34 NATURAL HISTORY ESSAYS 



the beautiful oasis in the Northern Sahara, famous 

 for its thousands of palm trees. Having received 

 the fennec from his dragoman, Bruce kept it under 

 observation for several months, and subsequently 

 presented it to Captain Cleveland, R.N., who, in 

 his turn, gave it to the Swedish Consul at Algiers. 

 Bruce is said to have made a water-colour draw- 

 ing of his pet, and subsequently entered into a 

 violent quarrel with Mr. Skioldebrand as to which 

 of them had been the first to figure Canis zerda ; 

 the Swede maintaining on his side that Bruce, 

 instead of being the original delineator of the 

 fennec, had merely received a copy of Skiolde- 

 brand's own drawing ! A figure of the new 

 animal, together with an account of it, was com- 

 municated by Bruce to Buffon, and was published 

 by the French naturalist in 1786. Mr. Skiolde- 

 brand was not backward in publishing his account 

 of the fennec, which was sent to Pennant, and 

 will be found (doubtless paraphrased) in the first 

 volume of that naturalist's "History of Quadru- 

 peds." A comical figure of the "Zerda" con- 

 stitutes Plate LHI. of Pennant's work: the little 

 fox of the Sahara^ is represented as sitting on its 

 haunches and (in spite of the due rendering of the 

 large ears) very much resembling an overgrown 

 rat. Although so obviously a fox, the true affinities 

 of Canis zerda were not thoroughly understood 



1 Skioldebrand aptly styled the fennec " Vulpcs minimus saarensis." 



