214 



MUSEUM OF ANIMATED NATURE. 



[Ichneumon. 



tain degree of affinity to the Racoons, having, like 

 those animals, a long, pointed, moveable nose : feet 

 almost entirely plantigrade ; eyes obliquely set; the 

 body strongly built, and the habit of sitting up on 

 the haunches, while the fore-paws are employed in 

 holding food. While, however, the approach of 

 these species to the Racoons is discernible, their 

 alliance to the Ichneumons cannot be mistaken. 

 We first select the Suricate. A nose remarkably 

 long, sharp, and flexible ; quick, lively, oblique eyes, 

 with circular pupils ; and close ears, give a peculiar 

 expression to the physiognomy of the Suricate. 

 The toes on each foot are four, those of the anterior 

 limbs being armed with large hooked claws, minia- 

 ture copies of those of the Sun-bears. The dentition 

 (Fig. 949) resembles that of the ichneumons, except 

 that there is one false molar less on each side, above 

 and below. 



This rare animal is a native of Southern Africa, 

 and is eminently carnivorous in its habits* Its 

 length is about a foot, exclusive of the tail, which 

 is nearly six inches. There are two scent-glands. 

 The general colour is yellowish-grey, waved trans- 

 versely with dark brown and rufous, the hairs, as in 

 the ichneumons, being ringed with different tints ; 

 the tail is rufous-brown, ending in black. The fur 

 is long and rather coarse. 



We have had an opportunity of observing two 

 specimens, a male and female, in captivity ; they 

 were lively, inquisitive, and docile, but betrayed 

 ^reat excitement when birds or other small animals 

 were presented before their cage, endeavouring to 

 seize or dart upon them. They used their paws 

 with much address, and would sit up, peeping be- 

 tween the wires, or caressing each other, for they 

 exhibited great mutual attachment. The female 

 died first; the male became dull, pined, and shortly 

 followed his companion. The notes of their ana- 

 tomy, by Professor Owen, are given in the 'Zoolo- 

 gical Proceedings' for 1830-31. 



950.— The Mangue 

 (Crossarchus obscurvs). The Mangue, the only 

 known representative of the genus Crossarchus, is a 

 native of Sierra Leone and other parts of Western 

 Africa. It resembles the Suricate in the form of 

 the head and nose, in dentition, and general struc- 

 ture, internal as well as external. It has, however, 

 five toes on each foot, and is fairly plantigrade. Its 

 general colour is deep chocolate-brown, grizzled 

 with yellowish-white, each hair being ringed with 

 this colour. The individual which we have observed 

 in captivity resembled the Suricate in its habits, 

 and was very intelligent. With respect to its man- 

 ners in a state of nature we have no particular 

 details. In the ' Zool. Proceeds.' for 1834 will be 

 found our account of the internal anatomy of this 

 animal, compared with that of the Suricate and the 

 Viverridse in general. 



951. — The Egyptian Ichneumon 

 (Herpestes Pharaonis, Desm.). With long agile 

 bodies, small glowing eyes, a pointed nose, long 

 tail, short limbs, and semi-plantigrade feet, the Ich- 

 neumons, or Mangoustes, as they are also called 

 (Mangusta, Oliv. ; Ichneumon, Geoff. ; Herpestes, 

 rilig.), in their general form, no Jess than in their 

 habits, display a certain approximation to the ferrets, 

 being bold, active, and sanguinary, and unrelenting 

 destroyers of birds, reptiles, and small mammalia, 

 which they take by surprise, darting rapidly upon 

 them. Beautiful, cleanly, and easily domesticated, 

 they are often kept tame in the countries they 

 naturally inhabit, for the purpose of clearing, the 

 houses of vermin, though the poultry-yard is not 

 safe from their incursions. The ears are short, wide, 

 and rounded ; the hair long, rather coarse and waved 

 or grizzled, each hair being ringed with different 

 tints ; the scent-gland is large ; the feet are five-toed, 

 the nails sharp and semi-retractile ; the pupils of the 

 eyes oblong: Fig. 941 gives the dentition. The 

 ichneumons are natives of the hotter' parts of the 

 Old World, the species being respectively African 

 and Indian. Night is their season of activity ; they 

 then prowl in quest of their prey, stealing along 

 with noiseless step, urged by hunger and the in- 

 stinct of destruction. The Egyptian ichneumon is 

 a native of North Africa, and was deified for its 

 services by the ancient Egyptians. Its Coptic 

 name is Nems ; its Arabic, among the Moors, Serro. 

 Snakes, lizards, birds, crocodiles newly hatched, and 

 especially the eggs of the crocodile, constitute its 

 food; and the ancients believed that it attacked 

 and killed that huge reptile when fully grown. 

 Pliny states that when gorged with food, and lying 

 with the mouth open, a little bird, called Trochilos, 

 enters the jaws of the crocodile to pick the teeth, 

 to the great satisfaction of the monster ; and he adds, 

 that the ichneumon, espying him asleep, darts down 

 his throat and tears his inside. We need not enter 

 into any grave refutation of this marvellous ac- 

 count. 

