CARNIVORES. 



ORDER CARNIVORA. 



PART I. 

 I. THE CATS. FAMILY FELID^E. 



If a naturalist were asked to select two groups of Mammals 

 severally representing the most highly developed and beauti- 

 ful type of the carnivorous and herbivorous modifications, he 

 would certainly make choice of the Cat tribe for the one, while 

 for the other he would most probably select the Antelopes and 

 Gazelles. Both of these groups do, indeed, seem to present the 

 highest modification and specialisation which the particular type 

 of structure by which they are characterised is susceptible of 

 attaining; and it is curious to notice the kind of parallelism in 

 development which may be traced between the two groups. 

 In both groups, for instance, the limbs have been more or less 

 elongated, these animals walking only on their toes, instead 

 of on the whole sole of the foot. Whereas, however, in the 

 Antelopes the elongation of the limbs has been excessive, 

 and mainly concentrated on the segment immediately above 

 the fore- and hind-foot— that is to say, the metacarpus and 

 metatarsus— while the toes have been reduced to a single 

 functional pair on each foot, in the Cats the bones of the 

 7 B 



