of Scripture, though it is by no means clear that the animal in
question was a one-horned creature, but according to some might have
been the great wild ox or urus of Macedonia. An Indian single-horned
rhinoceros was sent from India to the king of Portugal in 1513, and
from it various most distorted pictures were disseminated throughout
Europe. It was represented as covered with a wondrous suit of armour
beautifully decorated, and with a second horn on its shoulders!
The first one brought alive to England was in 1685. Parsons describes
and figures one brought to Europe in 1739, and another in 1741
('Philosophical Transactions,' xlii.).
The Asiatic rhinoceroses differ from the African in having the skin
divided into shields by well-marked folds, long upper cutting teeth,
the African having none, and by the produced conical nasal bones of
the skull instead of broad and rounded ones. There are one or two
other minor yet well-marked differences which we need not mention
here.
_GENUS RHINOCEROS_.
"The skin divided into shields by well-marked folds, lumbar and
neck-folds well developed; horn single, anterior; part of occipital
bone near the occipital condyle and the condyles themselves
prominent."--_Gray_.
[Illustration: Dentition of Rhinoceros. Lower Jaw. Upper Jaw.]
There are two species in India, viz. _Rhinoceros Indicus_ and _R.
Sondaicus_, the latter being the Javan species.
For the following description of the former I have to thank Mr. J.
Cockburn, who, with most unselfish kindness, kept back the article
he was about to publish, and gave it to me to incorporate in this
work. The following remarks on dentition are also his:[30]--
"The normal dentition of _R. Indicus_ is: Inc., 1--1/2--2; premolars,
4--4/4--4; molars, 3--3/3--3; but the dentition varies to a great
extent; for example, in a specimen of _R. Sondaicus_ it stood: Inc.,
1--1/2--2; molars, 6--7/6--6. The first premolar in both _Indicus_
and _Sondaicus_ is a deciduous tooth, which is not usually replaced,
and gradually drops out with age, but it may be retained till extreme
old age. In the majority of cases it is either lost or worn down before
the last molar is in wear. The incisors also vary greatly in the adult
animal; they are 1--1/2--2, the outer pair below being the formidable
dagger-shaped tushes, with which they inflict the terrible gashes
they can produce. The median pair lower are usually lost or absorbed
by advancing age, having no functions, and the incisive tusks
themselves are subject to very rapid wear, being often worn down
before the animal has reached middle age. Occasionally _R. Indicus_
has six incisors in the lower jaw (the normal number in other
mammalia), and four in the upper, but this is very exceptional."--_J.
Cockburn_, MS.
[Footnote 30: There are some interesting notes on the dentition of
the rhinoceros, especially in abnormal conditions, by Mr. Lydekker
in the 'J. A. S. B.' for 1880, vol. xlix., part ii.]
NO. 429. RHINOCEROS INDICUS.
(_Jerdon's No. 212_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Genda_, _Gonda_, _Ganda_, or _Genra_, Hindi; _Gor_,
Assamese.
HABITAT.--Himalayan Terai, from Central Nepal to the extreme eastern
corner of the valley of Assam.
"About three centuries ago this animal existed on the banks of the
Indus. The Indian rhinoceros inhabits by preference heavy grass
jungle, rarely entering forest. In this respect it differs from its
ally _Sondaicus_, which is a forest-loving species, and even
frequents mountainous countries. It is still numerous in the mighty
grass jungles which extend along the foot of the Eastern Himalayas
from their slopes to the banks of the Brahmaputra. It is yearly
becoming more scarce in the Nepal Terai, but is found there from
Rohilkund to the Bhootan Doars."
[Illustration: _Rhinoceros Indicus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--The accompanying outline sketch, taken from _Nature_
for April 1874, will give a better idea of the animal than a mere
verbal description:--
[Illustration: _Rhinoceros Indicus_.]
"For convenience of description I will divide the body into five
segments--the head, the cervical, the scapular, the abdominal, and
the gluteal. At the junction of the head with the neck is a large
deep collar or ruff or fold of skin, which gives a very peculiar
appearance to the animal. Behind this is a second similar but smaller
ruff, which does not hang so low down from the throat as the first.
On the dorsal surface it transversely crosses the nape. It is then
continued down angularly to about the centre of the anterior edge
of the scapular shield, where it forms an obtuse angle with its
posterior but major half. It is at the point where it forms this angle
that it gives off what I call the cervical fold, which forms the
boundary of the top front edge of the scapular shield, but is lost
at a point in the shoulder nearly over the centre of the fore limb.
"The scapular shield is a thick cuirass-like plate of skin, studded
with round projections about the size of a shilling, and bearing much
resemblance to the heads of bolts by which the shield was riveted
to the body, and hence called 'boiler-bolt tubercules.' This shield
is often removed from the carcase of a slain rhinoceros as a trophy,
'and it is in its centre, but slightly low, that the fatal spot lies
which will take him in the heart' (_Pollock_).
"Between the scapular and the gluteal shields lies the abdominal
segment. It calls for no particular description, except that the
tubercles here are very much flatter and smaller than on either
segments three and four. They are here about the size of a four-anna
piece, and they seem to be crowded along the centre line of the body,
while the dorsal surface is nearly free from them, and smooth.
"We next come to the gluteal segment. It is in this portion that the
boiler-bolt tubercles attain their greatest development, some of
them being perhaps three-tenths of an inch high.
"The gluteal segment is laterally crossed by three ridges of skin.
The first, which is the only one indicated in the drawing, goes right
across the buttock. In some animals there is an indication of a second
below this, and about fourteen inches lower down a third, which only
goes about a quarter of the way across. The tail is almost concealed
in a deep groove, in which lie the perineum, &c. Both the front and
hind limb from the point at which they project from the body are
finely covered with reticulated skin, forming pentagonal and
hexagonal scales, very much as in _R. Sondaicus_, only much finer
and less prominent.
"The Indian rhinoceros has the same habit as the African species of
depositing its droppings in one spot till they form huge mounds,
which the animal levels with its horns. It is probable that this
rhinoceros was found throughout the plains of the N.W. Provinces in
unreclaimed spots as late as the fifth or sixth century. According
to the observation of Dr. Andrew Smith in South Africa these huge
pachyderms do not absolutely require for their support the dense
tropical vegetation we should think necessary to supply food to such
huge beasts. This gentleman saw over fifty of them in one day in an
open country covered with short grass and thorn-bushes about four
feet high. From the affinities of the fauna of the N.W. Provinces,
which are strongly African, it is probable that the plains of the
N.W. Provinces were rather covered with scrubby open jungles and
grass than with tropical primeval forests.
"Here and there belts of Dhak (_Butea frondosa_) were found, and in
favoured spots doubtless other tree jungle, but it is improbable that
primeval forest has existed since the depression of the
Indo-Gangetic plain."--_J. Cockburn_, MS.
The rhinoceros is supposed to be a very long-lived animal. Dr.
Gray ('P. Z. S.' 1867. p. 1011) states on the authority of Mr. Blyth
that a pair lived in the Barrackpore Park for forty-five years. They
were exactly alike in size and general appearance; they never bred.
There is no difference in the horns or form of the skull in the two
sexes (_Blyth_, 'J. A. S. B.' vol. xxxi. p. 155).
NO. 430. RHINOCEROS SONDAICUS.
_The Javan Rhinoceros_ (_Jerdon's No. 213_).
NATIVE NAMES.--The same as last in Hindi; _Khyen-hsen_, Burmese;
_Warak_, Javanese; _Badak_, Malayan.
HABITAT.--"The Bengal Sunderbunds, Tipperah, the swamps at the base
of the Garo, Khasia, and Naga Hills" (_Pollock_). "Munipurf,
extending into the western provinces of China, southward into Burmah,
the Malayan peninsula; Sumatra, Java, and Borneo" (_J. Cockburn_,
MS.).
[Illustration: _Rhinoceros Sondaicus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--"Folds somewhat on the same plan as in _Indicus_, one
marked distinction being that the lateral shoulder fold is continued
upward over the back of the neck to form an independent saddle-shaped
shield on the nape. The whole body covered with pentagonal or
hexagonal warty insulae. Females hornless" (_J. Cockburn_, MS.).
Males with one horn.
SIZE.--Mr. Cockburn gives the following measurements of a female,
which he states is the largest recorded specimen: "Length of body
(head and body?), 12 feet 3 inches; tail, 2 feet 4-1/2 inches; height,
5 feet 6 inches." Dr. Jerdon gives: "Length 7 to 8 feet; height, 3-1/2
to 3-3/4 feet;" and he calls the animal "the lesser Indian
rhinoceros," whereas Mr. Cockburn's measurement gives an animal
somewhat longer, though not so high as the largest recorded specimen
of _Indicus_. Blyth again writes ('Mammals of Burmah,' _see_ 'J. A.
S. B.' vol. xliv. part ii. 1875, p. 50): "It is about a third smaller
than _R. Indicus_, from which it is readily distinguished by having
the tubercles of the hide uniformly of the same small size, and also
by having a fold or plait of the skin crossing the nape in addition
to that behind the shoulder-blades."
This rhinoceros seems to be found at all elevations, like the
Sumatran one which was found by General Fytche at an altitude of 4000
feet; it is much more of a forester than the last. Blyth and Jerdon
suppose it to be the same as the species hunted by the Moghul Emperor
Baber on the banks of the Indus.
_GENUS CERATORHINUS_.
"The skin divided into shields by deep folds; the lumbar fold
rudimentary, short, only occupying the middle of the space between
the groin and the back; horns two, the front longer, curved backward,
the hinder small; conical skull; forehead narrow, flat; the upper
part of the nose on each side of the horns narrow, rounded,
sub-cylindrical; the occipital region erect, the part near the
condyles rather concave; the occipital condyle short, broad, oblong,
placed obliquely inferior, scarcely prominent; lachrymal bone very
large, irregular shaped."--_Dr. Gray_, 'P. Z. S.' 1867, p. 1021.
NO. 431. RHINOCEROS _vel_ CERATORHINUS (CROSSI?) LASIOTIS.
_The Ear-fringed Rhinoceros_.
HABITAT.--Arakan, Tenasserim provinces; one was caught near
Chittagong in 1868.
[Illustration: _Rhinoceros lasiotis_. (_R. Indicus_ and _R.
Sondaicus_ in the distance.)]
DESCRIPTION.--A thinner hide than with the preceding, and not
tuberculated; the folds also are fewer in number; there is one great
groove behind the shoulder-blades, and a less conspicuous one on the
flank, and some slight folds about the neck and top of the limbs;
the horns are two in number, the posterior one being the centre of
the nose behind the anterior one, and almost over the anterior corner
of the eye; the body (of a young specimen) is covered with long, fine,
reddish hair, and the posterior margins of the ears have very long
fringes of the same; the tail is short and hairy.
A young specimen of this animal (of which there is an excellent
coloured plate in 'P. Z. S.' 1872, p. 494) was captured in 1868 in
Chittagong. She had got into a quicksand, and had exhausted herself
by floundering about. The natives contrived to attach two ropes to
her neck, and, hauling her out, managed to make her fast to a tree.
Next morning they found her so refreshed and vigorous that they were
afraid to do anything more to her, and so sent messengers to the
magistrate of Chittagong to report the capture. The same evening
Captain Hood and Mr. Wickes started with eight elephants to secure
the prize, and after a march of sixteen hours to the south of
Chittagong, they came up to the animal. The elephants at first sight
bolted, but were brought back by considerable exertion, and the
rhinoceros was made fast to one by a rope. The poor creature roared
with fright, and a second stampede ensued, in which luckily the rope
slipped off the leg of the rhinoceros to which it was attached.
Ultimately she was secured between two elephants and marched into
Chittagong, where she soon got very tame. Eventually she was sent
to England, and was purchased by the Zoological Society for 1250
pounds--a very handsome price, owing doubtless to the rarity of the
specimen.
NO. 432. RHINOCEROS _vel_ CERATORHINUS SUMATRENSIS.
_The Sumatran Rhinoceros_.
NATIVE NAMES.--_Kyen-shan_, Burmese; _Bodok_, Malayan.
HABITAT.--Tenasserim provinces; Burmah, extending into Siam; the
Malayan peninsula and Sumatra.
