Transcriber's note: Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
* * * * *
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz, Berlin._
OCELOT FROM CENTRAL AMERICA.
This is one of the most beautifully marked of all Mammals. The ornamental
colouring is seldom quite the same in any two specimens.]
THE . .
LIVING ANIMALS
OF THE WORLD
A POPULAR NATURAL HISTORY
AN INTERESTING DESCRIPTION OF BEASTS, BIRDS, FISHES
REPTILES, INSECTS, ETC., WITH AUTHENTIC ANECDOTES
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz. Berlin_]
VOL. I.
MAMMALS
BY
C. J. CORNISH, M.A., F.Z.S. (_Editor._)
F. C. SELOUS
SIR HARRY JOHNSTON, G.C.M.G., K.C.B.
C. H. LANE, F.Z.S.
LOUIS WAIN
W. P. PYCRAFT, A.L.S., F.Z.S.
H. A. BRYDEN
F. G. AFLALO, F.Z.S.
W. SAVILLE-KENT, F.L.S., F.Z.S.
WITH
567 ILLUSTRATIONS
(INCLUDING 13 COLOURED PLATES)
FROM PHOTOGRAPHS
LONDON: HUTCHINSON & CO., PATERNOSTER ROW
PRINTED BY
HAZELL, WATSON AND VINEY, LD.,
LONDON AND AYLESBURY.
VOL. I.
CONTENTS.
CHAP. PAGE
INTRODUCTION i
_BOOK I. MAMMALS._
I. APES, MONKEYS, AND LEMURS 1
II. THE CAT TRIBE 33
III. THE FOSSA, CIVETS, AND ICHNEUMONS 74
IV. THE HYÆNAS AND AARD-WOLF 80
V. THE DOG FAMILY 84
VI. THE BEARS 114
VII. THE SMALLER CARNIVORA 125
VIII. MARINE CARNIVORA: THE SEALS,
SEA-LIONS, AND WALRUS 136
IX. THE RODENTS, OR GNAWING ANIMALS 146
X. THE BATS AND INSECT-EATING
MAMMALS 165
XI. THE ELEPHANT, TAPIR, HYRAX, AND
RHINOCEROS 172
XII. THE HORSE TRIBE 189
XIII. THE HOLLOW-HORNED RUMINANTS:
OXEN, BISON, BUFFALOES, AND
MUSK-OX 207
XIV. THE SHEEP AND GOATS 221
XV. THE ANTELOPES 239
XVI. THE GIRAFFE AND OKAPI 264
XVII. THE DEER TRIBE 271
XVIII. THE CAMEL TRIBE AND THE
CHEVROTAINS 302
XIX. THE PIG AND HIPPOPOTAMUS 310
XX. THE DUGONG, MANATEES, WHALES,
PORPOISES, AND DOLPHINS 327
XXI. THE SLOTHS, ANT-EATERS, AND
ARMADILLOS 336
XXII. MARSUPIALS AND MONOTREMES 344
COLOURED PLATES.
Ocelot from Central America _Facing page_ i
The largest Gorilla ever captured " " 8
African Lion and Lioness " " 33
Wolf from Central Europe " " 65
Himalayan Black Bear " " 97
Raccoon " " 129
Chapman's Zebras " " 161
Highland Cattle " " 193
Female Kudu " " 225
Northern Giraffe " " 257
Fallow Deer " " 289
A Hippopotamus gaping " " 321
The Great Kangaroo " " 353
ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT.
PAGE
Pekin Deer in summer dress i
Negro Boy and Apes i
Skeletons of Man and Gorilla ii
Sea-swallows iii
African Leopard iv
East African Giraffe iv
Flying-fox v
Dolphins v
A Happy Family vi
Elephants vi
Giant Tortoise vii
A group of Crocodilians vii
Somali Zebras viii
Sun-fish viii
A young Chimpanzee (Anger,
Pleasure, Fear) 1
Arabian Baboon 1
"Jenny," the well-known
Chimpanzee at the Zoo 2
A young Chimpanzee 3
Head of male Gorilla 4
A male Gorilla 5
Young Orang-utans 6
Baby Orang-utans at play 7
Two baby Orang-utans. The
tug-of-war 8
White-handed Gibbon 9
Hoolock Gibbon 9
Head of Proboscis Monkey 10
Cross-bearing Langur and young 11
Male Himalayan Langur 12
Gelada Baboons at home 13
Mantled Guereza 14
Diana Monkey 15
Barbary Ape 15
Rhesus Monkey 16
Rhesus Monkey and Sooty Mangabey 16
Grey-cheeked Mangabey 17
Chinese Macaque 17
Grivet Monkey 17
Bonnet Monkey and Arabian Baboon 17
Rhesus Monkeys 18
Orange Snub-nosed Monkey 18
Pig-tailed Monkey 19
Chacma Baboon 20
A young male Chacma Baboon 21
Head of male Mandrill 22
Brown Capuchin 22
Drill 22
Red Howler Monkey 23
A Spider Monkey 23
Patas Monkey 24
Wanderoo Monkey 24
Common Squirrel Monkey 25
Black-eared Marmoset 26
Humboldt's Woolly Monkey 26
Pig-tailed Monkey catching a fly 27
Ringed-tailed Lemur 28
A Dwarf Lemur 28
Black Lemur 29
Coquerel's Lemur 29
Ruffed Lemur 29
Garnett's Galago 30
Maholi Galago 30
Slender Loris 31
Slow Loris 31
Tarsier 32
Head of Aye-aye 32
African Lion 33
An Unwilling Pupil 33
Lioness aroused 34
Algerian Lioness 35
A Foster-mother 36
A performing Lion 36
Lioness and Cub 36
A young Lioness 37
A Happy Family 38
A cross between Lion and Tigress 38
A hungry Lion 39
Lioness and Tiger 40
Tigress 41
Tiger Cub 42
A Royal Tiger 42
A Tiger before sleeping 43
A half-grown Tiger Cub 44
Tigers in Italy 45
A Leopard-puma Hybrid 46
Leopards 46
A young Leopard 47
Snow-leopard, or Ounce 48
Cheeta 49
Jaguar 50
Puma 50
Female Puma 51
Ocelot 52
Ocelot from Central America 53
Clouded Leopard 54
Fishing-cat 54
Marbled Cat 54
Golden Cat 55
Pampas-cat 56
Eyra Cat 56
Bay Cat 56
Kaffir Cat 57
African Chaus, or Jungle-cat 57
Serval 58
Male Serval 59
Serval climbing 60
European Wild Cat 61
Scotch Wild Cats 62
Lynx 63
European Lynx 64
Canadian Lynx 64
Cheetas 65
A Cheeta hooded 66
A Cheeta on the look-out 67
Domestic Cats:
White Short-haired 68
Long-haired White 68
Mackerel-marked Tabby 69
Cat carrying Kitten 69
Blue Long-haired, or Persian 69
Smoke and Blue Long-haired 69
Orange Tabby 69
Long-haired Tabby 69
Silver Persian 69
Smoke Long-haired, or Persian 69
Short-haired Blue 70
Silver Tabby 70
Short-haired Tabby 71
Long-haired Orange 71
Manx 72
Siamese 72
Blue Long-haired, or Persian 72
Silver Persians 72
Long-haired Chinchilla 73
The "Bun" or "Ticked" Short-haired Cat 73
Fossa 74
Large Indian Civet 74
African Civet 75
African Civet 76
Sumatran Civet 76
Genet 77
Two-spotted Palm-civet 78
Masked Palm-civet 78
Binturong 79
Mongoose 79
Meercat 80
Spotted Hyæna 81
Spotted Hyæna 81
Striped Hyæna 82
Aard-wolf 82
Young Grey Wolf 83
A growing Cub 84
Wolf Cubs 85
White Wolf 86
Prairie-wolf, or Coyote 86
The Wolf with privy paw 87
Russian Wolf 88
A Wolf of the Carpathians 89
Indian Wolf 90
Wolf's head 90
Russian Wolf 91
North African Jackal 92
Indian Jackal 92
Maned Wolf 93
Turkish Jackal 93
Wild Dog 94
Dingo 94
Dingoes 95
Cape Hunting-dog 96
Fox Cubs 97
Mountain-fox 98
Leicestershire Fox 98
Too difficult! 99
Arctic Fox (In summer; Changing
his coat; In winter) 100
Fennec-fox 100
Domestic Dogs:
Stag-hound Puppies 101
Greyhound 102
Retriever 103
Blood-hound 104
English Setter 104
Smooth-coated Saint Bernard 104
Great Dane 105
Dachshund 105
Dalmatians 106
Newfoundland 106
Bull-dogs 107
Old English Sheep-dog 108
Mastiff 108
Deer-hound 109
Pointer 109
Skye Terrier 109
Corded Poodle 109
Pomeranian 109
Scottish Terrier 109
Maltese Toy Terrier 109
Butterfly-dog 109
Her Majesty Queen Alexandra, with
Chow and Japanese Spaniels 110
Sand-dog 110
Pug and Pekinese Spaniel 111
Fox-terrier 111
Blenheim and Prince Charles
Spaniels 112
Pariah Puppies 112
Common Brown Bear 113
An inviting attitude 114
Three performing Bears 114
European Brown Bear 115
Syrian Bear 116
Large Russian Brown Bear 116
American Black Bear 117
Young Syrian Bear from the Caucasus 118
A Brown Bear in search of insects 119
Polar Bears 120
Two Polar Bears and a Brown Bear 121
Polar Bear 122
Half-grown Polar Bears 123
The Ice-bear's couch 124
Common Raccoon 125
Raccoon 125
Great Panda 126
Kinkajou 127
Young Otters 127
Two tame Otters 128
Sea-otter 128
A Skunk 129
A Badger in the water 129
European Badger 130
Ratel 131
Pine-marten 132
Polecat 133
Himalayan Weasel 133
Common Stoat (In summer and
winter coats) 134
Glutton 134
Californian Sea-lions, or Eared Seals 135
Steller's Sea-lion 136
Sea-lion 137
Sea-lion 138
Female Walrus 139
Male Walrus 140
Walrus and Sea-lion 141
Grey Seal 142
Grey Seal 143
Harp-seal 144
Sea-elephant 145
Capybara 146
Flying-squirrel 146
Flying-squirrel 147
Dorsal Squirrel from Central America 148
Asiatic Chipmunks 148
Red-footed Ground-squirrel 149
Black Fox-squirrel 149
Long-tailed Marmot 150
Prairie-dogs, or Marmots 151
American Beaver 152
Beaver 153
Beaver 154
Musk-rat 154
Gambian Pouched Rat 155
Pocket-gopher 156
Long-eared Jerboa 157
Cape Jumping-hare 157
Octodont 158
Coypu 158
Short-tailed Hutia 159
Porcupine 159
Porcupine 160
Viscacha 160
Chinchilla 161
Agutis 161
Paca, or Spotted Cavy 162
Pacas, or Spotted Cavies 162
Patagonian Cavy 163
Wood-hare 163
Wild Rabbits 164
Australian Fruit-bat, or "Flying-fox" 165
Australian Fruit-bat 166
Tube-nosed Fruit-bat 166
Pipistrelle Bat 167
Leaf-nosed Bat 167
Cobego 168
Cobego 169
Cobego asleep 170
Three baby Hedgehogs 170
Common Mole 171
Golden Mole 171
A fine Tusker 172
A young Indian Elephant 173
The Chief of Chiengmai's Carriage 174
Timber-elephants 175
Female Indian Elephant dragging teak 176
Indian Elephants bathing 177
African Elephant 178
Male African Elephant drinking 179
Malayan Tapir 180
Common American Tapir 181
Hairy-eared Sumatran Rhinoceros 182
Great Indian Rhinoceros 183
Great Indian Rhinoceros 184
Black African Rhinoceroses 185
One of the same Rhinoceroses dead 185
Rhinoceros bathing 186
Black African Rhinoceros 187
Sumatran Rhinoceros 188
Mountain-zebra 189
Grevy's Zebra 190
Burchell's Zebra at home 191
The Hon. Walter Rothschild's
team of Zebras 192
Burchell's Zebra, Chapman's variety 193
Mare and Foal of Burchell's Zebra 194
Burchell's Zebra 194
Zebras on Table Mountain 195
Quagga 195
Baluchi Wild Ass 196
Male Kiang 197
Yearling Arab Colts 198
Arab Mare 199
Arab Mares and Foals 200
Percheron Horse 201
Hackney and Foal 201
Ladas 202
Florizel II. 202
Shetland Pony and Foal 203
Champion Shire Stallion 203
Shire Mare and Foal 204
Welsh Pony 204
Polo-pony 205
Donkey 205
Egyptian Donkeys 206
Mules 206
English Park-cattle 207
English Park Bull 208
Calf of English Park-cattle 208
Jersey Cow 209
Spanish Cattle 209
Young Gaur 210
Cow Gayal 211
Indian Humped Bull 212
Indian Humped Cattle 213
Domesticated Yak 214
American bull Bison 215
European Bison 216
American Bison 217
Cape Buffalo 218
Domesticated Indian Buffalo 218
A pair of Anoas 219
Young bull Musk-ox 220
Young Barbary Sheep 221
Siberian Argali 222
Barbary Sheep 223
Barbary Sheep 223
Burhal Wild Sheep 224
Punjab Sheep 225
Fat-tailed Sheep 225
Four-horned Sheep 226
South Down Sheep 226
Merino Rams 227
Black-faced Mountain-sheep 228
Leicester Ewe 228
Cross-bred Sheep 229
Lonk Ram 230
Welsh Ewes 230
Female Angora Goat 231
Angora Ram 231
British Goat 232
Female Toggenburg Goat 233
Stud Toggenburg Goat 233
Schwartzals Goat 234
Male Alpine Ibex 235
Young male Alpine Ibex 235
Nubian Goat 236
Italian Goat 237
Rocky Mountain Goat 238
Himalayan Tahr and young 238
