io8 Wild Life in Central Africa. 



An easy spoor to follow is one through long, rank grass, 

 as the beast's hoofs and body will press the grass over in 

 the direction it is going. 



Elephants in such a patch of country are very easily 

 followed, and if there is a herd of any game nothing could 

 be simpler than tracking in such a place. 



Droppings are often eaten by beetles, sometimes almost 

 immediately after they are deposited, and large dung like 

 elephant's will remain warm for an hour or two, and if it is 

 broken open it will often be steamy. It is certainly easier 

 to tell if droppings are recently deposited than the exact 

 age of footprints. 



In windy weather the fine sand gets blown into the foot- 

 prints, and small spiders sometimes make their webs over 

 such marks, which would point to them being a few hours 

 or more old. 



By opening dung one can get a fair idea as to the food 

 of various game, and it is astonishing what a varied 

 " menu " all animals have. Both carnivorous and herbi- 

 vorous game eat certain fruits, and the former are not 

 above eating such creatures as mice, lizards, land turtles, 

 locusts, caterpillars, and snails. In fact, anything that is 

 eatable that comes in their way will be swallowed at times. 



Elephants eat leaves, bark, fruits of many kinds, and, I 

 believe, occasionally grass, and rhinos are said to feed 

 solely on bark and thorns, but I once found grass in a 

 black rhino's stomach, so it had evidently been grazing. 



Elephants often swallow stones, and on several occasions 

 I have found them in their stomachs. Quite recently I 

 picked out thirty-eight stones from an elephant's stomach, 

 and there may have been more that I did not find. These 

 may be taken when the animals drink and it is possible 

 that they swallow some when eating anthill mud, which 

 they probably eat for its saline qualities, or for the acid 

 contained in it. 



The usual way to shoot in Central Africa is to go out 

 and range the bush on the look-out for game, but if 

 any special animal is wanted it is better to try to find the 



