Teeth of this size are only found on the coast of the Icy Sea, where the animals are seldom molested, and have time to attain their full growth. Hist. Kamtschatka, 120.
† In 1608, the crew of an English vessel killed on Cherry Isle above 900 Walruses in seven hours time; for they lay in heaps, like hogs huddled one upon another. Marten's Spitzberg. 181, 182.
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CHACE.
gulph of St. Laurence, as I am informed, is thus: The Hunters watch their landing, and as soon as they find a sufficient number for what they call a cut, go on shore, each armed with a spear sharp on one side like a knife, with which they cut their throats: great care must be taken not to stand in the way of those which attempt to get again to sea, which they do with great agility by tumbling headlong; for they would crush any body to death by their vast weight. They are killed for the sake of their oil, one Walrus producing about half a tun. The knowlege of this chace is of great antiquity; Octher, the Norwegian, about the year 890, made a report of it to King Alfred, having, as he says, made the voyage beyond Norway, for the more commoditie of fishing of horse-whales, which have in their teeth bones of great price and excellencie, whereof he brought some at his returne unto the King*. In fact, it was, in the northern world, in early times, the substitute to ivory, being very white and very hard. Their skins, Octher says, were good to cut into cables. I do not know whether we make any uses of the skin; but M. de Buffon says, he has seen braces for coaches made of it, which were both strong and elastic.
They bring one, or at most two young† at a time: feed on sea herbs and fish; also on shells, which they dig out of the sand with their teeth: are said also to make use of their teeth to ascend rocks or pieces of ice, fastening them to the cracks, and
* Hakluyt's coll. Voy. I. 5.
† Barentz voy. 4.
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drawing their bodies up by that means. Besides mankind, they seem to have no other enemy than the white Bear, with whom they have terrible combats; but generally come off victorious, by means of their great teeth.
264. INDIAN.
Le Dugon de Buffon, XIII. 374. tab. lvi.
W. with two short canine teeth, or tusks, placed in the upper jaw pretty close to each other: in the upper jaw four grinders on each side, placed at a distance from the tusks; in the lower, three on each side.
Inhabits the Cape of Good Hope and the Philippine isles. The head described above being supposed to belong to an animal resembling a Walrus, found in the seas of Africa and India, as appears from some citations from travellers, too unsatisfactory to merit repetition. It is said by one, that it goes upon land to feed on the green moss, and that it is called in the Philippines, the Dugung*.
* De Buffon, xlii. 377. tho notes.
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XLI. SEAL.
Cutting teeth, and two canine teeth in each jaw.
Five palmated toes on each foot.
Body thick at the shoulders, tapering towards the tail.
ϕωϰη Arist. hist. An. lib. vi. c. 12.
Oppian Halieut. V. 376.
Vitulus maris mediterranei—et oceani Rondeletii, 453. 458.
Le Veau marin ou loup de mer Belon Poissons. 25.
Phoca Gesner Pisc. 830. Worm. Mus. 289. Klein quad. 93. Brisson quad. 162.
Seal, Seoile, or Sea Calf, Phoca five vitulus marinus. Raii syn. quad. 189. Phil. Trans. abridg. Vol. XLVII. 120. tab. vi. fig. 3.
Kassigiak, Crantz hist. Greenl. I. 123.
Phoca vitulina. Ph. capite lævi inauriculato. Lin. syst. 56. Sial, Faun. suec. No. 4.
Le Phoque de Buffon, xiii. 333. tab. xlv.
Seal Br. Zool. I. 71. Br. Zool. illustr. xlviii.
265. COMMON.
S. with large black eyes: large whiskers: oblong nostrils: flat head and nose: tongue forked at the end: two canine teeth in each jaw: six cutting teeth in the upper jaw; four in the lower: no external ears: body covered with thick short hair: short tail: toes furnished with strong sharp claws: usual length from five to six feet: color very various, dusky, brinded, or spotted with white or yellow.
Inhabit most quarters of the Globe, but in greatest multitudes towards the North and the South; swarm near the Arctic circle, and the lower parts of South America*, in both oceans. Found in the Caspian† Sea, in the lake Aral, and lake‡ Baikal, which are
* Dampier says, that they are seen by thousands on the isle of Juan Fernandez; that the young blent like lambs; that none are found in the South Sea, north of the equator, till lat. 21. that he never saw any in the West Indies, except in the bay of Campeachy; nor yet in the East Indies. I. 88, 89.
† Bell's Travels, I. 49.
‡ The same, 280.
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fresh waters. In the last, are covered with silvery hairs: bring two young at a time, which for some short space are white and woolly; bring forth in autumn, and suckle their young in caverns, or in rocks, till they are six or seven weeks old, when they take to sea: cannot continue long under water; are therefore very frequently obliged to rise to take breath, and often float on the waves. In summer, sleep on rocks, or on sand-banks: if surprized, precipitate into the sea; or if at any distance, scramble along and fling up the sand and gravel with great force with their hind feet, making a piteous moaning: if overtaken, will make a vigorous defence with their feet and teeth: a slight blow on the nose kills them, otherwise will bear numbers of wounds.
Swim with vast strength and swiftness; frolick greatly in their element, and will sport without fear about ships* and boats; never go any great distance from land: feed on all sorts of fish: are themselves good food, and often eaten by voyagers: killed for the sake of the oil made from their fat; a young seal will yield eight gallons: their skins very useful in making waistcoats, covers for trunks, and other conveniences: those of the lake Baikal are sold to the Chinese, who dye them, and sell them to the Mongals† to face their fur-coats: are the wealth of the Greenlanders, supplying them with every necessary of life.
* On a ship's approaching the isle of Lobos, near the river Plata, it is met by shoals of seals, who will hang by their fore feet to the sides of the vessel, staring at the crew; then drop off, and pass and repass the vessel for a considerable time. Muratori Hist. Paraguay, 229.
† Muller's Russ. Samlung. III. 559.
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Sea Calf, Phil Trans. IX. 74. tab. v.
Le grand Phoque de Buffon, xiii. 345.
Utsuk? Crantz Greenl. I. 125.
266. GREAT.
S. resembling the common, but grow to the length of twelve* feet: that described in the Phil. Trans. was seven feet and a half long, yet so young as to have scarce any teeth; the common seal is at full growth when it has attained the length of six.
Inhabits the coast of Scotland, and the South of Greenland: the skin is thick, and is used by the Greenlanders to cut thongs out of for their Seal fishery. Perhaps is the same with the great Kamtschatkan Seal, called by the Russians, Lachtach, weighing 800 lb.†
Neitsek. Crantz Greenl. I. 124.
267. ROUGH.
S. with rough bristly hair, intermixed like that of a hog; of a pale brown color.
Inhabits Greenland: the natives make garments of its skin, turning the hairy side inmost. Perhaps what our Newfoundland Seal-hunters call Square Phipper; whose coat, they say is like that of a water dog, and weighs sometimes 500 lb.
* A gentleman of my acquaintance shot one of that size in the North of Scotland.
† Muller's Voy. Kamtschatka, 60.
Z 3
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268. HOODED.
Clap-myss. Egede Greenl. 84.
Neitsersoak, Crantz Greenl. I. 124.
S. with a strong folded skin on the forehead, which it can fling over its eyes and nose, to defend them against stones and sand in stormy weather: its hair white, with a thick coat of thick black wool under, which makes it appear of a fine grey.
Inhabits only the South of Greenland, and Newfoundland: in the last is called the Hooded Seal: the hunters say they cannot kill it till they remove the integument on the head.
269. HARP.
Blacksided Seal, Egede Greenl. plate iii.
Attarsoak, Crantz Greenl. I. 124.
S. with a pointed head and thick body, of a whitish grey color, marked on the sides with two black crescents, the horns pointing upwards towards each other; does not attain this mark till the fifth year; till that period, changes its color annually, and is distinguished by the Greenlanders by different names each year.
