THE DOG FAMILY— FOX. 



241 



and in a certain respect invest it with a Bat-like 

 aspect. The inner margins of the ears are covered 

 with white hair, in such a way that two tufts go up 

 irom the aperture of the ear, which unite in one run- 

 ning to the upper tip, where it becomes short and 

 thin. The small snout is adorned by long bristly 



THE GOBSAC. This species of the Fox, which roams about on the broad steppes of Asiatic Russia to 



the east of the Caspian-Sea, is small but active, and seldom makes a burrow for itself, but sleeps with no further 

 attempt at concealment than is afforded by the vegetation of these treeless plains. The picture shows one of these 

 animals taking a nap, while the other, wide-awake, presents the characteristics of a true Fox, with a dense fur and 

 a bushy tail. iVuIpes corsac.) 



whisker hairs, which add to the peculiar appearance 

 of the animal. The fur is of silky softness and in 

 winter is supplemented hy a woolly inner coat, 

 which in spring is rubbed off in flakes by brushing 

 the body against branches, etc. One would think 

 that the Fennec did not _ _ 



need a thick fur in the 

 warm country he inhab 

 its; but the little fellow 

 seems to be very sensi 

 tive to cold, and to stand 

 in need of more than or 

 dinary protection. The 

 upper surface of the 

 body has a color decid 

 edly similar to that of 

 the sand; the under sur 

 iace is white; and there 

 is also a white patch 

 •over the eyes, while a 

 darker stripe is found 

 beneath them. The tail 

 is very long, bushy and 

 nearly of an ochre yel- 

 low tint, but with only 

 black patches at the root 

 and the tip. The fur of 

 the female is of a straw- 

 yellow tinge, and the 

 color usually becomes 

 lighter with advancing 

 age. 



The Long- The Long- 



EaredFoxof eared Fox {Otocyon megalotis) inhabits 



South Africa, southern Africa. In appearance it re- 

 sembles other Foxes especially the Fennec, and has 

 frequently been mistaken for the latter. But it is 

 much larger, has longer legs and a much shorter 



muzzle, although the ears are similar to those of the 

 Fennec and nearly as large. 



Its favorite haunts are the bushy, elevated plains of 

 the interior in southern Africa, north of the Orange 

 river. During the day it lies hidden like all its rela- 

 tives, affecting thick bushes or the Ant-hills hol- 

 lowed out by the Earth- 

 hog; at night it roams 

 about and sometimes ap- 

 proaches camp fires utter- 

 ing really doleful wailings. 

 Its food consists of small 

 animals and animal refuse, 

 but mainly of Locusts. 

 The Gray Fox The Gray Fox 

 an American ( Vulpes cinereo- 

 Species. argentatus) 

 may be considered a spe- 

 cies allied to the Common 

 Fox, but standing on a 

 lower plane. It differs 

 from the latter by its shorter 

 legs, proportionately longer 

 tail and a more graceful 

 shape in general. Approx- 

 imately, its length is three 

 feet including the tail, 

 which is about sixteen 

 inches, and the shoulder 

 height is twelve inches. 

 The prevailing color is a 

 peculiar spotted gray, com- 

 . posed of black and silver 

 gray and covering the forehead, top of the head, 

 back of the cheeks, nape of the neck and the whole 

 upper surface. Each individual hair is white at its 

 base, and then black, and marked with a wide white 

 band near the tip. The cheeks and throat are yel- 



THE LONG-EAEED FOX. This animal, which has long ears somewhat similar to those of the Fennec, is a 



night prowling creature. Its proportionately longer legs, larger size and shorter muzzle distinguish it from the Fen- 

 nec, which it resembles in other respects. The artist has appropriately pictured it amid the surroundings of a high, 

 bushy plain, for it is in such localities in southern Africa that this Fox is principally found. {Otocyon megalotis.) 



lowish white, the ears and sides of the neck grayish 

 yellow, the under portion and the inner surfaces of 

 the limbs a light russet yellow; a band on the chest 

 is darker; a black stripe marks the fore-paws; the 

 tail is black above, russet-red below, gray at the tip. 



