12 CENTRAL AFRICAN GAME AND ITS SPOOR. 



sap at the break, or the bruise on the grass, will furnish the more accurate knowledge 

 required. When a buck has rubbed its horns against a tree, as kudu and sable often 

 do, the bark will be found rubbed and bruised. 



The most certain means of any in judging the age of spoor is the condition of the 

 droppings, if they can be found. 



Very little practice will enable the hunter to tell whether they have been deposited 

 within the last five minutes or within the last hour ; in a word, whether he is close on 

 the animal, or how much chance there is of getting up to him. 



There is more to be learnt from droppings than from any other department in 

 spooring, and we have deemed it of sufficient importance to collect and endeavour to 

 portray those of most animals. 



It is as useful to be able to recognise those of different animals as to be able to 

 differentiate their tracks. 



Whenever this form of spoor is met with, the hunter will mechanically put his 

 foot on it to ascertain whether it is soft and fresh, and whether it is steamy inside. 



The foods of various animals are denoted in this wav ; we have seen promising 

 young pumpkins sprouting from an elephant's ordure, showing that he has eaten ripe 

 fruit from a native garden, the seeds passing unhurt through the animal and, deposited 

 in such favourable surroundings, quickly taking root. 



We have noticed the bristly hair of the klipspringer in the dung of leopards, 

 bones of fish in otters', fur of mice in that of wild cats and leopards, showing that 

 the latter is not above mousing like any other cat, when he has nothing better to do. 



The jackal also will fill his empty stomach with berries, and the duiker will 

 occasionally eat seeds. 



The small buck, duiker and oribi, return to the same neighbourhood to make their 

 droppings, and little heaps of different ages can be seen close together, while the 

 little Sharpes' steinbuck makes only one big pile, returning to the same spot while 

 remaining in that locality. 



With buffalo, maggots are seen in the dung on the second day, which is always a 

 certain sign of whether the spoor is fresh or not. If found at a reasonable hour on 

 the first day, they are generally worth following, as they walk slowly and lie down 

 much, except when on trek changing their country. When they are trekking from 

 their watering-place to distant grazing grounds, or moving off to a new country, it 

 can be seen by the spoor, as they and also zebra move on a narrow front, and elephant 

 usually go in file, seldom diverging, while all these animals open out when going 

 slowly ; and when grazing each animal takes its own line. 



Dung naturally differs according to the food, but generally retains the same form ; 