Bubalino Hartebeest 239
Biesbok 240
White-tailed Gnu and Calf 240
A cow Brindled Gnu 241
Red-flanked Duiker 241
Klipspringer 242
Sing-sing Waterbuck 243
Mountain Reedbuck 244
Male Impala, or Palla 244
Male Saiga Antelopes 245
Arabian Gazelle 246
Goitred Gazelles from Mesopotamia 247
Speke's Gazelle 248
Gazelles from Egypt 248
Red-fronted Gazelle 249
Red-fronted Gazelle (another view) 249
Male Springbuck 250
Sable Antelope 251
Roan Antelope 252
Male of Grant's Gazelle 252
Group of Beisa Oryx 253
White Oryx 254
Beisa Oryx 254
Gerenuk 255
Female Nilgai 256
Addax 256
A pair of young Prongbucks 257
Female Goral 258
Harnessed Antelope 258
Male Kudu 259
Eland 260
Eland Cows 261
Bull Eland 262
The Southern Giraffe 263
Southern Giraffe lying down 264
Male Southern Giraffe 265
A Giraffe grazing 266
A Giraffe browsing 267
Male and female Giraffes 268
The Okapi of the Congo Forest 269
Head of Okapi 270
Scandinavian Reindeer 271
Woodland Caribou 272
Immature Scandinavian Elk 273
Female American Elk, or Moose 274
Park Red Deer 275
An Asiatic Wapiti 276
American Wapiti 277
American Wapiti 278
American Wapiti 279
Altai Wapiti 280
Manchurian Wapiti calling 281
An Axis Hind 282
A stag Axis, or Indian Spotted Deer 283
A Spotted Oriental Deer 284
A young Fallow Buck of the Brown Breed 285
A Sambar Stag 286
Formosan Sika Stag 287
Javan Rusa Stag 287
Hog-deer 288
Young male Swamp-deer 289
Indian Muntjac 290
Young male Chinese Water-deer 290
Male Siberian Roe 291
Female Siberian Roe 291
Siberian Roebuck 292
Female European Roe Deer 293
Père David's Deer 294
Group of Virginian Deer (two
bucks, four does) 295
A Mule-deer Fawn 296
Virginian Deer 297
Mule-deer Stag 298
Young Marsh-deer 299
Young Himalayan Musk-deer 300
The Camel-plough, used in Algiers 301
A White Camel 302
Arabian Camel 302
A Camel 303
A string of Camels near Port Said 303
Head of Bactrian Camel 304
An old male Bactrian Camel 305
Bactrian Camel 306
Young Bactrian Camel 306
Guanaco 307
Llamas 308
Llama 309
Alpaca 309
A Domesticated Sow and her Progeny 310
Wild Boar 311
Diving-pigs 312
Javan Wild Pig 313
Male and female Babirusa 313
Wart-hog 314
Ælian's Wart-hog 314
Head of male Wart-hog 315
Collared Peccary 316
A young Collared Peccary 317
A three-year-old Hippopotamus 318
Hippopotamus drinking 319
Hippopotamus bathing 320
Baby Hippopotamus, aged six months 321
Dental operations on a Hippopotamus 322, 323
Female Hippopotamuses 324
A Hippopotamus Family--father,
mother, and young 324
Hippopotamus 325
Male and female Hippopotamuses 326
Dugong 327
American Manatee 328
Narwhal 329
Grampus, or Killer 330
Short-beaked River-dolphin 331
Sowerby's Beaked Whale 332
Common Porpoise 333
Elliott's Dolphin 334
Risso's Dolphin 334
Bottle-nosed Dolphin 335
Heavyside's Dolphin 335
Northern Two-toed Sloth 336
Three-toed Sloth 337
The Great Ant-eater 338
Tamandua Ant-eater 339
Two-toed Ant-eater 340
Weasel-headed Armadillo 341
Hairy-rumped Armadillo 341
Peba Armadillo 341
Kapplers' Armadillo 341
Cape Aard-vark 342
The Great Grey Kangaroo 343
Silver-grey Kangaroo 344
Black-striped Wallaby 345
Bennett's Wallaby and the
Great Grey Kangaroo 345
Albino Red Kangaroos 346
Tasmanian Wallaby 347
Albino Red-bellied Wallaby 348
Rock-wallaby 349
Parry's Wallaby 350
Parry's Wallaby 350
Foot of Tree-kangaroo 351
Brown Tree-kangaroo 352
Tree-kangaroos 353
Gaimard's Rat-kangaroo 354
Rat-kangaroo from New South Wales 354
Koala, or Australian Native
Bear, and Cub 355
Koala, or Australian Native Bear 356
Koala, or Australian Native Bear 357
Squirrel-like Flying-phalanger
of Victoria 358
Larger Flying-phalanger 359
Lesser Flying-phalanger 360
Pygmy Flying-phalanger 361
Common Grey Opossum, or Phalanger 362
Australian Grey Opossum, or Phalanger 363
Front view of Grey Opossum,
or Phalanger 364
Profile view of Grey Opossum,
or Phalanger 364
Ring-tailed Opossum, or Phalanger,
and nest 365
Spotted Cuscus 366
Common Wombat 367
Hairy-nosed Wombat 368
Common Wombat 369
Long-nosed Australian Bandicoot 370
Rabbit-bandicoot 371
Pouched Mole 372
Under surface of Pouched Mole 372
Tasmanian Wolf 373
Tasmanian Wolf 373
Tasmanian Devil 374
Spotted Dasyures, or Australian
Native Cats 375
Brush-tailed Pouched Mouse, or
Phascogale 376
Banded Ant-eater 377
Yapock, or Water-opossum 378
Young Opossum (natural size) 379
Woolly American Opossum 380
Common or Virginian Opossum 381
Echidna, or Ant-eating Porcupine 382
Tasmanian Echidna, or Porcupine
Ant-eater 383
Duck-billed Platypus 384
_N.B.--The photograph of dolphins on page v was inadvertently attributed to
Mr. F. G. Aflalo. The name of the photographer should have been Mr. T.
Limberg, who kindly gave permission for his capital snap-shot to be
reproduced in these pages._
[Illustration: _Photo by the Duchess of Bedford_] [_Woburn._
PEKIN DEER IN SUMMER DRESS.
An example of the white-spotted type of coloration so common among
herbivorous mammals.]
INTRODUCTION.
[Illustration: _By permission of Herr Carl Hagenbeck_] [_Hamburg._
NEGRO BOY AND APES.
An interesting picture of a Negro boy, with a young Chimpanzee (left side
of figure) and young Orang-utan (right side of figure).]
The welcome accorded to "The Living Races of Mankind," of which the present
work is the natural extension, would be a practical encouragement, if such
were needed, to treat of the Living Races of Animals in like fashion. But
the interest now taken in Natural History is of a kind and calibre never
previously known, and any work which presents the wonders of the Animal
World in a new or clearer form may make some claim to the approval of the
public. The means at the disposal of those responsible for the following
pages are, by mere lapse of time, greater than those of their predecessors.
Every year not only adds to the stock of knowledge of the denizens of earth
and ocean, but increases the facilities for presenting their forms and
surroundings pictorially. Photography applied to the illustration of the
life of beasts, birds, fishes, insects, corals, and plants is at once the
most attractive and the most correct form of illustration. In the following
pages it will be used on a scale never equalled in any previous
publication. Without straining words, it may be said that the subjects
photographed have been obtained from every part of the world, many of them
from the most distant islands of the Southern Ocean, the great barrier reef
of Australia, the New Zealand hills, the Indian jungle, the South African
veldt, and the rivers of British Columbia. Photographs of swimming fish,
the flying bird, and of the leaping salmon will be reproduced as accurately
as those of the large carnivora or the giant ungulates. In accordance with
the example now being set by the Museum of Natural History, the living
breeds of domesticated animals will also find a place.
[Illustration: _By permission of Herr Umlauff_] [_Hamburg._
SKELETONS OF MAN AND GORILLA.
This photograph shows the remarkable similarity in the structure of the
human frame (left) and that of the gorilla (right). This gorilla happened
to be a particularly large specimen; the man was of ordinary height.]
The time and expenditure employed in illustration will be equalled by the
attention given to the descriptive portion of the work. The Editor will
have the assistance of specialists, eminent alike in the world of science
and practical discovery. Mr. F. C. Selous, for example, will deal with the
African Lion and the Elephants, and other sportsmen with the big game of
the Dark Continent. Mr. W. Saville-Kent, the author of "The Great Barrier
Reef of Australia," will treat of the Marsupials of Australia and the
Reptilia; Sir Herbert Maxwell will write on the Salmonidæ, and Mr. F. G.
Aflalo on the Whales and other Cetacea of the deep seas; while Mr. R.
Lydekker, Dr. Bowdler Sharpe, Mr. W. F. Kirby, and other specialists have
kindly agreed to supervise the work. Where possible the illustrations will
show the creatures in their natural surroundings, and in all cases the
photographic portraits of the animals will, by the nature of things,
present true and living pictures, in place of the often curiously incorrect
and distorted objects, the product of illustrators' fancy rather than the
record of facts, not infrequently seen in previous illustrated natural
histories.
[Illustration: _Photo by G. Watmough Webster & Son_] [_Chester._
SEA-SWALLOWS.
From their long wings, forked tail, and flight, the Terns are popularly
called Sea-swallows.]
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz_] [_Berlin._
AFRICAN LEOPARD.
An example of the black-spotted type of coloration so prevalent in
Carnivora.]
It is possible that while these pages are in the press discoveries of new
animals may be made, or living representatives of creatures supposed to be
extinct may be discovered.[1] One band of explorers is engaged in seeking
on the plains of South America for recent remains and possible survivors of
the giant ground-sloths. Another expedition is engaged, in the island of
Java, in an even more interesting quest. Great as is the difference between
even the lowest human intelligence and the mind of the man-like apes, the
likeness both in form and action of the latter to man has never failed to
suggest that there may have existed, or may even still exist, a higher
anthropoid ape nearer to the human being than those now known. The idea has
taken shape in the term "the missing link." The phrase is misleading in
itself. Such a creature would be no more a link in the descent of man than
one imperfectly developed limb of a tree is a link between the other
branches and the stem. But it was always possible that we might find
another branch which had attained a higher type than those terminating in
the gorilla or chimpanzee. Recent search seems to have discovered the
remains of such a creature.
[Illustration: EAST AFRICAN GIRAFFE.
This photograph was taken in the wilds of Africa by Lord Delamere, and
shows the animal at home. The tree is a mimosa, on the top shoots of which
the giraffe habitually feeds.]
