JUMPING-SHRE WS — LION z j 



were then taken out with the tongue. From this habit and its enormous eyes, I 

 believe that the elephant-shrew must be largely nocturnal in its feeding. But it 

 may certainly be observed in sunny places in the daytime, either sitting quietly 

 in the sun, or moving suddenly and with extraordinary rapidity. I have seen it 

 on rocks and in ruined houses, where it is evidently common, and with the colour 

 of which its back harmonises well. In fact, on ' No. 2 ' kopje on a sunny after- 

 noon I could always be sure of observing two or three at the same time. The 

 individual I kept alive showed no resistance or temper. It made no attempt to 

 bite, and if much frightened lay quite flat for some minutes on the floor of its 

 box, shivering all over, its ears flattened back, and its large, conspicuous eyes shut. 

 At such times it occasionally ' drums,' like a rabbit, with one of its hind-feet." 



Although common to the whole of Africa, as well as to a con- 

 siderable portion of south-western Asia, such an important animal as 

 the lion (Felis leo) cannot be passed over without notice in this place. This animal 

 is too well known to need description, and it will suffice to mention that the male 

 is distinguished from all other members of the cat tribe by the profuse mane 

 clothing the head and fore-quarters. Young lions are marked with dark streaks 

 and spots, and such markings persist for a long period, if not permanently, in the 

 East African representative of the species. The lion is thus evidently descended 

 from a spotted or striped animal. 



Although in South Africa both black- maned and tawny-maned lions may 

 apparently occur in the same litter, yet there are certain local differences in regard 

 not only to the length, thickness, extent, and colour of the mane, accompanied by 

 differences in the general colour of the coat and by certain other peculiarities, on 

 the strength of which the lion has been divided into a number of races, or sub- 

 species. Among these, the North African lion (F. leo barbara) is specially 

 characterised by its large bodily size, dusky ochery colour, and the long and 

 profuse mane, which extends as far as the middle of the back, and is also developed 

 on the under surface of the body. In the lioness of this race the inner side of the 

 fore-legs is white. 



In addition to the mane, the tuft at the end of the tail is a feature common 

 to the males of all lions. In this tuft there occurs frequently, although not 

 apparently invariably, a small horny spur, the function of which still remains 

 unknown. 



The lion readily adapts itself to the conditions of its natural surroundings, 

 which are by no means always the same ; its haunts in manj 7 parts of Africa being- 

 dry open plains, while in the valleys of the Euphrates and Tigris dense reed-bushes 

 are the favoured places. In former times the Indian race (F. I. gujratensis) was 

 once common on the sandy plains of Rajputana, but it is now restricted to the Gir 

 forest" of Kathiawar. The Mesopotamian race (F. I. asiatica) still inhabits the 

 swampy lowlands of the Euphrates and Tigris. In Africa lions formeidy abounded 

 in the Kalahari desert, and till quite recently, at any rate, were just as common in 

 the uplands of Mashonaland, in the rugged districts watered by the tributaries of 

 the Zambesi, in the thorny scrub westward of the Gwai River, and in the marshes 

 of the Linyanti. The number and ferocity of the lions encountered during the 

 construction of the Uganda railway have become historical. 