Inhabits Greenland and Newfoundland: is the most valuable kind; the skin the thickest and best, and its produce of oil the greatest: grows to the length of nine feet. Our Fishers call this the Harp, or Heart Seal, and style the marks on the sides the saddle.
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There is a blackish variety, which they say is a young harp, called Bedlemer*.
Le petit Phoque de Buffon, xiii. 341. tab. liii.
270. LITTLE.
S. with the four middle cutting teeth of the upper jaw bifurcated; the two middle of the lower jaw slightly trifurcated: a rudiment of an ear: the webs of the feet extending far beyond the toes and nails: hair soft, smooth, and longer than in the common Seal: color dusky on the head and back; beneath, brownish; length, from two to three feet.
Inhabits the sea near the isle of Juan Fernandez†; and our seal-hunters affirm, that they often observe, on the coast of Newfoundland, a small species not exceeding two feet, or two feet and a half, in length. M. de Buffon says the specimen in the cabinet of the French King came from India; but from the authoriry of Dampier and of modern voyagers to the East Indies, who have assured me they never saw any feals‡ there, I suspect he was imposed on.
* In the lake Baikal is a large kind with yellow hair and a large chesnut-colored mark on the hind part of the back, covering almost a third part of the body. Perhaps a variety of this species.
† Ulloa says the first species of seal found near that isle is not above a yard long, II. 226.
‡ A gentleman, the most curious and greatest navigator of the Indian seas now living, informed me, that he not only never met with any seals in those seas, but even none nearer than the isles of Callopagos a little north of the line, on the coast of America.
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271. URSINE.
Ursus marinus Steller. Nov. Com. Petrop. II. 331. tab. xv.
Sea Cat, Hist. Kamtschatka, 123. Muller's Exped. 59.
Phoca Ursina. Ph. capite auriculato. Lin. syst. 55.
L'Ours marin Brisson quad. 166.
There are three marine animals, which keep a particular situation, and seem divided between the N. E. of Asia, and N. W. of America, in the narrow seas between those vast continents. These are what are called the Sea Lion and Sea Bear, and the Manati*. They inhabit, from June to September, the isles that are scattered in the seas between Kamtschatka and America, in order to copulate, and bring forth their young in full security. The accurate and indefatigable naturalist Steller was the first who gave an exact description of them; he and his companions, in the Russian expedition of 1742, were in all probability the first Europeans who gave them any disturbance in those their retreats. In September, these animals quit their stations, vastly emaciated; some return to the Asiatic, others to the American shores; but like the Sea Otters, are confined in those seas between lat. 50 and 56.
The Ursine Seal, a name we substitute for the Sea Bear, leads, during the three months in summer, a most indolent life: it arrives at the islands vastly fat; but during that time they are scarce ever in motion, confine themselves for whole weeks to one
* The Sea Bear seems a local animal: the Sea Lion is not seen again nearer than the isle of Juan Fernandez, 233 deg. 40 min. fouth of the equator, and the Manati is quite unknown in every other part of the Pacific Ocean.
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spot, sleep a great part of the time, eat nothing, and, except the employment the females have in suckling their young, are totally inactive: they live in families; each male has from eight to fifty females, whom he guards with the jealousy of an eastern monarch; and though they lie by thousands on the shores, each family keeps itself separate from the rest, and sometimes, with the young and unmarried ones, amount to a hundred and twenty. The old animals, which are destitute of females, or deserted by them, live apart, and are excessively splenetic, peevish and quarrelsome: are excessively fierce, and so attached to their old haunts, that they would die sooner than quit them. They are monstrously fat, and have a most hircine smell. If another approaches their station, they are rouzed from their indolence and instantly snap at it, and a battle ensues; in the conflict, they perhaps intrude on the seat of another: this gives new cause of offence, so in the end the discord becomes universal, and is spread thro' the whole shore.
The other males are also very irascible: the causes of their disputes are generally these. The first and the most terrible is, when an attempt is made by another to seduce one of their mistresses, or a young female of the family. This insult produces a combat, and the conqueror is immediately followed by the whole seraglio, who are sure of deserting the unhappy vanquished, The second reason of a quarrel is, when one invades the seat of another: the third arises from their interfering in the disputes of others. These battles are very violent; the wounds
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they receive are very deep, and resemble the cuts of a sabre. At the end of a fight they fling themselves into the sea, to wash away the blood.
The males are very fond of their young; but very tyrannical towards the females: if any body attempts to take their cub, the male stands on the defensive, while the female makes off with the young in her mouth; should she drop it, the former instantly quits his enemy, falls on her, and beats her against the stones, till he leaves her for dead. As soon as she recovers, she comes in the most suppliant manner to the male, crawls to his feet, and washes them with her tears: he, in the mean time, stalks about in the most insulting manner; but in case the young one is carried off, he melts into the deepest affliction, and shews all signs of deep concern. It is probable that he feels his misfortune the more sensisibly, as the female generally brings but one at a time; never more than two.
They swim very swiftly, at the rate of seven miles an hour. If wounded, will seize on the boat, and carry it along with vast impetuosity, and oftentimes fink it. They can continue a long time under water. When they want to climb the rocks they fasten with the fore paws, and so draw themselves up. They are very tenacious of life, and will live for a fortnight after receiving such wounds as would immediately destroy any other animal.
DESCR.
The male of this species is vastly superior in size to the female. The bodies of each are of a conic form, very thick before, and taper to the tail. The length of a large one is eight feet; the greatest cir-
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cumference five feet; near the tail, twenty inches. The weight 800 lb. The nose projects like that of a pug dog, but the head rises suddenly: nostrils oval, and divided by a septum: the lips thick; their inside red and serrated: whiskers long and white.
The teeth lock into each other when the mouth is closed; in the upper jaw are four cutting teeth, each bifurcated; on both sides is a small sharp canine tooth bending inwards; near that another, larger: the grinders resemble canine teeth, and are six in number in each jaw: in the lower jaw are also four cutting teeth and two canine: but only four grinders in each jaw: in all, thirty-six teeth.
Tongue bifid: eyes large and prominent: iris black, pupil smaragdine: the eyes may be covered at pleasure with a fleshy membrane: the ears are small, sharp-pointed; hairy without, smooth and polished within.
The length of the fore-legs is twenty-four inches, like those of other quadrupeds, not immersed in the body like those of seals: the feet are formed with toes as those of other animals, but are covered with a naked skin, so that externally they seem a shapeless mass, and have only the rudiments of nails to five latent toes: the hind legs are twenty-two inches long, are fixed to the body quite behind, like those of seals, but are capable of being brought forward, so that the animal makes use of them to scratch its head: these feet are divided into five toes, each divided by a great web, and are a foot broad: the tail is only two inches long.
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The hair is long and rough; beneath which is a soft down, of a bay color: on the neck of the old males the hair is erect, and a little longer than the rest. The general color of these animals is black, but the hairs of the old ones are tipt with grey. The females are cinereous. The skins of the young, cut out of the bellies of their dams, are very useful for cloathing, and cost about 3s. 4d. each; the skin of an old one, 4s.
The fat and flesh of the old males is very nauseous; but the flesh of the females resembles lamb, and the young ones roasted are as good as sucking pigs.
272. LEONINE.
Sea Lion, Dampier's voy. I. 90. IV. 15. Roger's voy. 136. Anson's voy. 122.
Leo marinus russis Siwutcha, Steller Nov. Com. Petrop. II. 361. Hist. Kamtschatka, 120. Muller's exped. 60.
Phoca leonina. Ph. capite anticè cristato, Lin. syst. 55.
Le Lion marin, Brisson quad. 167. Le Buffon, xiii. 351.