[Illustration: _Photo by W. Saville-Kent, F.Z.S._] [_Croydon._
FLYING-FOX.
This bat, which is a native of Australia (where it was photographed), is
commonly called the Flying-fox. Great flocks set out at sunset from the
forest to feed upon the indigenous fruits, such as that of the native fig.]
[Illustration: _Photo by F. G. Aflalo, F.Z.S._
DOLPHINS.
This photograph was taken in mid-ocean, and shows a couple of dolphins
following a ship across the Atlantic.]
In the island of Java, near one of the homes of the man-like apes of
to-day, a naturalist, M. Dubois, employed by the Dutch Government,
excavated some fossil-bearing gravels on a river called the Solo. These
gravels belong to a period when civilised man, at any rate, did not exist.
In them he found a great quantity of bones of mammals and of prehistoric
crocodiles. There were no perfect skeletons, and it was fairly plain that
the bodies of the creatures had been floated down the river, and there
pulled to pieces by the crocodiles, just as they are in India to-day. In
this place, lying within a distance of about fifteen yards from each other,
he made an extraordinary discovery of animal remains. This was no less than
the top of the skull of a creature much higher in development than the
chimpanzee or gorilla, but lower than the lowest type of human skull. Near
it were also found two of the teeth and one of the bones of the thigh. The
thigh bone resembles very nearly that of a man, though Dr. Virchow, whom
Englishmen remember in connection with the fatal illness of the German
Emperor Frederick, considered it did not differ from that of one of the
gibbons. The inference is that the creature _walked upright_; and this fact
is recorded in its scientific name.
[Illustration: _Photo by Fratelli Alinari_] [_Florence._
A HAPPY FAMILY.
Hyæna, tiger, and lions living in amity--a remarkable proof of their
tamer's power. In the same park at Hamburg, belonging to Herr Hagenbeck,
are also bears, dogs, leopards, and pumas, all loose together.]
As regards the skull, some specialists in anthropology said that it was
that of a large ape, of a kind of gibbon (a long-armed, upright-walking
ape, described later), of a "higher anthropoid ape," and of a low type of
man. Finally, Dr. Cunningham, the able secretary of the Royal Irish
Zoological Society, said it resembled that of a "microcephalous idiot." It
is rather strange if the remains of the first and only man found in the
Lower Pleistocene should happen to be those of a microcephalous idiot, for
out of many millions of men born there are perhaps only one or two of this
type. Compared with the head of any of the living apes, it is very large.
Its brain-holding power is about five to three compared with the skull of a
gorilla, and two to one compared with that of a chimpanzee.
[Illustration: ELEPHANTS.
This is another of Lord Delamere's East African photographs, and shows a
couple of wild elephants in the open.]
[Illustration: _By permission of the Hon. Walter Rothschild_] [_Tring._
GIANT TORTOISE.
This photograph of Mr. Walter Rothschild riding on one of his huge
tortoises gives a good idea of the relative sizes of one of the "giant
tortoises" and a human being.]
[Illustration: _Photo by Fratelli Alinari_] [_Florence._
A GROUP OF CROCODILIANS.
A wonder of modern animal-training. The photograph shows a number of living
crocodilians with their trainer. They have been on exhibition in Florence
for some years past, and are still to be seen there.]
There is a tradition in Sumatra that man-like apes exist, of a higher
character than the orang-utan. Pending the discovery of more remains, the
following extract is worth quoting, as giving shape to current ideas about
such creatures both here and among the Malays. They take form in a very
curious and interesting book, called "The Prison of Weltevreden," written
by Walter M. Gibson in the middle of the last century. His story is that he
was kept in prison at Weltevreden, in Java, by the Dutch, after leading a
life of adventure and enquiry among the islands of the South Atlantic and
Indian Ocean; that he came in his own small vessel to the Malay
Archipelago, and spent some time in the interior of Sumatra, _where he saw
apparent evidences of semi-human beings_. He saw the orang-utans in their
native forest, and noted that they were covered with red hair, and was
surprised at the slowness of their movements. Among some men engaged in
building a stable for the raja, he saw "a dark form, tall as a middle-sized
man, covered with hair, that looked soft and flowing; the arms, hands,
legs, and feet seemed well formed, like the Malays'; the body was straight,
and easily bore, on the right shoulder, the yoke of two heavy panniers
filled with material for the building which was going on." Gibson says that
"the eyes were clearer, the nose fuller, and the lips thinner than those of
the common Malay, but the mouth was wide, the lips protruding, and a chin
formed no part of its hairy face; yet it was pleasantly human in
expression," much more so than the dirty, mottle-faced coolies and lascars
he had seen. We quote the account, as showing, if true, that Gibson saw an
anthropoid ape _taught to work_.
[Illustration: SOMALI ZEBRAS.
This is a photograph of a group of zebras taken in Africa by Lord Delamere,
and gives some idea of the surrounding country, where they live in happy
freedom.]
It may be a mere coincidence, but it is nevertheless somewhat remarkable
that the two great black man-like apes, the chimpanzee and the gorilla,
inhabit the same continent as some of the blackest races of mankind, while
the red orang-utan is found in countries where the yellow-skinned Malay
races of man are indigenous.
----
_The special thanks of the Editor and Publishers are due to a great many
naturalists and zoologists for the valuable help they have given to, and
the interest they have taken in, this work while it has been in
preparation. No doubt, before the complete work is published, a great
many more names will be added to the list, but meanwhile grateful
acknowledgment should be made to the following:--Her Grace the Duchess of
Bedford, who has kindly allowed many of her fine photographs to be
reproduced in these pages; the Hon. Walter Rothschild, M.P., for the
splendid collection of photographs taken especially for him in all parts
of the world; Lord Delamere, for several unique photographs taken with a
telephoto lens during his celebrated expedition to Africa; Major Nott,
F.Z.S., for the use of his scientific series of animal photographs; Dr.
R. W. Shufeldt, of Washington, for many photographs of fish and other
animals in their natural surroundings; Mr. W. Saville-Kent, F.Z.S.,
F.L.S., for the photographs taken by him while in Australia; Mr. Lewis
Medland, F.Z.S., for the use of his singularly complete set of animal
photographs; Herr Carl Hagenbeck, of Hamburg, for permission to use his
photographs of some extremely rare specimens of animals which from time
to time have found a temporary home at his wonderful Thierpark; the
Trustees of the British Museum, for permission to photograph some of
their animals; Professor E. Ray Lankester, Director of the Natural
History Branch of the British Museum; and the Zoological Society, for
permission to photograph some of the animals. And also to Herr Ottomar
Anschütz, of Berlin; Messrs. Bond & Grover, of the Scholastic
Photographic Co.; Signor Alinari, of Florence; Messrs. Kerry & Co. and
Mr. Henry King, of Sydney; Mr. Charles Knight; Mr. J. W. McLellan;
Messrs. Charles and William Reid; Messrs. A. S. Rudland & Sons; and
Messrs. York & Sons, for permission to reproduce their photographs._
[Illustration: _Photo by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt_] [_Washington._
SUN-FISH.
This photograph was taken through the water by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, who has
made a speciality of this kind of photography.]
[Illustration: _Photos by G. W. Wilson & Co., Ltd._] [_Aberdeen._
A YOUNG CHIMPANZEE.
_Anger._ _Pleasure._ _Fear._]
THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD.
_BOOK I. MAMMALS._
----
CHAPTER I.
_APES, MONKEYS, AND LEMURS._
----
THE MAN-LIKE APES.
[Illustration: _Photo by Fratelli Alinari, Florence._
ARABIAN BABOON.]
THE CHIMPANZEE.
Of all the great apes the CHIMPANZEE most closely approaches man in bodily
structure and appearance, although in height it is less near the human
standard than the gorilla, 5 feet being probably that of an adult male.
Several races of this ape are known, among them the TRUE CHIMPANZEE and the
BALD CHIMPANZEE. The varieties also include the Kulo-kamba, described by Du
Chaillu, and the Soko, discovered by Livingstone, who confounded it with
the gorilla. But the variations in neither of these are sufficiently
important to justify their being ranked as species.
The first authentic mention of the chimpanzee is found in "The Strange
Adventures of Andrew Battell." an English sailor taken prisoner by the
Portuguese in 1590, who lived eighteen years near Angola. He speaks of two
apes, the Pongo and the Enjocko, of which the former is the gorilla, the
latter the chimpanzee. The animal was first seen in Europe in 1641, and
described scientifically fifty-eight years later, but we are indebted to
Dr. Savage, a missionary, for our first account of its habits, in 1847.
[Illustration: _Photo by Scholastic Photo. Co._] [_Parson's Green._
"JENNY," THE WELL-KNOWN CHIMPANZEE AT THE ZOO.
A VERY CHARACTERISTIC POSE.
In this picture the rounded ear, human-like wrinkles on the forehead, and
length of the toes should be noted.]
The chimpanzee, like the gorilla, is found only in Africa. The range
includes West and Central Equatorial Africa, from the Gambia in the north
to near Angola in the south, while it occurs in the Niam-Niam country to
the north-west of the great lakes, and has been discovered recently in
Uganda. The new Uganda Railway, which will open out the great lakes to the
east, will bring English travellers well within reach of the nearest haunt
of these great apes. It is on the likeness and difference of their form and
shape to those of man that the attention of the world has been mainly
fixed.
The chimpanzee is a heavily built animal, with chest and arms of great
power. The male is slightly taller than the female. The crown is depressed,
the chin receding, the ridges which overhang the eye-sockets more prominent
than in man, less so than in the gorilla. The nose has a short bridge, and
a flat extremity. The ear is large, and less human than that of the
gorilla. The hands and feet are comparatively long; the digits are, except
the thumb and great toe, joined by a web. The arms are short for an ape,
reaching only to the knees. The teeth are similar to those of man, and the
canines of only moderate size. The chimpanzee has thirteen pairs of ribs,
and, like man, has a suggestion at the end of the vertebræ of a rudimentary
tail. It walks on all-fours, with the backs of its closed fingers on the
ground, and can only stand upright by clasping its hands above its head.
The skin is of a reddish or brown flesh-colour, the hair black, with white
patches on the lower part of the face. The bald chimpanzee has the top
front, and sides of the face bare, exceedingly large ears, thick lips, and
black or brown hands and feet.
The chimpanzee's natural home is the thick forest, where tropical
vegetation ensures almost total gloom. But near Loango it frequents the
mountains near the coast. It is a fruit-feeding animal, said to do much
damage to plantations, but the bald race, at all events in captivity, takes
readily to flesh, and the famous "Sally" which lived in the Zoo for over
six years used to kill and eat pigeons, and caught and killed rats. The
male chimpanzee builds a nest in a tree for his family, and sleeps under
its shelter; when food becomes scarce in the vicinity, a move is made, and
a new nest built. This ape lives either in separate families or communities
not exceeding ten in number, and is monogamous.
As to the animal's courage, it is difficult to get accurate information, as
the sins of the gorilla and baboon have often been laid on its shoulders,
and information derived from natives is usually untrustworthy. Apparently
the chimpanzee avoids coming into collision with man, although, when
attacked, it is a formidable antagonist. Tales of chimpanzees kidnapping
women and children need stronger evidence than they have yet obtained. The
natives kill this ape by spearing it in the back, or by driving it into
nets, where it is entangled and easily dispatched. According to
Livingstone, the soko, as the chimpanzee is called in East Central Africa,
kills the leopard by biting its paws, but falls an easy prey to the lion.
[Illustration: _Photo by G. W. Wilson & Co., Ltd._] [_Aberdeen._
A YOUNG CHIMPANZEE.
This excellent photograph, by Major Nott, F.Z.S., is particularly good, as
showing the manner in which these animals use their hands and feet.]
In captivity it is docile and intelligent, but usually fails to stand a
northern climate for more than a few months. It is easily taught to wear
clothes, to eat and drink in civilised fashion, to understand what is said
to it, and reply with a limited vocabulary of grunts. Sally learnt to count
perfectly up to six, and less perfectly to ten; she could also distinguish
white from any colour, but if other colours were presented her she failed,
apparently from colour-blindness. Of this ape the late Dr. G. J. Romanes
wrote with something more than the enthusiasm of a clever man pursuing a
favourite theme: "Her intelligence was conspicuously displayed by the
remarkable degree in which she was able to understand the meaning of spoken
language--a degree fully equal to that presented by an infant a few months
before emerging from infancy, and therefore higher than that which is
presented by any brute, so far at least as I have evidence to show."
