THE SPORTSMAN IN SOUTH AFRICA. 87 



much danger might probably be expected from an encounter with a 

 Red Lynx {Feh's caracal) as with a Cheetah. It is well known that 

 this animal is easily trained for hunting purposes in India, but the 

 experiment has never yet been tried in South Africa. Its character 

 is anything but savage or vicious, and even the most timorous natives 

 will, when an opportunity presents itself of coming into close contact 

 with one, without the assistance of any other weapon rush in and 

 kill it with knobkerries. It may be observed that, although the 

 claws are always exposed, and not altogether retractile, their impress 

 is well marked in the sand, the spoor being nearly round, and shaped 

 very like that of a rather large-sized dog. 



The Woolly Cheetah {Felis laned). 



[ The fur much -more woolly and dense than the Cheetah^ as par- 

 ticularly noticeable in the ears^ mane, and tail. The whole of the 

 body is of a pale, isabelline colour, rather paler on belly and lower 

 parts, but covered all over — including- the belly — with roundish dark 

 fulvous blotches. There are no traces of the black spots which are 

 so conspicuous in all the varieties of the Cheetah, nor of the charac- 

 teristic black line between the mouth and eyes.'\ 



This variety was first alluded to by Dr. Sclater, Secretary of the 

 Zoological Society of London, being described by him in the 

 Proceedings of that Society in 1877, to whom we are indebted for 

 the above description. The specimen referred to was brought from 

 near Beaufort West, in the Cape Colony, and placed in the Zoo- 

 logical Gardens. Upon reference to the description there can be 

 little doubt that the animal is distinct from the common Cheetah. 

 The species has not, within our knowledge, been observed further 

 Northwards. 



The Serval (Felis serval). — Bosch or Tecgre Kat of the Dutch ; 

 Tali of the Bechuanas. 



[^Height ig or 20 inches. General colour, reddish orange, 

 approaching brown down the centre of back, which is arched, pale- 

 ing to white underneath ; body covered with black to dark brown 

 spots, some of which are round and others irregularly shaped ; in 

 the centre of the back these spots run together in longitudinal stripes; 

 two strongly marked transverse bands of black across the inside of 



