44 ON AN EAST AFRICAN RANCH [ch. ii 



away that its colouring would seem uniform — that is, 

 would, because of the distance, be indistinguishable 

 from a general tint, which really might have a slight 

 protective value. In other words, while it is possible 

 that the giraffe's beautifully waved colouring may 

 under certain circumstances, and in an infinitesimally 

 small number of cases, put it at a slight disadvantage 

 in the struggle for life, in the enormous majority of 

 cases — a majority so great as to make the remaining 

 cases negligible — it has no effect whatever, one way or 

 the other ; and it is safe to say that under no conditions 

 is its colouring of the slightest value to it as affording 

 it " protection " from foes trusting to their eyesight. 

 So it is with the leopard. It is undoubtedly much less 

 conspicuous than if it were black ; and yet the black 

 leopards, the melanistic individuals, thrive as well as 

 their spotted brothers ; while, on the whole, it is prob- 

 ably slightly more conspicuous than if it were nearly 

 unicolour, like the American cougar. As compared 

 with the cougar's tawny hide, the leopard's coloration 

 represents a very slight disadvantage, and not an advan- 

 tage, to the beast ; but its life is led under conditions 

 which make either the advantage or the disadvantage so 

 slight as to be negligible. Its peculiar coloration is 

 probably in actual fact of hardly the slightest service to 

 it from the " protective " standpoint, whether as regards 

 escaping from its enemies or approaching its prey. It 

 has extraordinary facihty in liiding ; it is a master of the 

 art of stealthy approach ; but it is normally nocturnal, 

 and by night the colour of its hide is of no consequence 

 whatever ; while by day, as I have already said, its 

 varied coloration renders it slightly more easy to 

 detect than is the case with the cougar. 



All of this applies with peculiar force to the zebra, 