 The ichneumon is fierce and daring, and glides 



with sparkling eyes towards its prey, which it fol- 

 lows with snake-like progression; often it watches 

 patiently for hours together in one spot, waiting the 

 appearance of a mouse, rat, or snake from its lurk- 

 ing-place. We have frequently seen the animal 

 sit up like the Suricate while feeding. In a state 

 of domestication it is gentle and affectionate, and 

 never wanders from the house or returns to an 

 independent existence ; but it makes itself familiar 

 with every part of the premises, exploring every 

 hole and corner, inquisitively peeping into boxes 

 and vessels of all kinds, and watching eveiy move- 

 ment, or operation. Sonnini, who travelled in 

 1777-8 9, observes that few or none are now reared 

 in Egypt in a state of domestication ; Hasselquist, 

 however, mentions that Mr. Barton, English Consul 

 in Egypt, had a tame ichneumon, and adds that it 

 frequently goes about the houses like a cat. It 

 would appear that, like the polecat, it often de- 

 populates the fowl-roost. 



The colour of the Egyptian ichneumon is brown- 

 ish-grey, each hair being ringed with white and 

 dark tints of brown ; the tail tapers towards the ex- 

 tremity, which is tufted and black. Length twenty- 

 one inches, exclusive of the tail, which is eighteen. 



953. — The Indian Ichneumon 



(Herpestes cjriseus). This species is much less than 

 the Egyptian ichneumon, and of a beautiful freckled- 

 grey. It is common in India, and frequently brought 

 to this country ; it is easily tamed, and is inquisitive, 

 active, cleanly, and docile. Mr. Bennett, in his 

 account of one kept in the Tower, says that on one 

 occasion it killed no fewer than a dozen full-grown 

 rats, which were turned out before it in a room six- 

 teen feet square, in less than a minute and a half. 



954. — The Garangan 



(Herpestes Javanicus). According to Dr. Horsfield, 

 this species, termed Garangan by the Javanese, 

 inhabits chiefly the large teak-forests, and its 

 agility is greatly admired by the natives : it attacks 

 and kills serpents with excessive boldness. " It is 

 very expert in burrowing in the ground, which pro- 

 cess it employs ingeniously in the pursuit of rats. 

 It possesses great natural sagacity, and, from the 

 peculiarities of its character, it willingly seeks the 

 protection of man. It is easily tamed, and in its 

 domestic state is docile, and attached to its master, 

 whom it follows like a dog ; it is fond of caresses, 

 and frequently places itself erect on its hind-legs, 

 regarding everything that passes with great atten- 

 tion. It is of a very restless disposition, and always 

 carries its food to the most retired place to consume 

 it. It is very cleanly in its habits ; it is exclusively 

 carnivorous, and very destructive to poultry, em- 

 ploying great artifice in surprising chickens :" hence 

 the natives seldom keep it tamed, nor is it altoge- 

 ther to be trusted, as it is subject to fits of excessive 

 violence. Its mode of encountering serpents was 

 related by the natives to Dr. Horsfield, exactly as it 

 is described by Rumphius, who informs us that the 

 Javanese nobles amuse themselves with these con- 

 tests. When the two enemies are opposed to each 

 other, the serpent endeavours to twine round the 

 quadruped and kill it ; the latter inflates itself to tur- 

 gescenee, and, as the reptile is about to inflict the 

 fatal wounds, contracts its body, slips through the 

 scaly coil, and seizes its foe by the neck. We sus- 

 pect that in this story some allowance must be made 

 for oyer-colouring. 



955. — Steedman's Cynictis 



(Cynictis Steedmannii, Ogilb.). The genus Cynic- 

 tis differs from Herpestes in the number of the toes 

 on the hind-feet being only four, and in the absence 

 of a false molar on the lower jaw. The tail is long 

 and bushy. The characters of the skull and denti- 

 tion are seen at Fig. 956 : a, the skull from above ; 

 b, the same in profile ; c, the dentition of the upper 

 jaw; d, the dentition of the Jower jaw. 



The Cynictis Steedmannii is a native of South 

 Africa, and appears to resemble tlie ichneumons in 

 its general habits. It excavates burrows in which 

 it dwells. Though only introduced to our know- 

 ledge within the last few years, it was most probably 

 seen by Sparrman and Barrow, the latter of whom 

 describes an animal so closely resembling the pre- 

 sent, that there can be no doubt as to their identity. 

 The general colour is foxy red; the tail is bushy, 

 tipped with white. Length one foot six inches, ex- 

 clusive of the tail, which is one foot. A second 

 species of this genus, Cynictis melanin us, is a native 

 of Sierra Leone ; and several others have been lately 

 discovered in South Africa. 



957 _The Common Paradoxure 

 (Paradoxurus Typus). The genus Paradoxurus 

 appeals to be one of the links which conduct us from 

 the true ViverraB to the aberrant forms of the Ursidse. 

