16 BINAR LONNBEEG, MAMMALS COLLECTED BY THE SWEDISH ZOOLOGICAL EXPEDITION ETC. 



the old Baboons and the yell of the young when they are chastised are heard from 

 the thickets and, if some steep rocks are near, the whole troop is soon seen climbing 

 up to a safe distance. The slender necks of the Gerenuks appear as reddish looking 

 streaks against the grey bush when the animals stand gazing at the intruder. Long- 

 eared Somali Hares and pretty Uttle Dikdiks in pairs or threes start now and then 

 out from below the bushes and run away. On more or less open places Grevy's 

 Zebras in small herds, but sometimes single and often in company with splendid 

 Oryxes, have their pasture. Grant Gazelles in small flocks are usually found not very 

 far from the river, and the Waterbucks as a rule live in still closer proximity to it. 

 The usual haunts of the Impalas are among bushes around small ravines not far 

 from water. The herds of Buffaloes select such districts where open places with 

 grass are surrounded by dense thornbush and they have their well beaten tracks 

 from there to the water. The big animals appear to be in need of water every day 

 (or night). ^ In consequence of this they cannot live too far from water, but some 

 species like the Rhinoceros have their feeding grounds at a distance of two or three 

 hours march and perhaps even more from the water and they must thus travel such 

 a distance every night. Buffaloes and Oryxes are also sometimes found more than 

 one or two hours from water. The long legs of the Elephants and Giraffes enable 

 them to cover great distances without difficulty and they can thus feed far from 

 their drinking places. Warthog spoors were seen every day at the waterpools at Njoro 

 and the few specimens observed were seen, partly not far from there, partly not far 

 from Guaso Nyiri. Some of the smaller animals are probably more independent of 

 the pools and the river whether they slake their thirst with the dew, or with the 

 juices contained in the vegetative matter they feed on. I am uncertain whether 

 the Gerenuks ever drink, but it seems quite impossible to think that all Dikdiks, 

 which appear so stationary and which sometimes are found to become more and 

 more common, the further one proceeds from the river, should crowd down to the 

 water to drink and then disperse to their haunts again every night. It would be 

 far too dangerous for their existence to travel so much. The rodents of this country 

 probably do not drink, and the same is no doubt the case with the Hyraxes. The 

 Baboons and the TumbUi monkeys are seldom seen far from the water and the former 

 come down very regularily to drink. The spoors of the carnivores. Lion, Leopard, 

 Striped Hyena and the Black-backed Jackal as well as the animals themselves were 

 mostly seen near the water. The Genet {Genetta dongolana) and the Mungoose {Mungos 

 sanguineus rendilis) were trapped near the river, but Helogale which often lives among 

 the colonies of Ground Squirrels was almost always shot at a comparatively consid- 

 erable distance from it. 



The small mammals are comparatively less numerous than the big and medium 

 sized. There is no tree squirrel in the thornbush, and the only climbing mammal 

 except the monkeys mentioned above is the small Oalago gallarum. Two species of 

 bats were observed, the yellow-winged Lavia, and the small Nycteris hispida. Of in- 



^ I am uncertain, however, whether the Elephants as mentioned below need to drink oftener than every 

 second night. 



