THE MUNGOOSE 



gives the animal its grey appearance. The nose 

 and face up to the eyes are black ; the limbs are dark, 

 growing blacker towards the toes, which are nearly 

 black. The tail is long and tapering, the hairs of 

 which are long at the root, but gradually grow 

 shorter towards the tip, which is provided with a 

 brush of long black hairs, giving rise to the name 

 of Black-tailed Mungoose, by which it is known to 

 many colonists. The black tuft on the end of the 

 tail, and the large size of the animal, serve to dis- 

 tinguish it from all others of its kind in South 

 Africa. There is another mungoose of equal size, 

 but its tail tip is white, and it cannot therefore be 

 confused with this species. 



The average length of the Large Grey Mungoose 

 from the tip of the nose to the base of the tail is 

 about two feet, and the tail eighteen inches. 



The Slender Mungoose 



(Mungos caaui) 

 Syn. : Herfestes gracilis 



The Slender Mungoose varies a good deal in 

 colour, which fact caused it in the past to be 

 divided into two or three sub-species. It is found in 

 the eastern parts of the Cape Province, Pondoland, 

 Natal, and northwards to Abyssinia and Cape 

 Verde. It evidently does not occur to any great 

 extent in the eastern part of the Cape Province, 

 as it is quite unknown at Port Elizabeth, and we 



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