S. (the male) with an arched projecting snout, hanging five or six inches below the lower jaw: the feet short and dusky; five toes on each, furnished with nails: the hind feet have the appearance of great laciniated fins: large eyes: great whiskers: hair on the body short, and of a dun color; that on the neck a little longer: the skin very thick: length of an old male twenty feet; greatest circumference, fifteen.
Female. Nose blunt, tuberous at the top; nostrils wide: mouth breaking very little into the jaws; two small cutting teeth below, two small and two
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larger above; two canine teeth, remote from the preceding; five grinders in each jaw; all the teeth conic: eyes oblique and small: auricles none: fore legs twenty inches long: toes furnished with flat oblong nails: hind parts, instead of legs, divided into two great bifurcated fins: no tail: the whole covered with short rust-colored hair: length, from nose to the end of the fins, four yards: greatest circumference two yards and a half*.
Inhabits the seas between Kamtschatka and America; in the last, not higher than lat. 56. N. are not found again nearer than the isle of Juan Fernandez, S. lat. 33—40. Are seen in great numbers, in June and July, the breeding season, on the islands, which they resort to for the purpose of suckling their young on shore. Couple in August and September, and bring two at a time. The male shews little attachment to its young, but the female is excessively fond of it: the former will† suffer it to be killed before his face without shewing any resentment. Towards evening, both male and female swim a little way to sea, the last with the young on its back, which the male will push off, as if to teach it to swim.
They arrive on the breeding islands very fat and full of blood: when they are in motion they seem like a great skin full of oil, from the tremulous movement of the blubber, which has been found to be a foot thick. The Spaniards therefore call them
* Described from a well-preserved specimen in the Museum of the ROYAL SOCIETY.
† The female, during that time, is very fierce. One of Lord Anson's sailors was killed by the enraged dam of a whelp he had robbed her of. Anson's voy. 124.
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Lobos de Aceyte*, or wolves of oil. One has been known to yield a but of oil; and so full of blood, that what has run out of a single animal† has filled two hogsheads. The flesh is eatable; Lord Anson's people eat it under the denomination of beef, to distinguish it from that of seal, which they called lamb.
The old animals have a tremendous appearance, yet are excessively timid, except at the breeding season, when they seem to lose their apprehensions, and are less disturbed at the sight of man. At other times, they hurry into the water; or, if awakened out of their sleep by a loud noise, or by blows, fall into vast confusion, tumble down, and tremble in every part, thro' fear; but if once they find it impossible to escape‡, grow desperate, roar dreadfully, and attack their enemy with great fury. The Kamtschatkans either kill them in their sleep with launces, or shoot them with poisoned arrows. They cut the skin into cords, or make shoes of it: they esteem the blubber and flesh very palatable; but the feet makes a jelly, which the Kamtschatkans think a great delicacy.
These animals associate in families like the former, but not in such great numbers: the males shew equal jealousy about their mistresses, and have bloody combats on their accounts: oftimes there is one of superior courage to the rest, and procures by dint of valour a greater number of females than
* Ulloa's voy. II. 227.
† Anson's voy. 123.
‡ Hist. Kamtschatka, 121.
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the others. In the Kamtschatkan seas, they generally chuse some insulated rock for their station, where they roar so loud as to be heard at two miles distance: the young bleat like sheep. They are of a very lethargic disposition, fond of wallowing in miry places, and will lie like swine on one another, grunting like those animals, and sometimes snorting like horses in full vigor. They are very inactive on land: to prevent a surprize, each herd places a sentinel, who gives certain signals of the appearance of danger: during the breeding season they* abstain from food, and before that is elapsed become very lean: at other times, they feed on seals, sea-otters, and fish†.
* Hist. Kamtschatka, 123. Woode Rogers's voy. 137.
† Hist. Kamtschatka, 123.
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XLII. MANATI.
Pinniform fore-legs: hind parts ending in a tail horizontally flat.
273. MANATI.
Manati Hernandez Mex. 323 De Laet. 6.
Manatus Rondeletius, 490. Gesner Pisc. 213. Clus exot. 132. Raii syn. quad. 193. Klein quad. 94. Steller Nov. Com. Petrop. II. 294.
Le Lamentin, Brisson quad. 164. de Buffon, xiii. 277. tab. 57.
Trichechus Arted. gen. 79. syn. 109.
Trichechus manatus, Lin. syst. 49.
This animal, in nature, so nearly approaches the cetaceous tribe, that it is meerly in conformity to the systematic writers, that I continue it in this class: it scarce deserves the name of a biped; what are called feet are little more than pectoral fins; they serve only for swimming; they are never used to assist the animal in walking, or landing; for it never goes ashore, nor ever attempts to climb the rocks, like the walrus and seal. It brings forth in the water, and, like the whale, suckles its young in that element: like the whale, it has no voice; and like that animal, has an horizontal broad tail, without even the rudiments of hind feet.
Inhabits the shores of Kamtschatka, and of the opposite coast of America, and of the intervening islands. Is found again on that of Mindanao*, one of the Philippine islands, and on the coast of New Holland†; on that of the isle of France‡, and on that of Senegal§; on the Mosquito shore, in the river
* Dampier's voy. I. 321.
† The same, 33.
‡ Voy. de la Caille, 229.
§ Adanson's voy. 259.
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of Orenoque, and the lakes formed by it; and lastly, in the river of Amazons*; but in no other part of the Atlantic Ocean.
They live perpetually in the water, and frequent the edges of the shores; and in calm weather swim in great droves near the mouths of rivers: in the time of flood they come so near the land that a person may stroke them with his hand: if hurt, they swim out to sea; but presently return again. They live in families, one near another; each consists of amale, a female, a half-grown young one, and a very small one. The females oblige the young to swim before them, while the other old ones surround, and, as it were, guard them on all sides. The affection between the male and female is very great; for if she is attacked he will defend her to the utmost, and if she is killed will follow her corps to the very shore, and swim for some days near the place it has leen landed at.
They copulate in the spring, in the same manner as the human kind, especially in calm weather, towards the evening. The female swims gently about; the male pursues; till tired with wantoning she flings herself on her back, and admits his embraces†. Steller thinks they go with young above a year: it is
* Dumpier saw them in quantity on the Mosquito shore, I. 33, Gumlla, in the river Orenoque, II. 43, and Condamine, p. 77, in that of the Amazons. It is brought from the last in great quantities, salted, to Cayenne. Churchill's coll. voy. V. 562, 563.
† The Leonine and Ursine seals copulate in the same manner, only, after sporting in the sea for some time, they come on shore for that purpose.
A a
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certain that they bring but: one young at a time, which they suckle by two teats placed between the breast.
They are vastly voracious and gluttonous, and feed not only on the fuci that grow in the sea, but such as are flung on the edges of the shore. When they are filled they fall asleep on their backs. During their meals, they are so intent on their food, that any, one may go among them and chuse which he likes best. Peter Martyr gives an instance of one that lived in a lake of Hispaniola for five and twenty years, and was so tame as to come to the edge of the shore on being called; and would even perform the part of a ferry, and carry several people at a time on its back to the opposite shore*.
Their back and their sides are generally above water, and as their skin is silled with a species of louse peculiar to them, numbers of gulls are continually perching on their backs and picking out the insects.
They continue in the Kamtschatkan and American, seas the whole year; but in winter are very lean, so that you may count their ribs. They are taken by harpoons fastened to a strong cord, and after they are struck it requires the united force of thirty men to draw them on shore. Sometimes when they are transfixed they will lay hold of the rocks with their paws, and stick so fast as to leave the skin behind before they can be forced off. When a Manati is struck its companions swim to its assistance; some
* As quoted by Purchas, V. 883.
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will attempt to overturn the boat by getting under it; others will press down the rope, in order to break it; and others will strike at the harpoon with their tails, with a view of getting it out, which they often succeed in. They have not any voice, but make a noise by hard breathing, like the snorting of a horse.
