194 THE WILD CAT. 
are not so dark nor so clearly defined as those of the spine. The tail is barely half the. 
length of the head and body. The fur is tolerably long and thick, and when the animal 
is found in colder 1 regions, such as some parts of Germany and Russia, the fur is peculiarly 
long and thick. 
In the wilder and less cultivated parts of Scotland, the Wild Cat is still found, and is 
as dangerous an enemy to the game of Scotland as is the ocelot to that of tropical 
America. 
The amount of hayoc which is occasioned by these creatures is surprising. Mr. 
Thompson mentions, in his Notes on the Mammalia of Ireland, that a gamekeeper had 
frequently noticed certain grouse feathers and other débris lying about a “water-break ” 
which lay in his beat, and had more than once come upon some of the birds lying without 
their heads, but otherwise in such excellent condition that they were taken home and served 
at table. Suspecting the Wild Cat to be the culprit, he set a trap, and captured two of 
these animals, an old and a young one. 
Here, again, is exhibited the strange predilection which the Cat tribe seem to feel for 
the heads of the creatures on which they feed. No less than five grouse were discovered 
at the same time lying headless on the ground, and it is probable that their destroyers 
would have contented themselves with the heads only; and, like the blood-sucking tiger 
mentioned on p. 159, would have killed victim after victim for the sole purpose of feasting 
upon their heads. The keeper expected to secure one or two more of these feline 
marauders, for the young Wild Cats remain with their parents until they are full grown 
and able to take upon themselves the cares of wedded life. 
The Wild Cat is said by some naturalists to be indigenous to Ireland, but is denied 
that honour by others. In Maxwell’s “ Wild Sports of the West” are several anecdotes of 
a fierce savage breed of Cats running wild, and depopulating the rabbit-warrens sadly. 
One of these animals, which was killed after a severe battle, was of a dirty-grey colour, 
double the size of the common house Cat, and its teeth and claws more than proportion- 
ately larger. This specimen was a female, which had been traced to a burrow under a 
rock, and caught in a rabbit-net. With her powerful teeth and claws she tore her way 
through the net, but was gallantly seized by the lad who set the toils. Upon him she 
turned her energies, and bit and scratched in a most savage style until she was despatched 
‘by a blow from a spade. The wounds which she inflicted were of so severe a character 
that lock-jaw was threatened, and the sufferer was sent to an hospital. 
Besides these huge Wild Cats, which may, in all probability, be the true Felis Catus, 
there are many house Cats which run away from their rightful home, and, taking up their 
residence in the rabbit-warren, are as formidable enemies to rabbits and poultry as those 
of the larger kind. No less than five males were caught at one time in an outhouse, 
penned up until the morning, and then shot ; after which execution the neighbouring 
warren largely increased its population. 
The Wild Cat takes up its residence in rocky and wooded country, making its home in 
the cleft of a rock or the hollow of some aged tree, and issuing from thence upon its 
marauding excursions. It has even been known to make its domicile in the nest of some 
large bird. It is rather a prolific animal, and, were it not kept within due bounds by such 
potent enemies as the gun and the snare, would rapidly increase in numbers. As it is, 
however, the Wild Cat yields to these foes, and slowly, but surely, vanishes from the land. 
The number of its family is from three to five, or even six. The female is smaller than the 
male. 
In total length, an adult male Wild Cat is about three feet, of which the tail occupies 
nearly a foot. This does not seem to be a very considerable length, as there are domestic Cats 
which equal or even exceed these dimensions ; but it must be remembered that the tail of 
the Wild Cat is much shorter than that of the domestic animal. 
Of the fiery energy which actuates this animal when attacked and roused to fury, the 
following extract from St. John’s “ Highland Sports” will give an excellent idea :— 
“The true Wild Cat is gradually becoming extirpated, owing to the increasing pre- 
servation of game; and, though difficult to hold in a trap, in consequence of its great 
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