GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS 1549 



the more northerly parts of the continent, and extend- 

 ing its range from Abyssinia and Barbary into West- 

 ern Asia. The wolf and the jackal belong to North- 

 ern Africa. 



Of ruminants, there are no less than sixty species 

 of the antelope kind, which is especially abundant 

 in Southern Africa. The cameleopard or giraffe is 

 peculiar to this continent, and ranges from the banks 

 of the Gariep to the southern borders of the Sahara, 

 but is not found upon the western coasts. Several 

 species of buffalo occur in a wild state, and are jnost 

 abundant within the outlying districts of the Cape 

 Colony. Sheep and goats abound in most parts of 

 Africa, but are probably not indigenous; both in 

 Barbary and near the Cape of Good Hope at the 

 opposite extremities of the continent are found 

 sheep with- broad, fat tails, so large as sometimes to 

 weigh from ten to thirty pounds. The camel of 

 Africa is found all over its northern and central 

 regions. 



Of the Pachydermata, or thick-skinned animals, 

 the most characteristic are the elephant, rhinoceros, 

 and hippopotamus. The elephant is found dispersed, 

 in immense herds of from one to three hundred, all 

 over the wooded regions of Central and Southern 

 Africa, and the rhinoceros frequents principally the 

 same localities. The ivory supplied by the tusks of 

 the former is one of the most valuable native products 

 of this quarter of the globe. The rhinoceros is 

 valued chiefly for its hide, which is made into shields 

 and harness. The hippopotamus is found in the 

 upper part of the Nile valley, and in all the lakes 



