THE DESERT CAT. 1 79 



numerous Monkeys, sometimes hanging to the extremest 

 branches above the water. Although the vessel would on 

 other occasions excite but little attention, no sooner was the 

 stuffed specimen in sight, that the whole community would 

 troop off with prodigious screams and howlings. It was of 

 course surmised, from the excessive terror of these animals, 

 that this species of Cat must be an active enemy to them." 



Practically nothing is known as to the habits of the Colocolo 

 in a state of nature ; although it is evident that it must differ 

 from the Pampas Cat in being an arboreal, instead of a purely 

 terrestrial species. 



XXXV. THE DESERT CAT. FELIS ORNATA. 



Fclis ornata^ Gray, 111. Indian Zool. vol. i. pi. ii. (1830); 



Elliot, Monograph of Felidse, pi. xxxii. (1878-83); Blan- 



ford, Mamm. Brit. India, p. 84 (1888). 

 Felis servalinti) Jardine, Naturalist's Library, Felinoe, p. 232 



(i334). 

 Chans pulchellus, Gray, List Mamm. Brit. Mus. p. 45 (1843). 

 Chaus serva/imis, Gray, he. cit. 

 Chaus ortiatiiSy Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1867, p. 275. 



{Plate XXII.) 



Characters. — With the present species we come to the first 

 representative of what may be termed the Lynxine group of 

 Cats, which includes the whole of the remaining members of 

 the genus. As a group, they are characterised by the presence 

 of a larger or smaller pencil of hair at the tip of the ear; while 

 the tail is short; and in the skull the orbits are always incom- 

 plete behind, and the anterior pre-molar is generally wanting. 



In the present species the tail reaches the hocks; the ground- 

 colour of the fur is pale yellow, upon which there are small 

 round black spots ; while the pencils on the ears are reduced 

 to a few short brown hairs. Skull as in F ehaus (t'nfrd, p. 182). 



N 2 



