SPORT IN WESTERN CHINA 183 



city I have seen in the possession of Europeans several fine 

 examples in use as floor-rugs, but I was never able to secure a 

 specimen myself. 



The ears, shoulders, and legs of this animal are black, and 

 black rings surround the eyes ; the rest of the body is rich 

 creamy white. It has a distinct if short tail, and the soles of 

 the feet are hairy. The fur on the pelt is long, glossy, rather 

 soft, and very handsome in appearance. "Parti-coloured" 

 well describes this beast, though from the preponderance of 

 white the native name "White Bear" is very applicable, 

 especially in contradistinction to the Black and Brown Bears 

 of the same region. 



The Parti-coloured Bear ranges from the vicinity of Wa 

 shan westwards to the forests beyond Tachienlu, northwards 

 to Sungpan, and thence eastwards through the high mountains 

 to the vicinity of Lungan Fu. It is essentially a denizen of 

 the Bamboo jungles between 6000 and 11,000 feet, feeding 

 on the young shoots of these plants. The natives declare that 

 it eats nothing else, but this assertion is probably too sweeping. 

 Throughout the large area encompassed within the above 

 boundaries. Bamboo jungles are a characteristic feature, forming 

 well-marked zones. In the sparsely timbered belts and in 

 open Silver Fir forests. Bamboo forms absolutely impenetrable 

 thickets. The culms are slender and grow some 10 to 12 feet 

 tall. These plants are impatient of shade from above and 

 grow so thickly together as to starve out all undergrowth and 

 rival shrubs. The young shoots which continue to spring up 

 from June to end of September, according to altitude and 

 species, are white within and excellent eating. The Giant 

 Panda shows good taste in confining his diet mainly to this 

 excellent vegetable ! 



This animal is not common, and the savage nature of the 

 country it frequents renders the possibility of capture remote. 

 It is occasionally shot by native hunters when after Budorcas 

 and Serow, but is not regularly hunted. It is also sometimes 

 captured in dead-fall traps. 



According to the natives, the Peh Hsiung hibernates for 

 the six or seven months in hoUow trees, dry, rocky hollows, and 

 caves. Both Mr. Zappey and myself saw evident signs of 



