42 
LOWER MAMMAL GALLERY. 
[Cases 
21 * & 22 .] 
formula of the existing species is I. C. t? M. -^x2 = 34. 
Certain extinct species have, liowever, rather more teeth ; some 
forming a connecting-link between the modern Hyaenas and the 
Civets. 
The families above noticed are nearly related in the characters 
of the skull, especially those connected with the organ of hearing, 
but in the Dog tribe, or Canidce^ a marked difference is observ- 
able in this respect. Dogs, Wolves, and Foxes, which constitute 
this family, are on the whole lightly-built animals, of great speed 
and endurance, obtaining their prey, as a rule, by running it down, 
rather than by pouncing upon it in the manner of Cats and 
their allies. They are digitigrade, and, with a single exception, 
have five toes on their fore and four on their hind feet; their 
palms and soles are always hairy, the only naked parts being the 
pads of the feet. The various members of the family are all 
much alike in their osteological and dental characters ; their 
skulls are more elongated than those of the Cats, and their teeth 
(fig. 2, p. 7) more numerous and less highly specialized. Not 
having the power of retracting the claws, their toe-bones have 
none of the peculiarities of those of the Cats, but otherwise- 
the bones of the skeleton are generally similar to those of the 
latter. 
The teeth are usually 42 in number, viz. I. |, C. P. 
M. |. In one species, the South-American Bush-Dog, Speothus 
venaticus^ there are, however, 38 only; while in another, the 
African Long-eared Fox, Otocijon megalotis, the number is 
increased to 46 or 48. 
This family contains a large number of species, all more or 
less closely allied to each other, with the exception of one or two 
peculiar kinds. The principal genus is Canis, which comprises 
Dogs, Wolves, and Jackals. 
The history of the development and domestication of the 
Dog, Canis familiaris, is a subject as yet far from fully under- 
stood. Many naturalists, till within a recent period, entertained 
the view that there had existed one original wild species, from 
which, by Man’s agency, all the various breeds were developed. 
This view has now been abandoned ; in its place it is believed 
that in many parts of the world the natives have tamed the wild 
