100 MAMMALIA. FEK.E. 



H. vttlgaris, Desm. (Canis kycena, Lin.) The striped Hyaena. 



Fur dirty gray, striped transversely with brown on the flanks and 



legs ; a ridge of stiff hairs along the dorsal line. Inhabits J3ar- 



bary, Egypt, &c. Shaw, i. pi. 78. 



The voracity of this animal, and its preference of the flesh of dead carcasses to 

 living prey, have been often noticed by travellers. But its ferocity has been overrated, 

 for it is capable of being tamed ; and according to Barrow the spotted hyaena is used 

 in the district of Schneeberg at the Cape of Good Hope for the purposes of hunting. 

 In some countries it is by no means uncommon to see chacals, hyaenas, dogs, and 

 vultures feeding on the same carcase. 



H. CapensiSj Desm. (Canis crocuta, Lin.) Spotted Hyaena. Fur 

 dingy gray, with round brown spots on the flanks and thighs ; 

 stiff hair 011 the dorsal line. Inhabits Cape of Good Hope.- 

 Penn. Quad. pi. 17. 



H. rufa, Cuv. Fur red, spotted with blackish. Country unknown. 



Hfossilis, Cuv. The Fossil Hyaena. About a third larger than 

 the common hyaena. Bones found in various caverns in Europe. 

 B. Cuv. Reck. iv. part. 4, pi. 1. 



Gen. 78. FELTS, Lin. Cuv. Geoff. &c. 



Incisors f, canines ^-J, molars |-|, or f-f, = 30 or 28. 

 Five toes on the fore-feet ; hind-feet tetradactyle ; nails re- 

 tractile ; head short ; four molars on each side of the upper 

 jaw, the last tuberculous and very small ; three in the lower 

 jaw ; ears large pointed. 



1. Fawn-coloured) and without spots. 



F. Leo, Lin. The Lion. Fur fawn-coloured, with a tuft at the 

 extremity of the tail ; neck of the male furnished with a long 

 thick mane. Body from five to eight feet long. Inhabits Africa 

 and some parts of Asia. 



Var. A. The Senegal lion. Fur lighter and brighter. 



Var. B South African lion. With a black mane. 



Var. C Asiatic lion. Rather less than the lion of Africa ; mane yellow, and 

 much more scanty. 



The bodily strength of the lion, his carnivorous regimen, and predaceous habits, 

 place him at the head of the beasts of prey. Less savage than the tiger and other 

 carnivorous animals, the lion seems to derive no gratification from the destruction 

 of animal life beyond the immediate cravings of appetite ; and hence, compared with 

 the cruel dispositions of many of the minor inhabitants of the forest, he has acquired 

 a character of generosity superadded to his courage, which has long made him be re- 

 guarded as the noblest of the feline race. Unlike the tiger, whose social attachment 

 lasts only during the period of reproduction, and whose thirst for blood often leads 

 him to destroy his own issue, the lion is permanently attached to his mate ; while 

 the maternal feeling of the lioness is strikingly displayed in the subsequent fury of 

 this noble animal when by any accident she is ' ' bereaved of her whelps." 



The roar of the lion is said to be tremendous, and travellers in Africa have often 

 witnessed its appalling effect on the oxen of their waggons and other animals, though 

 in comparative safety. When in the act of seizing his prey, this roar is heightened 

 into a scream on the fatal leap. This power of voice is said to be useful to the 

 lion, as the terrific sound raises the other animals from their hiding-places, and, as 

 lie does not hunt by scent, exposes their distracted flight to their enemy. The 

 mode of his attack is generally, however, by surprise. Approaching slowly and si- 

 lently till within a leap of his prey, the lion springs witli a force which is thought 



