227 



it is common in the central region of Nepal, keeping to the forests 

 and mountains. I fancy, vide page 44, it is to be found in Goom- 

 soor having probably followed the course of the Orissa highlands. 



No. 32, Page 45. Arctictis binturong. 

 The Bear- Cat-Binturong. 



Jerdon thus describes this extraordinary animal, which, follow- 

 ing Blyths' example, he places after Parodoxurus. He mentions 

 that it was classed by Cuvier among the Ursinae, and that it may 

 be considered a sort of link between the plantigrade and digitigrade 

 caruivora with some distinct analogies to the Lemurs. 



Description. " General color throughout deep black, with a 

 white border to the ears, and a few brown hairs scattered over the 

 head above, and on the anterior surface of the fore-legs ; hairs long, 

 rigid and diverging ; tail* monstrously thick at the base, tapering 

 to a point, with bristling straggling hairs, exceeding those of the 

 body in length. 



Length, head and body, 28 to 33 inches ; tail 26 to 27." 



The only binturong I have seen reminded me more of a gigantic 



lemur than any other animal, but my ideas are only those of an 



unscientific sportsman not of a naturalist. 



Herpestidinae. Mungooses. 



Jerdon's next group of animals are the mungooses, Herpestidinae. 

 I did not mention them thinking they were too well known for 

 any account I could give to interest sportsmen, and I could not 

 furnish any information regarding their combats with snakes. I 

 have lately been told that the stomach of a large one, killed near 

 Secunderabad, contained a quail, a portion of a custard-apple, a 

 small wasp's nest, a blood-sucker and a number of insects. This 

 was probably the common Madras or Southern India mungoos 

 " herpestes griseus." At page 137, No. 133, of his Mammals, 

 Jerdon mentions a very fine mungoos, nearly double the weight of 

 the ordinary one, which is not however so well known to many 

 sportsmen. He terms it " Herpestes vitticollis, the stripe-necked 

 mungoos," and gives the following description of it : 



* Prehensile or partially ao. VAGRANT, 