DESCR:
They are of an enormous size; some are 28 feet long, and 8000 lb.* in weight. The head, in proportion to the bulk of the animal, is small, oblong, and almost square: the nostrils are filled with short bristles: the gape, or rictus, is small: the lips are double; near the junction of the two jaws the mouth is full of white tubular bristles, which serve the same use as the laminæ in whales, to prevent the food running out with the water: the lips are also full of bristles, which serve instead of teeth to cut the strong roots of the sea plants, which floating ashore are a sign of the vicinity of these animals. In the mouth are no teeth, only two flat white bones, one in each jaw; one above, another below, with undulated surfaces, which serve instead of grinders.
The eyes are extremely small, not larger than those of a sheep: the iris black: it is destitute of ears, having only two orifices, so small that a quill will scarce enter them: the tongue is pointed, and but small: the neck is thick, and its junction with
* Those of the West Indies, and other hot climates, do not exceed 1200 lb. in weight, and sew arrive at that size. Probably they are not suffered to live their full time in those countries, being perpetually persecuted by the Mosquito and other Indians, who are very dexterous in striking them. Vide Dampier, I. 35, 36.
A a 2
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the head scarce distingushable; and the last always hangs down: the circumference of the body near the shoulders is twelve feet, about the belly twenty, near the tail only four feet eight: the head thirty-one inches: the neck near seven feet: and from these measurements may be collected the deformity of this animal: near the shoulders are two feet, or rather fins, which are only two feet two inches long, and have neither fingers nor nails; beneath are concave, and covered with hard bristles: the tail is thick, strong, and horizontal, ending in a stiff black fin, and like, the substance of whalebone, and much split in the fore part; the end slightly divided.
The skin is very thick, black, and full of inequalities, like the bark of oak, and so hard as scarce to be cut with an ax, and has no hair on it: beneath the skin is a thick blubber, which taste like oil of almonds. The flesh is coarser than beef, and will not soon putrify. The young ones taste like veel. The skin used for shoes, and for covering the sides of boats.
Besides these, Mr. Steller saw on the coast of America* another very singular animal, which he calls a Sea Ape: it was five feet long; the head like a dog's; ears sharp and erect; eyes large; on both lips a sort of beard; the form of its body thick and round, thickest near the head, tapering to the tail, which was bifurcated, the upper lobe the longest; the body covered with thick hair, grey on the back,
* Hist. Kamtschatka, 136.
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red on the belly. Stellar could discover neither feet nor paws. It was full of frolick, and played a thousand monky tricks; sometimes swimming on one side, sometimes on the other side of the ship, looking at it with great amazement. It would come so near the ship that it might be touched with a pole; but if any body stirred, would immediately retire. It often raised one-third of its body above the water, and stand erect for a considerable time; then suddenly dart under the ship, and appear in the same attitude on the other side; and would repeat this for thirty times together. It would frequently bring up a sea plant not unlike the bottle gourd, which it would toss about and catch again in its mouth, playing numberless fantastic tricks with it.
BELUGA.
Another obscure animal of this class is the Beluga*, found in the gulph of Ochotsk, or the sea between Kamtschatka and Tartary; in that between Kamtschatka and America, opposite to the river Anadir, and in the frozen sea near the mouth of the Jenesei It is 15 or 20 feet long, and three or four thick: it agrees with the seal in its feet and tail: its teeth are like a cow's: on the neck are two holes, through which it spouts water: there is hair on the body, but so thin that the white skin appears thro' it: lives on fish: is gregarious: carries its young on its back: shuns shallow places; seldom goes near the shore, or up rivers: yet the celebrated Witsch, in his book called Norden op Tartarye, says that it
* Beluga, or white fish, from the color of its skin: must be distinguished froma species of sturgeon of the same name, taken in the Wolga, Don, &c.
A a 3
[page] 358
goes and returns with the tide up and down the rivers Mesen and Jesma; where the fishermen take them in nets of ropes and kill them with spears, and each yields two vats and a half of train oil; so that if the capture is lucky a ship of 200 tuns may be loaded in two tides*.
* Muller's Kamtschatkan expedition. German ed. p. 253. Purchas's Pilgrims, III. 549.
[page] 359
Div. IV. WINGED QUADRUPEDS.
XLIII. BAT.
With long extended toes to the fore feet, connected by thin broad membranes, extending to the hind legs.
* Without tails.
274. TERNATE.
Vespertilio ingens Clus exot. 94.
Canis volans ternatanus orientalis Seb. Mus. I. 91. tab. lvii.
Vespertilio vampyrus. V. ecaudatus naso simplici, membrana inter femora divisa. Lin. syst. 46.
La Ronssette and la Rougette, de Buffon, x. 55. tab. xiv. xvii.
Pteropus rufus aut niger auriculis brevibus acutiusculis, Brisson quad, 153, and 154, No. 2.
Great Bat, Edw. 180. Br. Mus. Ash. Mus.
B. with large canine teeth: four cutting teeth above, the same below: sharp black nose: large naked ears; the tongue is pointed, terminated by sharp: aculeated papillæ: exterior toe detached from the membrane: the claw strorg, and hooked: five toes on the hind feet: talons very crooked, strong, and compressed sideways: no tail: the membrane divided behind quite to the rump: head of a dark ferruginous color: on the neck, shoulders, and underside, of a much lighter and brighter red: on the back the hair shorter, dusky and smooth: the membranes of the wings dusky: varies in color; some entirely of a reddish brown; others dusky. This now described was one foot long: its extent from tip to tip of the wings four feet; but they are found vastly larger.
A a 4
[page] 360
These monsters inhabit Guinea, Madagascar, and all the islands from thence to the remotest in the Indian ocean. They fly in flocks, and perfectly obscure the air with their numbers: they begin their flight from one neighboring island to another immediately on sun-set, and return in clouds from the time it is light till sun-rise*. They live on fruits, and are so fond of the juice of the palm tree, that they will intoxicate themselves with it till they drop on the ground**. It is most likely, from the size of their teeth, they are carnivorous. Mr. Edwards relates, that they will dip into the sea for fish. They swarm like bees, hanging by one another from the trees in great clusters†. The Indians eat them, and declare the flesh to be very good: they grow excessively fat at certain times of the year. The French, who live in the Isle de Bourbon, boil them in their Bouillon, to give it a relish‡. The Negroes have them in abhorrence‡. Many are of an enormous size: Beckman§ measured one, whose extent from tip to tip of the wing was five feet four inches; and Dampier‖ another, which extended further than he could reach with stretched-out arms. Their bodies are from the size of a pullet to that of a dove: their cry is dreadfull; their smell rank; their bite, resistance and fierceness great when taken.
* Dampier's voy. I. 381.
** Museum Hasniæ. Pars. I. Sect. 2. No. 18.
† Argensola Philip, isles, 158. des Marchais, II. 261.
‡ Voy. de la Caille, 233.
‡ des Marchais, ibid.
§ Voy. to Borneo, 39.
‖ I. 381.
[page] 361
The antients had some knowlege of these animals. Herodotus* mentions certain winged wild beasts, like bats, that molested the Arabs, who collected the Cassia to such a degree that they were obliged to cover their bodies and faces, all but their eyes, with skins. It is very probable, as M. de Buffon remarks, it was from such relations the Poets formed their fictions of Harpies.
Linnæus gives this species the title of Vampyre, conjecturing it to be the kind which draws blood from people in their sleep. M. de Buffon denies it, ascribing that faculty to a species only found in S. America: but there is reason to imagine, that this thirst after blood is not confined to the bats of one continent, nor to one species; for Bontius and Nieuhoff inform us, that they of Java** seldom fail attacking those who lie with their feet uncovered, whenever they can get access; and Gumilla†, after mentioning a greater and lesser species, found on the banks of the Orenoque, declares them to be equally greedy after human blood. Persons thus attacked have been known to be near passing from a sound sleep into eternity. The Bat is so dexterous a bleeder as to insinuate its aculeated tongue into a vein without being perceived, and then suck the blood till it is satiated; all the while fanning with its wings, and
* ϑηϱια ϖεϱωτα, τησι νυϰτεισι πϱоσειϰελα. Lib. iii.
