SOME QUEER-NOSED MONKEYS 175 



The head, for example, in addition to its " tip-tilted " nose, 

 is noticeable for its extreme massiveness, which gives an 

 almost leonine appearance. And this general massiveness 

 is equally observable in the limbs, which are relatively shorter 

 than in the true langurs ; the feet being especially heavy 

 and broad, with their toes almost concealed by long hair. 



And here the attention of the reader may be directed to 

 the circumstance that animals inhabiting cold countries 

 (and Sze-chuan, where the British Museum specimens 

 were obtained, can be very cold) are almost always much 

 more heavily and substantially built than their relatives 

 from warmer climes. An excellent instance of this phe- 

 nomenon is afforded by the case of tigers in the same 

 collection ; the Bengal tiger being a long lanky beast, 

 while its cousin from Mongolia is a heavily built creature, 

 with extraordinarily massive limbs. Of course the longer 

 hair of the Central Asiatic animal tends to exaggerate its 

 general massiveness, which, however, would be perfectly 

 apparent even without this extraneous aid. Possibly a 

 stout and heavy build, especially as regards the limbs, 

 may aid in protecting the circulatory system from the 

 effects of extreme cold. 



As regards the habits of the orange snub-nosed monkey, 

 our information is of the most meagre description. These 

 animals are stated, however, to congregate in troops of 

 considerable size, and to ascend the tallest trees (the part 

 of Tibet they inhabit being more or less wooded) in search 

 of fruits, which they much prefer to leaves. When pressed 

 by hunger, leaves and the tender shoots of bamboo are 

 said to form their staple nutriment. Bearing in mind 

 this alleged partiality for fruits, it would be interesting to 

 determine whether the stomach of these monkeys is as 

 complex as that of the true langurs. 



