460 



CARNIVORES. 



procured a packing-case, which he converted into a 4-trap, and set, projierly baited, 

 one night in liis room. Next morning he found that the box had fallen, with a 

 tenant inside. The tube of a sulphuretted-hydrogen bottle was then inserted 

 through a hole bored in the side of the box, and the latter, after an interval, lifted, 

 when the dead body of a palm-civet was disclosed. 



The name of toddy-cats is applied to these animals from the partiality thej', in 

 common with the fox-bats, display in Southern India and Cejdon for the palm- 

 juice, or toddy, collected by the natives in vessels suspended on the trees. Like 

 the other members of the gi'oup, the Indian palm-civet, when irritated, gives forth 

 a most unpleasant odour. 



The Malay palm-civet (P. kerriiaphroditus), which is represented in the 

 accompanjnng illustration, occurs throughout the countries to the eastward of the 



THE MALAY PALM-CIVf;! 1 ! Hat. SizcJ. 



Bay of Bengal, as far as Siam. and is distinguished from its Indian congener by the 

 presence of a pale-coloured band running across the forehead, and also by the 

 general presence of stripes across the back in the adult condition. In both the 

 preceding species the " whiskers " are black, but in the golden palm-civet (P. 

 aureus) of Ceylon, and also the brown palm-civet {F. jerdoni) of Southern India, 

 they are respectively rufous and dark bro-\vn ; the body-colour of those two species 

 being nearly the same as that of their whiskers. On the other hand, the 

 Himalayan palm-civet (P. grayi), which occurs throughout Sikhim and Assam, is 

 readily distinguished by its white whiskei's ; while it is further characterised by 

 the great backward production of the bony palate of the skull. The golden palm- 

 civet is said to be less carnivorous than the other .species. 



The Chinese palm-civet (P. larvatus), of which we give a figure on the 

 next page, is closely allied to the Himalayan palm-civet, but differs by the 

 browner tinge of its greyish fur, and by the markings on the head being 

 very distinct, and black and white in colour. It has also a broad white band 