** Bontius India, 70. Nieuhoff, 255. These writers say that this kind is as big as a pigeon. I suspect that the species just descrbed is common to India and S. America; Mr. Greenwood, painter, long resident at Surinam, informing me that there is in that colony a foxcolored bat, whose extent of wings is above four feet.
† Hist. Orenoque, III. 100.
[page] 362
agitating the air, in that hot climate, in so pleasing a manner, as to fling the sufferer into a still sounder sleep*. It is therefore very unsafe to rest either in the open air, or to leave open any entrance to these dangerous animals: but they do not confine themselves to human blood; for M. Condamine† says, that in certain parts of America they have destroyed all the great cattle introduced there by the missionaries.
β. LESSER. B. with head like a grehound: large teeth like the former: ears long, broad, and naked: whole body covered with soft short hair of a straw color: shaped like the other in all respects: length, eight inches three quarters; extent, two feet two inches. Place unknown to the gentleman who favored me with it.
275 SPECTRE.
Andira-guacu, vespertilio cornutus, Piso Brasil, 190. Marcgrave Brasil 213.
Canis volans maxima aurita sæm. ex Nov. Hispania. Seb. Mus. I. tab. lvii.
Vespertilio spectrum. V. ecaudatus, naso infundibuliformi Lanceolato. Lin. syst. 46. Klein quad. 62.
Pteropus auriculis longis, patulis, naso membrana antrorsum inflexa aucto. Brisson quad. 154.
Le Vampire, de Buffon, X. 55.
B. with a long nose: large teeth: long, broad and upright ears: at the end of the nose a long conic erect: membrane, bending at the end, and flexible: hair on the body cinereous, and pretty long: wings full of ramified fibres: the membrane extends from hind leg to hind leg: no tail; but from the rump
* Ulloa's voy. I. 61.
† Voy. S America, 85.
[page break]
I BAT. β. P. 362. II NEW YORK B. No°: 283.
[page break]
[page] 363
extend three tendons, terminating at the edge of the membrane. By Seba's figure the extent of the wings are two feet two inches; from the end of the nose to the rump seven inches and an half.
Inhabits South America: lives in the palm trees: grows very fat: called Vampyre by M. de Buffon, who supposes it to be the species that sucks human blood: but neither Piso, or any other writers who mention the fact, give the lest description of the kind.
Vespertilio americanus vulgaris, Seb. Mus. I. tab. lv. fig. 2.
Vespertilio. V. ecaudatus, naso foliato acuminato. Lin. syst. 47.
V. murini coloris pedibus anticis tetradactylis, posticis pentadactylis. Brisson quad. 161.
La chauve souris fer de Lance, de Buffon, xiii. 226. tab. xxxiii.
276. JAVELIN.
B. with large pointed ears: an erect membrane at the end of the nose in form of the head of an antient javelin, having on each side two upright processes: no tail: fur cinereous: size of a common bat.
Inhabits the warm parts of America.
[page] 364
277. LEAF.
Vespertilio, rostro appendice auriculæ forma donata. Sloane Jam. II. 330.
Small bat. Edw. 201. fig. I.
La Feuille de Buffon xiii. 227.
Vespertilio soricinus, Pallas Muscel. 48. tab. v.*
B. with small rounded ears: membrane on the nose of the form of an ovated leaf: no tail: a web between the hind legs: fur of a mouse color, tinged with red: size of the last.
Inhabits Jamaica, Surinam, and Senegal: in the first lives in caves in woods, which are found full of its dung, productive of salt-petre: feeds on the prickly pear.
278. CORDATED.
Glis volans Ternatanus Seb. Mus I. tab. lvi. fig. I.
Vespertilio spasina. V. ecaudatus naso foliato obcordato Lin. syst. 47.
B. with very broad and long ears: at the end of the nose a heart-shaped membrane: no tail: a web between the hind legs: color of the face a very light red; that of the body still paler.
Inhabits Ceylon, and the isle of Ternate, one of the Moluccas.
* This seems to be one of the blood-sucking species, the tongue being furnished with aculeated papillæ, and is twice the length of the nose; so is well adapted for that purpose.
[page] 365
** With tails.
Chauve-souris de la Valleé d'Ylo. Feuilleé obs. Peru, 1714. p. 623.
279. PERUVIAN.
B. with a head like a pug-dog: large strait-pointed ears: two canine teeth, and two small cutting teeth between each, in each jaw: tail enclosed in the membrane, which joins to each hind leg, and is also supportcd by two long cartilaginous ligaments involved in the membrane: color of the fur iron grey: body equal to that of a middle-sized Rat: extent of wings two feet five inches.
β. With a large head and hanging lips, like the chops of a mastiff: nose bilobated: upper lip divided; strait, long, and narrow ears, sbarp-pointed: teeth like the former: tail short; a few joints of it stand cut of the membrane, which extends far beyond it; is angular, and ends in a point: claws on the hind feet large, hooked, and compressed fideways: membranes of the wings dusky, very thin: fur on the head and back brown; on the belly, cinereous: length, from the nose to the end of the membrane, above five inches; extent of wings, twenty.
Inhabits Peru and the Mosquito shore: the last was given me by John Ellis, Esq; F. R. S. It differed from the former in size, being less; in all other respects agreed.
[page] 366
Linnæus, carried away by love of system, places this, on account of its having only two cutting teeth in each jaw, among the Glires, next to the squirrels, under the name of Noctilio Americanus. But such is the variety in the number and disposition of the teeth in the animals of this genus, that he might form almost as many genera out of it as there are species. But as the Bats have other such striking characters, it is unnecessary to have recourse to the more latent marks to form its definition. The same may be said of several other animals.
280. BULLDOG.
Autre Chauve-souris, de Buffon, x. 84, S7. tab. xix. fig. 1, 2.
B. with broad round ears, the edges touching each other in front: nose thick: lips pendulous: upper part of the body of a deep ash-color; the lower paler: tail long; the five last joints quite disengaged from the membrane: length above two inches; extent nine and a half.
Inhabits the West Indies.
281. SENECAL.
Chauvre-souris etrangere de Buffon, X. 82. tab. xvii.
B. with a long head: nose a little pointed: ears short, and pointed: head and body a tawny brown mixed with ash-color: belly paler: two last joints of the tail extend beyond the membrane: length, from nose to rump, above four inches; extent 21.
Inhabits Senegal.
[page] 367
Autre Chauvre-souris de Buffon, X. 92. tab. xx. fig. 3.
282. BEARDED.
B. with the nostrils open for a great way up the nose: hair on the forehead and under the chin very long: ears long and narrow: upper part of the head and body of a reddish brown; the lower of a dirty white tinged with yellow; tail included in the membrane. A small species.
283. NEW YORK.
B. with a head shaped like that of a mouse; top of the nose a little bifid: ears short, broad, and rounded: no cutting teeth; two canine in each jaw: tail very long, inclosed in the membrane, which is of a conic shape: head, body, and the whole upper side of the membrane, which incloses the tail, covered with long very soft hair of a bright tawny co-lor; lightest on on the head and beginning of the back; the belly paler: at the base of each wing a white spot: wings thin, naked and dusky: bones of the hind legs very slender: length, from nose to tail, ten inches and a half; tail one inch eight-tenths extent of wings ten and a half.
Inhabits North America. Communicated by Mr. Ashton Blackburne*.
* The Rev. Mr. Clayton mentions another species of North Amecan Bat; large, with great ears, and long straggling hairs. Phil. Trans. abridg. III. 594.
