THE AARD WOLF 413 



of tlie organs of reprodiu'tioii have led to the Itelief that a Hyaena 

 clianges its sex every year. Its ahnost hviinan-souiKliiig howls 

 are supposed to be a deliberate trap for tlie unwary traveller. 

 There is also a legend tliat in tlie eye of the Hyaena is a stone 

 whi(;h if placed under the tongue of a man endows him with tlie 

 gift of prophecy. 



Frotefcs presents many resemblances to the Hyaenas, Init also 

 certain differences ; by many it is placed in a separate family. 

 There is but one species, F. eristatu, the Aard AVolf of South 

 Africa. In outward aspect it is very Hyaena-like, the coat l)eing 

 stri])ed, and the ears, thouoh lonu;er, resemblins: those of a Hyaena. 

 There is also a mane. There are, however, five toes on the fore- 

 feet. The teeth are feeliler, particularly the molars, which 

 are also reduced in numljer. The skull, as in Hyaena, has no 

 alisphenoid canal, but the bulla tympani is divided by a 

 septum. The animal seems to feed largely upon insects, 

 particularly Termites, and also upon carrion.^ 



Of extinct Hyaenoids Icfitherium seems to be transitional 

 between them and the Yiverridae. Its dentition, i], -]-, ^, ^, is 

 that of a Yiverrid, and tlie feet are five -toed. Tlie upper 

 carnassial tooth, however, is like that of Hyaena in having a 

 strong inner cusp. Other extinct genera of Hyaenas are Lycyaena 

 and Hyaenictis. The genus Hyaena itself goes back as far as 

 to the Miocene, and occurred in Europe until the Pleistocene. 

 The Cave Hyaena of this country seems to be indistinguishable 

 from Groeuta mavulata, though it has recei\'e(l the name of H. 

 spelaea. 



Fam. 5. Canidae." — This family cannot be divided into more 

 tlian five genera, and is universally distributed with the exception 

 of New Zealand. The auditory bulla is smooth and rounded, and 

 has internally a very incomplete septum, extending through about 

 one-fourtli or (ine-third of the cavity. The meatus has a fairly 

 prominent under lip. The paroccipital process is long and promi- 

 nent. Tlie mastoid is distinct, though ])ut slightly developed. 

 The glenoid foramen is large ; the condyloid foramen is cour 

 spicuous, and the carotid canal is deep within the foramen 

 lacerum posterius. The last tliree characters are Bear-like ; the 



1 Flower, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1869, p. 457. 



^ For a general account of the Canidae see Mivart, A Monograjjh of the Canidae^ 

 London, 1890. 



