76 Conies. 



intestinal canal is unique in its arrangement, being 

 unlike that of any other vertebrate animal. 



The Hyracidse are found throughout the Ethio- 

 pian region, with the exception of Madagascar ; in 

 other words, throughout Africa south of the 

 Tropic of Cancer and in southern Arabia, one 

 species being found in Fernando Po, while another 

 H. syriacus, the coney of the Bible is an in- 

 habitant of Syria, and thus enters the Palaearctic 

 region. There are two forms, which, according to 

 some authorities, differ so much both in structure 

 and habits as to be entitled to generic rank. The 

 first, Hyrax, includes several species, of which 

 H. capensis and H. syriacus are well-known 

 examples, all of which inhabit mountainous and 

 rocky regions and live on the ground. The other, 

 Dendrohyrax, of which D. dorsalis, to be mentioned 

 hereafter, is an example. Its members frequent 

 the trunks and large branches of trees, in holes in 

 which they sleep. 



The "conies" are noticeable apart from their 

 zoological interest from the fact that one of 

 them, H. syriacus, is without doubt the Hebrew 

 " Shaphan," improperly translated coney in our 

 version of the Bible, where it is mentioned four 

 times : in Leviticus and Deuteronomy as an un- 

 clean beast, in company with the camel and the 

 hare, " because he cheweth the cud, but divideth 

 not the hoof," in the Psalms as making ' ' its home 

 in the rocks," and in Proverbs in the passage 

 already quoted. These passages have given rise 