Romanes here speaks _only_, be it noticed, of ability to understand human
speech--not to think and act. But this is in itself a great mark of
intelligence _on human lines_. "Having enlisted the co-operation of the
keepers, I requested them to ask the ape repeatedly for one straw, two
straws, three straws. These she was to pick up and hand out from among the
litter of her cage. No constant order was to be observed in making these
requests; but whenever she handed a number not asked for her offer was to
be refused, while if she gave the proper number her offer was to be
accepted, and she was to receive a piece of fruit in payment. In this way
the ape had learnt to associate these three numbers with the names. As soon
as the animal understood what was required, she never failed to give the
number of straws asked for. Her education was then completed in a similar
manner from three to four, and from four to five straws. Sally rarely made
mistakes up to that number; but above five, and up to ten, to which one of
the keepers endeavoured to advance her education, the result is uncertain.
It is evident that she understands the words seven, eight, nine, and ten to
betoken numbers higher than those below them. When she was asked for any
number above six, she always gave some number over six and under ten. She
sometimes doubled over a straw to make it present two ends, and was
supposed (thus) to hasten the attainment of her task." By no means all the
chimpanzees are so patient as Sally. One kept in the Zoological Gardens for
some time made an incessant noise by stamping on the back of the box in
which it was confined. It struck this with the flat of its foot while
hanging to the cross-bar or perch, and made a prodigious din. This seems to
bear out the stories of chimpanzees assembling and drumming on logs in the
Central African forests.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
HEAD OF MALE GORILLA.
This is a photograph of one of the first gorillas ever brought to England.
It was sent by the famous M. du Chaillu.]
THE GORILLA.
The name of this enormous ape has been known since 450 B.C. Hanno the
Carthaginian, when off Sierra Leone, met with wild men and women whom the
interpreter called GORILLAS. The males escaped and flung stones from the
rocks, but several females were captured. These animals could not have been
gorillas, but were probably baboons. Andrew Battell, already mentioned,
described the gorilla under the name of Pongo. He says it is like a man,
but without understanding even to put a log on a fire; it kills Negroes,
and drives off the elephant with clubs; it is never taken alive, but its
young are killed with poisoned arrows; it covers its dead with boughs. Dr.
Savage described it in 1847. Later Du Chaillu visited its haunts, and his
well-known book relates how he met and killed several specimens. But Mr.
Winwood Reade, who also went in quest of it, declared that Du Chaillu, like
himself, never saw a live gorilla. Von Koppenfels, however, saw a family of
four feeding, besides shooting others. The late Miss Kingsley met several,
one of which was killed by her elephant-men.
The gorilla has a limited range, extending from 2° north to 5° south
latitude in West Africa, a moist overgrown region including the mouth of
the Gaboon River. How far east it is found is uncertain, but it is known in
the Sierra del Cristal. In 1851-52 it was seen in considerable numbers on
the coast.
The gorilla is the largest, strongest, and most formidable of the Primates.
An adult male is from 5 feet 8 inches to 6 feet high, heavily built, with
arms and chest of extraordinary power. The arms reach to the middle of the
legs. The hands are clumsy, the thumb short, and the fingers joined by a
web. The neck scarcely exists. The leg has a slight calf. The toes are
stumpy and thick; the great toe moves like a thumb. The head is large and
receding, with enormous ridges above the eyes, which give it a diabolical
appearance. The canine teeth are developed into huge tusks. The nose has a
long bridge, and the nostrils look downwards. The ear is small and
man-like.
In colour the gorilla varies from deep black to iron-grey, with a reddish
tinge on the head; old animals become grizzled. The outer hair is ringed
grey and brown; beneath it is a woolly growth. The female is smaller--not
exceeding 4 feet 6 inches--and less hideous, as the canines are much
smaller, and the ridges above the eyes are not noticeable, a feature common
also to the young.
Timid, superstitious natives and credulous or untrustworthy travellers have
left still wrapped in mystery many of the habits of this mighty ape, whose
fever-stricken, forest-clad haunts render investigation always difficult,
often impossible. Many tales of its ferocity and strength are obviously
untrue, but we think that too much has been disbelieved. That a huge arm
descends from a tree, draws up and chokes the wayfarer, must be false, for
intelligent natives have confessed to knowing no instance of the gorilla
attacking man. That it vanquishes the leopard is probable; that it has
driven the lion from its haunts requires proof. Nor can we accept tales of
the carrying-off of Negro women; and the defeat of the elephants, too, must
be considered a fiction.
But we must believe that this ape, if provoked or wounded, is a terrible
foe, capable of ripping open a man with one stroke of its paw, or of
cracking the skull of a hunter as easily as a squirrel cracks a nut. There
is a tale of a tribe that kept an enormous gorilla as executioner, which
tore its victims to pieces, until an Englishman, doomed to meet it,
noticing a large swelling near its ribs, killed it with a heavy blow or two
on the weak spot.
Gorillas live mainly in the trees on whose fruit they subsist; they
construct a shelter in the lower boughs for the family, and as a lying-in
place for the female. The male is said to sleep below, with his back
against the tree--a favourite attitude with both sexes--to keep off
leopards. On the ground it moves on all-fours, with a curious swinging
action, caused by putting its hands with fingers extended on the ground,
and bringing its body forward by a half-jump. Having a heel, it can stand
better than other apes; but this attitude is not common, and Du Chaillu
appears to have been mistaken when he describes the gorilla as attacking
upright.
In captivity only immature specimens have been seen--Barnum's great ape
being one of the larger forms of chimpanzee. Accounts vary as to the temper
of the gorilla, some describing it as untamable, while others say it is
docile and playful when young. There is an American tale that a gorilla
over 6 feet high was captured near Tanganyika, but nothing more has reached
us about it.
When enraged, a gorilla beats its breast, as the writer was informed by a
keeper, who thus confirmed Du Chaillu's account. Its usual voice is a
grunt, which, when the animal is excited, becomes a roar.
[Illustration: _By permission of Herr Umlauff_] [_Hamburg._
A MALE GORILLA.
This photograph of the largest gorilla known was taken immediately after
death by Herr Paschen at Yaunde, and gives an excellent idea of the size of
these animals as compared with Negroes. The animal weighed 400 lbs.]
THE ORANG-UTAN.
This great red ape was mentioned by Linnæus in 1766, and at the beginning
of the last century a specimen living in the Prince of Orange's collection
was described by Vosmaer.
There are three varieties of the ORANG, called by the Dyaks MIAS-PAPPAN,
MIAS-RAMBI, and MIAS-KASSU, the third of which is smaller, has no
cheek-excrescences, and very large teeth. Some naturalists recognise a pale
and a dark race.
Most of our information is due to Raja Brooke and Dr. Wallace. The species
is confined to Borneo and Sumatra, but fossils have been found in India of
this genus, as well as of a chimpanzee. The orang is less man-like than the
chimpanzee and gorilla. In height the male varies from 3 feet 10 inches to
4 feet 6 inches, the female being a few inches shorter. It is a heavy
creature, with large head--often a foot in breadth--thick neck, powerful
arms, which reach nearly to the ankles, and protuberant abdomen. Its legs
are short and bowed. The forehead is high, the nose fairly large, the ears
very human. The throat is ornamented with large pouches, and there are
often callosities on the cheeks. The fingers are webbed, the thumb small,
the foot long and narrow, the great toe small and often without a nail. The
brain is man-like, and the ribs agree in number with those of man; but
there are nine bones in the wrist, whereas man, the gorilla, and the
chimpanzee have but eight. The canine teeth are enormous in the male. The
hair, a foot or more long on the shoulders and thighs, is yellowish red:
there is a slight beard. The skin is grey or brown, and often, in adults,
black.
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz_] [_Berlin._
YOUNG ORANG-UTANS.
It will be seen here, from the profile, that the young anthropoid ape has
only the upper part of the head at all approaching the human type.]
The orang is entirely a tree-living animal, and is only found in moist
districts where there is much virgin forest. On the ground it progresses
clumsily on all-fours, using its arms as crutches, and with the side only
of its feet on the ground. In trees it travels deliberately but with
perfect ease, swinging along underneath the branches, although it also
walks along them semi-erect. It lives alone with mate and young, and builds
a sleeping-place sufficiently low to avoid the wind. Its food is leaves and
fruit, especially the durian; its feeding-time, midday.
No animal molests the mias save--so say the Dyaks--the python and
crocodile, both of which it kills by tearing with its hands. It never
attacks man, but has been known to bite savagely when brought to bay, and
it is very tenacious of life, one being found by Mr. Wallace still alive
after a fall from a tree, when "both legs had been broken, its hip-joint
and the root of the spine shattered, and two bullets flattened in neck and
jaws."
In captivity young orangs are playful and docile, but passionate. Less
intelligent than chimpanzees, they may be taught to eat and drink nicely,
and to obey simple commands. One in the Zoo at present has acquired the
rudiments of drill. They will eat meat and eggs, and drink wine, beer,
spirits, and tea. An orang described years ago by Dr. Clarke Abel was
allowed the run of the ship on the voyage to England, and would play with
the sailors in the rigging. When refused food he pretended to commit
suicide, and rushed over the side, only to be found under the chains.
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz_] [_Berlin._
BABY ORANG-UTANS AT PLAY.]
The orang is the least interesting of the three great apes; he lacks the
power and brutality of the gorilla and the intelligence of the chimpanzee.
"The orang," said its keeper to the writer, "is a buffoon; the chimpanzee,
a gentleman."
It is worth remark that, although all these apes soon die in our
menageries, in Calcutta, where they are kept in the open, orangs thrive
well.
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz_] [_Berlin._
TWO BABY ORANG-UTANS. THE TUG-OF-WAR.]
THE GIBBONS.
Next after the great apes in man-like characters come a few long-armed,
tailless apes, known as the GIBBONS. Like the orang-utan, they live in the
great tropical forests of Asia, especially the Indian Archipelago; like the
latter, they are gentle, affectionate creatures; and they have also a
natural affection for man. But it is in mind and temperament, rather than
in skeleton, that the links and differences between men and monkeys must be
sought. It will be found that these forest apes differ from other animals
and from the true monkeys mainly in this--that they are predisposed to be
friendly to man and to obey him, and that they have no bias towards
mischief, or "monkey tricks." They are thoughtful, well behaved, and
sedate.
[Illustration: _By permission of Herr Umlauff._
THE LARGEST GORILLA EVER CAPTURED.
This huge ape, 5 feet 5 inches high, measures a distance of over 8 feet
from finger to finger.]
The SIAMANG, one of the largest of the long-armed, tailless gibbons, lives
in the Malay Archipelago. The arms of a specimen only 3 feet high measured
5 feet 6 inches across. This, like all the gibbons, makes its way from tree
to tree mainly by swinging itself by its arms. But the siamang can _walk_
upright and run. One kept on board ship would walk down the cabin
breakfast-table without upsetting the china. The WHITE-HANDED GIBBON is
found in Tenasserim, south-west of Burma. This ape has a musical howl,
which the whole flock utters in the early mornings on the tree-tops. In
Northern India, in the hills beyond the Brahmaputra, lives another gibbon,
the HULOCK. One of these kept in captivity soon learnt to eat properly at
meals, and to drink out of a cup instead of dipping his fingers in the tea
and milk and then sucking them. The SILVERY GIBBON kept at the Zoological
Gardens was a most amiable pet, and had all the agility of the other
gibbons. It is very seldom seen in this country, being a native of Java,
where it is said to show the most astonishing activity among the tall
cane-groves. One of the first ever brought to England belonged to the great
Lord Clive. The AGILE GIBBON is another and darker ape of this group.
The list of the man-like apes closes with this group. All the gibbons are
highly specialised for tree-climbing and an entirely arboreal life; but it
is undeniable that, apart from the modifications necessary for this, such
as the abnormal length of the arms, the skeleton closely resembles that of
a human being. In their habits, when wild, none of these apes show any
remarkable degree of intelligence; but their living is gained in so simple
a way, by plucking fruits and leaves, that there is nothing in their
surroundings to stimulate thought. They do not need even to think of a time
of famine or winter, or to lay up a stock of food for such a season,
because they live in the forests under the Equator.
