130 



THE BEASTS OF PREY'. 



species of its own. They preferably inhabit dense 

 forests, in which they select the most inaccessible 

 places, but they are also found in plains and deserts 

 and even in districts well settled by Man. They 

 may all be regarded as highly-developed Cats; and 

 they are destructive and dangerous to both wild 

 game and domestic animals. 



The The Common Lynx {Lynx vulgaris) ranks 

 Common first among this group, by virtue of his 

 Lynx, beauty and strength. The museum of 

 Christiania has revealed to me the dimensions a 

 Lynx may attain; those shown in German collec- 

 tions usually are but of moderate size. A fully 

 grown Lynx is at the least as large as the Leopards 

 we usually see in zoological gardens; only he is a 

 little shorter of body and has longer legs. His 

 length is from three and one-half to four feet; the 

 tail from six to eight inches and his shoulder height 

 is thirty inches. A male Lynx may weigh sixty, 

 aye, even ninety pounds, as I was told in Norway. 

 The animal has an exceedingly strong frame and 

 powerful paws, reminding one of the Tiger and Lion, 

 and reveals his great strength at the first glance. 

 The ears are rather long and pointed, and end in a 

 thick tuft of stiff black hair, about an inch and a 

 half long. The thick upper lip is provided with 

 several rows of stiff, long whisker-hairs. The body 

 is clothed in a thick, soft fur, which is elongated in 

 the face into a beard, hanging down in points from 

 both cheeks, and in connection with the ear-tufts, 



fiving the Lynx face a rather peculiar appearance, 

 he color of the fur is reddish gray above, spotted 

 with reddish brown on the head, neck, back and 

 sides, while the under part of the body, the inner 

 sides of the limbs, the throat, lips and rings around 

 the eyes are white. The tail is covered with hair of 

 uniform length, and has a wide black tip, which oc- 

 cupies nearly half of its entire length; the other half 

 of the tail shows indistinct rings. In summer the 

 fur is short and reddish, in winter the hair is longer 

 and grayish white. The coloring may vary much in 

 different animals. The females, as a rule, are redder 

 than the males and their spots are more indistinct. 

 The young ones are almost white. 



The Lynx was known to the Ancients, but was 

 exhibited much more rarely in Rome than the Lion 

 and Leopard, because even then he was so much 

 more difficult to take alive. The one that Pompey 

 exhibited had been imported from Gaul. His life in 

 the wild state was shrouded in a mystery which left 

 room for many fables. 



Range and Haunts In the middle ages he was a per- 

 of the manent occupant of German for- 



Common Lynx. es t s anc j was universally detested 

 and pursued. His numbers have been steadily re- 

 duced since and he may now be considered extermi- 

 nated in Germany proper. 



The present eastern range of this Beast of Prey 

 begins east of the Carpathians. He is found in Rus- 

 sia and Scandinavia, and all the mountainous and 

 wooded parts of eastern Siberia, and his southern 

 Asiatic limit is Turkestan and the Himalayas. 



An essential requirement of his existence is a 

 dense forest abounding in inaccessible thickets and 

 game of all kinds. In sparsely wooded sections the 

 Lynx shows himself only in exceptional cases ; for- 

 est fires may, for instance, compel him to shift his 

 quarters, and he will sometimes search an almost 

 treeless locality for Hares. It may happen that a fire 

 will drive him as far as the orchards of a village. 

 Unlike the Wolf, the Lynx remains for some time in 



one locality, searches it in all directions, often travel- 

 ing miles in one night and using highroads for this 

 purpose, generally returning to his old quarters. 



Traits and Habits The Lynx is inferior to none of 

 of the the other Cats in physical and 



Common Lynx. me ntal endowments. He is ca- 

 pable of great endurance in walking, can leap an 

 astonishing distance, climbs fairly well, and seems 

 to be a good swimmer. Of his senses his hearing is 

 probably the most efficient, and he therefore has a 

 full right to the ornamental ear-tuft. His eyesight 

 is probably very keen, although modern observers 

 have given us no proofs in corroboration of the old 

 stories about the Lynx's eye. 



Former writers have compared the sounds he 

 makes to the barking of a Dog, but this is by no 

 means a correct comparison. His cry is a sound 

 beginning high on the scale and ending low, resem- 

 bling more the roar of a bear. 



According to Noleken, the Lynx is an entirely 

 nocturnal animal. He hides at the dawn of day 

 and then, if undisturbed, lies still till evening : 

 something the Wolf never does. He selects for his 

 lair a thicket, a cavern, and sometimes holes made 

 by Foxes and Badgers. His choice unfailingly falls 

 on the very densest thicket that is available, like that 

 formed by young fir trees, and then he cares very 

 little whether the environs are much frequented or 

 not. 



As the shades of evening fall he becomes active. 

 During the day he seems as rigid as a statue, but at 

 night he sets out, and during the first part of his 

 journey he makes frequent pauses, like those made 

 by a Cat previous to entering an enclosure that 

 appears to threaten danger. Only a very inexperi- 

 enced person could mistake the spoor of the Lynx 

 for that of any other animal. The imprint is very 

 deep, owing to the strength of the paw, which ex- 

 ceeds that of a large Wolf; and it is very round in 

 shape, and, as the claws are hidden, is blunt in 

 front. The pace is short compared with the size 

 of the imprints made, and the spoor takes a form 

 something like that of a row of pearls, and every 

 person who has once seen it is sure to recognize 

 it again. 



The peculiar structure of the Lynx invests all of 

 his movements with a certain degree of clumsiness. 

 His step seems heavy ; but if he lacks the graceful- 

 ness of his feline kindred, he possesses their agility 

 in full measure, and surpasses them in rapidity of 

 movement and endurance. The best illustration of 

 his capabilities in these respects is furnished by a 

 view of the ground where he has attacked his prey 

 in freshly fallen snow. 



The Common Apparently the Lynx regards as his 

 Lynx rightful prey every animal that he may 

 and His Prey, be able to subdue. There is hardly a 

 living creature, from the smallest mammal or bird 

 up to the Roe, which is secure from him; although 

 it is probable that only the very strong Lynxes will 

 venture to attack large Deer. The Lynx decidedly 

 prefers large to small game and seldom condescends 

 to catch Mice. 



In the north the Lynx does comparatively little 

 mischief; but in countries of temperate climate he 

 makes himself equally detested by the flock-owner 

 and the sportsman, as he not only kills much more 

 than he needs for his sustenance, but often only laps 

 the blood of his victim, eating the choicest portions 

 and leaving the remainder to Wolves and Foxes. 

 In these milder climates he seldom returns to feast 



