THE FOX. 
363 
burying it. They are very cunning and are 
seldom taken. The corresponding group 
in the New World are the hyena foxes, 
inhabiting South America, of which very 
little seems to be known. 
“Last of all the foxes comes the fennec 
or yerda, which is the very smallest of the 
canines, the fennec of Bruce being only 
about sixteen inches long, and a foot high 
at the' shoulder. The head is only about 
three and a half inches long,—which is just 
the length of the ears: consequently the 
latter look disproportionably large when 
compared with the size of the body. The 
ears are very wide and open, slightly pointed, 
and covered on the outside with cream-co¬ 
loured fur. The inside of the ear is naked, 
except a border of white fur, and is of a 
pinkish colour. The rest of the body re¬ 
sembles that of a fox, and is covered with 
cream-coloured fur. The soles of the feet 
are covered with w T oo]ly hair, which renders 
the animal’s step quite noiseless. The Caama 
fennec is a little larger and has gray fur. It 
watches birds and preys upon the eggs of 
such as lay upon the ground, thus occasion¬ 
ing much trouble to the poor ostriches, 