[Illustration: _Photo by York & Son_] [_Notting Hill._
WHITE-HANDED GIBBON.
This gibbon is found in the forests of the Malay Archipelago.]
[Illustration: _Photo by York & Son_] [_Notting Hill._
HULOCK GIBBON.
The great length of arm in comparison with the body and head should here be
noted.]
MONKEYS.
THE DOG-SHAPED MONKEYS.
After the gibbons come a vast number of monkeys of every conceivable size,
shape, and variety, which naturalists have arranged in consecutive order
with fair success. Until we reach the Baboons, and go on to the South
American Monkeys and the Lemurs, it is not easy to give any idea of what
these monkeys do or look like merely by referring to their scientific
groups. The usual order of natural histories will here be followed, and the
descriptions will, so far as possible, present the habits and appearance of
the monkeys specially noticed.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
HEAD OF PROBOSCIS MONKEY.
A native of Borneo. Next to the orang-utan, the most striking monkey in the
Malay Archipelago.]
This great family of true monkeys contains the Sacred Monkeys, or Langurs,
of India, the Guerezas and Guenons of Africa, the Mangabeys, Macaques, and
Baboons. Most of them have naked, hard patches of skin on the hindquarters,
and the partition between the nostrils is narrow. Some have tails, some
none, and they exhibit the most astonishing differences of size and shape.
Perhaps the most grotesque and astonishing of them all is the PROBOSCIS
MONKEY. It is allied to the langurs, and is a native of the island of
Borneo, to which it is confined; its home is the west bank of the Sarawak
River. It is an arboreal creature, living in small companies. Mr. Hose, who
saw them in their native haunts, says that the proboscis monkeys kept in
the trees overhanging the river, and were most difficult to shoot. "I saw
altogether about 150 of these monkeys, and without a single exception all
were in trees over the water, either lake, river, or in submerged forest.
As long as they are in sight, they are very conspicuous objects, choosing
the most commanding positions on open tree-tops. Once I saw thirteen in one
tree, sitting lazily on the branches, as is their habit, sunning
themselves, and enjoying the scenery." They are very striking animals in
colour, as well as in form. The face is cinnamon-brown, the sides marked
with reddish brown and white, the belly white, the back red-brown and dark
brown. Next to the orang-utan, these are the most striking monkeys in the
Malay Archipelago.
The greater number of the species intermediate between the gibbons and the
New World species are called "DOG-SHAPED" MONKEYS. We wonder why? Only the
baboon and a few others are in the least like dogs. The various SACRED
MONKEYS of India are often seen in this country, and are quite
representative of the "miscellaneous" monkeys in general. Most of them have
cheek-pouches, a useful monkey-pocket. They poke food into their pouches,
which unfold to be filled, or lie flat when not wanted; and with a
pocketful of nuts or rice on either side of their faces, they can scream,
eat, bite, or scold quite comfortably, which they could not do with their
mouths full. The pouchless monkeys have only their big stomachs to rely on.
The ENTELLUS MONKEY is the most sacred of all in India. It is grey above
and nutty brown below, long-legged and active, a thief and an impudent
robber. In one of the Indian cities they became such a nuisance that the
faithful determined to catch and send away some hundreds. This was done,
and the holy monkeys were deported in covered carts, and released many
miles off. But the monkeys were too clever. Having thoroughly enjoyed their
ride, they all refused to part with the carts, and, hopping and grimacing,
came leaping all the way back beside them to the city, grateful for their
outing. One city obtained leave to kill the monkeys; but the next city then
sued them for "killing their deceased ancestors." In these monkey-infested
cities, if one man wishes to spite another, he throws a few handfuls of
rice on to the roof of his house about the rainy season. The monkeys come,
find the rice, and quietly lift off many of the tiles and throw them away,
seeking more rice in the interstices.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
CROSS-BEARING LANGUR AND YOUNG.
A forest monkey of Borneo.]
This is not the monkey commonly seen in the hills and at Simla. The large
long-tailed monkey there is the HIMALAYAN LANGUR, one of the common animals
of the hills. "The langur," says Mr. Lockwood Kipling in his "Beast and Man
in India," "is, in his way, a king of the jungle, nor is he often met with
in captivity. In some parts of India troops of langurs come bounding with a
mighty air of interest and curiosity to look at passing trains, their long
tails lifted like notes of interrogation; but frequently, when fairly
perched on a wall or tree alongside, they seem to forget all about it, and
avert their heads with an affectation of languid indifference."
In India no distinction is made between monkeys. It is an abominable act of
sacrilege to kill one of any kind. In the streets holy bulls, calves,
parrakeets, sparrows, and monkeys all rob the shops. One monkey-ridden
municipality sent off its inconvenient but holy guests by rail, advising
the stationmaster to let them loose at the place to which they were
consigned. The station, Saharanpur, was a kind of Indian Crewe, and the
monkeys got into the engine-sheds and workshops among the driving-wheels
and bands. One got in the double roof of an inspection-car, and thence
stole mutton, corkscrews, camp-glasses, and dusters. Among many other
interesting and correct monkey stories of Mr. Kipling's is the following:
"The chief confectioner of Simla had prepared a most splendid bride-cake,
which was safely put by in a locked room, that, like most back rooms in
Simla, looked out on the mountain-side. It is little use locking the door
when the window is left open. When they came to fetch the bride-cake, the
last piece of it was being handed out of the window by a chain of monkeys,
who whitened the hill-side with its fragments."
From India to Ceylon is no great way, yet in the latter island different
monkeys are found. The two best known are the WHITE-BEARDED WANDEROO MONKEY
and the GREAT WANDEROO. Both are grave, well-behaved monkeys. The former
has white whiskers and a white beard, and looks so wise he is called in
Latin _Nestor_, after the ancient counsellor of the Greeks. Nice, clean
little monkeys are these, and pretty pets. The great wanderoo is rarer. It
lives in the hills. "A flock of them," says Mr. Dallas, "will take
possession of a palm-grove, and so well can they conceal themselves in the
leaves that the whole party become invisible. The presence of a dog excites
their irresistible curiosity, and in order to watch his movements they
never fail to betray themselves. They may be seen congregated on the roof
of a native hut. Some years ago the child of a European clergyman, having
been left on the ground by a nurse, was bitten and teased to death by them.
These monkeys have only one wife." Near relatives of the langurs are the
two species of SNUB-NOSED MONKEYS, one of which (see figure on page 18)
inhabits Eastern Tibet and North-western China, and the other the valley of
the Mekong.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
MALE HIMALAYAN LANGUR.
A king of the Jungle, not often met with in captivity.]
THE GUEREZAS AND GUENONS.
[Illustration: GELADA BABOONS AT HOME
This photograph is probably unique, as a gelada baboon has been rarely
seen. It shows them at home looking for food on the ground under the
bamboos and palms. It was taken by Lord Delamere in the East African
jungle.]
Among the ordinary monkeys of the Old World are some with very striking
hair and colours. The GUEREZA of Abyssinia has bright white-and-black fur,
with long white fringes on the sides. This is the black-and-white skin
fastened by the Abyssinians to their shields, and, if we are not wrong, by
the Kaffirs also. Among the GUENONS, a large tribe of monkeys living in the
African forests, many of which find their way here as "organ monkeys," is
the DIANA, a most beautiful creature, living on the Guinea Coast. It has a
white crescent on its forehead, bluish-grey fur, a white beard, and a patch
of brilliant chestnut on the back, the belly white and orange. A lady, Mrs.
Bowditch, gives the following account of a Diana monkey on board ship. It
jumped on to her shoulder, stared into her face, and then made friends,
seated itself on her knees, and carefully examined her hands. "He then
tried to pull off my rings, when I gave him some biscuits, and making a bed
for him with my handkerchief he then settled himself comfortably to sleep;
and from that moment we were sworn allies. When mischievous, he was often
banished to a hen-coop. Much more effect was produced by taking him in
sight of the panther, who always seemed most willing to devour him. On
these occasions I held him by the tail before the cage; but long before I
reached it, knowing where he was going, he pretended to be dead. His eyes
were closed quite fast, and every limb was as stiff as though there were no
life in him. When taken away, he would open one eye a little, to see
whereabouts he might be; but if he caught sight of the panther's cage it
was instantly closed, and he became as stiff as before." This monkey stole
the men's knives, tools, and handkerchiefs, and even their caps, which he
threw into the sea. He would carefully feed the parrots, chewing up biscuit
and presenting them the bits; and he caught another small monkey and
painted it black! Altogether, he must have enlivened the voyage. The GRIVET
MONKEY, the GREEN MONKEY, the MONA MONKEY, and the MANGABEY are other
commonly seen African species.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
MANTLED GUEREZA.
This group of monkeys supplies the "monkey muffs" once very fashionable.
The species with white plumes is used to decorate the Kaffir shields.]
THE MACAQUES.
The MACAQUES, of which there are many kinds, from the Rock of Gibraltar to
far Japan, occupy the catalogue between the guenon and the baboon. The
COMMON MACAQUE and many others have tails. Those of Japan, and some of
those of China, notably the TCHELI MONKEY, kept outside the monkey-house at
the Zoo, and the JAPANESE MACAQUE, at the other entrance, are tailless, and
much more like anthropoid apes. The Tcheli monkey is large and powerful,
but other macaques are of all sizes down to little creatures no bigger than
a kitten. Some live in the hottest plains, others in the mountains. The
COMMON MACAQUE, found in the Malay Archipelago, is a strong, medium-sized
monkey. The FORMOSAN MACAQUE is a rock-living creature; those of Japan
inhabit the pine-groves, and are fond of pelting any one who passes with
stones and fir-cones. The BONNET MACAQUE is an amusing little beast, very
fond of hugging and nursing others in captivity. The BANDAR or RHESUS
MONKEY, a common species, also belongs to this group. But the most
interesting to Europeans is the MAGOT, or BARBARY APE. It is the last
monkey left in Europe. There it only lives on the Rock of Gibraltar. It was
the monkey which Galen is said to have dissected, because he was not
permitted to dissect a human body. These monkeys are carefully preserved
upon the Rock. Formerly, when they were more common, they were very
mischievous. The following story was told by Mr. Bidcup: "The apes of the
Rock, led by one particular monkey, were always stealing from the kit of a
certain regiment encamped there. At last the soldiers caught the leader,
shaved his head and face, and turned him loose. His friends, who had been
watching, received him with a shower of sticks and stones. In these
desperate circumstances the ape sneaked back to his old enemies, the
soldiers, with whom he remained." Lord Heathfield, a former Governor of the
Rock, would never let them be hurt; and on one occasion, when the Spaniards
were attempting a surprise, the noise made by the apes gave notice of their
attempt.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
DIANA MONKEY.
One of the most gaily coloured monkeys of Africa.]
THE BABOONS.
Far the most interesting of the apes in the wild state are the BABOONS.
Their dog-like heads (which in some are so large and hideous that they look
like a cross between an ill-tempered dog and a pig), short bodies,
enormously strong arms, and loud barking cry distinguish them from all
other creatures. The greater number--for there are many kinds--live in the
hot, dry, stony parts of Africa. They are familiar figures from the cliffs
of Abyssinia to the Cape, where their bold and predatory bands still occupy
Table Mountain. They are almost the only animals which the high-contracting
Powers of Africa have resolved not to protect at any season, so mischievous
are they to crops, and recently to the flocks. They kill the suckling
lambs, and tear them to pieces for the sake of the milk contained in their
bodies.
[Illustration: _Photo by G. W. Wilson & Co., Ltd._] [_Aberdeen._
BARBARY APE.
The last of the European monkeys; on this side of the Mediterranean it is
only found on the Rock of Gibraltar.]
One of the best-known baboons is the CHACMA of South Africa. The old males
grow to a great size, and are most formidable creatures. Naturally, they
are very seldom caught; but one very large one is in the Zoological
Gardens, Regent's Park, at the time of writing. The keeper declares he
would rather go into a lion's cage than into the den of this beast when
angry. Its head is nearly one-third of its total length from nose to the
root of the tail. Its jaw-power is immense, and its forearm looks as strong
as Sandow's. Like all monkeys, this creature has the power of springing
instantaneously from a sitting position; and its bite would cripple
anything from a man to a leopard. The chacmas live in companies in the
kopjes, whence they descend to forage the mealie-grounds, river-beds, and
bush. Thence they come down to steal fruit and pumpkins or corn, turn over
the stones and catch beetles, or eat locusts. Their robbing expeditions are
organised. Scouts keep a look-out, the females and young are put in the
centre, and the retreat is protected by the old males. Children in the Cape
Colony are always warned not to go out when the baboons are near. When
irritated--and they are very touchy in their tempers--the whole of the
males will sometimes charge and attack. The possibility of this is very
unpleasant, and renders people cautious.