DESCRIPTION.--A smaller animal than the preceding, with a hard,
black, rough, bristly skin; a deep fold behind the shoulder; ears
set closer than in the last species, and filled with black hair
internally; the muzzle in front of the first horn is broader; the
horns are two in number, and attain a good size, curving, but slightly,
backward; the tail is conspicuously longer than in _R. lasiotis_,
and is tapering and not tufted. There is a well drawn and coloured
plate of this species in the 'Proceedings of the Zoological Society'
for 1872, p. 794, as also several engravings showing the heads of
the two animals in juxtaposition.
SIZE.--About 3 feet 8 inches in height at the shoulder.
At first it was considered that _R. lasiotis_ was of this species,
and as such it was described and sent to England; but on the
subsequent arrival of a genuine _R. Sumatrensis_ from Malacca it was
apparent that _R. lasiotis_ was quite distinct. The latter is of
larger size, lighter colour, with wide-set ears and a tufted tail.
The former is smaller, darker, with narrow-set ears and a long
tapering semi-nude tail.[31] The Society paid Mr. Jamrach 600 pounds
in 1872 for the female specimen from Malacca, which settled the
question of separate species. A young _R. Sumatrensis_ was born in
the Victoria Docks in London on December 7th, 1872, on board the
steamship _Orchis_. There is a coloured sketch of the little one in
the 'P. Z. S.' for 1873, and an interesting account of it and the
mother by Mr. Bartlett, the Superintendent of the Society's Gardens.
From the circumstances of the capture of the mother it appears that
the period of gestation of the rhinoceros is about the same as that
of the hippopotamus, viz. seven months.
[Footnote 31: There is a very interesting letter in _The Asian_ for
July 20, 1880, p. 109, from Mr. J. Cockburn, about _R. Sumatrensis_,
of which he considers _R. lasiotis_ merely a variety. He says it has
been shot in Cachar.--R. A. S.]
Although the number of species of living rhinoceros is but few, there
are a great many fossil species which show that the animal was more
plentiful and in greater variety in prehistoric times.
Remains of the woolly rhinoceros (_R. trichorhinus_) have been found,
like those of the mammoth, imbedded in ice; it was about eleven and
a-half feet in length, and its body was covered with woolly hair.
A specimen found in 1771 or 1772 was entire, and clothed with skin,
but so far decomposed as to prevent more than the head and feet being
preserved; remains of other fossil species are found throughout
Europe, including Great Britain, and also in India. In 'A Sketch of
the History of the Fossil Vertebrata of India' by Mr. R. Lydekker,
published in the 'Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal,' vol.
xlix., 1880, will be found the names of eight species of fossil
rhinoceros, inclusive of _R. Indicus_, which is found in _recent
alluvia_--it is found with two others in the Pleistocene formation,
and five others are from the Pleiomiocene.
SUB-ORDER ARTIODACTYLA.
We now come to the second division, and a very large one, of the
UNGULATA, which in itself is again subdivided into non-ruminants and
ruminants. The former comprises the pigs of the Old and the peccaries
of the New World and the hippopotami; the latter contains the camels,
llamas, deerlets, oxen, antelope, and deer. In the _Artiodactyla_
the toes are even on all feet, being normally four (perfect and
rudimentary) with the exception of the camel, giraffe and a few
antelope, in which two only are present. To understand the subject
thoroughly one must compare the fore-foot of a deer or pig with our
own hand; what we call the knee of the former is merely our wrist.
The bones which run through the palm of the hand to the knuckles are
the metacarpals; they are five in number, corresponding with the
thumb and four fingers. In the _Artiodactyla_--or, I should say, in
the _Ungulata_ generally--the thumb is entirely wanting; in the
_Artiodactyla_ the fore and little fingers are shorter, rudimentary,
or entirely wanting, and the two centre metacarpals, the middle and
ring fingers are prolonged into what we call the leg below the knee
in these animals, which consist of separate or fused bones terminated
by the usual three joints of the finger, on the last of which is placed
the hoof.
[Illustration: Bones of a Pig's foot. (See also Appendix C.)]
The two halves are always symmetrical, and from this we may affirm
that it is the thumb and not the little finger which is absent, for
we know that, counting from the knuckles, our fingers have three
joints, whereas the thumb has only two; so in the digits of the
_Artiodactyla_ are three joints at the end of each metacarpal. In
the pig the metacarpals of the fore and little fingers are produced
from the carpus or wrist, or, as is popularly termed in the case of
these animals, the knee. They are more attenuated in the chevrotians
or deerlets, of which our Indian mouse-deer is an example; in the
_Cervidae_ they are more rudimentary, detached from the carpus, and
are suspended free and low down, forming the little hoof-points
behind; and a little above the proper hoofs in these the two large
metacarpals are more or less joined or fused into one bone, and they
are still more so in the camel, in which the fore and little finger
bones are entirely absent. In the giraffe and prong-horn antelope
they are also wanting. The hind feet are similarly constructed.[32]
[Footnote 32: See notes in Appendix C.]
Of the non-ruminantia we have only the Suidae--the peccaries
belonging to America, and the hippopotami to Africa.
FAMILY SUIDAE--THE HOGS.
These have incisors in both jaws, which vary in number, the lower
ones slanting forward. Their canines are very large and directed
outwards and upwards in a curve, grinding against each other to a
sharp edge and fine point. Their metacarpal bones are four in number,
and are all distinct, in which respect they differ from the peccaries,
in which the central metacarpals and metatarsals are fused into a
solid bone. The hogs have a prolonged snout, flexible at the end,
with a firm cartilaginous tip, with which they are enabled to plough
up the ground in search of roots. They have also a very keen sense
of smell. The normal dentition of the true hogs is as follows:--
Inc., 6/6; can., 1--1/1--1; premolars, 4--4/4--4; molars, 3--3/3--3
= 44.
[Illustration: Dentition of Wild Boar.]
The hogs, unlike other pachyderms, are noted for their fecundity.
_GENUS SUS_.
Incisors, 4/6 or 6/6; the lower ones slanted; the canines large and
curved outwards and upwards; molars tuberculate; four toes on each
foot--that is, two major and two minor, each hoofed.
NO. 433. SUS SCROFA.
_The European Wild Boar_.
NATIVE NAMES.--_Guraz_ or _Kuk_, Persian.
HABITAT.--Persia and the Thian Shan mountains near Kashgar.
DESCRIPTION.--Body dusky or greyish-brown, with a tendency to
black, with black spots; large mouth with long projecting tusks; the
hairs of the body coarse, mixed with a downy wool; bristles on the
neck and shoulders. The young are marked with longitudinal stripes
of reddish colour.
The wild boar of Europe apparently extends to the limits sometimes
reached by Indian sportsmen. It is found in Persia, and specimens
were brought back from Kashgar by the Yarkand Mission in 1873-74.
The only divergence which these specimens showed from the European
boar was the darker colour of the feet and legs, which were nearly
black.
NO. 434. SUS INDICUS.
_The Indian Boar_ (_Jerdon's No. 215_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Soor_ or _Suar_, _Bura-janwar_, or _Bad-janwar_,
_Barha_, Hindi; _Dukar_, Mahratti; _Paddi_, Gondi; _Pandi_, Telegu;
_Handi_, _Mikka_, _Jewadi_, Canarese; _Kis_ of the Bhaugulpore
hill-tribes; _Tan-wet_, Burmese; _Walura_, Singhalese.
HABITAT.--Throughout India, from a considerable elevation (12,000
feet according to Jerdon) down to the sea level. It is also common
in Burmah and in Ceylon.
[Illustration: _Sus Indicus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--The head of the Indian wild boar differs considerably
from the German one. Sir Walter Elliot says: "The head of the former
is larger and more pointed, and the plane of the forehead straight,
while it is concave in the European, the ears of the former are small
and pointed; in the latter larger and not so erect. The Indian is
altogether a more active-looking animal, the German has a stronger,
heavier appearance."
Jerdon, who has in some measure adopted these remarks, adds that the
tail is more tufted, and the malar beard is well marked.
The colour of the full-grown animal is brownish-black, sparsely clad
with black hair; the ears are scantily covered with black hairs
externally, but more abundantly inside. A crest of stiff black
bristles extends from the occiput over the neck and shoulders and
down the back; the bristles of the throat and breast are reversed,
growing forwards instead of backwards, the tips being sometimes
white; the limbs, which are well covered with bristly hair outside,
are nearly naked within, and the tail is short, slightly hairy, and
with a flat tip fringed with lateral bristles set like the barbs of
a feather. The young are more hairy, and are striped with brown and
fulvous yellow.
SIZE.--Head and body, about 5 feet; tail, 1 foot; height, from 30
to 36 inches.
This species is so well known to residents in India, not only from
personal experience but from the numerous accounts of its chase--one
of the most exciting of Indian field sports--that it would be almost
superfluous to add anything more to the already redundant porcine
literature, so I will confine myself to the habits of the animal in
the jungles. It is gregarious, living in herds, usually called
_sounders_, the derivation of which has often puzzled me as well as
others; but McMaster says it is to be found in Bailey's English
Dictionary, of which the fifteenth edition was published in 1753 as
(among hunters) _a herd or company of swine_. An old boar is generally
the chief, but occasionally he gets driven from the herd, and wanders
solitary and morose, and is in such a case an awkward customer to
tackle. An old boar of this kind is generally a match for a tiger;
in fact few tigers, unless young and inexperienced, would attack one.
I have known two instances of tigers being killed by boars; one
happened a few miles from the station of Seonee, to which place we
had the animal carried. (See Appendix C.) On another occasion, whilst
on tour in the district, a deputation from a distant village came
into my camp to beg of me to visit them, and shoot a large boar which
had taken possession of a small rocky hill, and from it made his
nightly forays into their rice fields, and was given to attacking
those who approached him. I went and got the boar out and shot him,
but lost a tiger, which also sneaked out and broke through a line
of beaters; these two were the sole occupants of this small isolated
knoll, and lived evidently on terms of mutual respect. The boar was
the largest I had ever seen or killed, but, as the sun was getting
fierce, and I had far to ride to camp, I regret I left him to the
villagers without taking any measurements. It is allowable to shoot
hogs in some hilly parts of India where riding is out of the question,
otherwise the shooting of a boar in riding country is deservedly
looked upon as the crime of vulpecide would be in Leicestershire--a
thing not to be spoken of. The boar possesses a singular amount of
courage; he is probably the most courageous of all animals, much more
so than the tiger, but unless irritated he is not prone to attack
at first sight, except in a few cases of solitary individuals, like
the one above mentioned. I was once rather ludicrously and very
uncomfortably held at bay by a boar who covered the retreat of his
family. One evening, after dismissing my _amlah_, I took up a shot
gun, and, ordering the elephant to follow, strolled across some
fields to a low scrub-covered hill where I thought I might pick up
a few partridges or a peafowl before dusk. On entering the bush which
skirted the base of the hill I was suddenly brought up by a savage
grunt, and there in front of me stood an old boar with his bristles
up, whilst the rest of his family scampered off into the thicket.
I remembered Shakespeare's (the poet's--not the gallant shikari
general's) opinion:--
"To fly the boar before the boar pursues
Were to incense the boar to follow us,"
and therefore stood my ground, undergoing the stern scrutiny of my
bristly friend, who cocked his head on one side and eyed me in a
doubtful sort of way, whilst he made up his mind whether to go for
me or not, whilst I on my part cogitated on the probable effect at
close quarters of two barrels of No. 6 shot. However, he backed a
bit, and then sidled to the rear for a few paces, when he brought
up with another grunt, but, finding I had not moved, he finally turned
round and dashed after his spouse and little ones. (See also Appendix
C.)
Colonel (now General) Shakespear winds up a thrilling account of a
fight with one with the following paragraph, which will give a good
idea of the endurance of these creatures:--
"There he was with a broken spear in his withers, the shaft sticking
up a foot and a-half from the blade, knocking over a horseman and
wounding his horse; receiving two bullets--ten to the pound
each--the first in his neck and throat, a very deadly part in all
animals; the second breaking his jaw, and fired within a few feet
of the muzzle; making good his charge, cutting down his enemy like
grass, wounding him, knocking over a second man armed with a spear,
defying the dogs, and then, when in the act of charging again, shot
to the brain and dying without a groan."
