440 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN. 



BACTRIAN CAMEL AND YOUNG. 



the Zoological Park April 6, 190S. At th 



stopijed and chattered in an alarming manner. 

 This is always the badger, which noisy little 

 creature often comes as far as the Reptile House, 

 always prompted by an untiring appetite. 



Here, alas for romantic writers, it must be 

 explained that much of the docility among ani- 

 mals is prompted by appetite and selfish inter- 

 est. This accounts for some of the friendly ad- 

 vances of deer and other hoofed animals, many 

 of which will treacherously attack one in the 

 corral. With most of the "tame" flesh-eating 

 animals, the sight of food effects a startling 

 change in temper. The amusing little badger 

 is a veritable demon when given his food, and 

 continues to growl over tlie bone for hours after- 

 ward. Not all, however, among our keepers' 

 special favorites are thus influenced by appetite. 



Quite an exception to the former rule is a 

 fully grown golden agouti, living in the Small- 

 Mammal House. The agouti belongs to a 

 group of rodents known as the Cavies. Nearly 

 all of them are uniformly good natured, even 

 to that gigantic creature, the capybara, which 

 is as big as a large pig, and has teeth strong 

 enough to instantly amputate a man's finger. 



of birth it was so 

 that it might nurse. 



The agouti in question often runs free about 

 the Small-Mammal House like a miniature deer. 

 It obej-s the call of keepers Kane and Lands- 

 berg, and permits the men to lift it back to its 

 cage. In an adjoining cage is a large ^Malabar 

 squirrel, which, when turned loose, seems to ac- 

 tually tease the men as thej' try to get it back, 

 but when a step-ladder is brought the creature 

 evidently reasons that the game is at a close; 

 for it immediately darts for its cage door. 



The most important and interesting of the 

 Park's tame animals are the fine lion cubs 

 Sambout and Sergoit, presented by Mr. and 

 Mrs. Armar D. Saunderson. At present, the 

 keepers are taking these animals for a daily 

 walk over the lawns, each one controlled only by 

 a collar and chain. But the friendly spirit of 

 these lions soon will change. When about 

 eleven months old. the cubs of nearly all the big 

 cats become vicious and unmanageable, unless 

 subjected to constant handling and training, the 

 latter usually involving quite vigorous treatment, 

 and much nerve on the trainer's part. Even to- 

 day, these small lions will suffer no human in- 

 terference at feeding time. 



