i6 



ZOOLOGICAL 





Two fossil species are known, from the Pliocene of England and 

 Belgium. 



OTARIIDJE (Eared-Seals, Fur-Seals, Hair-Seals, Sea-Lions and 

 Sea-Bears; 14 Species). Plate 4, Map vi. 



These animals are distinguished from the Phocidse by the presence 

 of a small external ear, and by the fact that their hind limbs are turned 

 forwards in the direction of the head. They are widely distributed along 

 the shores of the Pacific, ranging from Bering Strait down the western 

 coast of America to California, and from the Galapagos Islands to Tierra 

 del Fuego, and up the eastern coast as far as the Rio de la Plata and 

 Rio de Janeiro. They also range southwards down the Asiatic coast to 

 Japan, along the eastern and southern shores of Australia and New Zealand, 

 and thence across to the Cape of Good Hope. They are quite absent 

 from the North Atlantic. A single fossil species is known, from Parana 

 (La Plata). 



In addition to the ordinary covering of long, stiff hairs, certain of 

 the species possess an exceedingly fine, dense and woolly fur. The stiff 

 hair is more deeply rooted than the fine fur, so that when the skin is 

 shaved away from within, the former comes away, leaving the beautiful 

 under-fur intact. By this means the valuable material so much used 

 for wearing apparel under the name of "seal-skin" is prepared, realising 

 from £2 to £10 per hide. The best skins are furnished by young males 

 and females. The largest members of the family are useless as fur- 

 producers, their commercial value being limited to their production of 

 oil and leather. They are consequently distinguished from their smaller 

 and more valuable relatives by the name of "hair-seals." 



The first of the three genera included in this family is one contain- 

 ing a single species known as the Southern Sea-Lion (Otaria byronia). 

 This animal is a "hair-seal," and inhabits the Galapagos Islands and the 

 South American shores from Peru and Chili round by Tierra del Fuego 

 and the Falkland Islands as far up the Atlantic coast as Rio de la 

 Plata. 



The second genus (Eumetopias) comprises four species. The first of 

 these (E. jubata or stelleri), known as the Northern Sea-Lion, is a "hair- 

 seal," inhabiting the shores of the Northern Pacific from Bering Strait 

 to California and Japan, and also the Prybiloff Islands. It is the largest 

 member of the family, sometimes measuring 13 feet in length. The 

 other three species of this genus are also "hair-seals," and inhabit the 

 shores of California, the coasts of Australia and adjacent islands, and 

 the Auckland Islands respectively. 



With the third genus, known as Ar otocephalus, we come to the true 

 "fur-seals," nine in number. Four of these are found in the Northern 

 Hemisphere, the best known of which is the Northern Sea-Bear or Fur- 

 Seal (A. ursinus). This is the most important species of all from an 

 economic point of view, and its chief resorts at the present day are the 

 two islands of St Paul's and St George's in the Prybiloff group, although 

 smaller herds are found on the Commander Islands. In former years 

 it ranged over the shores of the northern Pacific from Kamchatka to 

 Japan, and from the Prybiloff Islands to southern California. Enormous 

 numbers of animals inhabit the two islands mentioned above in the summer 

 months, but in the winter they migrate southwards to follow the fish 

 upon which they feed. They return northwards in the following May, 

 or June, collecting in certain spots which have been called "rookeries." 

 Here the males engage in fierce conflicts, first for the possession of the soil, 

 and next for their mates, who arrive about the middle of June. The 

 breeding season lasts until September, and during these few months the 

 islands are visited by the sealers, who are limited by law as to the 

 number permitted to be slain. As is well known, the British Government 

 recently successfully contested the claim of the United States to exclusive 

 sealing in these islands. 



The remaining five species of Arctocephalus range over the shores of 

 the Southern Hemisphere, from the Galapagos Islands, down the South 

 American coast to the Antarctic regions, Kerguelen Island, the Cape 

 of Good Hope, Crozet Island, Australia, and New Zealand. They are 

 similar to the other Fur-Seals in habits, and are also much sought after 

 by the sealers. 



PR0CY0NID.ffi (Raccoons, Cacomistles, Coatis, the Kinkajou and 

 the Panda; 23 Species.) Plate 5, Map i. 



With the exception of the curious animal known as the Panda or 

 Cat Bear (Ailurus), which inhabits the south-eastern Himalayas, and the 

 single species of Ailuropus mentioned below, the members of this family 

 are entirely confined to the New World, especially Central and South 

 America. The Raccoons (Procyon), the typical members of the family, 

 are six in number, and range from Alaska to Paraguay. They are 

 essentially carnivorous, feeding upon a variety of smaller animals, and in 

 the colder part of their range hibernating in the depth of winter. About 

 half a million Raccoons are annually slaughtered for the sake of their 

 fur, which resembles that of the Beaver. 



The Panda (Ailurus fulgens) has been considered by some authors as 

 the type of a distinct family, by others it has been placed with the Bears 

 (Ursidse), as was also the animal known as Ailuropus melanoleucus, to be 

 presently mentioned. The Panda is an animal a little larger than a cat 

 found in the south-eastern portion of the Himalayas at an elevation of 

 from 7000 to 12,000 feet. Eastwards it extends to Yunnan and Sechuen 

 but in the opposite direction is unknown beyond Nepal. This interesting 

 species is not carnivorous, but feeds principally upon various fruits, youn^ 

 shoots or roots. The species bearing the name of Ailuropus melanoleucus, 

 and recently christened in popular parlance the "Great Panda," is a curious 

 bear-like and extremely rare animal inhabiting the most inaccessible parts 

 of Moupin in Eastern Tibet, and said to be entirely herbivorous. 