Although I had not intended giving any shikar stories, I cannot
resist quoting one from General McMaster's 'Notes on Jerdon.' He
writes:--
"In further proof of the savage courage of a boar I may mention the
following instance which is recorded in the 'Hunt Annals' of the 25th
December, 1869. A large _unwounded_ boar had succeeded in getting
into some thick bushes. On being bullied by a terrier he charged the
nearest hunter, and ripped the horse very badly. Two other sportsmen
who were not riding then tried to tempt the boar to charge, one by
firing No. 10 or quail shot into the bush, the other by riding a camel
into it. The last was successful, for, charging straight at the
camel's legs (receiving some shot in his face on his way) he
completely routed the whole arrangement, knocked over and ripped the
camel, which broke its leg in falling, and then made away across the
fields; he was followed and twice speared, but he was as cunning as
courageous, and managed to give his pursuers the slip in some long
grass and thick bushes. This boar's savage charge at the camel was
within a few yards of all of us, for every one was trying to entice
him to come forth; after his headlong rush out of the bush he reared
so upright in his attempt to reach his clumsy disturber, which was
quite frantic from deadly fear, that he succeeded in ripping it in
what in a horse would be termed the stifle joint. The poor brute
rolled over in its agony, smashed one of its legs in the fall, and
was of course shot. Luckily the rider, one of the best known among
the Nagpore Hunt, was not hurt."
I believe a wild pig will charge at anything when enraged. I had an
elephant who, though perfectly staunch with tigers, would bolt from
a wild boar. The period of gestation is four months, and it produces
twice a year; it is supposed to live to the age of twenty years, and,
as its fecundity is proverbial, we might reasonably suppose that
these animals would be continually on the increase, but they have
many enemies, whilst young, amongst the felines, and the sows
frequently fall a prey to tigers and panthers. Occasionally I have
come across in the jungles a heap of branches and grass, and at first
could not make out what it was, but the Gonds soon informed me that
these heaps were the nests or lairs of the wild pigs, and they
invariably turned them over to look for squeakers. These are funny
little things, of a tortoiseshell colour, being striped reddish
yellow and dark brown. There is an old writer on Indian field sports,
Williamson, who makes some correct observations on the habits of the
wild hog, although much in his book (now, I fancy, out of print) is
open to question. He writes: "The wild hog delights in cultivated
situations, but he will not remain where water is not at hand, in
which he may, unobserved, quench his thirst and wallow at his ease;
nor will he resort for a second season to a spot which does not afford
ample cover, whether of heavy grass or of under-wood jungle, within
a certain distance, for him to fly to in case of molestation, and
especially to serve as a retreat during the hot season, as otherwise
he would find no shelter. The sugar-cane is his great delight, both
as being his favourite food and as affording a high, impervious, and
unfrequented situation. These hogs commit great devastation,
especially the breeding sows, which not only devour, but cut the
canes for litter, and throw them up into little huts, which they do
with much art, leaving a small entrance which they stop up at pleasure.
Sows never quit their young pigs without completely shutting them
up. This is, indeed, requisite only for a few days, as the young brood
may be seen following the mother at a round pace when not more than
a week or ten days old." The fields of _urhur_ or _ruhur dal_
(_Cajanus Indicus_) also afford good shelter to pigs. They feed
chiefly at night, and in Central India numbers are shot by native
shikaries in moonlight nights over water and favourite crops or in
particular runs. Many castes of Hindus, who would turn with
abhorrence from the village pig, will not scruple to eat the flesh
of the wild boar. On the whole it is probably a cleaner feeder, but
it will not hesitate to devour carrion if it should come across a
dead animal in its wanderings.
NO. 435. SUS ANDAMANENSIS.
_The Andaman Island Pig_.
HABITAT.--Andaman islands; Nicobars (?)
DESCRIPTION.--Much smaller than the last. "The concavity of the
cheeks in front of the orbit deeply concave." Tail short, a mere
tubercle in fact; the body well clad with somewhat shaggy black hair,
probably allied to _Sus Papuensis_.
Dr. Gray was of opinion (_see_ his article on the _Suidae_, 'P. Z.
S.' 1868) that the skull of this species is more allied to the
_Babirussa_ than any others of the pigs, the front of the canines
being rather more produced than in other species, but not nearly so
much so as in _Babirussa_.
NO. 436. SUS MOUPINENSIS.
HABITAT.--Thibet.
A description of this, which I have not by me at present, will be
found in Professor Milne-Edwards's 'Recherches sur les Mammiferes,'
p. 377.
_GENUS PORCULA_.
Head conical, moderate; ears small, erect, hairy; cheeks without any
tubercles; tail very short, rudimentary; cutting teeth 6/6, the two
upper front largest, the lateral lower small; intermaxillary
moderate, not produced; canines small, scarcely elevated above the
other teeth, the upper one rather spread out, but not reflexed;
premolars, 4--4/4--4 (_Gray_); molars, 3--3/3--3; the fourth toe on
all the feet small and unequal. Jerdon observes: "This genus, it will
be remarked, makes an approach to the American peccaries in the
non-excerted canines, the short tail, and the small fourth toe."
Hodgson's dental formula shows one premolar less, viz. teeth: 6/6,
1--1/1--1, 6--6/6--6.
NO. 437. PORCULA SALVANIA.
_The Pigmy Hog of the Saul Forests_ (_Jerdon' s No. 216_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Sano-banel_, Nepalese; _Chota-suar_, Hindi.
HABITAT.--The Saul forests of the Sikim and Nepal Terai.
[Illustration: _Porcula Salvania_.]
DESCRIPTION.--According to Mr. Hodgson "the pigmy hog is about the
size of a large hare, and extremely resembles both in form and size
a young pig of the ordinary wild kind of about a month old, except
in its dark and unstriped pelage. The likeness of the limbs and
members to those of the common hog is so close that every purpose
of general description of the pigmy hog is served by pointing to that
resemblance, desiring only that heed should be taken by the observer
of the shorter jaws, and eye consequently placed midway between the
snout and ear; of the much shorter tail, nude, straight, and not
extending so far as the bristles of the rump, and lastly of the
smallness of the inner hind toe. The ears also are quite nude, and
the abdominal surface of the neck, as well as the insides of the limbs
and the belly, are nearly so, but the upper and lateral external parts
are covered thickly with bristles, even longer and more abundant than
those of the wild or tame hog--save upon the ridge of the neck, where
the common hog has more or less of, and generally a conspicuous mane,
but the pigmy hog little or none"--"the colour of the animal is a
black brown, shaded vaguely with dirty amber or rusty red."
SIZE.--Head and body, from 18 to 20 inches; height, 8 to 10 inches;
weight, 7 to 10 lbs.
This little animal, according to Hodgson's account of it (a most
interesting one, which will be found in the 'Journal of the Asiatic
Society of Bengal,' vol. xvi. May 1847), seems to have the
disposition of the peccary as well as the resemblance; it goes, he
says, in herds, and the males fearlessly attack intruders, "charging
and cutting the naked legs of their human or other attackers with
a speed that baffles the eyesight, and a spirit which their straight
sharp laniaries renders really perplexing, if not dangerous."
RUMINANTIA--THE RUMINANTS.
These differ materially from the foregoing section of the
Artiodactyla by the construction of their digestive organs. Instead
of the food being masticated and passed at once into the stomach,
each mouthful is but slightly bruised and passed into the paunch,
whence at leisure it is regurgitated into the mouth to be chewed.
For such an operation the machinery is of course more complicated
than in other animals, and I must therefore attempt to describe
briefly and as clearly as I can the construction of the ruminating
stomach. Taking the ox as a typical specimen, we find four
well-defined chambers varying in size. The first of these is the
rumen or paunch, in which the unmasticated food is stored; it is a
large sac partly bent on itself, and narrowing towards its junction
with the oesophagus or gullet, and the entrance into the second
chamber. It is lined with a mucous membrane, which is covered with
a pile or villous surface, and this membrane is what is sold in
butchers' shops as tripe. From this bag (the paunch) in the act of
rumination a certain portion of the food is ejected into the second
chamber, which is termed the reticulum (i.e. a little net) from the
peculiar arrangement of its inner or mucous surface, which is lined
with a network of shallow hexagonal cells. The functions of this
receptacle are probably the forming of the food into a bolus, and
by a spasmodic contraction the forcing of it back through the gullet
into the mouth for mastication. Here it is well chewed, and, being
thoroughly mixed with saliva passes back; on being swallowed in a
soft pulpy state it passes the groove or valve communicating with
the chamber from which it issued, and goes straight into the
psalterium or manyplies, as the third chamber is called. This is
globular, but most of its interior is filled up with folds like the
leaves of a book, more or less unequal. It is not quite clear what
the peculiar functions of this chamber are, but the semi-liquid food,
passing through it, goes into the proper stomach (abomasum or reed)
and is here acted upon by the gastric juice. Professor Garrod thus
describes the probable order of events in the act of rumination: "The
paunch contracts, and in so doing forces some of the food into the
honeycomb bag, where it is formed into a bolus by the movement of
its walls, and then forced into the gullet, from which by a reverse
action it reaches the mouth, where it is chewed and mixed with the
saliva until it becomes quite pulpy, whereupon it is again swallowed.
But now, because it is soft and semi-fluid, it does not devaricate
the walls of the groove communicating with the manyplies, and so,
continuing on along its tubular interior, it finds its way direct
into the third stomach, most of it filtering between the membrous
laminae on its way to the fourth stomach, where it becomes acted on
by the gastric juice. After the remasticated food has reached the
manyplies, the groove in the reticulum is pushed open by a fresh bolus,
and so the process is repeated until the food consumed has all passed
on towards the abomasum or true digestive stomach."
The ruminants are peculiar also in their dentition; in the so-called
true ruminants there are no incisors or cutting teeth in the upper
jaw, but the teeth of the lower jaw are opposed to a hard callous
pad; the herbage is cropped by being nipped between these teeth and
the pad, and detached by an upward motion; in some few, such as the
musk deer, Chinese water deer and the rib-faced deer or muntjac the
upper canines exist, and are largely developed.
The camels and llamas possess two cutting teeth in the upper jaw,
and in this respect they differ from the true ruminants, as also in
some internal features.
The grinding teeth are six on each side of the jaw, and are composed
of alternate convolutions of enamel, dentine and cement, which wear
unequally by the lateral motion of grinding, and so form the
necessary inequality of surface.
The centre metacarpal bones in the Ruminantia are fused into one
common bone, except in the deerlets, which also have the two outer
fore and little finger metacarpals distinct, whereas they are but
rudimentary in the rest of the true ruminants, and totally absent
in the camels.
The following is the classification at present adopted: SUB-ORDER
_Ruminantia_, containing two sections, viz. True Ruminants and the
Camels (_Tylopoda_). SECTION _True Ruminants_, containing two
divisions, viz. Horned Ruminants and Hornless Ruminants, such as the
chevrotians or deerlets (_Tragulidae_). DIVISION Horned Ruminants,
containing two groups, viz. Hollow-horned Ruminants (_Bovidae_),
and Solid-horned Ruminants (_Cervidae_). The deerlets possess no
psalterium or third stomach, except in a rudimentary form, and their
feet approximate to those of the pigs, and they are destitute of horns.
The hollow-horned ruminants are those which bear a persistent sheath
of horn on a bony core; the others bear solid antlers which are
periodically shed, and grow afresh.
FAMILY BOVIDAE--HOLLOW-HORNED RUMINANTS.
In these there is an elongated process of bone on the frontals, termed
the "horn cores," which are covered with a horny sheath which is never
shed, but continues to grow till full adult life, and probably whilst
life lasts, the growth being from the base. In some of these the
females are horned, but the majority are hornless. These have all
the typical organs of rumination and digestion, and they consist of
the goats, sheep, antelope, oxen, and buffalos.
SUB-FAMILY CAPRINAE--GOATS AND SHEEP.
These are noted for having, as a general rule, horns in both sexes,
though of varying quality; they are usually compressed, triangular,
rugose, with transverse ridges, and curving backwards or spirally;
no canines. Feet pits in some; sub-orbital gland small or absent.
_GENUS OVIS--THE SHEEP_.
Horns in both sexes; in the male very large, angular, deeply wrinkled,
turned downwards in a bold circle, with the point curved outwards;
the nasal bones are arched; small feet pits; two mammae.
NO. 438. OVIS POLII.
_Marco Polo's Sheep_.
NATIVE NAMES.--_Rass_ or _Roosh_ on the Pamir; _Kuch-kar_ (male),
_Mesh_ (female), in Wakhan.