[Illustration: _Photo by C. Reid_] [_Wishaw, N.B._
RHESUS MONKEY.
A young specimen of the common Bengal monkey.]
Not many years ago a well-known sportsman was shooting in Somaliland. On
the other side of a rocky ravine was a troop of baboons of a species of
which no examples were in the British Museum. Though he knew the danger, he
was tempted to shoot and to secure a skin. At 200 yards he killed one dead,
which the rest did not notice. Then he hit another and wounded it. The
baboon screamed, and instantly the others sat up, saw the malefactor, and
charged straight for him. Most fortunately, they had to scramble down the
ravine and up again, by which time the sportsman and his servant had put
such a distance between them, making "very good time over the flat," that
the baboons contented themselves by barking defiance at them when they
reached the level ground.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
RHESUS MONKEY AND SOOTY MANGABEY.
The sooty mangabey (to the right of the picture) is gentle and
companionable, but petulant and active.]
They are the only mammals which _thoroughly_ understand combination for
defence as well as attack. But Brehm, the German traveller, gives a
charming story of genuine courage and self-sacrifice shown by one. His
hunting dogs gave chase to a troop which was retreating to some cliffs, and
cut off a very young one, which ran up on to a rock, only just out of reach
of the dogs. An old male baboon saw this, and came alone to the rescue.
Slowly and deliberately he descended, crossed the open space, and stamping
his hands on the ground, showing his teeth, and backed by the furious barks
of the rest of the baboons, he disconcerted and cowed these savage dogs,
climbed on to the rock, picked up the baby, and carried him back safely. If
the dogs had attacked the old patriarch, his tribe would probably have
helped him. Burchell, the naturalist after whom Burchell's zebra is named,
let his dogs chase a troop. The baboons turned on them, killed one on the
spot by biting through the great blood-vessels of the neck, and laid bare
the ribs of another. The Cape Dutch in the Old Colony would rather let
their dogs bait a lion than a troop of baboons. The rescue of the infant
chacma which Brehm saw himself is a remarkable, and indeed the most
incontestable, instance of the exhibition of courage and self-sacrifice by
a _male_ animal.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S., North Finchley._
GREY-CHEEKED MANGABEY.
One of the small African monkeys.]
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
CHINESE MACAQUE.
This monkey lives in a climate as cold as that of England.]
If the baboons were not generally liable to become bad-tempered when they
grow old, they could probably be trained to be among the most useful of
animal helpers and servers; but they are so formidable, and so uncertain in
temper, that they are almost too dangerous for attempts at
semi-domestication. When experiments have been made, they have had
remarkable results. Le Vaillant, one of the early explorers in South
Africa, had a chacma baboon which was a better watch than any of his dogs.
It gave warning of any creature approaching the camp at night long before
the dogs could hear or smell it. He took it out with him when he was
shooting, and used to let it collect edible roots for him. The latest
example of a trained baboon only died a few years ago. It belonged to a
railway signalman at Uitenhage station, about 200 miles up-country from
Port Elizabeth, in Cape Colony. The man had the misfortune to undergo an
operation in which both his feet were amputated, after being crushed by the
wheels of a train. Being an ingenious fellow, he taught his baboon, which
was a full-grown one, to pull him along the line on a trolly to the
"distant" signal. There the baboon stopped at the word of command, and the
man would work the lever himself. But in time he taught the baboon to do
it, while he sat on the trolly, ready to help if any mistake were made.
[Illustration: _Photo by York & Son, Notting Hill._
GRIVET MONKEY.
This is the small monkey commonly taken about with street-organs.]
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
BONNET MONKEY, AND ARABIAN BABOON (ON THE RIGHT).]
The chacmas have for relations a number of other baboons in the rocky parts
of the African Continent, most of which have almost the same habits, and
are not very different in appearance. Among them is the GELADA BABOON, a
species very common in the rocky highlands of Abyssinia; another is the
ANUBIS BABOON of the West Coast of Africa. The latter is numerous round the
Portuguese settlement of Angola. Whether the so-called COMMON BABOON of the
menageries is a separate species or only the young of some one of the
above-mentioned is not very clear. But about another variety there can be
no doubt. It has been separated from the rest since the days of the
Pharaohs. It does not differ in habits from the other baboons, but inhabits
the rocky parts of the Nile Valley. It appears in Egyptian mythology under
the name of Thoth, and is constantly seen in the sculptures and
hieroglyphs.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
RHESUS MONKEYS.
This photograph is particularly interesting. It was actually taken by
another monkey, which pressed the button of Mr. Medland's camera.]
Equally strong and far more repulsive are the two baboons of West
Africa--the DRILL and the MANDRILL. As young specimens of these beasts are
the only ones at all easily caught, and these nearly always die when
cutting their second teeth when in captivity, large adult mandrills are
seldom seen in Europe. They grow to a great size, and are probably the most
hideous of all beasts. The frightful nose, high cheekbones, and pig-like
eyes are the basis of the horrible heads of devils and goblins which Albert
Dürer and other German or Dutch mediæval painters sometimes put on canvas.
Add to the figure the misplaced bright colours--cobalt-blue on the cheeks,
which are scarred, as if by a rake, with scarlet furrows, and scarlet on
the buttocks--and it will be admitted that nature has invested this
massive, powerful, and ferocious baboon with a repulsiveness equalling in
completeness the extremes of grace and beauty manifested in the roe-deer or
the bird of paradise.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
ORANGE SNUB-NOSED MONKEY.
This should be contrasted with the Proboscis Monkey.]
The natives of Guinea and other parts of West Africa have consistent
accounts that the mandrills have tried to carry off females and children.
They live in troops like the chacmas, plunder the fields, and, like all
baboons, spend much time on the ground walking on all-fours. When doing
this, they are quite unlike any other creatures. They walk slowly, with the
head bent downwards, like a person walking on hands and knees looking for a
pin. With the right hand (usually) they turn over every stick and stone,
looking for insects, scorpions, or snails, and these they seize and eat.
The writer has seen baboons picking up sand, and straining it through their
fingers, to see if there were ants in it. He has also seen one hold up sand
in the palm of its hand, and blow the dust away with its breath, and then
look again to see if anything edible were left. Mandrills kept in captivity
until adult become very savage. One in Wombwell's menagerie killed another
monkey and a beagle. Mr. Cross owned one which would sit in an armchair,
smoke, and drink porter; but these convivial accomplishments were
accompanied by a most ferocious temper.
One of the earliest accounts of the habits of the Abyssinian baboons was
given by Ludolf in his "History of Ethiopia." It was translated into
quaint, but excellent old English: "Of Apes," he says, "there are infinite
flocks up and down in the mountains, a thousand and more together, and they
leave no stone unturned. If they meet with one that two or three cannot
lift they call for more aid, and all for the sake of the Worms that lye
under, a sort of dyet which they relish exceedingly. They are very greedy
after Emmets. So that having found an emmet hill, they presently surround
it, and laying their fore paws with the hollow downward upon the ant heap,
as soon as the Emmets creep into their treacherous palms they lick 'em off,
with great comfort to their stomachs. And there they will lye till there is
not an Emmet left. They are also pernicious to fruits and apples, and will
destroy whole fields and gardens unless they be looked after. For they are
very cunning, and will never venture in till the return of their spies,
which they send always before, who, giving all information that it is safe,
in they rush with their whole body and make a quick despatch. Therefore
they go very quiet and silent to their prey; and if their young ones chance
to make a noise, they chastise them with their fists; but if the coast is
clear, then every one has a different noise to express his joy." Ludolf
clearly means the baboons by this description.
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz_] [_Berlin_
PIG-TAILED MONKEY.
"Footing the line." Note how the monkey uses its feet as hands when walking
on a branch.]
A more ancient story deals with Alexander's campaigns. He encamped on a
mountain on which were numerous bands of monkeys (probably baboons). On the
following morning the sentries saw what looked like troops coming to offer
them battle. As they had just won a victory, they were at a loss to guess
who these new foes might he. The alarm was given, and the Macedonian troops
set out in battle-array. Then through the morning mists they saw that the
enemy was an immense troop of monkeys. Their prisoners, who knew what the
alarm was caused by, made no small sport of the Macedonians.
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz_] [_Berlin._
CHACMA BABOON.
This photograph shows his attitude when about to make an attack.]
THE SPEECH OF MONKEYS.
Something should be said of the alleged "speech of monkeys" which Professor
Garner believed himself to have discovered. He rightly excluded mere sounds
showing joy, desire, or sorrow from the faculty of speech, but claimed to
have detected special words, one meaning "food," another "drink," another
"give me that," another meaning "monkey," or an identification of a second
animal or monkey. He used a phonograph to keep permanent record of the
sounds, and made an expedition to the West African forests in the hope that
he might induce the large anthropoid apes to answer the sounds which are so
often uttered by their kind in our menageries. The enterprise ended, as
might have been expected, in failure. Nor was it in the least necessary to
go and sit in a cage in an African forest in the hope of striking up an
acquaintance with the native chimpanzees. The little Capuchin monkeys,
whose voices and sounds he had ample opportunity of observing here, give
sufficient material for trying experiments in the meaning of monkey sounds.
The writer believes that it is highly probable that the cleverer monkeys
have a great many notes or sounds which the others do understand, if only
because they make the same under similar circumstances, otherwise they
would not utter them. They are like the sounds which an intelligent but
nearly dumb person might make. Also they have very sharp ears, and some of
them can understand musical sounds, so far as to show a very marked
attention to them. The following account of an experiment of this kind,
when a violin was being played, is related in "Life at the Zoo": "The
Capuchin monkeys, the species selected by Professor Garner for his
experiments in monkey language, showed the strangest and most amusing
excitement. These pretty little creatures have very expressive and
intelligent faces, and the play and mobility of their faces and voices
while listening to the music were extraordinarily rapid. The three in the
first cage at once rushed up into their box, and then all peeped out,
chattering and excited. One by one they came down, and listened to the
music with intense curiosity, shrieking and making faces at a crescendo,
shaking the wires angrily at a discord, and putting their heads almost
upside-down in efforts at acute criticism at low and musical passages.
Every change of note was marked by some alteration of expression in the
faces of the excited little monkeys, and a series of discordant notes
roused them to a passion of rage." At the same time a big baboon, chained
up near, evidently disliked it. He walked off in the opposite direction to
the farthest limits of his chain.
[Illustration: _Photo by C. Reid_] [_Wishaw, N.B._
A YOUNG MALE CHACMA BABOON.
Note the protruding tusk in the upper jaw. A baboon sitting in this
position of rest can instantly leap six or seven feet, and inflict a
dangerous bite.]
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
HEAD OF MALE MANDRILL.
This is one of the most hideous of living animals. The natives of West
Africa hold it in greater dislike even than the large carnivora, from the
mischief which it does to their crops.]
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S., North Finchley._
BROWN CAPUCHIN.
The most intelligent of the common monkeys of the New World. It uses many
sounds to express emotions, and perhaps desires.]
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S., North Finchley._
DRILL.
Only less ugly than the Mandrill. Its habits are the same.]
THE NEW WORLD MONKEYS.
