234 



THE FAUNA OF THE CHINESE PROVINCE 



than runs, and, where not much hunted, is by no means shy. According to some 

 accounts, it feeds on grass and lichens ; according to others, on leaves and flowers. 

 A second species (M. sifanicus) has been described from Kan-su, and a third (M. 

 parvipes) from Korea. 



The Bactrian camel (Camelus bactrianus), distinguished by the 

 possession of two humps, and its long and shaggy winter coat, is 

 certainly a native of the Gobi Desert and adjacent districts. The colour of the 

 hair is generally uniform, but varies in different individuals from dark brown to 



Bactrian Camel. 



4& 



BACTRIAN CAMEL. 



pale yellowish grey, similar differences in colour being noticeable in the camels 

 found in a wild state in some parts of central Asia. Many of these latter are 

 undoubtedly descended from animals which have escaped from captivity, but 

 others are probably truly wild. To the east of Yarkand, however, between Khotan 

 and Lob Nor in the Gobi Desert, occur herds of wild camels said to be characterised 

 by their comparatively small size, and the very distinct callosities on the knees as 

 well as by certain peculiarities of the skull. They are exceedingly wary, and so 

 swift that the native horsemen are unable to overtake them in the deep sand, so 

 that none have as yet been caught and tamed. So long as there is no snow on the 

 ground, these camels wander about on the beds of the Yarkand and Tarim Rivers, 

 where they find pools of stagnant water, but after the first snowfall they repair to 



