1907.] ENGLISH BOMBSTIC CATS. 151 



aureus id. { = longiceps Bechst.), for a yellowish, short-legged, long- 

 headed, sharp-nosed breed, said to inhabit New Spain ; mada- 

 gascarensis id., for a Madagascar Cat with a twisted tail ; striata 

 Bechst., for a black-striped " Cyprian " Cat, which is diagnosed 

 as follows : — " Mit schwarzen Streifen auf hellem Grunde, die 

 auf dem Riicken gerade, auf den Schenkeln aber gekriimmt 

 sind" (Bechstein, Pennant's ' Uebei-sicht, etc' ii. p. 679, 1800). 

 In a general way this description applies to both types of Cats 

 under discussion, and perhaps on the whole moi'e closely to the 

 *' blotched " than to the " striped " breed. But if the " Cyprus " 

 Cat came originally from Cyprus, a conclusion by no means 

 justified by the epithet, it belonged in all probability, as did 

 the Angora Cat, to the " Striped " and not to the " Blotched " 

 type *. 



But whatever opinion may be held with regard to angorensis 

 and striata, there is no doubt that examples of this Cat, whether 

 feral or not, furnished types for the following forms : — 



F. torquata F. Cuvier, Hist. Nat. Mamm. pi. 126 (1826), 



recorded from Nepavil, Bengal, &c. (see infra, p. 165). 

 F. inconsjncua Gray, Charlesworth's Mag. N. H. p. 577 



(1836). 

 F. huttoni Blyth, J. A. S. B. xv. p. 169 (1846), xvii. p. 247, 



xxii. p. 581, from Candahar. 

 F. ocreata agria Bate, P. Z. S. 1906, p. 317, from Khania in 



Crete. 



The figure of F. torquata and the description of F. huttoni 

 leave no room for doubting the identity of the Cats ; and the 

 types of inconspicua and ocreata agria are in the British Museum 

 and have been compared by me with English examples of Striped 

 Cats. 



This ty]-)e (torquata) may be described as follows : — Ground- 

 'colour typically iron-grey or yellow-grey. The four cephalic and 

 cervical stripes sometimes distinct, sometimes indistinct. The ad- 

 median cervical stripes not abbreviated on the anterior area of the 

 nape ; the external cervical stripes not diverging from the middle 

 line on its posterior area. Dorsal area of body fi-om the shoulders 

 to the root of the tail darker than the sides, the pigment often 

 resolvable into three narrow, almost contiguous stripes, two 

 laterals more or less interrupted, and a more complete median 

 which is usually continued down the middle line of the tail. On 

 the summit of the shoulder the lateral stiipes are frequently 

 thicker and more heavily pigmented than they are posteriorly. 

 From the dark dorsal area on to the belly pass a number of 

 vertical wavy transverse stripes, which are usually more distinct 

 on the thoracic than on the abdominal region, where, as also on 

 the thighs, they are more or less broken vip into spots, which may 



* See Teinminck, Mon. Mamm. i. p. 128 (1827) ; and Fischer, Syn. Mamm. p. 208 

 .(1829). 



