I 



v, ■' PANTRERS. 269 



white tigers in his book on the Game Animals of India, and figures the 



skin of one. A white tiger, killed in the Bilaspur District of the Central 



Provinces, is described in Volume XXiV of this Journal, It was cream 

 coloured with stripes of chocolate brown. 



4. Breeding Habits. 



Not much appears to be definitely recorded regarding the breeding 

 seasons of the great felidse. A panther killed in March bad thr'^e unborn 

 cubs. 1 kept a cub some time that was probably born in December, and 1 

 saw a cub jn February that was five or six months old. There is apparent- 

 ly no regular breeding season. In the Field of 4th April 1908 the period 

 of gestation is said to be three months, meaning presumably twelve wteks j 

 that of the tiger and jaguar is put at three and a half months. Like other 

 cats, jianther cubs are born blind. They appear to be generally two or 

 three in number. 



5. Dimensions. 



It has been said that panthers vary greatly in size. I have not my 

 diaries h<re so cannot give the dimensions of many which were carefully 

 measured. In the Journal No. XXI, page 1(J63, i gave the measurements 

 of ten shot in the Buldana District of Berar in 191:.\ 'Jhese \aiied in 

 lengtli from a little over seven feet to five feet eight inches, but some were 

 immature. Three old males had a head and body length of 4 feet 6 in- 

 ches, 4 feet 3 inches, and 4 feet '2 inches respectively. Their tails were 2 

 feet 9 inches in the case of two, and 2 feet 6 inches in length in the case 

 of the other. Three old females were two of them '6 feet 8 inches, and one 

 an inch less in length of head and body. The variation in size is therefore 

 negligible in these cases, and, to the best of my recollection, in other ani- 

 mals of the species which 1 have shot. 1 think these were of average size 

 and it seems probable that mature animals do not vary as greatly in this 

 respect as has been frequently represented. Mostlength records of tigers 

 and panthers are so inaccurate as to be eutirt-lv untrustworlhy. 1ho.>-eI 

 have given were measured between uprights placed at the nose and at the 

 root of the tail. If all measurements were taken this way we should pro- 

 bably' hear little more of ten-foot tigers and eight-foot panthers. I have 

 never seen one or the other Measurements taken round the curves of 

 the body are quite valueless. In Volume XX of the Journal the measure- 

 ment of a panther shot by a villager in Tthri State is given as nine feet 

 three inches. That is the length of an average male tiger, and it may be 

 placed in the same category as the eleven and twelve-foot tigers which we 

 have heard of hut never seen. The great cats are very p\mmetiically 

 built, and if eleven foot tigers and nine-foot panthers aie chalked out on 

 a wall in their proper pr<portioii8 it will be seen that tht-y are more like 

 monsters of the prime of the sjibre-toothed species than the rt al anin als of 

 our p osaic age. A large series of skulls may be seen in the Society's 

 Museum, and these perhaps givo a fuir criterion of size. I have no record 

 of weights, but m Volume XXVI two males are recorded as wtighiug 114 

 and 115 pounds, which is probably a fair average. But no doubt much 

 heavier animals are found. 



6, Habits. 



The habits of these animals are certainly very interesting. Their con- 

 duct, is frequently characterised by estrettie boldness and otrtiue tin>idity. 

 Though so bold that they have been known to enter a tent and even a 

 house, they will seldom take their prey in the presence of n.aii when they 

 are aware ihatthey can be seen Thus a herd of goats watched: by a 

 small herd bo^ >vill probably be unniolested, but stiaj-gltrswill be fitized. 



