THE MUNGOOSES 473 



feet being provided with five toes, of which the first, both in front and behind, is 

 extremely small. These toes are generally detached; but may be slightly connected 

 by a small web at their bases. The under surfaces of the fore-feet are generally 

 naked ; while in most cases only the front part of the soles of the hind-feet are free 

 from hair. It may be added that most mungooses have the same number of teeth as 

 the true civets, that is forty ; but, owing to the loss of a premolar on each side of 

 the lower and upper jaws, in some species the number may be reduced to thirty-six. 



As already mentioned, the true mungooses have a wide distribution, ranging 

 over the greater part of Africa, extending across the straits of Gibraltar into Spain, 

 and eastward through the south of Asia as far as the islands of the Malayan region. 

 The number of species belonging to the typical genus is comparatively large, Africa 

 claiming eight* (among which is the one ranging into Spain), and the same 

 number being recognized by Mr. Blanford from India, Ceylon, and Burma. In 

 respect to size the mungooses exhibit a considerable degree of variation, for, whereas 

 the head and body of the smallest species may be compared to those of a weasel, 

 the larger forms rival a domestic cat in dimensions. Summarizing the habits of the 

 mungooses, Mr. Blanford describes them as terrestrial Carnivores, seeking their prey 

 on the ground, and very rarely climbing trees. They are active, bold, and preda- 

 cious, and live on small Mammals, birds and reptiles, insects and eggs, and occa- 

 sionally eat fruit. They are deadly enemies to snakes, as described under ff. 

 mungo. They live in holes in the ground, hollow trees, and similar places. When 

 angry or excited, they erect their long hairs, and especially those of their tails. 



The typical representative of the genus is the Egyptian mungoose or ichneumon 

 (ff. ichneumon], inhabiting Africa, north of the Sahara Desert, Palestine, Asia 

 Minor, and the southern portions of Spain. It was one of the sacred animals of the 

 ancient Egyptians, and is often depicted on their frescoes. It is reported to feed 

 largely upon the eggs of crocodiles, although this habit has not been recorded of any 

 of the Indian species. It was, and we believe still is, domesticated in Egypt ; and 

 has the same antipathy to snakes alluded to under the head of the common Indian 

 species. The Egyptian mungoose is a large species ; the length of the head and 

 body being about twenty inches, and that of the tail some fifteen or sixteen inches. 

 It is characterized by the tip of the tail being black, and the grizzled, grayish- 

 brown color of the fur, in which the individual hairs are ringed with reddish brown 

 and creamy yellow. South of the Sahara this species is replaced by the slightly 

 larger but closely allied caffre mungoose (ff. coffer) , in which the hairs are ringed 

 with black and white. In South Africa, as far north as Zanzibar, we have also a 

 much smaller species, the slender mungoose (ff. gradlis] , agreeing with the two 

 preceding forms in the black tip to the tail, while in Kordofan the nearly equal- 

 sized, red-tailed mungoose (ff. sanguineus) is distinguished by its general fawn- 

 colored fur, and the red tip to the tail. 



Three other South and West African mungooses of large' size are characterized 

 by the tip of the tail being of the same tint as the body color. The largest and 

 most distinct of the African species is, however, the white-tailed mungoose 

 (ff. albicauda), in which the length of the head and body varies from twenty-two 



* There is also a species known only by the skull, which is believed to be African. 



