204 



THE BEARS. 



while its usual voice was a sort of twitter. 

 It ate only vegetable food. 



As a transitional form between the Small 

 Bears, on the one hand, and the True Bears 

 on the other, we mention a very remarkable 

 animal which was discovered a few years ago 

 by Peter David in the high forests of Central 



Tibet, and which has been called Ailuropiis 

 melanoleucns (fig. 104). It is of the size of 

 our brown bear, but has a white body, while 

 the feet, ears, and end of the tail are black. 

 Each eye is surrounded by a black ring, and 

 the black colour of the fore-legs is continued 

 over the shoulder to the middle line of the 



Fig. 104. Ailuropits mclanoleiicus. 



back, so that the animal appears to carry a 

 black yoke. The dentition approaches that 

 of the true bears, comprising in all 40 teeth. 

 Of the four premolars the first is very small 

 and probably deciduous; the others increase 

 in size from before backwards, and gradually 

 approach in the form of their tubercles the 

 two very large molars, which have a wrinkled 

 grinding surface. In general the dentition is 

 similar to that of the true bears, but it never- 

 theless presents some rather important differ- 

 ences. The very broad feet are placed on the 

 ground in walking for only half their length, 

 as in the panda, to which this large animal 

 has certain points of resemblance in the form 

 of the head and skull. Altogether it is placed 

 by all the known characters of its structure 

 between the panda and the true bears, of 

 which it reminds us by its long coarse fur. 



The animal inhabits the almost inaccessible 

 heights of the mountains of Eastern Tibet, 

 feeds chiefly on roots, bamboo canes, and 

 other vegetable substances, never leaves its 

 domain to approach human dwellings; and 

 is known only to a few native hunters who 

 roam over these lofty mountains. 



THE LARGE BEARS 



(URSIDA). 



With 42 teeth, 4 premolars above and below, 2 molars 

 in the tipper jaw, 3 in the lower, all with flat wrinkled 

 crowns, on which are low blunt tubercles. 



All these teeth are present immediately 

 after the change in the dentition in early 

 life, but they all remain only in some species, 

 while in others some of the premolars or 

 even of the incisors drop out as life advances. 