[page] 368
284 STRIPED.
Autre Chauve-souris de Buffon, X. 92. tab. xx. fig. 3. Zooph. Gronov. No. 25.
B. with a small short nose: ears short, broad and pointing forward: body brown: wings striped with black, and sometimes with tawny and brown: length, from nose to the end of the tail, two inches: varies in color, the upper part of the body being sometimes of a clear reddish brown, the lower whitish.
Inhabits Ceylon; called there, Kiriwoula*.
285 MOLUCCA.
Vespertilio Cephalotes Pallas Spicil. Zool. fasc. III. 10. tab. I.
B. with a large head: thick nose: small ears: tubular nostrils, terminating outwards in form of a screw; upper lip divided: tongue covered with papillæ and minute spines: claw, or thumb, joined to the wing by a membrane: first ray of the wing terminated by a claw: end of the tail reaches beyond the membrane: color of the head and back greyish ash-color; the belly dull white: length, from nose to rump, three inches three quarters; extent of wings about fifteen.
Inhabits the Molucca isles. Described first by that very able naturalist Doctor Pallas.
* Pallas Miscel. 49.
[page] 369
286. HORSESHOE.
La Chauve-souris fer a Cheval, de Buffon, viii. 131, 132. tab. xvii.
B. with a membrane at the end of the nose in form of a horse-shoe: ears large, broad at their base, and sharp-pointed, inclining backward: wants the little or internal ear: color of the upper part of the body deep cinereous; of the lower, whitish. There is a greater and lesser variety; the greater is above three inches and a half long from the nose to the tip of the tail: its extent above fourteen. This and all the following have the tail inclosed in the membrane.
Inhabits Burgundy; and has lately been discovered in Kent. This and the four next were first discovered by M. de Buffon, whose names I retain.
La Noctule, de Buffon, viii. 128. tab. xviii.
Great Bat, Br. Zool. illustr. tab. ciii.
287. NOCTULE.
B. with the nose slightly bilobated: ears small and rounded: on the chin a minute verruca: hair a reddish ash-color: length to the rump two inches eight-tenths; tail one seven-tenths; extent of wings thirteen.
Inhabits Great Britain and France: flies high in search of food, not skimming near the ground. A gentleman informed me of the following fact, relating to those animals, which he was witness to: That he saw taken under the eaves of Queen's College, Cambridge, in one night, one hundred and eighty-five; the second night sixty-three; the third
B b
[page] 370
night two; and that each that was measured had fifteen inches extent of wings*.
288. SEROTINE.
La Serotine de Buffon, viii. 129. tab. xviii.
B. with a longish nose: ears short, but broad at the base: hair on the upper part of the body brown mixed with serruginous; the belly of a paler color: length from nose to rump two inches and a half.
Inhabits France.
289. PIPISTRELLE.
La Pipistrelle, de Buffon, viii. 129. tab. xix. fig. 2.
B. with a small nose: the upper lip swelling out a little on each side: the ears broad: the forehead covered with long hair: color of the upper part of the body a yeilowish brown; the lower part dusky: the lips yellow. The lest of Bats; not an inch and a quarter long to the rump: extent of wings six and a half.
Inhabits France.
290. BARBASTELLE.
La Barbastelle, de Buffon, viii. 130, tab. xix. fig. I.
B. with a sunk forehead: long and broad ears: the lower part of the inner sides touching each other
* No notice was taken of the species; but, by the size, it could be neither of the common kinds. I never saw but one specimen of the Noctule, which was caught during winter in Flintshire.
[page] 371
conceal the face and head when looked at in front: the nose short, the end flatted: cheeks full: the upper part of the body of a dusky brown; the lower ash-colored and brown: its length to the rump about two inches; its extent ten and a half.
Inhabits France.
νuϰτEϱίζ Arist. hist. an. lib. I. c. 5.
Vespertilio, Plinii, lib. x. c. 61.
Gesner quad. 766. Agricola Anim. Subter. 483.
Bat, Flitter-mouse, Raii syn. quad. 243.
Rear-mouse, Charlton Ex. 80.
Vespertilio major. Speck-maus, Fleder-maus, Klein quad. 61.
Vespertilio murinus. V. caudatus naso oreque simplici, auribus capite minoribus, Lin. syst. 47.
Laderlap, Fladermus, Faun. suec. No. 2.
La grande Chauve-souris de notre pais, Brisson quad. 158. de Buffon, viii. 113. tab. xvi.
Short-eared Bat, Br. Zool. I. 114. Edw. 201.
291. COMMON.
B. with short ears: mouse-colored fur tinged with red; length two inches and a half; extent of wings nine.
Inhabits Europe: common in England.
292. LONG-EARED.
Souris Chauve, Ratte-penade, Belon oys. 147.
Vespertilio auritus. V. naso oreque simplici, auriculis duplicatis, capite majoribus, Lin. syst. 47. Faun. suec. No. 3. Klein quad. 61.
La petite Chauve-souris de notre pais, Brisson quad. 160.
L'Oreillar, de Buffon, viii. 118. tab. xvii.
Long-eared Bat, Edw. 201. Br. Zool. I. 116. Br. Zool. illustr. tab. ciii.
B. with ears above an inch long, thin, and almost pellucid; body and tail only one inch three quarters long. This and all other Bats, except the Ternate and the Horse-shoe, have a lesser or internal ear serving as a valve to close the greater when the animal is asleep.
B b 2
[page] 372
Inhabits Europe, and is found in Great Britain. Bats appear abroad in this country early in the spring; sometimes are tempted by a warm day to sally out in winter; fly in the evenings; live on moths and other nocturnal insects; skim alone the water in quest of gnats; fly by jerks, not with the regular motion of birds, for which the antients mistake them; frequent glades and shady places; will go into larders, and gnaw any meat they find: bring two young at a time, which they suckle at their breast: retire at the end of summer into caves, the eaves of houses, and into ruined buildings, in vast multitudes, where they generally remain torpid, suspended by the hind legs, enveloped in their wings: are the prey of owls: their voice weak. Ovid takes notice both of that and the origin of the latin name:
Minimam pro corpore vocem
Emittunt; peraguntque leves stridore quereles.
Tectaque, non sylvas celebrant: lucemque perosæ
Nocte volant: seroque trahunt a vespere nomen.
[page] 373
Page | |
A | |
ANTELOPES, their general history, | 22 |
Species of, | 24 |
ANT-EATER, or Ant-Bear, | 331 |
APES, their general hist. | 94 |
Species of, | 96 |
Sea, | 356 |
ARMADILLO, | 523 |
Ass, | 3 |
Wild, | ibid |
Axis, | 51 |
Greater, | 52 |
B | |
BADGER, | 201 |
Baboons, | 103 |
BATS, | 359 |
BEAR, | 190 |
Polar, | 192 |
BEAVER, | 255 |
Its wondrous œconomy, | ibid |
Sea, vide Sea Otter. | |
Beaver-Eater, | 197 |
Bezoar, | 26 |
Bison, | 4 |
Buck, | 48 |
Buffalo, Indian, | 7 |
When introduced into Europe, | ibid |
American, | 8 |
Dwarf, | 9 |
Bull, | 4 |
Bull-Dog, | 147 |
C | |
CAMEL, Arabian, | 60 |
Bactrian, | 63 |
Peruvian, or Llama, | 64 |
The only native beast: of burden in America, | ibid |
Camelopard | 20 |
Castoreum, | 258 |
CAT, Common, | 183 |
Wild, | ibid |
Tiger, | 182 |
Mountain, | 185 |
Civet, | 234 |
Angora, | 184 |
CAVY, various species of, | 243 |
Chamois, | 17 |
Chimpanzee, | 96 |
Civet, | 234 |
* In this Index very few of the species are enumerated, that having been amply done under the Index of Genera; to which the Reader is referred, the genera being here printed in capitals for that purpose, under which ho will find all the species belonging to each.
