THE ANTELOPES. 



97 



spite of its keen scent easily becomes the 

 prey of the hunter. The flesh is made dis- 

 agreeable by the smell of musk imparted to 

 it by the superficial glands. The saiga is 

 often seen in zoological gardens, where it 

 frequently perishes through its own stupidity, 

 breaking its neck or its legs by clashing 

 against the bars of its cage. 



The Nylgau (Portax pictus (Bosclap/nix 

 tragocamclus) ), fig. 173, forms the transition 

 to the powerful and clumsy species which are 

 higher at the shoulders than behind, the 

 reverse being the case with the slighter and 

 more elegant forms of which we have just 

 been treating. The nylgau, which inhabits 

 principally the edge of the jungles in the 



Fig. 174. The Sing-Sing or Waterbok (Kobus ellipsiprymnus}. page 98. 



East Indies, is often imported into Europe, 

 where one can make its acquaintance in the 

 zoological gardens. It is of the size of a 

 stag, is on the whole ill-proportioned and in- 

 elegant, has a rather shaggy coat, and appears 

 to be decidedly weak in the loins. The small 

 longish head is often furnished in both sexes, 

 most commonly, however, only in the male, 

 with short, pointed, slightly curved horns. 

 The ears are large, the eyes small and lively 

 but malicious, the tear-pits deep. On the 

 breast is a slight dewlap. The shoulders are 

 very high and angular, the back slopes rapidly 

 towards the hinder extremity, the tail is pretty 



Vm.. II. 



long and bushy, the feet strong and provided 

 with broad hoofs and flattened accessory 

 hoofs. The hair is rough and coarse; it 

 forms a sort of mane at the neck and shoul- 

 ders, and there is a long tuft about the middle 

 of the neck in front as well as at the end of 

 the tail. The general colour is a grayish- 

 brown with blue reflex colours, which have 

 procured for the nylgau the name of the 

 " blue ox." Besides a few white spots on 

 the lips, the throat, and under the tail, the 

 nylgau is specially distinguished by two white 

 rings on the feet, one immediately below, the 

 other above the accessory hoofs. The nylgau 



45 