It is interesting to note that a fossil species of Panda has been found 

 in the English Pliocene Crag, thus indicating a much wider range of the 

 family in the past. Several other extinct species, all true Procyonidee 

 are known from the Tertiary beds of North and South America. 



MUSTELID-ffi (Weasels, Martens, Polecats, Badgers, Otters, &c. • 

 174 Species). Plate 5, Map ii. 



The members of this large family are found in all the zoological 

 regions except the Australian, but are most abundant in the Nearctic 

 Palsearctic and Oriental regions. Africa has only about a dozen peculiar 

 species, while in South America the family is likewise somewhat poorly 

 represented. Britain possesses half a dozen species, namely, the Pine 

 Marten, Polecat, Stoat or Ermine, Weasel, Badger and Otter. 



The present family has been divided into three sub-families, the first 

 of which (Mustelinse) contains the typical forms known as Weasels 

 Polecats and Martens, and the much larger animals called Gluttons or 

 Wolverenes (Gulo). The last-named inhabit the wooded regions of Northern 

 Europe, Asia and America, and three species are known. Fossil remains 

 of Gluttons have been found, though very rarely, in cave and other deposits 

 in England and Wales. They are somewhat bear-like in appearance, almost 

 exclusively nocturnal in habits, and remarkable for their voracity. 



The typical genus Mustela contains 12 species known as Martens 

 half of which are found in the Old World, ranging from Britain and 

 Scandinavia through Northern Asia to Kamchatka and in a south-easterly 

 direction as far as Java, Borneo and Palawan. The other six are found in 

 North America from California and Pennsylvania northwards to Alaska 

 Lake Superior and Labrador. The fur of several species of this genus 

 is much valued, that of the Sable (M. zibellina) — a Marten inhabiting 

 the forests of Northern Asia and Kamchatka — deserving special mention. 

 A dark skin of this species from Okhotsk has been known to command 

 a price of £90, the poorest qualities ranging from 4s. to 8s. The American 

 Sable (M. americana), a species closely allied to the last, is also of much 

 importance as a fur producer, though the individual skin is not nearly so 

 valuable as that of its Asiatic relative. In some years more than 100,000 

 skins are imported into Great Britain, chiefly from the Hudson Bay district. 



The semi-aquatic Minks, the Polecats, Stoats or Ermines, and Weasels 

 together form the genus Putorius, some or other of which range in the 

 Old World from the Arctic shores southwards to Northern Africa, and 

 from Ireland eastwards to Borneo and Palawan, while in the New World 

 they occur from Arctic America southwards through Central America as 

 far as Eastern Peru. The Minks and the Ermine furnish us with fur of 

 considerable value, the latter animal being merely the Stoat in its white 

 winter coat. 



The second sub-family (Melinse) contains such well-known animals 

 as the Badgers, Skunks and Ratels. Of the true Badgers (Meles, see Map) 

 eight species are known, which are found in Europe and Asia, from about 

 latitude 60°, to the Mediterranean countries, Persia, Tibet, and Southern 

 China. In the New World their place is taken by an animal known as 

 the American Badger (Taxidea americana). This is a nocturnal species, 

 ranging from Hudson Bay to Mexico, and hibernating in winter in the 

 colder districts. The common Badger (Meles taxus) is similar to its American 

 relative in habits, and its fur is put to much the same uses, being also 

 made into brushes. The Skunks (Mephitis and Conepatus, see Map) are 

 exclusively American and are wide-ranging. There are several species, all 

 of which are more or less nocturnal in habit, and are well protected by 

 the remarkable nauseous secretion which is so well-known. The Ratels 

 (Mellivora), sometimes called Honey-Badgers, are three in number, and 

 are confined to India and Africa. 



The third and last sub-family (Lutrinse) contains the Otters, of which 

 16 species are known. The true Otters (Lutra) have a remarkably wide 

 distribution, wider in fact than any other genus of Mammals (with the 

 exception of certain Bats). In the Old World they range from Britain 

 and Scandinavia eastwards to Kamchatka and Japan and southwards 

 to the Cape of Good Hope in the Ethiopian region and to Borneo and 

 Java in the Oriental. In the New World Otters are found from Canada 

 to the Straits of Magellan. The Sea-Otter (Latax lutris), the only re- 

 presentative of its genus, is, as its English name implies, marine in its 

 habits, occurring along the Pacific coasts of North America, and also on 

 the shores of Kamchatka and northern Japan. The fur of both this 

 animal and the true Otters is of much value for trimmings. About 9000 

 skins of the North American species and 1500 of the Sea-Otter are used 

 annually. At recent fur sales in London as much as £240 per skin 

 was realised in the case of the latter. 



About 100 species of this interesting family are known in a fossil 

 state. Of these, the great majority are Palsearctic, but a few occur 

 in the Oriental, Nearctic and Neotropical regions. In Europe they 

 date back as far as the Upper Eocene period, and they have been 

 abundant in the Northern Hemisphere since the early part of the 

 Pliocene period. 



URSLDiE (Bears ; 29 Species). Plate 5, Map iii. 



Bears are widely distributed, and found principally in the northern 

 portions of both the Old and New Worlds. In the former they extend 

 southwards to the Atlas Mountains in North Africa and in Asia to Southern 

 India, Ceylon, Sumatra and Borneo. In America they occur from the 

 Arctic regions south to Mexico and Florida, while two species are found in 

 the Andes from Columbia to Bolivia and Chili. They are thus entirely 

 absent from the Ethiopian and Australian regions. 



The Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus) is met with throughout the whole 

 of the Arctic regions (see Map). It feeds principally on seals and walrus, but 

 also in some parts of its range upon fish and in summer upon vegetable 



