VEETEBBATA. 



It.- legs are longer and Bmaller in proportion to its bulk than in any other species ; its body is 

 compact and weD made; its head small, pointed, and ending in a well-formed naked muzzle, and 

 its tail reduced to a mere tubercle, scarcely perceptible among the long hair of the croup and 

 buttock-. The whole length, from the muzzle to the root of the tail, is about three feet four or 

 five inches; the height at the shoulder is one fool Beven inches, and at the croup one foot nine 

 inches. The coloring of this Bpecies is altogether peculiar, and alone sufficient to distinguish it 

 from all other ruminants. In general, it is a reddish fawn-color on the upper parts of the body; 

 but this Beems to be glazed, or as it were, overlaid on the shoulders, back, sides, and hips, with a 

 lighl dun or Bilvery-brown hue, arising from the hairs in these situations being tipped with that 

 r; the nose and legs are dark brown; the breast, belly, and interior of the fore-arms and 

 thighs white; the hair of the forehead is long and of a deep red color. The most remarkable 

 character ot the Bpecies is the total absence of spurious hoofs, both on the fore and hind-feet, a 

 character which exists also in the Prong-Buck, and which, as far as we are aware, no other rumi- 

 nating animals of the hollow-horned family possess. 



The Stein-Boc resides in pairs on the stony plains and mountain valleys of South Africa, not, 

 however, frequenting very elevated or rocky localities, as its colonial name of Stein-Boc or Stonc- 

 k would seem to imply. <>n the contrary, it prefers the dry, open flats, covered here and 

 there, it is true, with large rock- and boulder-stones, but likewise interspersed with clumps of 

 stunted bushes and undei wood, which furnish it with cover. This is the general character of the 

 9 th African plains in the neighborhood of Cape Town, as well as of the gorges of the moderate 

 hills and mountains, and it is in such situations that the Stein-Boc is most commonly found. It 

 is remarkably shy and timid, runs with extraordinary swiftness, and when pursued will frequently 

 bound over a space of twelve or fifteen feet at a single leap. When closely pressed, and without 

 any further means or power of escape, it will hide its head in the first hole or corner it happens 

 to meet with, and thus patiently resign itself to its fate. Though it cannot be called a rare ani- 

 mal at the Cape, it is nowhere particularly common, being much hunted on account of the deli- 

 cacy of its flesh, which furnishes excellent venison, and great numbers of the young being de- 

 stroyed by eagles and other birds of prey. 



Colonel Smith has described the young of the Stein-Boc as a different species, by the name of 

 I. rtt/3 set »«, and the A. pallida or A. pediotragus of Afzelius, appears to differ in no respect from 

 the adult of the present animal, the really distinctive characters of which have been hitherto very 

 imperfectly reported. 



The Grys-Boc or Gray Buck, Antilope mclanotis, is closely allied to the preceding, and lias 

 similar habits. It is found in the country around the Cape of Good Hope. 



Tin- < Ukki.i, or Blekk-Boc, or Pale Buck, Antilope scoparia, is three feet eight inches long, 

 four feet ten inches high; the horns are awl-shaped; the general color a pale yellowish-brown 

 above, the under parts white. It inhabits the open plains of South Africa, and without being 

 positively gregarious, is fond of the society of its own species. It is found chiefly in the eastern 

 districts of the ('ape Colony, toward Caffraria, and its flesh, though dry and destitute of fat, is es- 

 teemed one of the besl venisons of the country. Great numbers of these animals are found on 

 the plain- about Zwartkops Bay. When feeding, they straggle confusedly over the plain, and 

 appear to l>e in company rather accidentally than by intention; when alarmed, also, they do not 

 fly together, but each runs off by itself in whatever direction it thinks most secure from danger 

 for the moment. 



Th.- Gibabi, Antilope mat, tuna, is very like the former, but is of a gray-brown color. It is 

 found in A','\ Bsinia. 



The Cainsi or Klippspbinger, Antilope Orcotrayus, inhabits the most barren and inaccessible 



mountains of the < 'ape, and appeals to supply in South Africa the place of the Chamois and Ibex. 



'I he entire length is three feet two inches, its height twenty-one inches. The general color above 



is a lively and pleasant mixture of yellow and green ; beneath, it is sandy-red tinged with yellow. 



; numbers of the young of this species are devoured by eagles. 



The Nesotragus Moachatus is an extremely small species; it is an inhabitant of the Island of 

 / zibar as well as the neighboring coast of Mozambique. 