 This genus is peculiar to India and the adjacent 

 islands. It is characterized by a semi-plantigrade 

 condition of the feet, the greater portion of the sole 



being naked and callous; the toes, five closely 

 united together by intervening webs ; claws short, 

 sharp, and semi-retractile ; the pupil linear ; a mere 



fold instead of scent-pouches ; molars - — - ; nearly 



b — 6 



resembling those of the Genets ; the tail frequently 

 spirally contorted, but not prehensile ; the fur full. 



In size the paradoxure exceeds a common cat, its 

 total length, including the tail, being three feet. 

 The general colour is greyish black tinged with yel- 

 low, and indistinctly banded and spotted with a 

 dusky hue ; a whitish streak occupies the cheek 

 below the eye, and another runs above ; muzzle 

 black. The paradoxuresare to a great extent frugi- 

 vorous, and are in the habit of climbing trees, which 

 they do with great facility. Dr. Horsfield, in his ' Zoo- 

 logical Researches,' gives a description of the Java 

 paradoxure, or Musang, well worthy of notice. Its 

 manners, he observes, are very similar to those of the 

 Genet. " If taken young, it becomes patient and 

 gentle during confinement, and receives readily 

 animal and vegetable food. It requires little atten- 

 tion, and contents itself with the scanty remains of 

 the meals of the natives, with fish, eggs, rice, pota- 

 toes, &c, the structure of its teeth being particularly 

 adapted to vegetable diet. It prefers, however, the 

 delicate and pulpy fruits, but when pressed by 

 hunger attacks fowls and birds. It is most abun- 

 dant near the villages situated at the confines of 

 large forests, and constructs a simple nest in the 

 manner of squirrels, of dry leaves, grass, or smal> 

 twigs, in the forks of larger branches or in the hol- 

 low of trees. From these it sallies forth at night to 

 visit the sheds and hen-roosts of the natives, in search 

 of eggs, chickens, &c. Its rambles are also parti- 

 cularly directed to gardens and plantations, where 

 fruits of every description within its reach, and 

 particularly pine-apples, suffer extensively from its 

 depredations." The coffee plantations in some parts 

 of the island are greatly infested by it, and on this 

 account it has obtained the name ot coffee-rat. It 

 selects the most ripe and perfect beriies, and as the 

 seeds pass uninjured through the alimentary vis- 

 cera, it spreads that plant extensively, and gives 

 origin to splendid groves in various parts of the 

 forests, but particularly on the declivities of hills, 

 thus counterbalancing the injuries it commits. It 

 native name is Leewak. 



Fig. 958 represents the dentition of the Binturong 

 .(Artitis Binturong, Tem. ; Ictides ater, Cuv.). This 

 animal, a native of Java and Sunialia, represents in 

 its own country the kinkajou of the forests of Suuth 

 America. It is a slow, heavy, plantigrade animal, 

 with short limbs, and a long, powerful, prehensile 

 tail, very thick and muscular at the base, and with 

 which it assists itself in climbing, being arboreal in 

 its habits. One that was kept alive many years by 

 Major Farquhar partook both of animal and vege- 

 table food. It is timid and nocturnal, sleeping dur- 

 ing the day, and wandering about at night in quest 

 of food. In size it exceeds a domestic cat, mea- 

 suring two feet five inches in the length of the head 

 and body, the tail being upwards of two feet. Its 

 fur is long and coarse ; general colour black ; pupils 

 of the eyes linear. Cuvier notices the approxima- 

 tion of these animals to the racoons. 



Family Mustelid;e, or the Weasels, &c. Smaller, 

 for the most part, than the animals of the cat tribe 

 (FeJidas), and consequently less formidable as far as 

 man is concerned, but equally carnivorous and san- 

 guinary, the Mustelidae (we speak of the typical 

 species) are appointed to prey on the multitudinous 

 races of the weak and the timid — such as birds, 

 rabbits, hares, and even fish and reptiles : of slender 

 elongated figure, and with short legs, they appear 

 to glide along, and indeed, from the extreme flexi- 

 bility and the cylindrical form of their bodies, which 

 enable them to force their way through the smallest 

 openings, they have been termed Vermiform Ferre. 

 They are silent, cautious, and creeping, and attack 

 their prey with unflinching resolution. Having 

 seized their victim, they never let go their hold. 

 They generally aim at the neck below the ear, 

 where they pierce the large blood-vessels with their 

 teelh, or they fix upon the back of the head and 

 drive their teeth through the skull. Few quadru- 

 peds exceed them in agility and address ; they bound 

 and spring with vigour, and climb trees with aston- 

 ishing dexterity, traversing the branches with a 

 rapid gliding motion. Of nocturnal habits, they 

 pass the greatest part of the day in their retreats, 

 which are in the hollows of decayed trees, in bur- 

 rows, holes in walls, and similar places. With the 

 approach of night they rouse from their slumbers, 

 and, greedy for blood, begin their prowl. A polecat 

 in the neighbourhood of a farmyard is a direful pest, 

 and in one night will destroy a whole brood of poul- 

 try, for the-sake of the blood and brains. 



The shortness of the muzzle, the characters of the 

 teeth, and the solidity of the skull, form a good in- 

 dex of the disposition of these animals. In the 

 genus Putorius (Mustela), of which the polecat is 



