78 LLOYD S NATURAL HISTORY. 
spotted cubs in one and fe same litter clearly shows that 
they are merely a variety. In certain lights the spots on the 
skin of a black Leopard can be distinctly seen, owing to the 
fact that they are of a deeper tinge than the rest of the fur. 
A white Asiatic Leopard seems to be a very rare creature, 
although a figure of such an animal is extant. 
Secondly, we have the long-haired Asiatic Leopard, of which 
the leading features have already been indicated ; this variety 
being found not only in Persia, but likewise in the neighbour- 
ing district of Baluchistan, and in the mountains of Sind. 
Thirdly, there is the African Leopard, readily distinguished 
by the small size of the body-spots, some of which are often 
solid, and thus resemble those on the head and limbs of its 
Asiatic cousin. Curiously enough, it was thought for a long 
period that there were no black Leopards throughout the 
length and breadth of Africa. ‘That there are none entirely 
black seems to be undoubtedly the case; but Dr. Giinther 
has described Leopard-skins from the Albany district, which 
exhibit a kind of incipient blackness, or melanism. In one 
of these specimens the blackness takes the form of a broad 
black stripe, extending from the upper part of the head to 
the loins; while the tail has an extraordinary number of very 
small black spotsand a black tip. It does not appear that any 
trace of the spots can be detected in the deep black band 
on the back. In a second example the blackness was of 
much larger extent, embracing almost the whole of the skin, 
with the exception of the under parts of the head and body | 
and the inner surfaces of the limbs. ‘The tail, although not 
black, is uniformly dark-coloured above. The black portion 
of the skin presents a beautiful gloss, without the faintest in- 
dication of spots. 
Writing of the specimen first received, Dr Gunther observes 
that “it is a well-known fact that the Asiatic Leopard ex- 
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