286 THE BOOK OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 



It was thought at one time that the first Saki referred to was 

 Humboldt's, but it proved after further examination to be the White- 

 Headed, the name of which, as Mr. Finn says, "is not at all a happy 

 one, for the hair on the face is straw-yellow — very probably, how- 

 ever, fading to white in stuffed specimens — and the back of the head, 

 at all events, is black, the long hair forming a hood." Humboldt's 

 Saki "is a grizzly-grey animal, with the face not differing strikingly 

 in the colour of its scanty hair from the long coat which covers the 

 body. Though less striking in appearance than the other, it is a 

 prettier animal, and being very tame, is an ideal Monkey for a pet. 

 It has a soft twittering voice very much like that of the Marmosets." 

 If such an epithet as "hideous-looking" can be applied to any 

 beast, then surely the White-Headed Saki deserves mention in this 

 respect, for certainly its features repel rather than attract, and 

 although of extreme value and interest to zoologists, I am not at all 

 sure that the specimen which was so short-lived would have 

 attracted much attention from the general public, much less endeared 

 itself as a popular animal at the London Zoo. The curious facial 

 expression is very remarkable and is the least attractive part of the 

 Saki's body, for it is otherwise a finely-built Monkey, and clothed 

 with long furry hair. The Saki appears to feed very largely upon 

 the honeycomb of Wild Bees, and it has been suggested that the 

 thick body-covering protects it from the stings of the Bees when it is 

 engaged raiding their citadels. 



WHITE-THIGHED GUEBEZA.— Coming from an entirely different 

 part of the world to the Sakis, the White-Thighed Guereza (Fig. 225) 

 is a resident of West Africa, and presents with its whiskered face a 

 grandfatherly look deserving of notice. It is interesting to observe, 

 too, the long white tail, which, as seen in the present photograph, is 

 apt to be overlooked owing to the fact that it is resting in a line with 

 the left-hand leg of the stool upon which the Guereza is seated. 



This, of course, is still another Monkey, and the last one we 

 are likely to encounter during our present pilgrimage. It belongs to 

 the genus Colobus, or Thumbless Monkeys. These are African 

 beasts, and about twelve species have so far been described by 

 scientists. 



The White-Thighed Guereza may be distinguished by the long 

 appendage which has already been referred to, as also the white 

 whiskers all round the dark face, and the jet-black head, body and 

 limbs. The contrast between the black and white in this animal is 



