FELIs. 195 
towards the tip; fur soft, moderately long, purplish grey towards the 
base.” 
SizE.—Apparently exceeds that of the common cat, and equals 7. 
chaus ; the tail about half the length of the body. 
I have taken the above description from Mr. W. T. Blanford 
(‘Report on the Second Yarkand Mission: Mammalia’) who has first 
described and named this new species. There is also an excellent 
plate in the same portion of the report, which unfortunately is published 
at an almost prohibitive price, and to be obtained at the Government 
Press. ‘The black spots on the belly have been inadvertently left out ; 
otherwise the plate is excellent, as are all the others, especially the 
osteological ones. 
No. 216. FELIS CHAUS. 
The Common Jungle-Cat ( Jerdon’s No. 115). 
Native Names.—Xw/as (according to Jerdon, but I have always 
found this applied to the Paradoxurus), Jangtli-billi, Ban-bilao, Hindi ; 
Ban beral, Bengali ; Birka, Bhagalpor Hill Tribes ; AZaut-bek, Canarese ; 
Kada-beh or Bella-bek of Waddars ; Mota lahn manjur, Mahrathi ; Bhaoga 
Mahrathi of the Ghats; /imki-pili, Telegu; Cheru-pali, Malabarese 
(Jerdon) ; Khyoung-Tsek-koon in Arakan. 
Hapitat.—Common all over India from 7,000 or 8,000 feet of 
elevation in the Himalayas, down to Cape Comorin and the Island of 
Ceylon. It is also found in Assam and Burmah. ‘This species appears 
to have a wide range, as it has been found also in Persia, on the borders 
of the Caspian and in Egypt. 
DESCRIPTION.—Larger somewhat, and more lanky than the domestic 
cat. The general appearance of the fur a rusty or grizzly grey; the 
hairs being pale fulvous brown with dark tips; more rufous on the sides 
of the abdomen and neck, the lower parts being white ; faint transverse 
stripes, occasionally broken into spots on the sides, but these markings 
disappear with old age, and are more difficult to trace in the deeper 
furred specimens from cold countries ; the markings are darker on the 
limbs, and there is a distinct black bar on the forearm near the elbow ; 
inside are two or three dark stripes ; the feet are blackish underneath ; 
often a dark bar across the chest, and sometimes faint spots on the 
belly ; rufous stripes on the cheek ; a dark stripe ascends from the eye, 
especially in the young animal, and it has sometimes faint stripes on the 
nape mingling on the forehead; the ears are slightly tufted, dark 
externally, white within ; the tail, which is short, is more or less ringed 
from the middle to the tip, which is black. Melanoid specimens have 
been found. 
SizE.—Head and body, about 26 inches ; tail, nine to ten; height at 
shoulder, 14 to 15 imches. 
O 2 
