342 BACKBONED ANIMALS. 



the point, forming a callous, elastic cushion. The drome- 

 dary, or single-humped camel* (Fig. 365), is found in 

 Arabia, Syria, Persia, and Africa, and is remarkable for its 

 speed, carrying a rider nearly one hundred miles a day. 

 In the caravan they carry a load weighing from six hun- 

 dred to one thousand pounds. The young are about three 

 feet high when born, and do not attain their full growth 

 for seventeen years. Their average age is fifty years. The 

 Bactrian camel, or two-humped variety, is eight feet high 

 between the humps, and about ten feet long. It came 

 originally from Central Asia. Allied are the llama of Peru 

 and Chili, the guanaco, and the alpaca. 



VALUE. Hide and hair, and as beasts of burden. In the Falkland 

 Islands, guanaco-bones are used as fire-wood. 



Order VIII. Flesh-eating Mammals (Carnivora). 

 General Characteristics. This order includes the' cats, 

 bears, seals, etc. animals that feed mainly upon flesh to 

 obtain which they have sharp claws (Fig. 373), fangs, and 

 .cutting teeth (Fig. 375). The head is generally massive 

 and powerful, each jaw containing six incisors, behind 

 which is placed a long, stout canine. The number of mo- 

 lar teeth varies with the species, and they have trenchant 

 edges for cutting. 



Sub-order I. Pinnipedia. Seals \ (Phocida). The* 

 common seal (Callocephalus vitulinus] has no external ears ; 

 the arms and legs are short, the latter being large and 

 fan-shaped ; the inner and outer toes are large and long, 

 the three middle ones shorter ; the palms and soles are 

 hairy, and the claws distinct and sharp. They are ex- 

 tremely intelligent, and susceptible of domestication. The 



* These animals have been introduced into the deserts of Nevada, 

 and are rapidly increasing in numbers. 



f Members of this family have been seen in the Caspian Sea, 

 in Lake Baikal, and lately the harbor seal has been observed in Lake 

 Champlain, and other streams in central New York. The common 

 seal has been caught in Chesapeake Bay. 



