of a Zoological Collection made in Sumatra. 253 



VIVERRA? BlNTURONG. 



Intermediate between Viveira and Vrsus is an animal called 

 Binturong, c^Jcj found at Malacca by Major Farquhar, who 

 communicated an account of it, accompanied with a specimen 

 and drawing, to the Asiatic Society. It has not been made pub- 

 lic, and it may therefore be interesting to give the following par- 

 ticulars as furnished to me by that gentleman, in whose po; 

 sion I saw a living specimen in 1819- 



The body of this animal is about two feet and a half in length ; 

 tail nearly the same, bushy and prehensile ; height from twelve 

 to fifteen inches. It is entirely covered, with the exception of 

 the legs and face, with a thick fur of strong black hair. Its 

 general appearance and habit is slow and crouching, the body 

 long and heavy, «nd low on the legs ; the tail is thick at the 

 root, gradually diminishing in size to the extremity, where it 

 curls inwards. The muzzle is short and pointed, somewhat 

 turned up at the nose, and is covered with bristly hairs, brown 

 at the points, which lengthen as they diverge, and form a 

 peculiar radiated circle round the face, giving the counte- 

 nance a striking and remarkable aspect. The eyes are large, 

 black and prominent ; and the ears are short, rounded, edged 

 with white, and terminated by tufts of black hair. There 

 are six short rounded incisors in each jaw, two canines, which 

 are long and sharp, and six molars on each side : of these, in 

 the upper jaw, the three first are pointed ; in the lower jaw 

 the two first are pointed, and the last is smaller and imperfect. 

 The molars are remote from the canines in the lower jaw, and 

 approximate in the upper. The feet are five-toed, with large 

 strong claws ; the soles are bare, and applied to the ground 

 throughout the whole of their length ; the hind ones longer 

 than the fore. The hair on the leos is short and of a brownish 



tinge. 



