1905.] MAMMALS OF SOUTHERX OAMEEOOXS. 79 



propensities, in so far as to catch and eat chickens. When a 

 chicken or well-grown hen approached too near, to share his corn, 

 he whirled suddenly and caught her in his mouth. Then he 

 learned to take fowls from the roost at night, and showed much 

 ingenuity in getting into the chicken-house for the purpose. He 

 became such a nuisance on this account that he was made into 

 pork before he reached his full size. 



The wild Red Hog's fondness for cassava-roots causes it to do 

 much damage to the gardens. But what the people lose thus 

 they more than get back in meat by killing the hogs in pitfalls 

 dug where they must pass to get to the cassava. Once, in June, 

 there were caught in two pits near the village whei'e I was stay- 

 ing two adult males, one adult female, and three half- or two- 

 thirds-grown young ones, probably nearly a year old. They 

 belonged to one band, or " sounder," that was found in the day- 

 time in the neighbourhood of a clearing, and was surrounded by 

 men and driven into the pits. 



These wild hogs forage both by day and by night. Their 

 incursions into the gardens are generally made at evening. 

 Hunters tell me that they sleep in the latter part of the night 

 and in the heat of the day. 



I have seen a nest or bed in the forest where a family of these 

 hogs had slept. It was in a damp place, and was composed of a 

 mass of endogenous plants such as grew there, pulled up by the 

 roots and piled together. Natives say the hogs do not use the 

 same sleeping-place more than one or two nights or days. Even 

 the small pigs follow the sow from place to place, and may be 

 heard squealing as they run after her. 



These hogs are fond of dampness and of mud, as are all their 

 kind, and many other animals besides. But they find damp places 

 anywhere in the forest, and are by no means partial to the banks 

 of rivers. 



The meat is tender and good, but with little of the character- 

 istic pork flavour. 



The Tree Dassie {Dendrohyrax dorsalis). 



This little animal, called "nyok," utters at intervals during the 

 night a loud, long-drawn, trilling or rattling cry. This is repeated 

 several times in quick succession, with increasing loudness, so that 

 you think the animal nearer when he finishes than when he began. 

 The sound always comes from high up in a large tree. Natives 

 hearing" it at night locate it in a certain tree, and go next day 

 aiad chop the animal out of the hollow high up the tree-trunk, 

 where it lives, and catch it alive. Sometimes two are found 

 together : and they say when the shining of their eyes is seen in 

 the darkness of the hollow tree, one eye only of each animal is 

 seen ; if two eyes appear, there must be two animals. 



The people all tell me the "nyok" descends to the ground to 

 feed at night, and that it feeds on the leaves of bushes ; a certain 



