Quadrupeds. 



THE LEOPARD, (Fells Leopardus,) 



DIFFERS from the tiger in being smaller, and in having 

 the skin spotted instead of striped. His length from 

 nose to tail is about four feet, the colour of the body is a 

 lively yellow, and the spots of his skin are composed of 

 four or five black dots arranged in a circle, and not im- 

 perfectly representing the print left by the animal's foot 

 upon the sand. It is found in the southern parts of 

 Asia, and almost all over Africa. The panther is a 

 variety of the Leopard. 



Like all animals of the cat tribe, Leopards are a com- 

 pound of ferocity and cunning ; they prey upon the 

 smaller animals, such as antelopes, sheep, and monkeys ; 

 and are enabled to secure their food with great success, 

 from the extraordinary flexibility of their bodies. Kol- 

 ben informs us that, in the year 1708, two of these 

 animals, a male and female, with three young ones, broke 

 into a sheepfold at the Cape of Good Hope. They killed 

 nearly a hundred isheep, and regaled themselves with the 



