ORDER CARNIVORA: CARNIVORES 271 



a somewhat similar superstition, for when they sell lynx skins to the 

 Chinese, they charge a much higher price for them if the fore-claws 

 are included." (Bowden, 1869, p. 14.) 



In the Polish forests "the lynx and the wolf alone are capable 

 of killing the elk" (Korsak, 1934, pp. 78-79). 



"The Russian naturalists Von Schrenk and Radde inform us that 

 the natives of Amoorland esteem the flesh of this animal as a great 

 delicacy, and that the furs which are obtained by the hunters in 

 this part of Asia mostly pass into Chinese hands, being much trea- 

 sured by the high officials of the Celestial Empire" (Sclater, in Wolf, 

 1867, text to pi. 6). 



Tibetan Lynx 



LYNX LYNX ISABELLINUS (Blyth) 



Felis isabellina Blyth, Jour. Asiatic Soc. Bengal, vol. 16, p. 1178, 1847. ("Tibet.") 

 FIGS.: China Jour., vol. 23, no. 3, pi. facing p. 172, 1935, and vol. 25, no. 5, 

 pi. facing p. 288, 1936; Schafer, 1937, pi. facing p. 177. 



The Tibetan Lynx seems to be a moderately rare animal, and 

 while it is protected to some extent by the remoteness of its haunts, 

 its fur is in considerable demand. 



It differs from the European Lynx in its pale sandy gray or 

 isabelline coloring, and in the relative shortness of the hair on the 

 toes. Head and body, 837 mm. ; tail, 196 mm. ; weight, about 60 Ib. 

 (Blanford, 1888-91, p. 90.) 



"This race inhabits the plateau of Eastern and Western Tibet, 

 and certainly extends into Baltistan; but its exact geographical 

 limits are impossible to define .... 



"Throughout its habitat, so far as accounts go, the Tibetan lynx 

 is a rare animal, seldom seen, and still more rarely shot. . . . The 

 Tibetan hares and blue pigeons form the chief prey of the lynx in 

 Ladak, although it also levies toll on the smaller domesticated ani- 

 mals of the Tatars." (Lydekker, 1900, pp. 326-327.) 



"This animal is rarely encountered and consequently the exact 

 limits of its habitat are somewhat conjectural, but I fancy that it is 

 almost identical with that of Ammon. . . . They are savage ani- 

 mals and do not hesitate to attack sheep and goats, sometimes 

 working considerable havoc." (Burrard, 1925?, p. 241.) 



"Lynx skins . . . are brought in from the Thibetan regions to 

 the north and west, to Sungpan [Szechwan] , where they find a ready 

 market among the wealthy Chinese. . . . They sell in Sungpan 

 for 5 to 7 taels each." (Wilson, 1913, vol. 2, p. 181.) 



"The Isabelline Lynx ... is fairly common in the mountainous 

 regions along the Chinese-Tibetan border. . . . The lynx supplies 

 the fur market of this country [China] with one of its best furs, the 



