Flashlights from the Jungle 



547 



to set out on their long wedding journey 

 in the air, to lay the foundations of new 

 colonies elsewhere. Most of them know 

 perfectly how to use their little white 

 pinions, although it is the first and only 

 time in their lives that they rise from the 

 dark depths of the ground in the damp 

 evening atmosphere. 



"Here and there the steppes are 

 adorned with the well-known monkey- 

 bread tree (Adaiisouia digitate). Cov- 

 ered with a shining bright gray bark, this 

 tree often attains a circumference of 

 many yards, and, in spite of its grotesque- 

 ness, charms us with its primeval appear- 

 ance. The traveler soon learns to value 

 it, for often rich stores of water lie 

 hidden in the hollow trunk — stores that 

 have been supplied by the rainy season — 

 which may be the only water to be found 

 in the district for several days' journey. 



"It appears that the lioness is always 

 the aggressive party. The pictures give 

 only single lions, bvit in reality there were 

 several others in close proximity. They 

 had gradually surrounded their prey and 

 approached it from dififerent sides. 



"There may seem to be something 

 gruesome about sacrificing oxen and don- 

 keys in this way ; but they would other- 

 wise fall victims probably to the tsetse 

 fly. a horribly painful death, whereas 

 lions kill very quickly and surely ; they 

 just give one bite in the neck, and' do not 

 torture their prey. I can vouch for this 

 myself from having witnessed the sight 

 repeatedly from my thorny hiding-place. 

 Death was instantaneous in every case : 

 and so stealthily does the lion creep up 

 to its prey that it is only at the last mo- 

 ment that the latter tries to break awav. 



"Deep stillness lies over the velt, in 

 the dark night ; a gentle rustling is heard 

 now and again in the thick foliage and 

 branches. Suddenly a roaring, mighty 

 something strikes the ear and a heavy 

 thud follows, as the prey is captured. 

 There are never more than a few 

 scratches to be found on the booty : a 

 crunching bite in the neck is alwa^'s the 

 cause of death. Many men killed in this 

 manner have never even uttered a crv." 



An attack from a rhinoceros, Mr Schil- 

 lings says, is more to be dreaded than 

 that of any other animal. In spite of its 

 huge bulk, it is very agile, nearly always 

 succeeding in ripping its enemy to pieces 

 on its long horn. 



"In addition to noting the direction of 

 the wind when stalking a rhinoceros, you 

 have to look carefully to see whether 

 the rhinoceros has his feathered satel- 

 lites, the rhinoceros-birds (Buphaga 

 cryfhrorhyjicha) , on him or not. When 

 resting, he often resigns himself to the 

 care of these small feathered friends of 

 his, which not merely free him from 

 parasites, but which, by a sudden out- 

 burst of twittering and a clattering of 

 their wings, warn him of impending 

 danger. Thus put on the alert, he rises 

 up quickly and assumes his well-known 

 sitting position, ready to take to flight 

 if need be, but lying down again if there 

 seems to him to be no enemy near. 



"If the hunter is favored by the wind 

 and able to conceal himself after this 

 first alarm, and the rhinoceros lies down 

 again, the birds, varying in number from 

 a verv few to a couple of dozen, settle 

 down again upon his hospitable body. 

 But the moment they become aware of 

 your near approach they leave it again, 

 arousing the animal once more. It is a 

 case of a partnership between an animal 

 with a very keen sense of smell and birds 

 with very keen eyes. 



"Zebras, leopards, and giraffes are so 

 strikingly colored that one would ex- 

 pect to find them conspicuous figures in 

 their own haunts. But, as I have already 

 remarked, these three kinds of animals 

 have really a special protection in their 

 coloring. It harmonizes so perfectly with 

 their surroundings that they are blended 

 in the background, so to speak, and can 

 easily be overlooked. It must be ex- 

 plained that one does not often see the 

 animals close at hand. In certain lights, 

 indeed, according to the position of the 

 sun, zebras, leopards, and giraffes are 

 so merged in the harmony of their sur- 

 roundings that even when they are quite 

 near, the eve of man can easilv be de- 



