GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS. 351 



shaped hollow — the glenoid cavity — iu the skull, bounded by overhanging edges. 

 In consequence of this arrangement, the motion of the lower jaw of a Carnivore is 

 strictly limited to an up-and-down direction ; thus allowing onlj- of a bitinc or 

 snapping action, and not permitting that rotator}^ or backwards-and-forwards 

 movement found in so many other Mannnals. The interlocking of the lower jaw 

 with the skull is most marked in the badgei-s. 



A less impoi-tant feature of the carnivorous skull is to be found in the circum- 

 stance that iu the great majorit}' of instances tlie orbit, or the cavity for the ej'e, is 

 not bounded posteriorly by a bar of bone so as to form a complete ring, but com- 

 municates freely with the greatlj' elongated hollow on the side of the skull which 

 contains the powerful muscles for M-orking the jaws. Occasionally-, however, as in 

 some cats and the ichneumons, the eye-socket is completely surrounded by a bony 

 ring ; and a process at tlie back of the upper part of the cavity for the eye always 

 marks the posterior limit of that cavity. More constant is the presence of a 

 strong zj-gomatic arch bounding the inferior border of the .socket of the eye, and 

 connecting the ujiper jaw with the region of the ear. 



An import;ant feature distinguishing the skeleton of a Carnivore from that of 

 an Insectivore (with the exception of the potamogale) is that the collar-bones or 

 clavicles are frequently absent, and when present are never complete ; that is to 

 say, that instead of each collar-bone forming a bar to connect the shoulder-blade 

 with the breast-bone, as in ourselves, when it exists at all it merely forms a little 

 splint of bone embedded in the muscles of the chest between these two point.s. 



Two other features in regard to the skeleton must not be overlooked, since 

 they are ^f some help in distinguishing between Carnivores and Insectivore-s. In 

 man}^ of the latter, as sliown in the figure of the skeleton on p. 332, the two bones 

 of the fore-arm (radius and ulna), and of the lower leg (tibia and fibula) are 

 respectively united together, whereas in aU the former they are completely 

 separate. In the fore-limb this separation of the two bones is essential in order to 

 permit of the free use of the paw. A characteristic of the wrist-joint of all 

 Carnivores is that two of the bones of the upper row, respectively known as 

 the scaphoid and the lunar, are completely welded together : and it maj^ be added 

 that the central bone, which we have seen exists in all the lower Primates, is 

 invariably absent. Another feature distinguishing the Carnivores from the 

 Insectivores is to be found in the well-marked convolutions on tlie upper surface 

 of the lobes of the brain, which is indicative of a far higher degree of mental 

 power. 



With the exception of Australia and Xew Zealand, Carnivores are distributed 

 over all the continents and larger islands of the globe, ranging from the icy ocean 

 of the Ai-ctic circle to the tropical plains of Africa and India; but while some 

 of the families, like the cats and dogs, have a distribution almost coextensive 

 with that of the order, others, like the civets and hyeenas, are much more 

 restricted in their range. Exclusive of the larger Man-like Apes, the Carnivores 

 include the largest of the so-called Unguiculate Mammals, that is, those in which 

 the toes are furnished with daws or nails, iu contradistinction to hoofs. As is 

 usually the case, the largest representatives of the order are to be found in the 

 aquatic section, where we have the walrus and elephant-seal. Among the terres- 



