74 WILD ANIMALS. 



perpetual war with the jaguars, whom they kill easily when they 

 can get the animals into the water, for they hold them under 

 until they are drowned; but when a jaguar surprises an alligator 

 on the hot sandbank asleep, he attacks and often kills his enemy. 



Jaguars take especial delight in scratching the bark of trees, 

 it is said for the purpose of sharpening their claws, for 

 many travellers in the countries they inhabit speak of being 

 shown these marks, which are generally to be found on certain 

 trees only in a district, to which, strange to say, they all seem 

 to resort for this operation. Mr. Darwin speaks of three well- 

 known trees near the banks of the Uruguay, whereon the bark 

 was worn quite smooth in front, and on each side were deep 

 grooves extending in an oblique line nearly a yard in length, and 

 of different ages. The inhabitants said they could always tell, 

 by these trees having recent marks, when a jaguar was in the 

 neighbourhood. 



Their powers of climbing appear to be greater than those of 

 any other cat. M. Sonnini illustrates this feature by remarking 

 in his book : " I have seen in the forests of Guiana the prints 

 left by the claws of the jaguar on the smooth bark of a tree, from 

 forty to fifty feet in height, measuring about a foot and a half in 

 circumference, and clothed with branches near its summit alone. 

 It was easy to follow with the eye the efforts which the animal 

 had made to reach the branches : although his talons had been 

 thrust deeply into the body of the tree, he had met with several 

 slips, but had always recovered his ground; and attracted, no 

 doubt, by some favourite prey, had at length succeeded in gaining 

 the very top." 



The young cubs, which are generally born in the latter part of 

 August or early in September, are generally of a grey squirrel- 

 colour, and have the appearance of very pretty little kittens. 

 They grow in size rapidly, and their fur becomes smoother than 

 velvet ; their heads are rounded puppy-like and have tiny ears, 

 and nothing about their paws or appearance suggests the formid- 

 able efl&ciency of the full-grown animal. 



A writer before quoted says, "During the first two months 

 after their birth, the mother is as ravenous as a Eussian wolf in 



