THE GIBBONS. 163 



every minute it became more and more distinct, till at last the 

 whole troop rushed past in a storm of sound, vociferating 

 Whoko ! whoko ! and in a few more minutes their cry was heard 

 far up the mountain-side. Considering that their progress is 

 almost exclusively arboreal, the rapidity with which they make 

 their ascent is wonderful. 



" Associated with this arboreal habit of progression, we fmd 

 that H. hoolock derives its nourishment from leaves, insects, 

 eggs, and birds, the essential features of sylvan life." It also 

 eats the leaves of Ficus religiosa^ the aquatic Convolvulus 

 i^Ip07naa repfans), and the brilliant red flowers of the Ca?i7ta 

 indica. It " has a marked partiality," continues the same 

 naturalist, " for Spiders and their webs, which become tangled 

 in its long slim fingers, and Orthopterous insects are regarded 

 by it with special favour, and over which it utters its peculiar cry 

 of satisfaction. Eggs also are to it a bonne boiiche. It was first 

 in the Calcutta gardens that I become aware of the circum- 

 stance that small living birds were devoured by it with a 

 method and eagerness which has left no doubt in my mind 

 that this species, in its natural state, must be a scourge to the 

 feathery tribe." 



The Hoolock lives in large flocks as a rule, keeping chiefly 

 to the hill forests. Sometimes, however, an old male may be 

 discovered living by himself. 



They move chiefly by means of their long arms, by which 

 they swing themselves for prodigious distances from branch to 

 branch, and from tree to tree. They descend hill-sides at a 

 surprising pace, their descent being accomplished by grasping 

 bamboos or branches that bend beneath their weight, and 

 allow them to drop until they can seize the ends of other bam- 

 boos or branches lower or) tte s^ope and take another mighty 



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