Descriptions of East Asiatic Mammals 187 
16yo inches, of the tail only 9% inches, of the hind foot 3% 
inches. The typical form is a native of the lower Malay Penin- 
sula, where it is thought to live in swamps; races on Sumatra 
and Borneo have the underparts blackish except on the throat 
and neck. This Mongoose is not known to occur in Java. 
CATS, TIGERS, LYNXES (FAMILY FELID^e) 
The Cats may generally be distinguished from the Civets and 
Mongooses by their short rounded heads and short muzzles. 
The claws are sharp and, as a rule, completely retractile within 
sheaths. An exception is seen in the Cheetahs of western India 
and Africa. Since retractile claws are also found in the Linsangs 
of the family Viverridse, this character cannot be taken as 
wholly diagnostic. The eyes of the Cats have the well-known 
vertically contracting pupils. The second to the fifth toes of the 
front foot are arranged in a semicircle around the central 
pad. The first is raised above the ground and, with its claw, is 
partly opposable against the others. Only four toes appear on the 
hind foot. The whiskers are strongly developed, the ears rather 
large. There are from 2 to 4 pairs of nipples. The number of 
cheek teeth is much reduced, the strongly functional ones being 
the third and fourth upper premolars and in the lower jaw 
the fourth premolar and first molar. The scissor-like action of 
the carnassials is marked. 
Pocock divides the Cats into two groups : Cats with a long 
elastic ligament forming a part of each side of the hyoid appa- 
ratus of the throat, presumably permitting large masses of food 
to be swallowed; and Cats in which the hyoid consists of the 
continuous series of small bones found in most mammals. To 
the first belong Tigers, Lions, Leopards, American Jaguars and 
Snow Leopards; to the second, the Lesser Cats and Lynxes. 
Cheetahs lack the elastic ligament. Pocock names the first group 
Pantherinae, the second group Felinse. In this respect at least, 
