THE SPOTTED HYAENA 



493 



shorter and less hairy tail. Moreover, the hind- feet are relatively larger in propor- 

 tion to the fore-feet, and the front and hind-legs are more nearly equal in length ; 

 the hind -limbs being less bent than in the other species. The ground color of the 

 fur of the body is yellowish, and upon it are dark-brown spots ; the front of the 

 face and the lower portions of the limbs being also dark. 



In addition to certain structural features of the soft parts, into the considera- 

 tion of which it would be out of place to enter here, the spotted hyaena is distin- 

 guished by the characteristics of its teeth. As these have been already partially 

 described (p. 489), it will suffice to mention that the upper molar tooth, situated on 



THE SPOTTED HY^NA. 



(One-eleventh natural size. ) 



the inner side of the exceedingly elongated flesh-tooth, has a very small and nearly 

 round crown, and that it is inserted only by a single root, whereas the correspond- 

 ing tooth of the striped species has two distinct roots. Then, again, the lower 

 flesh-tooth resembles that of the jaw figured on p. 488, in the small size of 

 its posterior heel, and also in the absence of a cusp on the inner side of the blade. 



Owing to the disproportion in the length of the hind and fore-legs being much 

 less than in the striped hyaena, the gait of the spotted hyaena is far less ungainly 

 and awkward looking. 