HABITAT.--Thian Shan mountains, north of Kashgar, and Yarkand, at
elevations exceeding 9000 feet.
[Illustration: _Ovis Polii_.]
DESCRIPTION.--During winter light greyish-brown on the sides of the
body, with a dark line down the middle of the back, white below. In
summer the grey changes to dark brown. The horns describe a circle
of about one and a quarter when viewed from the side, and point
directly outwards. One of the finest specimens I have seen, which
was exhibited at a meeting of the Asiatic Society in December 1879,
and is now in the Indian Museum, measures over sixty-seven inches
from base to tip along the curve, with a circumference at base of
sixteen inches and a width from tip to tip in a straight line of
fifty-three inches; one in the British Museum measures sixty-three
inches, but is wider in its spread, being fifty-four inches across
at the tips. Major Biddulph, who presented the head to our museum,
remarked that the strength of the neck muscles must be enormous to
allow of so great a weight being easily carried, and it was doubtless
owing to this weight that the _Ovis Polii_ and other great sheep that
he had observed had a very erect carriage, which has also been noticed
by others of the _Ovis Ammon_.
I have never seen this animal in the flesh, and can only therefore
give what I gather from others about it, which is not much, as it
is not very well known.
SIZE.--Stands nearly four feet at the shoulder.
In the article on Asiatic sheep by Sir Victor Brooke and Mr. B. Brooke
in the 'Proceedings of the Zoological Society' in 1875, there is an
excellent series of engravings of horns of these animals, amongst
which are two of _Ovis Polii_. The description of the animal itself
appears to be faulty, for it is stated that around the neck is a pure
white mane, whereas Mr. Blanford wrote to the Society a few months
later to the effect that he had examined a series of skins brought
from Kashgar, and found that none possess a trace of a mane along
the neck, as represented in a plate of the animal, there being some
long hair behind the horns and a little between the shoulders, but
none on the back of the neck. The animal has a very short tail also--so
short it can hardly be seen in life. According to M. Severtzoff there
is a dark line above the spinal column from the shoulders to the
loins; a white anal disc surrounds the tail; this disc above is
bordered by a rather dark line, but below it extends largely over
the hinder parts of the thighs, shading gradually into the brown
colour of the legs. The light greyish-brown of the sides shades off
into white towards the belly.
[Illustration: Horns of _Ovis Polii_.]
He gives the following particulars concerning its habits: "It is not
a regular inhabitant of the mountains, but of high situated hilly
plains, where _Festuca_, _Artemisia_, and even _Salsolae_ form its
principal food. It only takes to the mountains for purposes of
concealment, avoiding even then the more rocky localities. It keeps
to the same localities summer and winter. Its speed is very great,
but the difficulty in overtaking wounded specimens may be partly
attributed to the distressing effect of the rarefied air upon the
horses, which has apparently no effect whatever on the sheep. The
weight of an old specimen killed and gralloched by M. Severtzoff was
too much for a strong mountain camel, the animal requiring four hours
to do four versts (2.6 miles), and being obliged to lie down several
times during the journey. He reckons the entire weight of a male _Ovis
Polii_ to be not less than 16 or 17 poods (576 to 612 lbs.); the head
and horns alone weigh over two poods (72 lbs.)."[33]
[Footnote 33: It must be remembered that at such great elevations
a camel is unable to bear a very heavy load.]
I have before me a beautiful photograph by Mr. Oscar Malitte, of Dehra
Doon, of a very large skull of this sheep, with the measurements given.
The photograph is an excellent one of a magnificent head, and I should
say if the measurements have been correctly made, that the horns are
the longest, though not the thickest, on record.
The dimensions given are as follows:--
Inches.
Round the curve 73
From tip to tip 48
Girth at base 14
The next largest head to this is the very fine one in the Indian Museum,
presented by Major Biddulph:--
Inches.
Round the curve 67
From tip to tip 53
Girth at base 16
There is another in the British Museum:--
Inches.
Round the curve 63
From tip to tip 54
Girth at base 16
From the above measurements it will be seen that the horns in the
photograph before me are of greater length, but not so massive as
the other two. They are also more compressed in their curvature than
the others, and so the tip to tip measurement is less. The skull
appears to be that of a very old animal; the horns are quite joined
at the base, and from the incrustation on the bones I should say it
had been picked up, and was not a shikar trophy. Anyhow it is a
valuable specimen.[34]
[Footnote 34: See notes to _Ovis Polii_ in Appendix C.]
NO. 439. OVIS HODGSONI.
_The Argali or Ovis Ammon of Thibet_.
NATIVE NAMES.--_Hyan_, _Nuan_, _Nyan_, _Niar_, _Nyaud_ or _Gnow_.
HABITAT.--The Thibetan Himalayas at 15,000 feet and upwards.
[Illustration: _OVIS HODGSONI_.]
DESCRIPTION.--The following description was given by a
correspondent of the _Civil and Military Gazette_ in the issue of
the 21st October, 1880: "The male dark earthy brown above, lighter
below; rump lighter coloured; tail one inch; white ruff of long hairs
on throat and chin; hair of body short, brittle, and close-set. The
female darker coloured than the male, and may often be distinguished,
when too far to see the horns, by the dark hue of the neck." Both
male and female are horned; the horns of the former are very large,
some are reported as being as much as four feet long, and 22 inches
in circumference at the base. Dr. Jerdon quotes Colonel Markham in
giving 24 inches as the circumference of one pair. They are deeply
rugose, triangular, and compressed, deeper than broad at the base,
forming a bold sweep of about four-fifths of a circle, the points
turning outwards, and ending obtusely. The horns of the female are
mentioned by various writers as being from 18 to 22 inches, slightly
curved; but the correspondent of the _Civil and Military Gazette_
above quoted gives 24 inches as his experience.
SIZE.--From 10 to 12 hands, sometimes an inch over.
[Illustration: _Ovis Hodgsoni_.]
A very interesting account of this animal, with a good photograph
of the head, is given in Kinloch's 'Large Game-shooting in Thibet
and the North-west.' He says: "In winter the _Ovis Ammon_ inhabits
the lower and more sheltered valleys, where the snow does not lie
in any great quantity. As summer advances, the males separate from
the females, and betake themselves to higher and more secluded places.
They appear to be particular in their choice of a locality, repairing
year after year to the same places, where they may always be found,
and entirely neglecting other hills which apparently possess equal
advantages as regards pasturage and water. Without a knowledge of
their haunts a sportsman might wander for days and never meet with
old rams, although perhaps never very far from them. I have myself
experienced this, having hunted for days over likely ground without
seeing even the track of a ram, and afterwards, under the guidance
of an intelligent Tartar, found plenty of them on exactly similar
ground a mile or two from where I had been. The flesh of the _Ovis
Ammon_, like that of all the Thibetan ruminants, is excellent; it
is always tender, even on the day it is killed, and of very good
flavour, possibly caused by the aromatic herbs which constitute so
large a portion of the scanty vegetation of those arid regions.
"No animal is more wary than the _Ovis Ammon_, and this, combined
with the open nature of the ground which it usually inhabits, renders
it perhaps the most difficult of all beasts to approach. It is however,
of course, sometimes found on ground where it can be stalked, but
even then it is most difficult to obtain a quiet shot, as the instant
one's head is raised one of the herd is nearly sure to give the alarm,
and one only gets a running shot.
"_Ovis Ammon_ shooting requires a great deal of patience. In the
first place, unless the sportsman has very good information
regarding the ground, he may wander for days before he discovers the
haunts of the old rams; and, secondly, he may find them on ground
where it is hopeless to approach them. In the latter case all that
can be done is to wait, watch them until they move to better ground,
and if they will not do this the same day, they must be left till
the next. Sooner or later they will move to ground where they can
be stalked, and then, if proper care is exercised, they are not much
more difficult to get near than other animals; but the greatest
precautions must be taken to prevent being seen before one fires.
Some men may think this sort of shooting too troublesome, and resort
to driving, but this is very uncertain work, and frightens the
animals away, when, by the exercise of patience, a quiet shot might
be obtained."
A writer in _The Asian_, whose 'Sportsman's Guide to Kashmir and
Ladakh' contains most valuable information, writes thus in the issue
of August 30, 1881, of the keen sense of smell possessed by this
animal, and I take the liberty of quoting a paragraph:--
"The _Ovis Ammon_ is possessed of the sense of smell to a remarkable
degree, and, as every one who has stalked in Ladakh is aware, the
wind is treacherous. If the stalker feels a puff of wind on his back
when within 700 or 800 yards of the game, he well knows that it is
'all up.' On the tops of the mountains and in the vicinity of glaciers
these puffs of wind are of frequent occurrence; often they will only
last for a few seconds, but that is sufficiently long to ruin the
chance of getting a shot at the _Ovis_. Except for this one fact,
we cannot admit that the nyan is harder to approach than any other
hill sheep."
NO. 440. OVIS KARELINI.
_Karelin's Wild Sheep_.
NATIVE NAMES.--_Ar_ or _Ghuljar_ (male), _Arka_ (female), Khirghiz;
_Kulja_, Turki of Kashgar.
HABITAT.--Mountains north-west of Kashgar, and thence northwards
beyond the Thian Shan mountains on to the Semiretchinsk Altai.
[Illustration: Horns of _Ovis Karelini_.]
DESCRIPTION (by Sir Victor Brooke and Mr. Brooke, translated and
abstracted from Severtzoff, _see_ 'P. Z. S.' 1875, p. 512).--"The
horns are moderately thick, with rather rounded edges; frontal
surface very prominent, orbital surface rather flat, narrowing only
in the last third of its length. The horns are three times as long
as the skull. The basal and terminal axis of the horns rise parallel
with each other; the median axis parallel with the axis of the skull.
The neck is covered by a white mane, shaded with greyish-brown. The
light brown of the back and sides is separated from the
yellowish-white of the belly by a wide dark line. The light brown
of the upper parts gets gradually lighter towards the tail, where
it becomes greyish-white, but does not form a sharply marked anal
disc. On the back there is a sharply marked dark line running from
the shoulders to the loins. I did not find any soft hair under the
long winter hair in October."
SIZE.--Height at the shoulder, 3 feet 6 inches; length of the horns,
from 44 to 45 inches.
The following is a description by Dr. Stoliczka of this animal, which
he took to be _Ovis Polii_, and described it as such, in the 'P. Z.
S.' for 1874, page 425. In the same volume is a plate which, however,
is shewn by Mr. Blanford ('Sc. Res. Second Yarkand Mission,' p. 83)
to be inaccurate:--
"_Male in winter dress_.--General colour above hoary brown,
distinctly rufescent or fawn on the upper hind neck and above the
shoulders, darker on the loins, with a dark line extending along the
ridge of tail to the tip. Head above and at the sides a greyish-brown,
darkest on the hind head, where the central hairs are from four to
five inches long, while between the shoulders somewhat elongated
hairs indicate a short mane. Middle of upper neck hoary white,
generally tinged with fawn; sides of body and the upper part of the
limbs shading from brown to white, the hair becoming more and more
tipped with the latter colour. Face, all the lower parts, limbs, tail,
and all the hinder parts, extending well above towards the loins,
pure white.
"The hairs on the lower neck are very much lengthened, being from
five to six inches long. Ears hoary brown externally, almost white
internally. Pits in front of the eye distinct, of moderate size and
depth, and the hair round them generally somewhat darker brown than
the rest of sides of the head. The nose is slightly arched and the
muzzle sloping. The hair is strong, wiry, and very thickly set, and
at the base intermixed with scanty, very fine fleece; the average
length of the hairs on the back is 2 to 2-1/2 inches. The iris is
brown. The horns are subtriangular, touching each other at the base,
curving gradually with a long sweep backwards and outwards; and,
after completing a full circle, the compressed points again curve
backwards and outwards; their surface is more or less closely
transversely ridged.
"The colour of full-grown females does not differ essentially from
that of the males, except that the former have much less white on
the middle of the upper neck. The snout is sometimes brown, sometimes
almost entirely white, the dark eye-pits becoming then particularly
conspicuous. The dark ridge along the tail is also scarcely traceable.
In size, both sexes of _Ovis Polii_ appear to be very nearly equal,
but the head of the female is less massive, and the horns, as in allied
species, are comparatively small: the length of horn of one of the
largest females obtained is 14 inches along the periphery, the
distance at the tips being 15 inches, and at the base a little more
than one inch. The horns themselves are much compressed; the upper
anterior ridge is wanting on them; they curve gradually backwards
and outwards towards the tip, though they do not nearly complete even
a semicircle. In young males, the horns at first resemble in
direction and slight curvature those of the female, but they are
always thicker at the base and distinctly triangular.
