chap, iv.] THROWING DOWN BRANCHES. 87 



would be thrown on several others above and below it. I 

 now understood the use of the line of bamboo pegs stick- 

 ing in trees, which I had often seen, and wondered for 

 what purpose they could have been put there. This 

 animal was almost identical in size and appearance with 

 the one I had obtained at Semabang, and was the only 

 other male specimen of the Simia morio which I obtained. 

 It is now in the Derby Museum. 



I afterwards shot two adult females and two young 

 ones of different ages, all of which I preserved. One of 

 the females, with several young ones, was feeding on a 

 Durian tree with unripe fruit ; and as soon as she saw us 

 she began breaking off branches and the great spiny 

 fruits with every appearance of rage, causing such a 

 shower of missiles as effectually kept us from approaching 

 too near the tree. This habit of throwing down branches 

 when irritated has been doubted, but I have, as here 

 narrated, observed it myself on at least three separate 

 occasions. It was however always the female Mias who 

 behaved in this way, and it may be that the male, trusting 

 more to his great strength and his powerful canine teeth, 

 is not afraid of any other animal, and does not want 

 to drive them away, while the parental instinct of the 

 female leads her to adopt this mode of defending herself 

 and her young ones. 



In preparing the skins and skeletons of these animals, I 



