ii8 



CHARACTERS OF VERTEBRATE ANIMALS 



between goats and antelopes, so that it may be placed indifferently 

 in either of them. It ranges from the Pyrenees to the Caucasus, 

 and is the only animal in West Europe which has any claim to the 

 name of antelope. A characteristic feature is seen in the sharp 

 hook-like termination of the short black horns. 



Among the most graceful members of the group are the small 

 desert forms which, under the name of Gazelles, have been immor- 



Fig. 80.— The Saiga Antelope [Cohis Tartaricus) 



talized by various poets. The Dorcas Gazelle [Gasella dorcas), 

 which inhabits North Africa, Syria, and Asia Minor, is perhaps 

 the best-known kind. Other species are the Persian Gazelle 

 {G. subgutturosa), the Indian Gazelle {G. Bennetti), and the 

 Arabian Gazelle {G. Arabicd). 



Probably the most remarkable looking antelopes are the 

 Saiga Antelope [Coins Tartaricus) and the Wildebeest or Gnu 

 {Catoblepas gnu). The former, which looks as if it suffered from 

 badly-swollen face (fig. 80), ranges from the steppes of Russia-in- 

 Europe to the Altai Mountains. Apart from the Chamois it is the 

 only European antelope. The Gnu (fig. 81) is an inhabitant of 

 South Africa, and looks like a mixture of buffalo and horse, being 

 endowed with the head of the one and the tail of the other. 



