THE CAT TRIBE 



gazelles, and hares. The COMMON LYNX is probably the same animal, whether found in Norway, 

 Russia, the Carpathians, Turkestan, China, or Tibet. The CANADIAN LYNX is also very probably 

 the same, with local differences of colour. The NORTHERN LYNX is the largest feline animal left 

 in Europe, and kills sheep and goats equally with hares and squirrels. The beautiful fur, of pale 

 cinnamon and light gray, is much admired. In some southern districts of America we have the 

 RED LYNX, or so-called " wild cat," which is distinct from the lynx of Canada. The MEDITERRA- 

 NEAN or SPANISH LYNX seems likewise entitled to rank as a distinct species. 



Of the lynxes the CARACALS are perhaps the most interesting, from their capacity for domes- 

 tication. They are found in Africa in the open desert country, whereas the SERVAL is found in 

 the thick bush. In Africa it is believed to be the most savage and untamable of the Cats. That 

 is probably because the Negro and the Kaffir never possessed the art of training animals, from 

 the elephant downwards. In India the caracal's natural prey are the fawns of deer and antelope, 

 pea-fowl, hares, and floricans. The caracal is the quickest with its feet of any of the Cats. One 

 of its best-known feats is to spring up and catch birds passing over on the wing at a height of 

 six or eight feet from the ground. A writer, in the Naturalist's Library, notes that, besides being 

 tamed to catch deer, pea-fowl, and cranes, the caracal was used in " pigeon matches." Two 

 caracals were backed one against the other to kill pigeons. The birds were fed on the ground, 

 and the caracals suddenly let loose among them, to strike down as many as each could before 

 the birds escaped. Each would sometimes strike down with its forepaws ten or a dozen pigeons. 

 " Caracal" means in Turkish " Black Ear," in allusion to the colour of the animal's organ of hearing. 



The COMMON LYNX is a thick-set animal, high in the leg, with a square head and very strong 

 paws and forearms. It is found across the whole northern region of Europe and Asia. 

 Although never known in Britain in historic times, it is still occasionally seen in parts of the 

 Alps and in the Carpathians ; it is also common in the Caucasus. It is mainly a forest animal, 

 and very largely nocturnal ; therefore it is seldom seen, and not often hunted. If any enemy 

 approaches, the lynx lies perfectly still on some branch or rock, and generally succeeds in avoiding 

 notice. The lynx is extremely active ; it can leap great distances, and makes its attack usually 



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Phttt b) Ottomar Anichufx.\ 



[Btrlin 



LYNX 



Thil animal it a uniformly coloured sfecies common to India and Africa 



