164 Major-General Harpwicke’s Description 
the projecting points of the posterior grinders. This character, 
as far as our observation extends, is peculiar; it does not exist, 
except in a small degree, in any other genus of carnivorous 
quadrupeds. The truncation, carefully described in the generic 
character, is owing, in our opinion, to original structure, and is 
not produced by the wearing down of the points. We observe 
it both in the skull of a young animal and in that of the adult 
specimen, from which the annexed drawing was made ; and our 
description is confirmed by a careful comparison of the relative 
elevation of the points of the two anterior grinders, in which, 
although they are equally exposed to attrition, this truncation is 
not observed. The margins bounding the truncated points, as 
is shown in the drawing, are circumscribed and perfect, exhibit- 
ing no signs of being worn down by attrition. In the disposi- 
tion and even in the form of the teeth, our animal bears some 
resemblance to the genera Nasua and Procyon; but these differ 
essentially in the lengthened form of the head, and in the ex- 
tended rostrum, which is terminated by a flexible rhinarium : 
they also differ in the number, character, and distribution of the 
grinders. Nasua and Procyon have in both jaws six grinders, of 
which the three anterior are false grinders ; and of those which 
follow, none of the points, even in the adult state, exhibit the 
truncation above described in the generic character. Our ani- 
mal has only one false grinder, with a compound crown, and the 
four posterior grinders are large and highly complicated: the 
first of these in the upper jaw corresponds with the fourth 
grinder in Nasua and Procyon, and the points are attenuated 
and acute; but the posterior grinders are quite peculiar and 
characteristic in their structure. 
Its haunts are about rivers and mountain-torrents. It lives 
much in trees, and feeds on birds and the smaller quadru- 
peds. It is frequently discovered by its loud cry or call, resem- 
l bling 
