670 



MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 



No. I.— A WONDERFUL LEOPARD SKIN. 



la our report of the meeting of the Zoological Society reference is made to 

 a remarkable leopard skin from the Deccan recently presented to the British 

 Museum. As regards its markings, this skin presents, perhaps, the most extra- 

 ordinary variation from the normal type that has ever been noticed in the case 

 of large animals. So remarkable, indeed, is the variation that if the locality 

 whence it was obtained were not thoroughly well authenticated the skin would 

 be unhesitatingly regarded as indicating a new and, at the same time superbly 

 handsome, species or race. Although the black markings present some approxi- 

 mation in pattern and mode of arrangement to the jaguar type, the head and 

 back are ornamented by an altogether peculiar kind of big-meshed network of 

 broad buff lines, the first mesh, which occupies the head, being much larger than 

 all the others. The district whence the specimen came abounds in leopards, 

 which, according to the donor (who has special opportunities of observing, since 

 all the skins by claimants for the Government bounty have to be submitted to 

 him), are all of the normal type. Tigers, on the other hand, are rare. And 

 this naturally gives rise to the suggestion that the abnormal skin may be that 

 of a tiger-leopard hybrid. Against such a plausible theory is the solid fact that 

 the markings present no approximation to the tiger type. To imagine that an 

 unknown species of big cat inhabits the Deccan would be to violate all the 

 probabilities. Hence we are driven to regard the specimen in the light of a 

 special individual variation or (shall we sa^ ? ) mutation. But the variation from 

 the normal is so great that if it has arisen suddenly and spontaneously there can 

 no longer be any question as to the possibility of the production, per saltum, of 

 a well marked racial, if not specific, type ; although, of course, the variation 

 would soon be eliminated, unless a mate of the same type was also available. In 

 bringing the specimen to the notice of the society the describer confessed him- 

 self quite unable to offer any suggestion as to the origin of such a remarkable 

 variation. — {From " The Field," 18th January 1908.) 



No. II.— A PANTHER AND A BUFFALO. 



The following incident which occurred a few days ago, seems to me so 

 extraordinary that it deserves to be recorded : — 



I was sitting up over the carcase of a bullock which had been killed by a 

 panther about 100 yards from a village. Just as it had got quite dark, I saw 

 three or four village buffaloes approach the kill, and begin grazing some twenty 

 yards away. As I was watching the buffaloes, I suddenly made out the form 

 of the panther as it came up to the kill. Simultaneously one of the buffaloes 

 noticed it, and snorting loudly advanced towards it. The panther immediately 

 decamped, and the buffalo went on grazing. In a minute or two the panther 

 returned and lay down beside the dead bullock, in which position I could no 