Mention of the Capuchins takes us to the whole group of the New World
Monkeys. Nearly all of these live in the tropical forests of Brazil,
Guiana, Venezuela, and Mexico. They are all different from the Old World
monkeys, and many are far more beautiful. The most attractive of the
hardier kinds are the Capuchins; but there are many kinds of rare and
delicate little monkeys more beautiful than any squirrel, which would make
the most delightful pets in the world, if they were not so delicate. To try
to describe the Old World monkeys in separate groups from end to end is
rather a hopeless task. But the American monkeys are more manageable by the
puzzled amateur. Most of them have a broad and marked division between the
nostrils, which are not mere slits close together, but like the nostrils of
men. They also have human-looking rounded heads. Their noses are of the
"cogitative" order, instead of being snouts or snubs with narrow openings
in them; and the whole face is in many ways human and intelligent. The
HOWLER MONKEYS, which utter the most hideous sounds ever heard in the
forests, and the SPIDER MONKEYS are the largest. The latter have the most
wonderfully developed limbs and tails for catching and climbing of any
living animals. As highly specialised creatures are always interesting,
visitors to any zoological garden will find it worth while to watch a
spider monkey climbing, just as it is always worth while to watch a great
snake on the move. The tail is used as a fifth hand: the Indians of Brazil
say they catch fish with it, which is not true. But if you watch a spider
monkey moving from tree to tree, his limbs and tail move like the five
fingers of a star-fish. Each of the extremities is as sensitive as a hand,
far longer in proportion than an ordinary man's arm, and apparently able to
work independently of joints. The monkey can do so many things at once that
no juggler can equal it. It will hold fruit in one hand, pick more with one
foot, place food to the mouth with another hand, and walk and swing from
branch to branch with the other foot and tail, all simultaneously. These
monkeys have no visible thumb, though dissection shows that they have a
rudimentary one; but the limbs are so flexible that they can put one arm
round behind their heads over on to the opposite shoulder, and brush the
fur on their upper arm. The end of the tail seems always "feeling" the air
or surroundings, and has hairs, thin and long, at the end, which aid it in
knowing when it is near a leaf or branch. It is almost like the tentacle of
some sea zoophyte. Gentle creatures, all of them, are these spider monkeys.
One of them, of the species called Waita, when kept in captivity, wore the
fur off its forehead by rubbing its long gaunt arms continually over its
brow whenever it was scolded. The spider monkeys differ only in the degree
of spidery slenderness in their limbs. In disposition they are always
amiable, and in habits tree-climbers and fruit-eaters.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons_]
RED HOWLER MONKEY.
The males possess a most extraordinary voice.]
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
A SPIDER MONKEY
This monkey is specially adapted for arboreal life. The tail acts as a
fifth hand.]
The CAPUCHINS are, in the writer's opinion, the nicest of all monkeys. Many
species are known, but all have the same round merry faces, bright eyes,
pretty fur, and long tails. There is always a fair number at the Zoological
Gardens. They are merry, but full of fads. One hates children and loves
ladies; another adores one or two other monkeys, and screams at the rest.
All are fond of insects as well as of fruit. A friend of the writer kept
one in a large house in Leicestershire. It was not very good-tempered, but
most amusing, climbing up the blind-cord first, and catching and eating the
flies on the window-panes most dexterously, always avoiding the wasps. This
monkey was taught to put out a lighted paper (a useful accomplishment) by
dashing its hands on to the burning part, or, if the paper were twisted up,
by taking the unlighted end and beating the burning part on the ground; and
it was very fond of turning the leaves of any large book. This it did not
only by vigorous use of both arms and hands, but by putting its head under
too, and "heaving" the leaves over.
In the private room behind the monkey-house at the Zoo there are always a
number of the rare and delicate monkeys from the New World, which cannot
stand the draughts of the outer house, like the Capuchins and spider
monkeys. The greater number of these come from tropical America. There, in
the mighty forests, so lofty that no man can climb the trees, so dense that
there is a kind of upper storey on the interlaced tree-tops, where nearly
all the birds and many mammals live without descending to earth, forests in
which there is neither summer nor winter, but only the changes from hour to
hour of the equatorial day, the exquisite MARMOSETS, whose fur looks like
the plumage and whose twittering voices imitate the notes of birds, live
and have their being. They are all much alike in shape, except that the
LION MARMOSET'S mane is like that of a little lion clad in floss silk; and
they all have sharp little claws, and feed on insects. The PINCHÉ MARMOSET
from the Guiana forests has a face like a black Indian chief, with white
plumes over his head and neck like those worn by a "brave" in full
war-paint. Merchants who do business with Brazil very frequently import
marmosets and the closely allied tamarins as presents for friends in
England; the Brazilians themselves like to have them as pets also; so there
is to some extent a trade demand for them.
[Illustration: _Photo by Scholastic Photo. Co._] [_Parson's Green._
PATAS MONKEY.
Found in West Africa. A large and brilliantly coloured species.]
[Illustration: _Photo by C. Reid_] [_Wishaw, N.B._
WANDEROO MONKEY.
The number of monkeys which have leonine manes is large. The manes act as
capes to keep the dew and wet from their chests and shoulders.]
Among the most delicate of American monkeys are the OUKARIS, which have
somewhat human faces, exquisite soft fur, and are as gentle as most of
these forest creatures. They seldom live long in captivity, a few months
being as much as they will generally endure, even in Brazil. Perhaps the
rarest of all is the white-haired SCARLET-FACED OUKARI. This monkey has
long white hair from neck to tail, sandy whiskers, and a bright scarlet
face. It lives in a district of partly flooded forest, and is only obtained
by the Indians using blow-pipes and arrows dipped in very diluted urari
poison. The WHITE-HEADED SAKI is a rare and very pretty little monkey of
Brazil; and there are a very large number of other species of this group
whose names it would be mere weariness to mention. All these small monkeys
are very quick and intelligent, while the rapidity of their movements,
their ever-changing expression, and sharp, eager cries heighten the idea of
cleverness given by their general appearance. Other little imps of these
forests are the SQUIRREL MONKEYS. In the common species the face is like a
little furry man's, its arms brilliant yellow (as if dipped in gamboge
dye), the cheeks pink, and eyes black. In habits it is a quick-tempered,
imperious little creature, carnivorous, and a great devourer of butterflies
and beetles.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
COMMON SQUIRREL MONKEY.
The squirrel monkeys have soft, bright-coloured fur, and long, hairy tails.
They are found from Mexico to Paraguay.]
The most beautiful and entertaining of all monkeys are these New World
species. No person clever at interpreting the ways of animals would fail to
consider them far more clever and sympathetic than the melancholy
anthropoid apes, while for appearance they have no equals. Probably the
most attractive monkey in Europe is a South American one now in the London
Zoological Gardens. It was first mentioned to Europeans by Baron von
Humboldt, who saw it in the cabin of an Indian on the Orinoco. These forest
Indians of South America are gentle creatures themselves. Among other
amiable qualities, they have a passion for keeping pets. One who worked for
a friend of the writer, with others of his tribe, was asked what he would
take in payment, which was given in kind. The others chose cloth, axes,
etc. This Indian said that he did not care for any of these things. He said
he wanted a "poosa." No one knew what he meant. He signed that he wished to
go to the house and would show them. Arrived there, he pointed to the cat!
"Pussy," to the Arawak Indian, was a "poosa," and that was what he wanted
as a month's wages. Humboldt's Indian had something better than a "poosa."
It was a monkey, as black as coal, with a round head, long thickly furred
tail, and bright vivacious eyes. The explorer called it the LAGOTHRIX,
which means Hare-skin Monkey. The fur is not the least like a hare's, but
much resembles that of an opossum. The more suitable name is the WOOLLY
MONKEY. The one kept at the Gardens is a most friendly and vivacious
creature, ready to embrace, play and make friends with any well-dressed
person. It dislikes people in working-clothes which are dirty or soiled--a
not uncommon aversion of clever animals.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
BLACK-EARED MARMOSET.
These are among the prettiest of small tropical monkeys from the New World.
They are insect-feeders, and very delicate.]
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
HUMBOLDT'S WOOLLY MONKEY.
This is the most popular monkey in England. He looks for all the world like
a Negro, and has a most beautiful, soft, woolly coat. He is very tame, and
loves nothing better than being petted.]
In spite of all the varieties of _temperament_ in the monkey tribe, from
the genial little Capuchins to the morose old baboon, they nearly all have
one thing in common--that is, the monkey brain. The same curious
restlessness, levity, and want of concentration mark them all, except the
large anthropoid apes. Some of these have without doubt power of reflection
and concentration which the other monkeys do not possess. But in all the
rest, though the capacity for understanding exists, the wish to please, as
a dog does, and the desire to remember and to retain what it has learnt,
seem almost entirely wanting. Egoism, which is a sign of human dementia, is
a very leading characteristic of all monkeys. There is no doubt that the
baboons might be trained to be useful animals if they always served one
master. Le Vaillant and many other travellers have noted this. But they are
_too clever_, and at the bottom too ill-tempered ever to be trustworthy,
even regarded as "watches," or to help in minor manual labour. Baboons
would make an excellent substitute for dogs as used in Belgium for light
draught; but no one could ever rely on their behaving themselves when their
master's eye was elsewhere.
Taken as a family, the monkeys are a feeble and by no means likeable race.
They are "undeveloped" as a class, full of promise, but with no
performance.
[Illustration: _Photo by Ottomar Anschütz_] [_Berlin._
PIG-TAILED MONKEY CATCHING A FLY.
Most of the smaller monkeys, as well as the baboons, are fond of eating
insects. Beetles, white ants, and flies are eagerly sought and devoured.]
THE LEMURS.
The South American monkeys, with their squirrel-like forms and fur, are
followed by a beautiful and interesting group of creatures, called the
LEMURS, with their cousins the Lorises, Maholis, and Pottos. Their
resemblance to monkeys is mainly in their hands and feet. These are real
and very highly developed hands, with proper thumbs. The second toe on the
hind foot nearly always terminates in a long, sharp claw. "Elia," the
Indian naturalist, who kept them as pets, noticed that they used this to
scratch themselves with. Some of them have the finger-tips expanded into a
sensitive disk, full of extra nerves. Lemur means "ghost." Unlike the
lively squirrels and monkeys, they do not leave their hiding-places till
the tropical darkness has fallen on the forest, when they seek their food,
not by descending to the ground, but by ascending to the upper surface of
the ocean of trees, and again, at the first approach of dawn, seek refuge
from the light in the recesses of some dark and hollow trunk. The
RING-TAILED LEMUR is as lively by day as night; but most of the race are so
entirely creatures of darkness that the light seems to stupefy them. When
wakened, they turn over like sleeping children, with the same inarticulate
cries and deep, uneasy sighs. But at night most are astonishingly active;
they fly from tree to tree, heard, but invisible; so that the natives of
Madagascar doubt whether they are not true _lemures_, the unquiet ghosts of
their departed dead.
Though the lemurs are here treated apart from the other animals of
Madagascar, it will be obvious that they are a curious and abnormal tribe.
This is true of most of the animals of that great island, which has a fauna
differing both from that of the adjacent coast of Africa and from that of
India or Australia. In the FOSSA, a large representative of the Civets, it
possesses a species absolutely unlike any other. The Aye-aye is also an
abnormal creature. Nor must it be forgotten that Madagascar was until
recently the home of some of the gigantic ground-living birds. But, after
all, none of its inhabitants are more remarkable than its hosts of lemurs,
some of which are to be met with in almost every coppice in the island.
There are also many extinct kinds.
Exquisite fur, soft and beautifully tinted, eyes of extraordinary size and
colour (for the pupil shuts up to a mere black line by day, and the rest of
the eye shows like a polished stone of rich brown or yellow or
marble-grey), are the marks of most of the lemurs. But there are other
lemur-like creatures, or "lemuroids," which, though endowed with the same
lovely fur, like softest moss, have no tails. The strangest of all are two
creatures called the SLENDER LORIS and the SLOW LORIS. The slender loris,
which has the ordinary furry coat of the lemurs, and no tail, moves on the
branches exactly as does a chameleon. Each hand or foot is slowly raised,
brought forward, and set down again. The fingers then as slowly close on
the branch till its grasp is secure. It is like a slow-working mechanical
toy. Probably this is a habit, now instinctive, gained by ages of
cautiously approaching insects. But the result is to give the impression
that the creature is almost an automaton.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
RING-TAILED LEMUR.
This lemur is often kept as a domestic animal, and allowed to run about the
house like a cat.]
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S., North Finchley._
A DWARF LEMUR.
These tiny animals take the place of the dormouse in Madagascar.]
