WEAPONS OF ANIMALS. 
131 
Hair, as spines. Hedgehog, porcupine, echidna. 
Tentacles. Octopus, hydra. 
Body . Boas and pythons. 
Skin. Toads and medusae, by poison glands. 
Voice. Many mammals, for paralysing by fear. 
SPECIAL GROWTHS. 
Horns. Ruminant mammals, rhinoceros. 
Spurs. Gallinaceous and some other birdsi Orni¬ 
thorhyncus. 
Stings. Hymenopterous insects, scorpions. 
Poison fangs. Snakes, spiders. 
Javelin hairs. Hydra. 
Electric apparatus.. Torpedo, electric eels. 
Stink-bag. Skunk, bombardier beetle. 
Ink-bag. Sepia. 
To these natural weapons the apes and monkeys add the 
artificial ones of sticks, stones, and hard fruit, and in man 
the natural weapons are altogether subordinate, his higher 
intelligence enabling him to manufacture his fighting imple¬ 
ments, thereby releasing all his natural organs for the 
multitudinous offices which he requires them to serve. 
From the foregoing table several curious facts may be 
deduced. 
It appears that the use of poison as a weapon is confined 
to the lower orders of animals. No creature higher than a 
reptile possesses poison glands of any kind. 
Stings are confined to the invertebrates ; and among 
insects to the hymenoptera, the ants, bees, and wasps, which 
for intelligence and capacity stand at the head of the insect 
world. The sting of the scorpion is rather an abdominal 
fang than a true sting, having some resemblance to the fangs 
of spiders, with which family the scorpion is nearly allied. 
Horns and antlers in all their wonderful variety are 
developed only by the ruminant mammals, with the one 
peculiar exception of the rhinoceros. Horns which are hollow 
but permanent are characteristic of all cattle, sheep, goats, 
and antelopes ; while antlers, which are solid but deciduous, 
being shed and reproduced annually, are peculiar to the deer 
family. 
Probably there is some connection between the growth of 
horns in these ruminants and the fact that as feeders upon 
grass chiefly they graze with their heads close to the ground, 
so that weapons on the forehead are ready for instant use. 
But the horse, donkey, and zebra are also grazing animals, 
yet they have no horns. 