B b 3
[page] 374
D | |
DOGS, the different varieties, | 241 |
Wild, | ibid |
DEER, | 40 |
Rein, | 46 |
Fallow, | 48 |
Mexican, | 54 |
Porcine, | 52 |
Grey, | 55 |
Moose, | 40 |
Virginian, | 51 |
Dormouse, Common, | 291 |
Dromedary, | 60 |
E | |
ELEPHANT, | 85 |
Teeth, | 87 |
American, | 91 |
Elk, | 40 |
Ermine, | 212 |
F | |
Ferret, | 214 |
Fisher, | 223 |
Fitchet, | 213 |
Flitter-Mouse, | 371 |
Foumart, | 213 |
Fox, | 152 |
Cross, | ibid |
Brant, | 153 |
Corsak, | 154 |
Arctic, | 155 |
Grey, | 157 |
Silvery, | ibid |
G | |
Gazel, vide Antelope. | |
Genet, | 236 |
GIRAFFE, | 20 |
Glutton, | 196 |
GOAT, Wild, or Ibex, | 13 |
Domestic, | 14 |
Angora, | 15 |
Syrian, or long-eared, | ibid |
African, | 16 |
Siberian, | 18 |
Grehound, | 146 |
Guanaco, | 64 |
H | |
HARE, | 248 |
Alpine, | 249 |
Baikal, | 253 |
Hart, | 49 |
HEDGE-HOG, | 316 |
HIPPOPOTAME, | 78 |
HOG, | 68 |
HORSE, | 1 |
Sea, vida Hippopotame. | |
Hound, | 144 |
HYÆNA, | 161 |
Spotted, | 162 |
J | |
Jackal, | 138 |
Ichneumon, destroyer of serpents, | 226 |
L | |
Lamentin, | 351 |
Lemming, | 274 |
Leopard, | 172 |
Llama, | 64 |
Lynx, | 186 |
Bay, | 187 |
Lion, | 164 |
M | |
Macaquo, | 111 |
Mammouth's bones, | 90 |
Man of the Wood. | 96 |
MANATI, | 351 |
[page] 375
Mandril, | 104 |
Man-Tiger, | 102 |
Martin, | 215 |
Pine, | 216 |
MARMOTS, | 268 |
Minx, | 239 |
MONKIES, | 107 |
MOLES, | 311 |
Maucaucos, | 135 |
Mongooz, | 136 |
Moole, | 41 |
Mouse, | 302 |
MORSE, | 335 |
Mule, | 3 |
Musimon, | 18 |
MUSK, Animal, | 56 |
Rat, | 259 |
N | |
Norway Rat, | 300 |
O | |
OPOSSUM, | 204 |
Orang Outang, | 96 |
OTTER, | 238 |
Once, | 275 |
Ox, | 4 |
P | |
Pacos, | 66 |
Panther, | 170 |
American, | 172 |
Brown, | 179 |
Pecary, | 72 |
Pig, Guinea, | 243 |
Pole-cat, | 213 |
American, | 232 |
PORCUPINE, | 262 |
Incapable of darting its quils, | 263 |
Potto, | 139 |
Puma, | 167, 179 |
Pymies, what, | 98 |
Q | |
Quick-hatch, | 195 |
Quojas Morrou, | 96 |
R | |
Rabbet, | 251 |
Raccoon, | 199 |
RAT, | 299 |
Norway, | 300 |
Water, | 301 |
Rein Deer, | 46 |
RHINOCEROS, | 75 |
Roebuck, | 53 |
S | |
Sable | 217 |
Satyrs, | 98 |
SEAL, | 339 |
Sea Bear, | 344 |
Calf, | 339 |
Cow, | 335 |
Horse, | ibid |
Lion, | 348 |
SHEEP, | 10 |
SHREW Mouse, | 307 |
Siyah Ghush, | 189 |
SLOTH, | 319 |
SQUIRREL, | 279 |
Stag, | 49 |
Stoat, | 212 |
Strepsiceros, | 11 |
Succotyro, | 93 |
T | |
Tiger, | 167 |
Hunting, | 174 |
U | |
Unicorn, | 77 |
Urchin, | 316 |
V | |
Vicunna, | 67 |
B b 4
[page] 376
W | |
WALRUS, | 335 |
Warree, | 72 |
Water Elephant, | 78 |
Hog, | 83 |
WEESEL, | 211 |
Wolf, | 149 |
Wolverene, | 195 |
Z | |
Zebra, | 2 |
Zibet, | 235 |
[page] 377
OF
AND THE
IN THE
A | Page |
ABBADA, | 75 |
Addax, | 32 |
Adil, | 58 |
Adimain, | 12 |
Adive, | 158 |
Agouti, | 245 |
Ahu. | 35 |
Aï, | 319 |
Aigrette, | 116 |
Akouchi, | 246 |
Alagtaga, | 297 |
Alce, | 40 |
Algazel, | 26 |
Allo-camelus, | 64 |
Allouate, | 123 |
Ane, | 2 |
Anta, | 82 |
Antilope, | 32 |
Apar, | 325 |
Aperea, | 244 |
Arabata, | 123 |
Argali, | 18 |
Aϱϰτ, | 190 |
Armadillo, | 325 |
Aurochs, | 4 |
Axis, | 51 |
B | |
Babiroussa, | 73 |
Babouin, | 107 |
Barbaresque, | 287 |
Barbastelle, | 170 |
[page] 378
Behemoth, | 81 |
Bekker el Wash, | 9 |
Belette, | 211 |
Belier, | 10 |
Beluga, | 357 |
Bievre, | 255 |
Bison d'Amerique, | 8 |
Blaireau, | 201 |
Bobak, | 268 |
Bœuf, | 4 |
Bonnet Chinois, | 117 |
Bouquetin, | 13 |
Bouc, | 14 |
d'Angora, | 15 |
d'Afrique, | 16 |
de Juda, | ibid |
Brebis, | 10 |
Bubalus, Le Bubale, | 37 |
Buffle, | 7 |
Bxαλ, | 37 |
Bxς αγϱιoς, | 7 |
C | |
Cabiai, | 83 |
Cabiainora, | ibid |
Cachicame, | 325 |
Cagui, | 130, 132 |
Caitaia, | 128 |
Callitriche, | 113 |
Callitrix, | ibid |
Camelus, | 60 |
Campagnol, | 305 |
Caprea, | 53 |
Capreolus, | ibid |
Capricorne, | 16 |
Capybara, | 83 |
Caracal, | 189 |
Carcajou, | 195 |
Cariacou, | 54 |
Caribou, | 46 |
Carigueibeiu, | 24 |
Castor, | 25 |
Cavia, | 243 |
Cay, | 127 |
Cayopollin, | 208 |
Cemas, | 30 |
Cerf, | 49 |
Chacal, | 158 |
Chameau, | 63 |
Chamois, | 17 |
Chart, | 183 |
d'Angora, | 184 |
d'Espagne, | ibid |
Chat-pard, | 185 |
Chaus Plinii | 186 |
Chauve-souris, | 371 |
Cheval, | 1 |
Chevre, | 14 |
Chevreuil, | 53 |
Chevrotain de Guinea, | 28 |
des Indes, | 59 |
Chien, | 241 |
Chinche, | 233 |
Cirquinçon, | 327 |
Citillus, | 276 |
Civette, | 234 |
Coaita, | 124 |
Coase, | 230 |
Coati, | 229 |
Cochon, | 68 |
d'Inde, | 243 |
Coundou, | 264 |
Coudous, | 26 |
Condoma, | 31 |
[page] 379
Conepate, | 232 |
Coquallin, | 285 |
Corine, | 37 |
Couguar, | 179 |
Cricetus, | 271 |
Cuniculus, | 251 |
Cynocephalus, | 100, 107 |
D | |
Daim, | 48 |
Dama, | 30 |
Daman Isracl, | 296 |
Dant, | 9 |
Desman*, | 260 |
Dorcas, | 33 |
Doue, | 119 |
Dromedaire | 60 |
Dubbah, | 161 |
Dugon, | 338 |
E | |
Echinus Terrestris, | 316 |
Ecureuil, | 279 |
Elan, | 40 |
Elephant, | 85 |
Encourbert, | 324 |
Exquima, | 112 |
F | |
Fer a Cheval, | 369 |
Fiber, | 255 |
Fossane, | 237 |
Fouine, | 215 |
Fourmiller, | 333 |
Furer, | 214 |
Furo, | ibid |
G | |
Galera, | 225 |
Gazelle, | 33 |
Genette, | 236 |
Gerbo, | 295 |
Gibbon, | 99, 100 |
Giraffe, | 20 |
Glis, | 289 |
Glutton, | 197 |
Grimme, | 27 |
Guareba, | 122 |
Guepard†, | |
Guevei, | 28 |
Guib, | 27 |
Guio, | 196 |
H | |
Hamster, | 271 |
Herisson, | 316 |
Hermine, | 212 |
Hippelaphus, | 50 |
Hippopotamus, | 78 |
Hyæna, | 161 |
Hystrix, | 262 |
J | |
Jaguar, | 176 |
Jaguarete, | 180 |
Ibex, | 13 |
Ichneumon, | 226 |
Jevraschka, | 276 |
Jerbo, | 295 |
Jocko | 96 |
Iπποζ ποταμιοζ, | 78 |
Isatis, | 155 |
* De Buffon, x. I. tab. 11
† De Buffon, xiii. 254. The same with the Hunting Leopard, No, 125.
