NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



naked line running from the nose to the upper lip, 

 and the skull having a rounded appearance without 

 any pronounced angles or crests, and the palate 

 deeply concave. By reason of these differences, 

 naturalists have placed it in a genus by itself. 



The Smooth - nosed Mungoose inhabits the 

 eastern parts of Africa, and appears to be rather 

 rare. It has been found at Komatipoort, and can, 

 therefore, be claimed as one of the South African 

 animals. Its food appears to consist of wild fruits, 

 insects, and no doubt the various small mammals, 

 such as those eaten by other species of mungooses. 



The general colour is, according to W. L. Sclater, 

 " dark ashy, darker along the middle line of the 

 back ; woolly underfur dark slaty with pale brown 

 tips, the longer hairs ringed brown and white ; 

 head coloured like the body ; nose completely 

 surrounded by hairs, so that there is no bare line 

 between the nose and the upper lip. Tail with 

 long hairs, much as in the White-tailed Mungoose, 

 with a dark dorsal line and black tip, all the hairs 

 being white at the base ; iris dark brown with sea- 

 green centre. Head and body twenty-two inches ; 

 tail fifteen inches." 



THE BANDED MUNGOOSE 



(Cross archus fasciatus typicus) 



The Banded Mungoose has been placed under a 

 different genus to the preceding species owing to 

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