610 THE CARNIVORES 



winter the hair on the shoulders becomes considerably elongated, so as to produce 

 the appearance of a kind of hump. The ears are relatively large, and covered with 

 rather long hair. In addition to the white mark on the chest, the chin is also 

 white ; while the upper lip may be whitish, and the nose reddish brown. The 

 claws are comparatively short, and black in color. 



Mr. Blanford gives the weight of full-grown males as varying from two hun- 

 dred to two hundred and fifty pounds ; but these weights are probably exceeded in 

 autumn, when the Himalayan black bear becomes enormously fat, the thickness of 

 the fat on the haunches reaching several inches. At such seasons the skin never 

 very valuable becomes utterly useless, from being saturated with oil. The skull 

 of this bear has a relatively-shorter muzzle and a longer portion behind the eye than 

 that of the brown bear ; from which it may also be distinguished by the slight de- 

 velopment of the bony ridge along the middle of the brain case. 



The Himalayan black bear is an exclusively forest-dwelling animal, except in 

 Baluchistan, where it inhabits open country. Its range extends from about the 

 eastern portion of Persia through Baluchistan into Afghanistan and Sind ; and 

 thence through the forest-clad portions of the Himalayas to Assam, and so on into 

 Burma. The species is also found in the south of China and the islands of Hainan 

 and Formosa, but in L,adakh and Tibet it is quite unknown. 



The black bear may be found in the Himalayas, from near the foot 

 to elevations of some ten thousand to twelve thousand feet in summer. 

 It is, perhaps, most abundant in the dense chestnut and oak woods surrounding the 

 valley of Kashmir, whence it issues forth at night to make extensive depredations 

 on the crops and orchards of the natives. Although, according to General Kinloch, 

 the black bear will at times take to killing sheep, cattle, and ponies, it is, as a rule, 

 a vegetable feeder. In the forest the chief food of these bears consists of chestnuts,, 

 acorns, roots, berries, ants, and honey. Whenever they raid the cultivated 

 grounds, they consume maize, rice, buckwheat, and a number of fruits, such as 

 mulberries, apples, pears, apricots, and walnuts the latter being especial favorites. 

 The gourds and melons which are cultivated in many of the gardens in Kashmir 

 are also sometimes eaten by these bears. So numerous are they that it is by no 

 means unfrequent to see two, three, or even more, up a single fruit tree in some of 

 the less frequented districts of Kashmir. They are, indeed, excellent climbers ; 

 and their short claws are much better adapted for this purpose than for digging. 

 When in the forests they may be stalked during the day with comparative ease, and 

 will generally be found feeding on roots or wild fruits. This sport, as the writer 

 can state from personal experience, is by no means very exciting, as they are easy 

 of approach. Another method of hunting is by beating small patches of jungle on 

 the hills from below upward when the bears will be driven out. They very 

 frequently go in family parties, comprising the two parents, the two youngest cubs, 

 and one or perhaps two cubs of the preceding litter. When driven from the forest, 

 the whole party emerges in single file, headed by the male, who is followed by the 

 female, after which come the cubs according to seniority. They always break 

 cover with the usual deliberate and sober pace characteristic of all bears, and when 

 the party comprises five or six individuals the sight is ludicrous in the extreme. 