"The length of the biggest horn of male along the periphery of curve
was 56 inches, and the greatest circumference of a horn of a male
specimen at the base 18-1/2 inches.
"Mr. Blyth, the original describer of _Ovis Polii_, from its horns,
was justified in expecting, from their enormous size, a
correspondingly large-bodied animal; but in reality such does not
appear to exist. Although the distance between the tips of the horns
seems to be generally about equal to the length of the body, and
although the horns are very much larger, but not thicker or equally
massive, with those of the _Ovis Ammon_ of the Himalayas, the body
of the latter seems to be comparatively higher. Still it is possible
that the _Ovis Polii_ of the Pamir may stand higher than the specimens
described, which were obtained from the Tian Shan range.
"Large flocks of _Ovis Polii_ were observed on the undulating high
plateau to the south of the Chadow-Kul, where grass vegetation is
abundant. At the time the officers of the Mission visited this ground,
i.e. in the beginning of January, it was the rutting season. The
characters of the ground upon the Pamir and upon the part of the Tian
Shan inhabited by these wild sheep are exactly similar."
The following remarks on the habits of this species are from Sir
Victor Brooke's abstract of Servertzoft's description: "_Ovis
Karelini_, like other sheep, does not live exclusively amongst the
rocks, as is the case with the different species of _Capra_. It is
not satisfied, like the latter, with small tufts of grass growing
in the clefts of the rocks, but requires more extensive feeding
grounds; it is, therefore, more easily driven from certain districts
than is the case with _Capra_. In the neighbourhood of Kopal, for
instance, the goats are abundant in the central parts of the steppes
of Kara, whilst the sheep have been partially driven from these
places, only visiting them in autumn.
"On the southern ranges of the Semiretchinsk Altai, in the vicinity
of the river Ili, wherever good meadows and rocky places are found,
_Ovis Karelini_ occurs at elevations of from 2000 to 3000 feet; at
the sources of the rivers Lepsa, Sarkan, Kora, Karatala, and Koksa
it goes as high as 10,000, and even to 12,000 feet in the
neighbourhood of the Upper Narin. In winter it is found at much lower
elevations."
In a paper by Captain H. Trotter, R.E., read before the Royal
Geographical Society on the 13th of May, 1878, on the geographical
results of the mission to Kashgar under Sir Douglas Forsyth ('Journal
R. G. S.' vol. xlviii., 1878, p. 193), I find the following account
refering to this sheep, there mentioned under the name of _Ovis
Polii_: "For twenty-five miles above Chakmak the road continues
gently ascending along the course of the frozen stream, passing
through volcanic rocks to Turgat Bela, a little short of which the
nature of the country alters, and the precipitous hills are replaced
by gently undulating grassy slopes, abounding with the _Ovis
Polii_.[35]
"These extensive grassy slopes, somewhat resembling the English
downs, are a very curious feature of the country, and not only attract
the Kirghiz as grazing grounds for their cattle, but are equally
sought after by the large herds of guljar, in one of which Dr.
Stoliczka counted no less than eighty-five."
[Footnote 35: _Ovis Heinsi_ and _Ovis nigromontana_ are doubtful
species allied to the foregoing, and are not found within the limits
assigned to this work.]
The Chakmak and Turgat Bela spoken of are on the southern slopes of
the Thian Shan mountains, which form the boundary between Russia and
Eastern Turkestan, separating the provinces of Semiretchinsk and
Kashghar. The Turgat pass, about 12,760 feet, lies between the
Kashgharian fort of Chakmak and the Russian fort Naryn or Narin.
Captain Trotter mentions in a foot-note that these sheep, as well
as ibex, abound in these hills in such large quantities that they
form the principal food of the garrisons of the outposts. At Chakmak
they saw a large shed piled up to the roof with the frozen carcases
of these animals. (A most valuable map of the country is published
in the 'Journal' with this paper.)
The chief difference between this species and _Ovis Polii_ consists
in the much greater length and divergence of horns of the latter and
the longer hair on the neck.
NO. 441. OVIS BROOKEI.
_Brooke's Wild Sheep_.
HABITAT.--Ladakh, or probably the Kuenluen range north of Ladakh.
[Illustration: _Ovis Brookei_.]
DESCRIPTION.--This species is founded on a single specimen, which,
in the opinion of Mr. Blyth, Mr. Edwin Ward, F.Z.S., Sir Victor Brooke
and others, differed materially from all other wild sheep, but, as
they had only a head to go upon, further investigation in this
direction is necessary. It is not even certain where the animal was
shot, but it is believed to have been obtained in the vicinity of
Leh in Ladakh. It is apparently allied to the _O. Ammon_ of Thibet,
which Sir Victor and Mr. B. Brooke term in their paper _O. Hodgsonii_,
but it differs in its much smaller size, in its deeply sulcated horns,
the angles of which are very much rounded, and the terminal curve
but slightly developed. It differs also from _O. Vignei_ and _O.
Karelini_. The orbits project less, with greater width between them,
the length of the molar teeth also exceeds the others. There are two
wood-cuts of the skull and horns in the 'P. Z. S.' 1874, page 143,
illustrating Mr. Edwin Ward's paper on the subject.
The following are the dimensions of the specimen:--
Inches.
Length of skull 11
Smallest breadth between orbits 4-5/8
Length of horns, round curve 33-1/2
Circumference of horns 13-3/8
NO. 442. OVIS VIGNEI.
_Vigne's Wild Sheep_.
NATIVE NAMES.--_Sha_ or _Shapoo_.
HABITAT.--Little Thibet; Ladakh, from 12,000 to 14,000 feet.
DESCRIPTION.--General colour brownish-grey, beneath paler; belly
white; a short beard of stiffish brown hair; the horns of the male
are sub-triangular, rather compressed laterally and rounded
posteriorly, deeply sulcated, curving outward and backward from the
skull; points divergent. The female is beardless, with small horns.
The male horns run from 25 to 35 inches, but larger have been
recorded.
This sheep was for some time, and is still by some, confounded with
the oorial (_Ovis cycloceros_), but there are distinct differences,
as will be seen further on, when I sum up the evidence. It inhabits
the elevated ranges of Ladakh, and is found in Baltistan, where it
is called the _oorin_.
NO. 443. OVIS CYCLOCEROS.
_The Punjab Wild Sheep_ (_Jerdon's No. 236_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Oorial_ or _Ooria_, in the Punjab; _Koch_ or _Kuch_,
in the Suleiman range.
HABITAT.--The Salt range of the Punjab; on the Suleiman range; the
Hazarah hills; and the vicinity of Peshawar.
[Illustration: _Ovis cycloceros_.]
DESCRIPTION.--General colour rufous brown; face livid, side of mouth
and chin white; a long thick black beard mixed with white hairs from
throat to breast, reaching to the knees; legs below knees and feet
white; belly white, a blotch on the flanks; outside of legs and a
lateral line blackish. The horns of the male are sub-triangular, much
compressed laterally and posteriorly; in fact one may say concave
at the sides, that is, from the base of the horn to about one half;
transversely sulcated; curving outwards, and returning inward
towards the face; points convergent. The female is more uniform pale
brown, with whitish belly; no beard, and short straight horns.
SIZE.--About 5 feet in length, and 3 feet high; horns from 25 to 30
inches round the curve.[36] The marked distinctions between the two
species may be thus briefly summed up:--
_Ovis Vignei_.
Horn rather compressed laterally.
Rounded posteriorly.
Curving outward and backward.
Points divergent.
General colour, brownish-grey.
Beard short, of stiffish brown hairs.
_Ovis cycloceros_.
Horn much compressed laterally.
Much compressed posteriorly.
Curving outward and inward.
Points convergent.
General colour, rufous brown, with blotch on flanks and lateral
line blackish.
Beard profuse, reaching to knees, black intermixed with white
hairs.
[Footnote 36: See also Appendix C.]
Mr. Sclater, with reference to the two in his paper on the Punjab
Sheep living in the Zoological Society's Garden in 1860 ('P. Z. S.'
1860, page 126), says: "On comparing the skull (of _O. cycloceros_)
with that of the shapoo we observe a general resemblance. But it may
be noted that the sub-orbital pits in the present species are smaller,
deeper, and more rounded; the nasal bones are considerably shorter
and more pointed, and the series of molar teeth (formed in each skull
of three premolars and three molars) measures only 2.85 instead of
3.20 inches in total length."
There is a fine coloured plate of this animal in that magnificent
folio work--Wolf's 'Zoological Sketches,' showing the male, female,
and lambs; and in that valuable book of Kinloch's, 'Large
Game-shooting in Thibet and the North-west' is a very clear
photograph of the oorial's head, from which I give the above sketch.
He gives the following account of its habits: "The oorial is found
among low stony hills and ravines, which are generally more or less
covered with thin jungle, consisting principally of thorny bushes.
During the heat of the day the oorial conceal themselves a good deal,
retiring to the most secluded places, but often coming down to feed
in the evening on the crops surrounding the villages. Where not much
disturbed, they will stay all day in the neighbourhood of their
feeding grounds, and allow sheep and cattle to feed amongst them
without concern; but where they have been much fired at they usually
go a long distance before settling themselves for the day. They are
generally found on capital ground for stalking, the chief drawback
being the stony nature of the hills, which renders it difficult to
walk silently. When fired at, oorial usually go leisurely away,
stopping to gaze every now and then, so that several shots may often
be fired at one herd."
Dr. Leith Adams says regarding it, that it "frequents bleak and
barren mountains, composed of low ranges intersected by ravines and
dry river courses, where vegetation is scanty at all seasons, and
goats and sheep are seldom driven to pasture. It is found in small
herds, and, being fond of salt, is generally most abundant in the
neighbourhood of salt mines. Shy and watchful, it is difficult to
approach, and possesses in an eminent degree the senses of sight and
smell. It is seldom seen in the day-time, being secreted among rocks,
whence it issues at dusk to feed in the fields and valleys, returning
to its retreat at daybreak.
"When suddenly alarmed the males gives a loud shrill whistle, like
the ibex. This is an invariable signal for the departure of the herd,
which keeps moving all the rest of the day until dusk. Their bleat
is like that of the tame species; and the males fight in the same
way, but the form of the body and infra-orbital pits simulate the
deer, hence it is often called the 'deer-sheep.' It equals the deer
in speed and activity. The female gestates seven months. The rutting
season is in September."
According to Captain Hutton the flesh is good and well-flavoured,
"while the horns are placed as trophies of success and proofs of skill
upon tombs and temples."
This sheep has bred in the Gardens of the Zoological Society in London.
(_See_ notes to _Oorial_ in Appendix C.)
NO. 444. OVIS BLANFORDII.
_Blanford's Wild Sheep_.
HABITAT.--Central hills of Khelat.
DESCRIPTION.--The horns of this species are longer and more slender
than those of _Ovis Vignei_, _O. cycloceros_, or _O. Gmelini_. Mr.
Hume says ('J. A. S. B.' 1877, p. 327): "In all these three species,
as far as I can make out, each horn lies in one plane, whereas in
the present species the horn twists out in a capital-S fashion. There
is, in fact, much the same difference between the horns of the present
species and of _O. cycloceros_, that there is between those of _O.
Kareleni_ and _O. Hodgsoni_. The lower part of the forehead at the
nasal suture, and the whole of the frontals, are more raised and
convex than in either _O. cycloceros_ or _O. Vignei_.
"The frontal ridge between the bases of the horns is less developed
in _O. Blanfordii_, and in this latter the posterior convex margin
of the bony palate is differently shaped, being more pointed, and
not nearly semi-circular as in _O. cycloceros_."
The dimensions of the skull are given in detail by Mr. Hume in the
paper above quoted, out of which I extract those of the horns:--
Inches.
Length along curve 35.75
Circumference at base 9.0
Width from tip to tip 16.5
Greatest breadth of horn at base 2.25
Greatest depth of ditto 3.25
The horns of a specimen of _O. cycloceros_ of about the same age were
29.5 in length and 10 inches in circumference at base, so that the
greater length and slenderness of the horns of _Ovis Blanfordii_ are
apparent. Mr. Hume writes to me that there is a living specimen of
this sheep at present in the London Zoological Gardens.
