LROPARD, PANTHER, AND CHEETAH. 



211 



portions of the Old World ; being natives of Africa, India, and 

 the Indian islands, as Ceylon, Sumatra, &c. They are very 

 graceful and active animals ; possessing bodies of great flexibility; 

 and being able to bound, swim, climb trees, or crawl like a snake 

 upon the ground, with nearly equal facility. They generally 

 take refuge in trees when pursued ; and occasionally spring upon 

 their prey from its branches. The Monkeys and other small 

 arboreal animals, as well as the terrestrial quadrupeds, fall a 

 prey to them. Several other species of Felines inhabit the East; 

 hut of these we shall only mention the Cheetah or Hunting 

 Leopard (Felis jubata) which departs, in many particulars, from 



FIG. 102. HUNTING LKOPARD. 



the general characters of the family. The foot, instead of being 

 rounded, is long and narrow ; its claws are but slightly retractile ; 

 and the body and limbs are longer and narrower than in the 

 Leopard, with which it corresponds in size. This animal is a 

 native of Africa and India ; and in the latter country it has been 

 long employed in hunting Deer, Antelopes, &c. In captivity, 



p 2 



