AFRICA. 285 
former fpecies of thefe birds is common at the 
Cape, and even in the fouthern provinces of 
France. The latter has a peculiar diftinguifli-. 
ing charaderiftic, which is a tail almoft as 
forked as that of a fparrow ; w^hile all the other 
known fpecies of bee-eaters have the tail cu- 
neiform, the two middle feathers being con- 
fiderably longer than the reft. 
The Nimiquas call this beautiful bird by the 
name of tawa (gall), on account of the fine 
green which is its principal colour. This pleaf- 
ing hue is fet off by a yellow throat, terminat- 
ing in a ring of ultramarine. 
I bought of my neighbours, the Caminou- 
quas, the fkin of a wild cat, which has all the 
characters of the lynx. I had afterwards op- 
portunities of killing feveral. This animal is of 
a very deep forrel colour; but the ears are blacky 
and tipped with a brufh of hair of the fame co- 
lour. It is a new fpecies^ that, as far as my 
knowledge extends, has not yet been defcribed. 
My excurfions were frequent, but fhort ; 
and every day I returned at a certain hour to 
aflift at the renewal of the alhes on my giraffe's 
fkin. The acquifition was fo important, that 
I would not allow this operation to be per- 
formed 
