THE MUNGOOSE 



the sea. At Despatch, near Port Elizabeth, Mr. 

 F. H. Holland has recently killed two of these mun- 

 gooses, which for some time had been preying on 

 his poultry. This spot is an ideal habitat for them, 

 as the banks of the Zwartkops River are thickly 

 covered with reeds. 



The Water Mungoose is dark brown in colour : 

 the hairs are annulated with bands of brown and 

 yellow alternately, the former being most pro- 

 nounced. Often these annulations are absent. The 

 animal is rather thickset, especially the head and 

 neck ; the limbs are of a darker brown than the body 

 fur ; the tail is a little more than half the length of 

 the body, which averages two feet from the tip of 

 the nose to the root of the tail. The hair of the 

 tail is long at the base, but gradually grows shorter 

 towards the tip, giving the tail a tapering appearance. 



On the north-eastern side of South Africa, from 

 the Transvaal, and up the east coast, a local race 

 is found, which is larger than the typical kind, and 

 to distinguish it from the typical race, it is known 

 as Mungos paludinosus rubellus. 



The Small Grey Mungoose 



{Mungos 'pulverule7itus) 



Also known as the Grijse Muishond ; Neethaar ; Pepper 

 and Salt Cat ; Ilitse of Amaxosa 



The Small Grey iViungoose is common throughout 

 the Cape Province and Natal, but so far as is at 

 VOL. II 33 3 



