MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 841 



No v.— NOTES ON THE BIG GAME AND DUCK OF 



DHAR STATE. 



Tiger {Felis tigris). — Confined to the reserved forest tract (Shikar pre- 

 serve) on the banks of the Narbadda. Majority of tigers shot measure 9'-6". 



A tine tigress shot by my wife in 1914 measured 9'-10". 1 think it is 

 a good size for a tigress. 



Panther {Felis pardus). — -Very common in the State ; from the records 

 kept of panthers shot the. following observations are made. 



The lar::;er variety is more common than the smaller. The following 

 measurements will show the differences — 



8ft. 7ft. 6ft. Sft. Mis. Total. 



8 36 49 3 10 106. 



Habitat — They are common in the hills everywhere but now very rarely 

 come, in broad day light, near a town or on to the plains as they used 

 to do in the eighties, when they were thus shot in the open by sportsmen. 

 The last shot in this way was at 7 a.m. in the month of March 1908. 



Mention of particular instances. ^ — My wife shot a panther over a kill 

 at night on the 13th September 1918 which was found next morning dead, 

 with one of his legs and portion of his right side up to the breast eaten 

 by another panther. Over the same kill three more panthers later appeared 

 and ate what remained. 



On the 30th of November 1918 my wife shot a panther which measured 

 8'-2'' when found dead next morning, so it must have measured at least 

 8'-4". 



The biggest panther on record was shot in the State in November 1908, 

 three miles from Dhar city. He was an old and well marked animal 

 with big spots. 



An old muzzle loader bullet was found in his nose when skinned. I 

 venture to think that this panther was not only a record in Dhar State 

 but must be at least one of the best shot in India, as I have faint recol- 

 lections of once reading in a newspaper, some years back, that a 9' 

 panther was shot in Assam or somewhere about there. 



Sloth Bear (Melursus ursinus). — Not common. Confined to the tracts along 

 the Narbadda river. They were common in 1850 and 1870 below the foot 

 of the Mandu hills (part of the Vindhya range). 



The biggest bear, shot up to now, measured 7'-9". 



Sambhar {Rusa equinus). — Not very common in the State. They are 

 confined to one locality on the banks of Narbadda in the reserve forest. 

 The biggest head was shot (by me) in 1914; the right horn measured 46', 

 the left 441" while the spread was 44". Another tine head was shot in 

 the same month which measured 36-^-", another head picked up in 1908, 

 belonging to an animal killed by a tiger, measured, left horn 38" and 

 right horn 34.^" (partly broken) spread 29''. 



Since 1916 Sambhar have again commenced to appear in the hills of 

 the forests round Mandu. 



Chital {Axis axis). — Remarks the same as for Sambhar, the best head shot 

 in these tracts up to noV measured 36". 



Blue Bull (Beselaphus tragocamelus) . — Confined to tracts on the banks of 

 the Narbadda. Two heads shot by me measured lOV' and 9^" and two by 

 my wife 8|" and 8^", respcictively. 



Blhck-buch {Antilopecervicapra).—ThTrovLg\\o\itth.e Malwa plateau portion 

 of the State, and are abundant. The biggest head was shot in 1916, 

 3 miles from the town. The right horn 27-^" and the left 27". 



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