1 6 NATURAL HISTORY ESSAYS 



The serval (Felis serval) is widely distributed 

 throughout the Dark Continent, although less 

 abundant in the North, and absent from the Congo 

 Forest region. About the size of a moderately 

 large dog, this species is remarkable for its large 

 ears, its long legs, and its short, bushy tail ; these 

 three characters combined giving the animal a 

 remarkably lynx-like appearance. The face of 

 the serval is very short from before backwards ; 

 the eyes have an oblong pupil, and are obliquely 

 set in the head. The ears are upright, and placed 

 closely together, touching each other at their 

 bases ; they resemble cones of paper in shape, 

 and are lined inside with long hairs. The rump 

 is much higher than the shoulders a character 

 which is frequently overlooked, since Felis serval 

 is often inaccurately mounted by taxidermists, 

 who represent the shoulders as the higher of the 

 two. 



In coloration the serval varies as much as any 

 other tiger-cat. The ground color ranges from a 

 brownish-grey (which is sometimes so pale as to 

 be almost silvery) through fulvous to a warm 

 orange-tawny. The ornamentation consists of a 

 few bold, black streaks about the head and neck, 

 the rest of the body being decorated by black 

 spots, which may be either large and few, or small 

 and numerous. There is always a whitish band 

 on the back of the ear, and two broad, black stripes 



