ORDER OF CARNIVORA. 
419 
Although very fond of putrid flesh, the Hyenoidse do not make 
it their exclusive aliment ; for they also feed on living prey, such 
as Gazelles, Antelopes, &c. To pursue and capture these they 
collect in troops, which are sometimes very numerous, and under 
the direction of a chief, when they hunt with a unanimity and 
cleverness unsurpassed by the best pack of Hounds. When the 
game is taken they divide it equally ; hut if any of the larger 
Carnivore approach to take a share in the feast, all unite 
against the intruder. This often happens with respect to the 
Leopard, and even the Lion. 
Family of Yiverrid^:. — This family comprises Mammals 
which differ much from one another in their general form 
and external characteristics, some of them being plantigrade, 
others more or less digitigrade, but all having as a common 
feature two pairs of tubercular molar teeth in the upper jaw, and 
a single one in the lower. They derive their denomination from 
the word viverrct, the Latin name for a Ferret. 
The principal representatives of this group are the Mangousts, 
Civet, Genet, Cynogale, Ic tides, Coati, Hacoon, and Kinkajou, 
or Potto. 
Genus Mangousts {Herpestes ) . — The Mangousts are small animals, 
found in the warmest parts of Africa and Asia. They have a low 
body and are vermiform in appearance, at the same time possess- 
ing great rapidity of movement, so that they appear rather to 
crawl than run along the ground. Their tail is long, and thick 
at the root. Their pelage, generally silky, is marked with 
diversely-coloured rings, which give them a chequered aspect. 
Their toes, five in number on all the limbs, are terminated 
by claws, which are variable in length and slightly retractile 
They have a tapering muzzle, and the tongue is covered with 
horny papillae. Near the external orifice of their digestive tube 
are situated two small pouches which secrete a musky substance. 
The Mangousts are semi-nocturnal ; they principally frequent 
marshy localities, where reptiles are abundant, on which they 
feed ; though they also attack the smaller mammals and birds. 
They likewise search for the eggs of reptiles, and such birds as 
build on the ground. They sometimes manage to gain access 
to poultry-yards, when, like Ferrets and Weasels, they put all 
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