LONG-EARED FOXES 573 



fennecs. It is a yellowish-colored animal, with some black hairs mingled with the 

 light fur of the back, a black tip to the tail, and some chestnut splashes on the snout. 

 It inhabits both sides of the Orange river in great and little Namaqualand, and ex- 

 tends eastward to Kimberley. 



This fox ( C. pallidus) may be distinguished at a glance from the 

 Pcilc Fox 



preceding, not only by its much smaller size, but likewise by its longer 



ears and the thinness of the tail. The general color is a pale yellow, with a faint 

 tinge of red ; the tail having many black hairs among the lighter fur, a small dark 

 spot on the upper surface near the root, and a small black tip. In its smaller size 

 and longer ears, this species approaches still closer to the fennecs. It comes from 

 East and West Africa, having been obtained from Senegambia and Nubia and Kor- 

 dofan. 



Riippell's fennec (C.famelicus} is distinguished from all the species 



P hitherto noticed by the great length of its ears, although these are pro- 



portionately smaller than in the true fennec. It is a smaller animal 

 than the pale fox, the length of the head and body being about nineteen inches, and 

 that of the tail nine and one-half inches; while the ears measure just over three 

 inches in length. This fox has a fawn-colored head, reddish back, shoulders, and 

 tail, grayish sides, and nearly white under parts ; but as it can be so easily recog- 

 nized by its ears, it is unnecessary to devote further attention to its coloring. 

 Riippell's fennec was originally obtained from the Nubian deserts, but either this 

 or a closely-allied species occurs in Syria and parts of Persia, as well as in 

 Afghanistan. 



The last and smallest representative of the genius Canis is the pretty 



P little North African fennec (C. zerda), in which the total length of 



the head and body is only just over fifteen and one-half inches, the tail 

 measuring six and three-fourths inches, and the ears being at least three inches in 

 length, and sometimes even more. The ears, being wide in proportion to their 

 length, are of enormous size compared to the head, and thus communicate a remark- 

 able physiognomy to the animal. The general color of the fur of the upper parts of 

 the fennec varies from a pale fawn to buff, the under parts being white, and the tip 

 of the tail black ; while there may be black markings on the upper part of the latter 

 near its root. On the forehead and round the eyes the fur is nearly white ; while the 

 outer surfaces of the ears are rufous, and their inner margins have some long and 

 nearly white hairs. Sometimes there is a black mark in the middle of the hinder 

 part of the back. 



The fennec is confined to Northern Africa, ranging from Nubia to Algiers, and 

 occuring over the whole of the Sahara desert. It is essentially a desert animal, 

 with the sands of which its pale coloration is in complete harmony ; and it is like- 

 wise mainly nocturnal in its habits. Like the common fox, the fennec makes a bur- 

 row, which is generally situated in the neighborhood of the tufts of low plants 

 growing here and there in the desert ; these plants rendering the soil more coherent, 

 and therefore easier to burrow in. The inside of the burrow is lined with feathers, 

 hair, and soft vegetable substances, and is remarkable for its cleaniness. The bur- 

 rows are made with wonderful rapidity so quickly, indeed, that the animal seems 



