292 READINGS IN BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE 



There is no written record of any animal's being domesticated in modem 

 times, except the African elephant. And whether we are to call the African 

 elephant a domestic animal is a moot point. 



We have seen that wild animals are inclined to flee from man. Certain 

 animals enjoy special advantages, such as speed and cunning, in avoiding 

 human contacts. Others are well protected because of their isolated habitats. 



In my experience the most exhausting kind of hunting is provided by the 

 anoa of Celebes, the panda of Chinese Tibet, and the ibex of northern 

 Ethiopia and of the Tien Shan Mountains of China. 



Even to approach the Simen Mountains of Ethiopia or the Tien Shan 

 range requires tremendous effort. Crags and precipices at lofty altitudes 

 are the habitats of the goat. The chances are against the hunter's even 

 seeing game, to say nothing of shooting. 



The panda inhabits a mountainous region, dense with dwarf bamboo. 

 Not only is visibility bad but the ground is usually covered with mud so 

 that the hunter must constantly guard against falls. Silent stalking is out 

 of the question: the bamboo cracks and breaks so that the panda is fore- 

 warned. 



The anoa or dwarf buffalo of Celebes lives in steep, hilly country, pro- 

 tected by dense jungle. Merely to cut one's way through this jungle re- 

 quires terrific labor. Thorns reach out to scratch the face and tear the 

 clothes. Visibility is usually limited to a green wall a few feet away. 



TIGER HUNT 



I should like to tell of a tiger hunt carried out in Nepal, in the district 

 of Kheri. This hunt, to which I was invited by Kunwar Dillipat Shah, 

 brother of the Maharani of Kheri, was interesting because it showed some- 

 thing of the tiger's characteristics and emphasizes the trait I have stressed 

 — the desire of the big cats to avoid trouble. 



The first step was to tether native cattle to trees in the jungle. The 

 forest officer was aware of the approximate number of tigers in the dis- 

 trict, having acquired the information from native forest rangers, who 

 seemed to know everything going on in the jungle. When a tiger or leopard 

 had made a kill, the facts were reported to us the next morning by the 

 ranger. Preparations were immediately made for a hunt. The tiger or 

 leopard, after killing a calf, would invariably drag it a short distance away, 

 sample it, and then go away for a while. Until he felt disposed to return 

 and finish his meal, he would in all likehhood remain in the vicinity of the 

 kill. 



There were two periods of the day when hunting was feasible. One was 

 the early morning shortly before sunrise, when there was barely light to 

 see one's rifle sight. The other was in the heat of the day, when the animal 

 would be lying in some thick, densely shaded spot and could be driven 

 out by a line of elephants. The middle of the day was the better time be- 