[page] 380
K | |
Kabassou, | 326 |
Kevel, | 34 |
Kob, | 39 |
Koba, | 35 |
Kη, | 118 |
L | |
Lama, | 64 |
Lamentin, | 351 |
Lant, | 9 |
Lapin, | 251 |
d'Angora, | 252 |
Latax, | 239 |
Lemmar, Lemming, | 274 |
Leo, | 164 |
Leopard, | 172 |
Lepus, | 248 |
Lerot, | 290 |
Lievre, | 248 |
Lion, | 164 |
Loir, | 289 |
Loris, | 135 |
Loup | 149 |
de Mexique, | 151 |
Loutre, | 238 |
Lupus, | 149 |
Lutra, | 238 |
Lynx, | 186 |
λuγξ, | ibid |
M | |
Maçame, | 54 |
Macaque, | 111 |
Machlis, | 40 |
Magot | 100 |
Maimon, | 105 |
Malbrouck*, | 116 |
Mandril, | 103 |
Manati, | 351 |
Mangabey, | 114 |
Mangouste, | 226 |
Manicou, | 204 |
Margay, | 182 |
Marikina, | 133 |
Marmose, | 207 |
Marmotte, | 269 |
Marte | 216 |
Mazames, | 54 |
Meles, | 201 |
Memimna, | 59 |
Mico, | 134 |
Mococo, | 137 |
Monax | 270 |
Mone, | 118 |
Mongouz, | 136 |
Morse, | 335 |
Mouffettes† | 230 |
Moufflon, | 18 |
Moustac, | 114 |
Mulet, | 3 |
Mulot, | 302 |
Mus Alpinus, | 269 |
Mus Araneus, | 307 |
Mus Ponticus, | 312 |
Musc, | 56 |
Muscardin, | 291 |
Musmon, | 18 |
Mustela, | 211 |
* De Buffon, xiv. 224. tab. xxix. A variety of our Egret, No. 81.
† M. de Buffon's generic name for the Polecats which exhale so pestilential a vapour.
[page] 381
N | |
Nagor, | 30 |
Nanguer, | ibid |
Nilgaux, | 26 |
Noctule, | 369 |
O | |
Ocelot, | 117 |
Once, | 175 |
Ondatra, | 259 |
Oreillar, | 371 |
Orignal, | 40 |
Ouanderou, | 105 |
Ouarine, vide Alloate, | |
Ouistiti, | 132 |
Ours, | 190 |
Ours blanc de mer, | 192 |
P | |
Paca, | 244 |
Pacasse, | 26 |
Paco, | 66 |
Palmiste, | 287 |
Pangolin, | 329 |
Panthera, | 170 |
Papio, | 103 |
Παϱδϰλιζ, | 170, 175 |
Pardus, | 170 |
Paresseux, | 319 |
Pasan, | 25 |
Patas, | 116 |
Pecari, | 72 |
Pekan, | 224 |
Perouasca, | 233 |
Petit Gris, | 282 |
Phalanger, | 209 |
Phatagin, | 328 |
Philandre, | 210 |
Phoca, | 339 |
Phoque, | ibid |
Piloris, | 247 |
Pinche, | 13 |
Pipistrelle, | 370 |
Πιϑηϰ, Pitheque, | 98 |
Platyceros, | 48 |
Polatouche, | 293 |
Pongo, | 96 |
Porc-epic, | 262 |
Puma, | 167, 179 |
Putois, | 213 |
Putorius, | ibid |
Q | |
Quoaita, | 124 |
R | |
Rat, | 299 |
d'Eau, | 301 |
Raton, | 199 |
Renard, | 152 |
Renne, | 46 |
Rhinoceros, | 75 |
Riche*, | |
Roselet, | 212 |
Rougette, | 359 |
Roussette, | ibid |
Rupicapra, | 17 |
S | |
Sagouin, | 130 |
Sai, | 127 |
Saiga, | 35 |
Saimiri, | 128 |
* The Silver-haired Rabbet.
[page] 382
Sajou, | 126 |
Saki, | 130 |
Sanglier, | 68 |
de Capvert, | 70 |
Sapajou, | 122 |
Saracovienne, | 241 |
Sarigue, | 204 |
Σαϑέϱιоν, | 218 |
Serotine, | 370 |
Serval, | 186 |
Souslik, | 273 |
Souris, | 302 |
Strepsiceros, | 11 |
Suisse, Ecureuil, | 288 |
Surikate, | 228 |
Surmulot, | 300 |
T | |
Tajacu, | 72 |
Taisson, | 201 |
Talapoin, | 115 |
Talpa, | 311 |
Tamandua, | 331 |
Tamarin, | 131 |
Tanrec, | 317 |
Tapir, | 82 |
Tapeti, | 252 |
Tarandus, | 46 |
Tarsier, | 298 |
Tartarin, | 107 |
Tatous, | 523 |
Taupe, | 311 |
Taupe dorèe, | 313 |
Taureau, | 4 |
Tayra, | 38 |
Temamaçama, | 54 |
Tendrac, | 317 |
Thous, | 160 |
Tolai, | 253 |
Tragelaphus, | 50 |
Tucan, | 309 |
Tzeiran, | 35 |
V | |
Vache Marine, | 335 |
de Tartarie, | 5 |
Vampire, | 362 |
Vansire, | 224 |
Vari, | 138 |
Varia, | 170 |
Vespertilio, | 359 |
Vigogne, | 66 |
Vison, | 224 |
Viverra, | 214 |
υαiyα, | 161 |
Unaon, | 321 |
Urson, | 266 |
Ursus, | 190 |
Urus, | 4 |
υς τετϱαϰεϱως, | 73 |
υςϱιξ | 262 |
X | |
Xоιϱcπϱϑήϰις, | 102 |
Y | |
Ysard | 17 |
Z | |
Zebre, | 2 |
Zemni, | 277 |
Zibeline, | 217 |
Zibet, | 235 |
Zizel, | |
Zorille*, | 233 |
* De Buffon, xiii. 302. tab. xli.
[page] 383
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