NO. 445. OVIS NAHURA _vel_ BURHEL.
_The Blue Wild Sheep_ (_Jerdon's No. 237_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Burhel_, _Buroot_, in the Himalayas; _Napu_, _Na_,
or _Sna_, Thibet and Ladakh; _Nervati_, in Nepal. _Wa'_ or _War_ on
the Sutlej.
HABITAT.--This animal has a wide range; it is found from Sikim, and,
as Jerdon says, probably Bhotan, right away through Thibet, as Pere
David found it in Moupin, and it extends up to the Kuenluen mountains
north of Ladakh, and in Ladakh itself, and it has been obtained by
Prejevalski on the Altyn-Tagh, therefore the limits assigned by
Jerdon must be considerably extended.
[Illustration: _Ovis nahura_.]
DESCRIPTION.--General colour a dull slaty blue, slightly tinged with
fawn; the belly, edge of buttocks, and tail, white; throat, chest,
front of fore-arm and cannon bone, a line along the flank dividing
the darker tint from the belly; the edge of the hind limbs and the
tip of the tail deep black; horns moderately smooth, with few
wrinkles, rounded, nearly touching at the base, directed upwards,
backwards and outwards, the points being turned forwards and inwards.
The female is smaller, the black marks smaller and of less extent;
small, straight, slightly recurved horns; nose straighter. The young
are darker and browner.
SIZE.--Length of head and body, 4-1/2 to 5 feet; height, 30 to 36
inches; tail, 7 inches; horns, 2 to 2-1/2 feet round the curve;
circumference at base, 12 to 13 inches.
An excellent coloured plate is to be found in Blanford's 'Scientific
Results of the Second Yarkand Mission' and a life-like photograph
of the head in Kinloch's 'Large Game-shooting.' According to the
latter author the burrel prefers bare rocky hills, and when
inhabiting those which are clothed with forest, rarely or never
descends to the limits of the trees. "The favourite resorts of burrel
are those hills which have slopes well covered with grass in the
immediate vicinity of steep precipices, to which they can at once
betake themselves in case of alarm. Females and young ones frequently
wander to more rounded and accessible hills, but I have never met
with old males very far from some rocky stronghold. The males and
females do not appear to separate entirely during the summer, as I
have found mixed flocks at all seasons, though, as a rule, the old
males form themselves into small herds and live apart. In my opinion
the flesh of the burrel surpasses in flavour the best mutton, and
has moreover the advantage of being generally tender soon after the
animal is killed."
According to Jerdon the burrel is fattest in September and October.
In the 'Indian Sporting Review' a writer, "Mountaineer," states that
in winter, when they get snowed in, they actually browse the hair
off each other, and come out miserably thin.
The name _Ovis nahura_ is not a felicitous one, as it was given under
a mistake by Hodgson, the nahoor being quite another animal. I think
Blyth's name of _Ovis burhel_ should be adopted to the exclusion of
the other, which, however, is in general use.
There is a very interesting paper on this animal by Mr. R. Lydekker
in the 'Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal,' vol. xlix., 1880,
in which he points out its affinity to the goats from the absence
of eye-pits and their larminal depression in the lachrymal
bone--from the similarity of the basi-occipital and in the structure
and colour of its horns. On the other hand it agrees with _Ovis_ in
the form of its lower jaw, in the absence of beard and any odour,
and in the possession of interdigital pores in all feet.
_GENUS CAPRA--THE GOATS_.
Horns in both sexes curving backwards, angular and flattened, or in
some cases twisted spirally. The nose is arched, and the chin of both
sexes is more or less bearded; there are no eye-pits or inguinal pits,
and feet-pits only in the fore-feet in most, and none in some. Mr.
Blyth some years ago pointed out that a hind-quarter of goat with
the foot attached can always be told from the same piece of mutton
by the absence of the feet-pits in the goat. The males especially
emit a strong odour. In other respects there is little difference
between goats and sheep, and by interbreeding they produce a fertile
offspring. Our domestic goat is supposed to have descended from the
ibex, but certainly some of our Indian varieties may claim descent
from the markhor. I noticed in 1880 at Simla herds of goats with horns
quite of the markhor type, and one old fellow in a herd of about one
hundred, which was being driven through the station to some rajah's
place in the vicinity, had a remarkably fine head, with the broad
flat twist of the markhor horn. I tried in vain to get a similar one;
several heads were brought to me from the bazaar, but they were poor
in comparison. Goats are more prolific than sheep. The power of
gestation commences at the early age of seven months; the period is
five months, and the female produces sometimes twice a year, and from
two to occasionally four at a birth. The goat is a hardy animal,
subsisting on the coarsest herbage, but its flesh and milk can be
immensely improved by a selected diet. Some of the small domestic
goats of Bengal are wonderful milkers. I have kept them for years
in Calcutta for the use of my children, and once took two of them
with me to Marseilles by the 'Messageries' Steamers. I prefer them
to the larger goats of the North-west. My children have been
singularly free from ailments during their infancy, and I attribute
the immunity chiefly to the use of goats' milk drawn fresh as required.
Of the wild goats, to which I must now confine my attention, there
are two groups, viz. the true goats and the antelope goats. Of the
former there is a sub-genus--_Hemitragus_--which have no feet-pits,
but have a muffle and occasionally four mammae, which form a
connecting link with the _Cervidae_. In all other respects
_Hemitragus_ is distinctly caprine.
NO. 446. CAPRA MEGACEROS.
_The Markhor_ (_Jerdon's No. 234_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Mar-khor_ (i.e. snake-eater), in Afghanistan,
Kashmir, &c.; _Ra-che_, or _Ra-pho-che_, Ladakhi.
HABITAT.--The mountain districts of Afghanistan, and the highest
parts of the Thibetan Himalayas. On the Pir Panjal, in Kashmir, the
Hazarah hills, the hills north of the Jhelum, the Wurdwan hills west
of the Beas river, on the Suleiman range, and in Ladakh.
DESCRIPTION.--General colour a dirty light-blue gray, with a darker
beard; in summer with a reddish tinge; the neck and breast clad with
long dark hair, reaching to the knees; hair long and shaggy;
fore-legs brown. The females are redder, with shorter hair, short
black beard, but no mane, and with small horns slightly twisted.
The horns of an old male are a magnificent trophy. Kinloch records
having seen a pair, of which the unbroken horn measured sixty-three
inches, and its fellow, which had got damaged, had fifty-seven inches
left. Forty to fifty inches is, however, a fair average. According
to Kinloch the very long horns are not so thick and massive as those
of average length. Jerdon says the longest horns have three complete
spiral twists.
The horns of certain varieties differ so much that I may say species
have been settled with less to go upon. Kinloch notes four varieties.
I have hitherto reckoned only two, but he gives--
No. 1.--Pir Panjal markhor; heavy, flat horns, twisted like a
corkscrew.
No. 2.--Trans-Indus markhor; perfectly straight horns, with a spiral
flange or ridge running up them.
No. 3.--Hazarah markhor; a slight corkscrew, as well as a twist.
No. 4.--Astor and Baltistan markhor; large, flat horns, branching
out very widely, and then going up nearly straight with only a half
turn.
Of the two kinds I have seen, the one has the broad flat horn twisted
like a corkscrew; the other a perfectly straight core, with the worm
of a screw turned round it. Nothing could be more dissimilar than
these horns, yet, in other respects the animal being the same, it
has not been considered necessary to separate the two as distinct
species.[37]
[Footnote 37: Colonel Kinloch writes on my remarks as above, and
gives the following interesting information: "I cannot consider the
spiral-horned and the straight-horned markhor to be one species, any
more than the Himalayan and Sindh ibex. The animals differ much in
size, habits, and coat, as well as in the shape of their horns. Mr.
Sterndale considers that the markhor is probably the origin of some
of our breeds of domestic goats, and states that he has seen tame
goats with horns quite of the markhor type. Has he ever observed that
(as far as my experience goes) the horns of domestic goats invariably
twist the _reverse way_ to those of markhor? I have observed that
the horns of not only markhor, but also antelope, always twist one
way; those of domestic goats the other."]
SIZE.--Height, about 46 inches.
There is a life-like photograph of No. 1 variety in Kinloch's 'Large
Game of Thibet,' and of No. 3 a very fine coloured plate in Wolf's
folio of 'Zoological Sketches.'
[Illustration: _Capra megaceros_. No. 1 variety.]
[Illustration: _Capra megaceros_. No. 2 variety.]
The markhor frequents steep and rocky ground above the forests in
summer, but descending in the winter. I cannot do better than quote
Kinloch, who gives the following graphic little description: "The
markhor inhabits the most precipitous and difficult ground, where
nearly perpendicular faces of rock alternate with steep grassy
slopes and patches of forest. It is very shy and secluded in its
habits, remaining concealed in the densest thickets during the
day-time, and only coming out to feed in the mornings and evenings.
No animal's pursuit leads the sportsman over such dangerous ground
as that of the markhor. Living so much in the forest, it must be
followed over steep inclines of short grass, which the melting snow
has left with all the blades flattened downwards; and amid pine-trees,
whose needle-like spines strew the ground and render it more slippery
and treacherous than ice. If one falls on such ground, one instantly
begins to slide down the incline with rapidly increasing velocity,
and, unless some friendly bush or stone arrests one's progress, the
chances are that one is carried over some precipice, and either
killed or severely injured. Many hair-breadth escapes occur, and the
only wonder is that fatal accidents so seldom happen.
"Early in the season the males and females may be found together on
the open grassy patches and clear slopes among the forest, but during
the summer the females generally betake themselves to the highest
rocky ridges above the forest, while the males conceal themselves
still more constantly in the jungle, very rarely showing themselves.
They are always very wary, and require great care in stalking them."
NO. 447. CAPRA SIBIRICA.
_The Himalayan Ibex_ (_Jerdon's No. 235_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Sakin_, _Iskin_, or _Skeen_ of the Himalayas; _Buz_,
in the upper part of the Sutlej; _Kale_, Kashmiri; _Tangrol_, in
Kulu; _Skin_, the male, _L'Damuo_ the female, in Ladakh.
HABITAT.--Throughout the Himalayas from Kashmir to Nepal. The
localities given by Kinloch are Kunawar, Kulu, Lahoul, Spiti,
Kashmir, Baltistan, and various parts of Thibet; also Ladakh
according to Horsfield.
[Illustration: _Capra Sibirica_.]
DESCRIPTION.--General colour light brownish, with a dark stripe down
the back in summer, dirty yellowish-white in winter; the beard, which
is about six to eight inches long, is black; the horns, which are
like those of the European ibex, are long and scimitar-shaped,
curving over the neck, flattened at the sides, and strongly ridged
in front; from forty to fifty inches in length. A pair is recorded
in the 'Proceedings of the Zoological Society' for 1840 of fifty-one
inches in length. The females have thin slightly curved horns about
a foot long.
Under the hair, which is about two inches long, is a soft down, and
is highly prized for the fine soft cloth called _tusi_.
SIZE.--Height at shoulder, about 44 inches.
According to Colonel Markham the ibex "frequents the highest ground
near the snows where food is to be obtained. The sexes live apart
generally, often in flocks of one hundred and more. In October the
males descend and mix with the females, which have generally twins
in June and July. It is an extremely wary and timid animal, and can
make its way in an almost miraculous manner over the most
inaccessible-looking ground. No animal can exceed the ibex in
endurance and agility."
Kinloch writes as follows concerning it:--
"The ibex inhabits the most precipitous ground in the highest parts
of the ranges where it is found, keeping above the forest (when there
is any), unless driven down by severe weather. In the day-time it
generally betakes itself to the most inaccessible crags, where it
may sleep and rest in undisturbed security, merely coming down to
the grassy feeding grounds in the mornings and evenings.
Occasionally, in very remote and secluded places, the ibex will stay
all day on their feeding grounds, but this is not common. In summer,
as the snows melt, the old males retire to the highest and most
unfrequented mountains, and it is then generally useless to hunt for
them, as they have such a vast range, and can find food in places
perfectly inaccessible to man. The females and young ones may be met
with all the year round, and often at no very great elevation.
