XI OTHER SPORT IN FLORIDA 117 



outline of knowledge as to the beasts, birds, and reptiles 

 of Florida : — 



The Seminole Indians, whose manners and customs have 

 been closely studied and described by other authors, are fond 

 of hunting the Manatee {Manatis americanus), one The 

 of the sea-cow family represented by the dugong Manatee. 

 in Australia. These creatures enter the rivers to browse on 

 a special kind of marine grass, and some writers say also on 

 the leaves of the mangroves. The manatee is abundant in 

 the bays and rivers all along the east and west coast of 

 southern Florida. I heard of them, but never had the oppor- 

 tunity of seeing one during our wanderings. They are said 

 to live equally in salt or fresh water, and the Indians kill 

 numbers every year, hunting them in canoes generally near the 

 mouth of some river, and harpooning them as they rise to the 

 surface. 



The Florida puma {Felis concolor), still not uncommon in 



the unsettled parts, is somewhat smaller and more rufous in 



colour than its northern and southern brethren, lyy^ 



and though very shy and wandering in its habits. Puma. 



preys upon small animals, and even deer and dogs. In one 



week, within thirty miles of Lake Worth, a hunting party 



I 2 



