THE JUNGLE-CA T 



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THE JUNGLE-CAT (Felis chaus) 



The common Indian jungle-cat is an important member of the family, since it 

 serves to connect the more typical cats so closely with the lynxes as to render it 

 impossible to refer the latter (as has been often proposed) to a distinct genus. 



The jungle-cat is somewhat superior in size to the ordinary domestic cat, from 

 which it differs in having a circular pupil to the eye, thereby agreeing with the 

 lynxes. It also approximates to the latter in having a few long hairs on the tips of 



THE JUNGLE- CAT. 

 (One-sixth natural size.) 



the ears, although these are not sufficiently numerous to form distinct tufts. The 

 tail is, moreover, less elongated than in many of the true cats, varying from one- 

 third to two-fifths the length of the head and body. In the presence of three 

 premolar teeth in the upper jaw, as well as in the form of the lower flesh- tooth, the 

 jungle-cat agrees, however, with the more typical representatives of the family, as 

 distinct from the lynxes. 



The color of the fur of the body varies from sandy or yellowish gray to grayish 

 brown, the back being darker, with a tendency to reddish in some individuals or to 