"Although an excessively wary animal, the ibex is usually found on
such broken ground that, if due care be taken, it is not very
difficult to obtain a shot. The grand rule, as in all other hill
stalking, is to keep well above the herd, whose vigilance is chiefly
directed beneath them. In places where they have been much disturbed,
one or two of the herd usually keep a sharp look-out while the rest
are feeding, and on the slightest suspicion of danger the sentries
utter a loud whistle, which is a signal for a general rush to the
nearest rocks. Should the sportsman succeed in obtaining a shot
before he is observed by the ibex, he may often have time to fire
several shots before they are out of range, as they appear to be
completely stupefied and confused by the sudden noise, the cause of
which they are unable to account for if they neither see nor smell
their enemy."
Jerdon states that Major Strutt killed in the Balti valley an ibex
of a rich hair-brown colour, with a yellowish-white saddle in the
middle of its back, and a dark mesial line; the head, neck and limbs
being of a dark sepia brown, with a darker line on the front of the
legs; others were seen in the same locality by Major Strutt of a still
darker colour. These seem to be peculiar to Balti; the horns are the
same as the others. Kinloch remarks that a nearly black male ibex
has been shot to the north of Iskardo.
NO. 448. CAPRA AEGAGRUS.
_The Wild Goat of Asia Minor_.
NATIVE NAMES.--_Pasang_ (male), _Boz_ (female), generally
_Boz-Pasang_, Persian (_Blanford_); _Kayeek_ in Asia Minor
(_Danford_).
HABITAT.--Throughout Asia Minor from the Taurus mountains; through
Persia into Sindh and Baluchistan; and in Afghanistan. M. Pierre de
Tchihatchef, late a distinguished member of the Russian Diplomatic
Service, and well known as an author and a man of science, whose
acquaintance I had the pleasure of making some time ago in Florence,
found these goats most abundant on the Aladagh, Boulgerdagh and
Hussandagh ranges of the Taurus. He made a very good collection of
horns and skulls there, which are now in the Imperial Museum, St.
Petersburg. Captain Hutton found it in Afghanistan.
DESCRIPTION.--Hair short and brown, becoming lighter in summer; a
dark, almost black line down the back; the males have a black beard;
the young and females are lighter, with fainter markings; the horns
are of the usual ibex type, but there is a striking difference between
those of this species and all the others. As a rule the ibex horn
is triangular in section, that is, the front part of the horn is
square, with transverse knobs at short intervals all the way up, for
about three-fourths of the length, whereas the horn of _C. aegagrus_
is more scimitar-like, flattish on the inner side and rounded on the
outer, with an edge in front; the sides are wavily corrugated, and
on the outer edge are knobs at considerable distances apart. It is
believed that an estimate of the age of the animal can be made by
these protuberances--after the third year a fresh knob is made in
each succeeding one. Mr. Danford says: "The yearly growths seem to
be greatest from the third to the sixth year, the subsequent
additions being successively smaller." The horns sometimes curve
inwards and sometimes outwards at the tips. Mr. Danford figures a
pair, the tips of which, turning inwards, cross each other. The
female horns are shorter and less characteristic. The size of the
male horns run to probably a maximum of 50 inches. There is a pair
in the British Museum 48-1/2 inches on the curve. Mr. Danford's best
specimen was 47-1/2, the chord of which was 22-1/2, basal
circumference 9-3/4, weight 10-1/4 lbs. Captain Hutton's living
specimen had horns 40-1/2 inches in length.
SIZE.--According to Herr Kotschy "it attains not unfrequently a
length of 6-1/2 feet." Mr. Danford measured one 5 feet 5-1/2 inches
from nose to tip of tail, 2 feet 9-1/2 inches at shoulder. (See also
Appendix C.)
I have not had an opportunity of measuring a very well-stuffed
specimen in the Indian Museum, but I should say that the Sind variety
was much smaller. Standing, as it does, beside a specimen of _Capra
Sibirica_, it looks not much bigger than some of the Jumnapari goats.
(See Appendix C.)
The _aegagrus_ is commonly supposed to be the parent stock from which
the domestic goat descended, and certainly the European and many
Asiatic forms show a similarity of construction in the horn, but the
common goat descended from more than one wild stock, for, as I have
before stated, there are goats in India, which show unmistakable
signs of descent from the markhor, _Capra megaceros_. In the article
on _Capra aegagrus_ in the 'P. Z. S.' for 1875, p. 458, by Mr. C.
G. Danford, F.Z.S., written after a recent visit to Asia Minor, it
is stated that the late Captain Hutton found it common in Afghanistan,
in the Suleiman and Pishin hills, and in the Hazarah and western
ranges. I confess I had thought the ibex of these parts to be
identical with _C. Sibirica_. Mr. Danford, describing where he met
with it, says:--
"The picturesque town of Adalia is situated at the head of the gulf
of the same name, and is the principal place in the once populous
district of Pamphylia. It is surrounded on its landward side by a
wide brushwood-covered plain, bounded on the north and north-east
by the Gok and other mountains of the Taurus, and on the west by the
Suleiman, a lofty spur of the same range, in which latter the present
specimens were collected.
"These mountains, the principal summit of which, the Akdagh (white
mountain), attains a height of 10,000 feet (_Hoskyn_), rise abruptly
from the plain and sea, and are of very imposing and rugged forms.
The pure grey tints of the marble and marble-limestone, of which they
are principally composed, show beautifully between the snowy summits,
and the bright green of the pines and darker shades of the undergrowth
of oak, myrtle and bay, which clothe their lower slopes.
"The wild goat is here found either solitary or in small parties and
herds, which number sometimes as many as 100; the largest which I
saw contained 28. It is called by the natives _kayeek_, which word,
though applied in other parts of the country to the stag, and
sometimes even the roe, is here only used to designate the _aegagrus_,
the fallow deer of this district being properly known as _jamoorcha_.
The old males of the _aegagrus_ inhabit during summer the higher
mountains, being often met with on the snow, while the females and
young frequent the lower and easier ridges; in winter, however, they
all seem to live pretty much together among the rocks, scattered
pines, and bushy ground, generally preferring elevations of from
2000 to 5000 feet. Herr Kotschy says they never descend below 4000
feet in Cilicia; but his observations were made in summer.
"Like all the ibex tribe, the _aegagrus_ is extremely shy and wary
at ordinary times, though, as in the case with many other animals,
they may be easily approached during the rutting season. I was told
that they were often brought within shot at that time by the hunter
secreting himself, and rolling a few small stones down the rocks.
When suddenly disturbed they utter a short angry snort, and make off
at a canter rather than a gallop. Though their agility among the rocks
is marvellous, they do not, according to Mr. Hutton ('Calcutta
Journ.' vii. p. 524), possess sufficient speed to enable them to
escape from the dogs which are employed to hunt them in the low lands
of Afghanistan. It is interesting to see how, when danger is dreaded,
the party is always led by the oldest male, who advances with great
caution, and carefully surveys the suspected ground before the
others are allowed to follow; their food consists principally of
mountain grasses, shoots of different small species of oak and cedar,
and various berries. The young are dropped in May, and are one or
two (Kotschy says sometimes three) in number. The horns appear very
early, as shown in a kid of the year procured in the beginning of
January."
It appears to be very much troubled with ticks, and an _oestrus_ or
bot which deposits its larvae in the frontal sinuses and cavities
of the horns.
_SUB-GENUS HEMITRAGUS_.
Some naturalists do not separate this from _Capra_, but the majority
do on the following characteristics, viz. that they possess a small
muffle, and one of the two species has four mammae. The horns are
trigonal, laterally compressed and knotted on the upper edge.
NO. 449. CAPRA _vel_ HEMITRAGUS JEMLAICUS.
_The Tahr_ (_Jerdon's No. 232_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Tehr_, _Jehr_, near Simla; _Jharal_, in Nepal;
_Kras_ and _Jagla_, in Kashmir; _Kart_, in Kulu; _Jhula_ the male,
and _Thar_ or _Tharni_ the female, in Kunawur; _Esbu_ and _Esbi_,
male and female, on the Sutlej above Chini (_Jerdon_).
HABITAT.--Throughout the entire range of the Himalayas, at high
elevations between the forest and snow limits. According to Dr. Leith
Adams it is very common on the Pir Panjal, and more so near Kishtwar.
[Illustration: _Hemitragus Jemlaicus_.]
DESCRIPTION.--The male is of various shades of brown, varying in tint
from dark to yellowish, the front part and mane being ashy with a
bluish tinge, the upper part of the limbs rusty brown, the fronts
of legs and belly being darker. There is no beard, the face being
smooth and dark ashy, but on the fore-quarters and neck the hair
lengthens into a magnificent mane, which sometimes reaches to the
knees. There is a dark mesial line; the tail is short and nude
underneath; the horns are triangular, the sharp edge being to the
front; they are about ten or eleven inches in circumference at the
base where they touch, then, sweeping like a demi-crescent backwards,
they taper to a fine point in a length of about 12 to 14 inches. The
male has at times a very strong odour. The female is smaller, and
of a reddish-brown or fulvous drab above, with a dark streak down
the back, whitish below; the horns are also much smaller.
SIZE.--Length of head and body, about 4-1/2 feet. Height, 36 to 40
inches.
Col. Kinloch, whose two volumes are most valuable, both as regards
interesting details and perfect illustrations, speaks thus of this
species:--
"The tahr is a fine-looking beast, although his horns are small, and
he cannot compare with his majestic relatives, the ibex and the
markhor. The male tahr is about the same size as the ibex, but rather
more heavily made. The general colour is a reddish-brown, deepening
into a much darker tint on the hind-quarters, but individuals vary
a good deal, and I have shot one which was of a yellowish-white. The
face is covered with smooth short hair, and is nearly black; the hair
of the body is long and coarse, attaining its greatest length on the
neck, chest and shoulders, where it forms a fine flowing mane
reaching below the animal's knees. The horns are curious, being
triangular, with the sharp edge to the front; they are very thick
at the base, and taper rapidly to a fine point, curving right back
on to the neck. The largest horns attain a length of about 14 inches,
and are 10 or 11 inches in circumference at the base.
"The female tahr is very much smaller than the male; the hair is short,
and the horns diminutive. The colour is a lightish red, with a dark
stripe down the back.
"The tahr is like the markhor, a forest-loving animal, and, although
it sometimes resorts to the rocky summits of the hills, it generally
prefers the steep slopes, which are more or less clothed with trees.
Female tahr may be frequently found on open ground, but old males
hide a great deal in the thickest jungle, lying during the heat of
the day under the shade of trees or overhanging rocks. Nearly
perpendicular hills with dangerous precipices, where the forest
consists of oak and ringall cane, are the favourite haunts of the
old tahr, who climb with ease over ground where one would hardly
imagine that any animal could find a footing. Tahr ground indeed is
about the worst walking I know, almost rivalling markhor ground; the
only advantage being that, bad as it is, there are generally some
bushes or grass to hold on to.
"Owing to the ground it inhabits being so covered with jungle, the
pursuit of the tahr is attended with a great deal of labour and
uncertainty. Forcing one's way for hours through tangled bushes is
very fatiguing, and, as it is impossible to do so without noise,
chances are often lost which would be easy enough if the ground was
more open. Frequently, although the tracks show that old tahr must
be near, and in spite of the utmost care and caution, the first
intimation one has of the presence of the game is a rush through the
bushes, a clatter of falling stones, and perhaps a glimpse of the
shaggy hind-quarters of the last of the herd as he vanishes over some
precipice where it is perfectly impossible to follow him.
"Early in the spring, when grass and leaves are scarce, and again
in the rutting season, are the best times for tahr shooting, as the
old males then come out on open slopes.
"The tahr is very tenacious of life, and, even when mortally wounded,
he will frequently make his escape into utterly impracticable ground.
In autumn the tahr becomes immensely fat and heavy, and his flesh
is then in high favour with the natives, the rank flavour suiting
their not very delicate palates. An Englishman would rather not be
within one hundred yards to leeward of him, the perfume being equal
to treble-distilled 'bouquet de bouc.' Ibex is bad enough, but tahr
is 'a caution.' The flesh of the female is, however, excellent."
Colonel Markham says: "Seen at a distance it looks like a great wild
hog, but when near it is a noble beast." According to Hodgson, it
has interbred with a female spotted deer, and the offspring, which
more resembled the mother, grew up a fine animal. There is a
beautifully clear photograph in Kinloch's 'Large Game of Thibet,'
and a large coloured plate in Wolf's 'Zoological Sketches.'
