22 THE ASIATIC WILD ASS. 



Afghan frontier expedition of 1884^ stated tliat lie saw a 

 herd in north-western Afghanistan that he regarded as 

 consisting of some thousand animals. 



In the description of this species by Blanford in his 

 ^' Fauna of British India/^ we are informed that the ears 

 are large^ that the tail is covered with short hair near the 

 base, which grows gradually longer towards the end^ that 

 the mane is erect, and that there is a naked callosity on 

 the inside of each fore-arm, but none on the hind legs. 

 The general colour of the Asiatic wild ass is a sort of 

 rufous grey, which varies to fawn colour, or even pale 

 chestnut. The under parts of the body are white. A dark 

 brown stripe, which varies in breadth, sometimes being 

 margined with white, runs down from the nape to the tail, 

 and occasionally there is a dark cross stripe on the 

 shoulder, and faint rufous bars are said to occur at times 

 on the limbs. The end of the tail is blackish. In heio'ht 

 the Asiatic wild ass varies from 3ft. Sin. to 4ft. Its food 

 consists of various grasses and the herbage of other plants. 

 Its voice is described by Mr. Blanford as being a shrieking* 

 bray. These wild asses are remarkable for their speed and 

 endurance. Mr. Blanford informs us that in the country 

 west of the Indus, the mares are said to drop their foals 

 in June, July, and August; the period of gestation he 

 regards as eleven months, but it is more probably identical 

 with that of the African species, and exceeds twelve months. 

 Two local varieties of the Asiatic ass, the Onager and the 

 Kiang, though not regarded by zoologists as specifically 

 distinct, call for distinct notice. 



