PELIS. 



73 



inner side of limbs white or pale tawny. Head spotted above ; two 

 broad black bands, with narrower bands or elongate spots between 

 them, commence between tlie ears, run back to the shoulders, and 

 are prolonged, more or less regularly, as bands of large oval or 

 elongate marks along the back. Sides of body usually divided into 

 large subovate, trapezoidal, or irregularly shaped darker patches 



Fig. 17.— Skull of Fclis ndmlosa. (Gray, P. Z. S. 1867, p. 2G(>.) 



by narrow pale bands, the patches in places edged with black, 

 especially behind. In old specimens the dark patches are some- 

 times indistinguishable, but the black edges remain as irregular 

 stripes. The limbs and underparts are marked with large black 

 spots. Tail with numerous dusky rings, often interrupted at the 

 sides, those near the body traversed above by a longitudinal band. 

 Ears black externally, often with a grey spot in the middle. Two 

 black horizontal cheek-stripes, the upper running from the eye ; 

 the margin of the upper lip also black laterally in some specimens. 

 There is an irregular black band across the chin and another on 

 the throat. Blyth states that this animal gro^s more fulvous with 

 age, the greyer skins being those of young animals. 



Dimensions. An old male, measured by Hodgson, was 37| inches 

 long from snout to vent ; tail with hair at end 30, without 29 ; 

 height 14|, length of ear 2|- ; weight 44| lbs. In another specimen 

 the head and liody measured 3| feet, tail 3. A skull larger than 

 usual, from Assam, is 6-2 inches long from the foramen (basal 

 length), and 4*75 broad across the zvgomatic arches; another skull 

 4-7 by 3-6. 



Bistribution. The clouded leopai'd occurs in the South-eastern 

 Himalayas, Sikhim, Bhutan, &c., at moderate elevations, probably 

 not above 7000 feet. It is also found in the Assam hills and 

 throughout the hilly parts of Burma, Siam, the Malay Peninsula, 

 Sumatra, Java, and Borneo. A variety with a shorter tail {Leo- 

 pardus hrachyurus, Svvinhoe) has been obtained in Formosa. 