Madagascar is the main home of the lemurs, though some of the related
animals are also found in Africa and in the East Indies. But the dense
forests of the great island are full of these curious nocturnal beasts, of
which there are so many varieties presenting very slight differences of
form and habit, that naturalists have some difficulty in giving even a
complete list of their species. Add to this that nearly all of them are
intensely and entirely nocturnal, and the scarcity of data as to their
habits is easily accounted for. When seen by us, their faces all lack
expression--that is to say, the eyes, which mainly give expression, seem
entirely vacant and meaningless. But this is due to their special
adaptation to seeing in the dark tropical night. By day the pupil of the
eye almost disappears. If only we could also see in the dark, the eyes of
the lemur might have as much expression as those of a faithful dog. The
change which night makes in their general demeanour is simply miraculous.
By day many of them are like hibernating animals, almost incapable of
movement. When once the curtain of night has fallen, they are as active as
squirrels, and as full of play as a family of kittens. The RING-TAILED
LEMUR is often kept as a pet, both in Madagascar and in the Mauritius. It
is one of the very few which are diurnal in their habits. When in a hurry
it jumps along, standing on its hind feet, like a little kangaroo, but
holding its tail upright behind its back. It will follow people upstairs in
this way, jumping from step to step, with its front paws outstretched, as
if it were addressing an audience. The French call these day lemurs MAKIS.
The ring-tailed lemur lives largely among rocks and precipices. Most of
these creatures live upon fruit, the shoots and leaves of trees, and other
vegetable food. But, like the squirrel, they have no objection to eggs and
nestlings, and also kill and eat any small birds and insects. Some of the
smaller kinds are almost entirely insect-feeders. The largest kind of lemur
belongs to the group known as the INDRIS. The BLACK-AND-WHITE INDRI
measures about 2 feet in length. It has only a rudimentary tail, large
ears, and a sharp-pointed nose. The amount of white colouring varies much
in different individuals. This variation in colouring--a very rare feature
among wild mammalia, though one of the first changes shown when animals are
domesticated--is also found in the next three species, called SIFAKAS. The
DIADEMED SIFAKA, the WOOLLY INDRI, and the BLACK INDRI all belong to this
group. The SIFAKAS, as some of these and the allied forms are called, are
venerated by the Malagasys, who never kill one intentionally. Mr. Foster
observes that "they live in companies of six or eight, and are very gentle
and inoffensive animals, wearing a very melancholy expression, and being as
a rule morose, inactive, and more silent than the other lemurs. They rarely
live long in captivity. In their native state they are most alert in the
morning and evening, as during the day they conceal themselves under the
foliage of trees. When asleep or in repose, the head is dropped on the
chest and buried between the arms, the tail rolled up on itself and
disposed between the hind legs. The sifakas live exclusively on vegetable
substances, fruits, leaves, and flowers, their diet not being varied, as in
the other lemurs, by small birds, eggs, or insects. Their life is almost
entirely arboreal, for which the muscles of their hands and feet, as well
as the parachute-like folds between their arms and bodies, and their
peculiar hooked fingers, are well fitted. The young one is carried by the
mother on its back, its hands grasping her armpits tightly."
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
BLACK LEMUR.
Found on the coast of Madagascar.]
This is not the universal way of carrying the young among lemurs. The
CROWNED LEMUR, a beautiful grey-and-white species, often breeds at the Zoo.
The female carries its young one partly on its side. The infant clings
tightly with arms and tail round the very slender waist of the lemur, and
pushes out its sharp little face just above the thigh of the mother. The
WOOLLY INDRI has more woolly fur than the others of its tribe, a shorter
nose, and a longer tail.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S., North Finchley._
COQUEREL'S LEMUR.
A lemur which strongly objects to being awakened in the daytime.]
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
RUFFED LEMUR.
Another of the nocturnal lemurs. It lives mainly on fruit and insects.]
THE TRUE LEMURS
Of these there are several species, all confined to Madagascar and the
Comoro Islands. One of the best known is the RING-TAILED LEMUR, mentioned
above. It is called LEMUR CATTA, the Cat Lemur, from being so often kept in
domestication. The WEASEL LEMUR, the GREY LEMUR, the MOUSE LEMUR, the
GENTLE LEMUR, the SPORTIVE LEMUR, the CROWNED LEMUR, and COQUEREL'S LEMUR,
all represent various small, pretty, and interesting varieties of the
group. The BLACK-AND-WHITE LEMUR, one of the larger kinds, is capable of
domestication. A specimen kept in a London house, where the present writer
saw it, was always called "Pussy" by the children. The other small kinds
are very like squirrels, mice, weasels, and other creatures, with which
they have no connection. It seems as though the curiously limited and
primitive fauna of Madagascar tried to make up for its want of variety by
mimicking the forms of other animals, and something of the same kind is
seen in Australia, where the marsupials take the place of all kinds of
ordinary mammals. There are marsupial rats, marsupial wolves, marsupial
squirrels, and even marsupial moles. The small squirrel and rat-like lemurs
are called CHIROGALES. COQUEREL'S LEMUR is really a chirogale. It is a
quaint and by no means amiable little animal, sleeping obstinately all day,
and always ready to growl and bite if disturbed. Its colour is brownish
grey and cream-colour. A pair of these, rolled up tightly into balls in a
box of hay, will absolutely refuse to move, even when handled. They only
feed by night.
THE GALAGOS.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
GARNETT'S GALAGO.
One of the squirrel-like lemuroids.]
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
MAHOLI GALAGO
This little animal is a native of East Africa. It has very large eyes, and
fur as soft as the chinchilla's.]
An allied group, confined to tropical Africa, is that of the GALAGOS. They
are most beautiful little creatures, whose nearest relatives are the
Malagasy lemurs. Generally speaking, they have even more exquisite fur than
the lemurs. It is almost as soft as floss silk, and so close that the hand
sinks into it as into a bed of moss. The colour of the fur is rich and
pleasing, generally some shade of brown. The head is small, the nose
pointed, and the ears thin, hairless, and capable of being folded up, like
the wings of a beetle. But the most beautiful feature of the galagos is
their eyes. These are of immense size, compared with the head. The eye is
of the richest and most beautiful brown, like a cairngorm stone, but not
glassy or clear. Though quite translucent, the eye is marked with minute
dividing-lines, like the grain in an agate--a truly exquisite object. When
handled or taken in the arms, the little galago clasps the fingers or
sleeve tightly, as if it thought it was holding a tree, and shows no
disposition to escape. A family of three or four young ones, no larger than
mice, with their large-eyed mother attending to them, forms an exquisitely
dainty little group. The galagos vary from the size of a squirrel to that
of a small cat. The kind most often seen in England is the Maholi GALAGO
from East Africa. Another species comes from Senegal, and others from
Calabar and the forests of the Gold Coast. GARNETT'S GALAGO, another
species, is shown above. They may be regarded as nocturnal tropical
lemuroids, analogous to the chirogales of Madagascar. It has been
suggested, with great probability, that the intensely drowsy sleep of many
of the lemuroid animals corresponds to the hibernation of many northern
mammals. Tropical animals often become torpid to avoid the famine caused by
the hot season, just as creatures in cold countries hibernate to avoid the
hunger which would otherwise come with winter.
THE SLOW LEMURS OR LORISES, AND TARSIERS.
Another group of lemuroids is distinguished from the foregoing by having
the second finger of the fore paws either very short or rudimentary. The
thumb and great toe are also set very widely apart from the other fingers
and toes. A far more striking distinction to the non-scientific eye is
their astonishingly deliberate and slow movements. They have no tails,
enormous eyes, and very long, slender legs.
The SLOW LORIS is found in Eastern India and the Malay countries, where it
is fairly common in the forests. The Bengali natives call it _sharmindi
billi_ ("bashful cat"), from its slow, solemn, hesitating movements when in
pursuit of insects. Of a slow loris kept by him, Sir William Jones, in the
"Asiatic Researches," wrote: "At all times he seemed pleased at being
stroked on the head and throat, and he frequently allowed me to touch his
extremely sharp teeth. But his temper was always quick, and when he was
unseasonably disturbed he expressed a little resentment, by an obscure
murmur, like that of a squirrel.... When a grasshopper or any insect
alighted within his reach, his eyes, as he fixed them on his prey, glowed
with uncommon fire; and having drawn himself back to spring on his prey
with greater force, he seized it with both his fore paws, and held it till
he had devoured it. He never could have enough grasshoppers, and spent the
whole night in prowling for them."
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
SLENDER LORIS.
This extraordinary creature has the habits of a chameleon when seeking
insects for food. The photograph is unique.]
The SLENDER LORIS, an equally curious creature, is only found in Southern
India and Ceylon. Its food consists entirely of insects, which it captures
by gradual, almost paralysed approach. It has been described as a
"furry-coated chameleon." A group of slow lemurs, living in Western Africa,
are known as Pottos. They are odd little quadrupeds, in which the
"forefinger" never grows to be more than a stump. The tail is also either
sharp or rudimentary. They are as slow as the lorises in their movements.
In the Malay islands a distant relative, even more curiously formed, is
found in the TARSIER. It has the huge eyes, pointed ears, and beautiful fur
of the galagos, but the tail is long, thin, and tufted. The fingers are
flattened out into disks, like a tree-frog's. These creatures hop from
bough to bough in a frog-like manner in search of insects. They are not so
large as a good-sized rat. Our photograph does not give an adequate idea of
the size of the eyes.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S._] [_North Finchley._
SLOW LORIS.
Another of the slow-moving loris group. These animals are not shown to the
general public at the Zoo, but kept in a specially warmed room.]
THE AYE-AYE.
Last, and most remarkable of all these weird lemuroids, is the AYE-AYE. It
is placed in a group by itself, and has teeth like those of the Rodents, a
large bushy tail, and most extraordinarily long, slender fingers, which it
probably uses for picking caterpillars and grubs out of rotten wood. It is
nearly as large as an Arctic fox, but its habits are those of a lemur. In
Madagascar it haunts the bamboo forests, feeding on the juice of
sugar-cane, grubs, and insects. The fingers of its hands are of different
sizes and lengths, though all are abnormally long and slender. The second
finger seems to have "wasted," but is said to be of the utmost value to its
owner in extracting grubs and insects from the burrows in which they dwell,
or the crannies in which they may have taken refuge. Very seldom is this
animal seen alive in captivity. Although commonly called Aye-aye in this
country, it is doubtful if this is really its native name. The aye-aye was
long a puzzle to naturalists, but is now classed as a lemuroid.
[Illustration: _Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons._
TARSIER.
These little animals hop about in the trees like frogs. They are nocturnal,
and seldom seen.]
THE living races of animals have thus far been reviewed along the completed
list of the first great order--the Primates. Even in that circumscribed
group how great is the tendency to depart from the main type, and how
wonderful the adaptation to meet the various needs of the creatures'
environment! The skeletons, the frames on which these various beings are
built up, remain the same in character; but the differences of proportion
in the limbs, of the muscles with which they are equipped, and of the
weight of the bodies to be moved are astonishing. Compare, for instance,
the head of the male Gorilla, with its great ridges of bone, to which are
attached the muscles which enable it to devour hard tropical fruits and
bite off young saplings and bamboos, with the rounded and delicate head of
the Insect-eating Monkeys of South Africa; or set side by side the hand of
the Chimpanzee with that of the Aye-aye, with its delicate, slender
fingers, like those of a skeleton hand. What could be more diverse than the
movements of these creatures, whose structure is nevertheless so much
alike? Some of the lemuroids are as active as squirrels, flying lightly
from branch to branch; in others, as the Slow Lorises, the power of rapid
movement has disappeared, and been replaced by a creeping gait which cannot
be accelerated. Already, in a single order, we see the rich diversity of
nature, and its steady tendency to make all existing things serviceable by
adapting other parts of creation to their use or enjoyment.
[Illustration: _Photo by L. Medland, F.Z.S., N. Finchley._
HEAD OF AYE-AYE.
The aye-aye lives mainly in the wild sugar-cane groves, and feeds on
insects and grubs, as well as on the Juice of the sugar-cane.]
[Illustration: _Photo by Charles Knight, Aldershot._
AFRICAN LION AND LIONESS.
These animals are so numerous in the new British Protectorate of East
Africa that they are exempted from protection.]
[Illustration: _Photo by Fratelli Alinari_] [_Florence._
AFRICAN LION.
This lion is almost in the attitude of those sculptured by Sir Edwin
Landseer for the Nelson Monument, but the feet are turned in, and not lying
flat.]
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