104 FELID.K. 



seem to be common. It frequents reeds near water ; and besides fish, 

 preys wpon Am2nilla7'ice, Unios, and various birds. It is a fierce un tameable 

 creature, remarkably beautiful, but whicli lias a very disagreeable smell." 

 On this Mr. Blyth observes, " I have not remarked the latter, though I 

 have had several big toms quite tame, and ever found this to be a 

 jiarticularly tameable species. A newl}^ caught male killed a tame young 

 leopardess of mine about double his size." The Rev. Mr. Baker, writing 

 of its habits in Malabar, says " that it often kills pariah dogs ; and that 

 he has known instances of slave children (infants) being taken from their 

 huts by this cat ; also young calves." 



It was considered the same as Temminck's F. ceJUhgaster by Gray, in 

 which he was followed by Blyth in his Catalogue; but in his late Synopsis, 

 he states that celidogaster, Temminck, is an African species. F. himalay- 

 anns apud Gray, remarks ]Mr. Blyth, 1. c, is perhaps true celidogaster. 



109. Felis marmorata. 



Martin. — Blyth, Synops. 8. — F. CharUoni, Gray. — Blyth, Cat. 

 17G. — F. Ogiihii, Hodgson; probably also F. Duvaucelli, Hodgson, 

 and Leoparclus dosvl, Hodgson, Cat. Hodgson's Coll. B. M., new ed. — 

 F. Diardi apud Jardine, Nat. Lib. Felidse, figd. 



The Marbled Tiger-cat. 



Desco: — Ground-colour dingy-fulvous, occasionally yellowish-gray, the 

 body with numerous elongate, wavy black spots, somewhat clouded or 

 marbled ; the head and nape with some narrow blackish lines coalescing 

 into a dorsal interrupted band ; the thighs and part of the sides with 

 black round spots ; the tail black-spotted, and with the tip black ; belly 

 yellowish-white. 



Length ISJ to 23 inches, head and body; tail 14 to 15| ; eai-s, from 

 crown of head, 2. 



This prettily marked wild cat has been found in the Sikim Himalayas, 

 in the hilly regions of Assam, Burmah, and Malayans, extending into the 

 islands of Java at all events. It was formerly considered by INIr. Blyth 

 to be the i-epi-esentative of the INIalayan F. marmorata, but in his Synopsis 

 he has joined it to that species. 



In the original edition of Hodgson's British Museum collections, it is not 



