FAUNA OF ANSEBA FALLEX- 125 



wiser to keep a little oi^t of the way, and we conse- 

 quently made two short marches down the Anseba 

 valley, the first to AValiko, the second to a place called 

 HegyargiUe, near Maregas. The country continued much 

 the same. 



The fauna of the valley is very rich and varied. It 

 comprises many animals which appear to be restricted to 

 what may be termed the sub-tropical zone, and which 

 are neither met with on the coast nor in the highlands. 

 I obtained a magnificent collection of skins, both of birds 

 and mammals. The following will serve to give a 

 general idea of the principal animals found. 



Monkeys were not very common, and the baboon 

 {Cynocephalus hamadryas) less than usual. Cercopi- 

 thecus griseo-viridis was occasionally seen in the trees 

 near the river. I saw no bats, and wild cats were rare. 

 Leopards were less common than in the rocky valleys to 

 the east. Lions abounded, as already remarked. Hysenas 

 (H. croGuta) and jackals (Canis mesomelas) were the 

 commonest camivora. 



Amongst the pachydermata, rhinoceroses have already 

 been mentioned. The white African rhinoceros {R, simus) 

 does not occur in Abyssinia or the Nile valley, so far as 

 is known. Hyraces are not common. The wild hog 

 (Phacochcerus) was occasionally met with, but it is less 

 common than near the coast. The ruminants of the 

 Anseba valley are all antelopes. The koodoo is found in 

 the open valley, the klipspringer on the rocky hills 

 around; while the little Beni Israel [Neotragus salti- 

 arius) keeps to the bushes. Another bush antelope 