NO. 450. CAPRA _vel_ HEMITRAGUS HYLOCRIUS.
_The Neilgherry Wild Goat, or Ibex of Madras Sportsmen_
(_Jerdon's No. 233_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Warra-adu_ or _Warri-atu_, Tamil.
HABITAT.--The Western Ghats, southerly towards Cape Comorin.
DESCRIPTION.--According to Jerdon, "the adult male, dark sepia brown,
with a pale reddish-brown saddle, more or less marked, and paler
brown on the sides and beneath; legs somewhat grizzled with white,
dark brown in front, and paler posteriorly; the head is dark,
grizzled with yellowish-brown, and the eye is surrounded by a pale
fawn-coloured spot; horns short, much curved, nearly in contact at
the base, gradually diverging, strongly keeled internally, round
externally, with numerous close rings not so prominent as in the last
species. There is a large callous spot on the knees surrounded by
a fringe of hair, and the male has a short stiff mane on the neck
and withers. The hair is short, thick, and coarse."
Colonel Douglas Hamilton, writing to the late Brigadier-General
McMaster, says: "I think Jerdon's description is good, but I should
call the saddles of the old males grizzled with white, and not pale
reddish-brown. A real old 'saddle-back' has a white saddle and almost
jet-black points. He makes a mistake about the length of the tail,
6 or 7 inches; it is not more than 3 inches."
SIZE.--Height at shoulder, 41 to 42 inches. Jerdon gives 32 to 34,
but he appears to have under-estimated the animal, unless it be a
misprint for 42 and 44; although he questions Colonel W. Campbell's
measurements of length and height, the former of which does seem
excessive (6 feet 5 inches, including tail, probably taken from a
skin), but the latter, 42 inches, is corroborated by Colonel Hamilton
and several others.
The size of the horns is given by Jerdon as occasionally 15 inches,
rarely more than 12. Colonel Douglas Hamilton says, 9 inches in
circumference and 15 to 15-1/2 or 15-3/4 in length is the average
of a large horn. General McMaster writes, referring to the latter
opinion: "Both he and I know of one 16 inches in length, shot by a
well-known South Indian sportsman of the Madras Civil Service, and
in February 1869 at Ootacamund, he and I measured the horn of a
magnificent buck ibex, shot within 15 or 20 miles of that place. The
exact measurements of this mighty horn were 17 inches in length, and
9-3/4 in circumference at the base."
Jerdon states that this goat chiefly frequents the northern and
western slopes of the Neilgherries, where the hills run down in a
succession of steep stony slopes or rocky ridges to the high
table-land of Mysore and the Wynaad, both of which districts are
themselves hilly. It is occasionally seen on the summit of the
northern and western faces, but more generally some distance down,
at an elevation of 4000 to 6000 feet, and, if carefully looked for,
the herd may be seen feeding on an open grassy glade at the foot of
some precipice. "I have," he adds, "seen above twenty individuals
in a flock occasionally, but more generally not more than six or seven.
With the large herds there is almost always one very large old male
conspicuous by his nearly black colour."
Colonel D. Hamilton says he has seen 120 pass out of one valley, which
he thinks were probably the aggregate of several herds, but he has
counted sixty and sixty-five in a herd, and thirty-five in another,
without a single adult buck amongst them. In the _South of India
Observer_ for the 3rd and 17th of September, 1868, will be found most
interesting descriptions of ibex-shooting by "Hawkeye" whose
letters are largely quoted by McMaster; but I can only find space
for one extract here, interesting to both sportsman and
naturalist:--
"It is a pleasant sight to watch a herd of ibex, when undisturbed,
the kids frisking here and there on pinnacles or ledges of rocks and
beetling cliffs, where there seems scarcely safe foothold for
anything much larger than the grasshopper or a fly; the old mother
looking calmly on or grazing steadily while the day is young,
cropping the soft moss or tender herbs and sweet short grass
springing from the crevices of the craggy precipices in rich
abundance. Then, again, to see the caution observed in taking up
their resting or abiding places for the day, where they may be warmed
by the sun, listening to the roar of many waters, and figuratively,
we may say, chewing the cud of contentment, and giving themselves
up to the full enjoyment of their nomadic life and its romantic haunts.
Usually before reposing one of the herd, generally an old doe, may
be observed intently gazing below, apparently scanning every spot
in the range of her vision, sometimes for half an hour or more before
she is satisfied that 'all is well;' strange to say, seldom or ever
looking up to the rocks above. Then, being satisfied on the one side,
she observes the same process on the other, eventually calmly lying
down, contented with the precautions she has taken that all is safe.
Her post as sentinel is generally a prominent one, on the edge and
corner perhaps of some ledge, to be well sheltered from the wind and
warmed by the sun, along which the rest of the herd dispose themselves
as inclined, fully trusting in the watchful guardian, whose
manoeuvres I have been describing. Should the sentinel be joined by
another, or her kid come and lie down by her, they invariably place
themselves back to back, or in such a manner that they can keep a
look-out on either side. A solitary male goes through all this by
himself, and wonderfully careful he is, but when with the herd he
reposes in security, leaving it to the females to take precautions
for their mutual safety. I have stated that these animals seldom look
above them, except when any cause of alarm leads them to do so. I
recollect an instance which I will relate, partly to show the
advantage of a good colour for a stalker's dress, and to illustrate
what I have mentioned above. I had disturbed a buck ibex accidentally
one morning, and, after watching him a long distance with the glass,
observed him to take up a position and commence the vigilant process
previously mentioned. By this I knew he was preparing to lie down.
He was a long time about it, but eventually he was satisfied, and
took up his post on a prominent rock, from which, as lying with his
back to the mountain, he held a clear view in front and on both sides.
I approached from above, the wind all right, and the ibex reposing
comfortably in fancied security. I had to pass a large rock to clear
an intervening impediment, and gain a full view of the buck, as I
could at first only see his horns. I had taken the precaution to
remove my shoes, the grass being very dry and noisy. The crunching
of the dry grass as I moved attracted the notice of the ibex, and
suddenly he looked back and up towards me. He was not more than eighty
or ninety yards below. I leaned against the rock, my shikar dress
blending with the dark grey of the stone and burnt-up grass so
completely as to deceive even my lynx-eyed prey. Long, long he looked,
till my very knees trembled with anxiety. At last he turned his head,
but I knew better than to move, being sure he would have another look.
He did so and it proved to be his last, for, when he again turned
his head away, I quietly subsided, and in another moment the buck
died on his rocky bed."
There is an illustration by Wolf of the animal in Colonel Walter
Campbell's 'My Indian Journal.'
The female has only two mammae, and usually produces two young at
a time.
THE GOAT ANTELOPES, OR CAPRICORNS.
These animals form the link between the goats and the antelopes;
their general characteristics are short, conical horns, ringed at
the base, upright and curving backwards, and of nearly equal size
in both sexes. The body is heavier than is usual amongst antelopes;
the feet are large, and have false hoofs.
_GENUS NEMORHOEDUS_.
"Horns in both sexes round, black and ringed; a small muffle;
eye-pits wanting or small; large feet-pits in all feet; no inguinal
pits nor calcic tufts; tails short, hairy; four mammae" (_Jerdon_).
NO. 451. NEMORHOEDUS BUBALINA.
_The Serow, or Forest Goat_ (_Jerdon's No. 230_).
NATIVE NAMES.--_Serow_, or _Serowa_, Pahari; _Eimu_, on the Sutlej;
_Ramu_, _Halj_, _Salabhir_, Kashmiri; _Nga_, Leesaws of the Sanda
valley; _Paypa_, of the Shans; _Shanli_, Chinese of the
Burma-Chinese frontier.
HABITAT.--The whole of the wooded ranges of the Himalayas from
Kashmir down past Sikim on to the ranges dividing China from Burmah.
[Illustration: _Nemorhoedus bubalina_.]
DESCRIPTION.--I have before me several descriptions of this animal,
of which I have little personal knowledge. The best of all is that
of Colonel Kinloch, which has been, to some extent, quoted by
Professor Garrod in Cassell's Natural History. I give it _in
extenso_:--
"The serow is an ungainly-looking animal, combining the
characteristics of the cow, the donkey, the pig, and the goat! It
is a large and powerful beast, considerably larger than a tahr, and
longer in the leg. The body is covered with very coarse hair, which
assumes the form of a bristly mane on the neck and shoulders, and
gives the beast a ferocious appearance, which does not belie its
disposition. The colour is a dull black on the back, bright red on
the sides, and white underneath, the legs also being dirty white.
The ears are very large, the muzzle is coarse, and two singular
circular orifices are situated two or three inches below the eyes.
The horns are stout at the base, are ringed nearly to the tips, and
curve back close to the neck, growing to the length of from nine to
fourteen inches; they are very sharp-pointed, and the serow is said
to be able to make good use of them.
"The sexes vary very little, less than in any ruminating animal with
which I am acquainted; both are furnished with horns of nearly the
same size, those of an old male being rather thicker than those of
the female.
"The serow has an awkward gait; but in spite of this it can go over
the worst ground; and it has, perhaps, no superior in going down steep
hills.
"It is a solitary animal, and is nowhere numerous; two or three may
be found on one hill, four or five on another, and so on. It delights
in the steepest and most rocky hill-sides, and its favourite
resting-places are in caves, under the shelter of overhanging rocks,
or at the foot of shady trees. It constantly repairs to the same spots,
as testified to by the large heaps of its droppings which are to be
found in the localities above alluded to. Although very shy and
difficult to find, the serow is a fierce and dangerous brute when
wounded and brought to bay. I have even heard of an unwounded male
charging when his mate had been shot.
"It is said that the serow will sometimes beat off a pack of wild
dogs, and I believe that serow and dogs have been found lying dead
together. It is therefore advisable to be cautious when approaching
a wounded one.
"When disturbed, the serow utters a most singular sound, something
between a snort and a screaming whistle, and I have heard them
screaming loudly when they had apparently not been alarmed."
Colonel Markham says of it that it is something in appearance between
a jackass and a _thar_, with long stout legs, and a strong neck.
Jerdon's description is not clear; it is: "above black, more or less
grizzled and mixed on the flanks with deep clay colour; a black dorsal
stripe; forearms and thighs anteriorly reddish brown; the rest of
the limbs hoary; beneath whitish." The deep clay colour is indefinite,
as there are many sorts of clay, and people's ideas may differ as
to the shade by the particular clay to which they are most accustomed.
Dr. Anderson found it in the Western provinces of Yunnan; and General
McMaster, in his 'Notes' (page 143), says that when he was quartered
at Shuaygheen, on the Sitang river, in Burmah, a female of this
species was brought alive to Major Berdmore by some Burmans, who had
caught it in the river, by which it had probably been washed down
from the Karanee mountains. He adds that even in its exhausted and
dying state it was exceedingly savage, butting at every one who
approached it.
SIZE.--Height, about 3 feet, or an inch or two over; length, about
5 to 5-1/2 feet; weight, about 200 lbs.; horns, about a foot long
as an average, varying from 9 to 14 inches.
The female usually produces one kid in the autumn, about September
or October, and the period of gestation is about seven months.
NO. 452. NEMORHOEDUS RUBIDA _vel_ SUMATRENSIS.
_The Arakanese Capricorn_.
NATIVE NAME.--_Tan-Kseik_, Arakanese.
HABITAT.--Arakan, through Pegu to (according to Blyth) the extremity
of the Malayan peninsula, and occurs in Siam and Formosa, and also
in Sumatra. Has been shot near Shillong in Assam.
DESCRIPTION.--Blyth is of opinion ('Cat. Mam. British Burmah,' 'J.
A. S. B.' 1875) that his _N. rubida_ is identical with _Sumatrensis_
and _Swinhoei_, and he could detect no difference in their skulls
and skins. I therefore take the following description of
_Capricornis Swinhoei_ from the 'P. Z. S.' 1862, page 263, where it
is also figured, plate xxxv.:--
"The fur harsh and crisp, brown, with a narrow streak down the back
of the neck; a spot on the knee and the front of the fore-legs below
the knee black; the hind-legs are bay; the sides of the chin pale
yellowish; the under-side of the neck yellow bay, this colour being
separated from the darker colour of the upper part of the neck by
a ridge of longer, more rigid hairs; the ears are long, brown, paler
internally; the horns are short and conical; the skull has a deep
and wide concavity in front of the orbits, and a keeled ridge on the
cheek."