CANIS. 
line behind each ear, which, dividing into two, extends to 
the lower part of the neck ; the note is long and (lender; 
the ears are (harp and eredt; and the tail is long and bufhy, 
being furrounded with three broad black rings. This ani. 
mal is very much of the fame (ize and form with the com- 
mon fox, but has (horter legs. 
Canis Cf.y lonensis ; the Jackal of Cey lon. This 
variety has a long thick nofe, blunt at the end; ears eredt 
at their bottom, and pointing forwards at their ends; the 
legs ftrong, with claws more like a cat than dog; colour 
cinereous yellow; belly a(h-eoloured ; legs almoft entirely 
brown; the hair clofe fet, and loft. The length of the 
body is near twenty-three inches, and the tail fixteen, ta¬ 
pering to a point. It is a native of Ceylon, but its hiftory 
39 quite unknown; being mentioned only by Mr./Pennant 
from Vofmaer. 
Canis thous, or jACKALof Surinam. This variety 
iS of the fize of a large cat, has upright ears, little warts 
on the cheeks, above the eyes and under the throat; its 
tongue is fringed on the Tides; the colour of the upper 
part of its body is greyilh, the lower white ; its tail bends 
downwards, and is finooth; and it has five toes before, 
and four behind. It has its name from that part of South 
.America where it is found. 
CANIS VULPIS, the FOX. 
This well-known animal is diftinguifhed by a fiiarp nofe, 
lively hazel eyes, and fiiarp eredt ears : his body is of a 
tawny red, mixed with alh-colour : the fore part of his 
legs is black : his tail is long, (trait, bufiiy, tipt with white : 
and is fubjedt to much variety of colour. The common 
fox inhabits all Etirope ; the cold and the temperate parts 
of Afia ; Barbary alfo ; but not the hotter parts of Africa. 
He abounds in North America, and is alfo found in South 
America. In all countries he maintains the fame cunning 
difpofition, the fame eagernefs after prey, and commits the 
fame ravages among game, birds, poultry, and the fmaller 
quadrupeds. 
The fox is indifputably the mod fugacious and mod 
Crafty of all beafis of prey. The former quality he fiiews 
in his method of providing himfelf with an afylum, where 
he retires from prefling dangers, where he dwells, and 
where lie brings up his young : and iiis craftinefs is chief¬ 
ly difeovered by the fchemes he adopts in order to catch 
lambs, geefe, bens, and all kinds of fmall birds. He fixes 
his abode on the border of a wood, in the neighbourhood 
of cottages : be liflens to the crowing of the cock, and the 
cries of tiie poultry. He feents them at a diftance ; he 
choofes his time with judgment ; he conceals his road as 
well as his defign ; he (lips forward with caution, fome- 
times even trailing his body, and feldom makes a fruitlefs 
expedition. In this manner he has been feen, on a moon¬ 
light night, enter a pafiure where feveral hares were feed¬ 
ing, when lying down, and taking his tail in his mouth, 
lias trailed along like a rolling-done, unlufpedted by his 
prey, till he had got too near for them all to efcape. If 
lie can leap the wall, or get in underneath, he ravages the 
court-yard, puts all to death, and then retires foftly with 
his prey, which he either hides under the herbage, or car¬ 
ries off to his kennel. He then returns for another, which 
lie carries off, or conceals in the lame manner, but in a 
different place. In this way he proceeds till the progrefs 
of the fun, or fome movements perceived in the houfe, ad- 
vertife him that it is time to ful'pend his operations, and 
to retire to his den. He plays the fame game with the 
catchers of thrulhes, woodcocks, &c. He vifits the nets 
and (nares very early in the morning, carries off luccefiive- 
ly the birds which are entangled, and lays them in dif¬ 
ferent places, efpecially near the fides of highways, in the 
furrows, under herbage or brufinvood, where they fome- 
times lie two or three days; but he knows perfectly 
w here to find them when he is in need. He hunts the young 
hares in the plains, feizes old ones in their feats, and never 
*ni£fes thofe which are wounded, digs out the rabbits in 
Vox. in. No. ^8. 
the warrens, difeovers the nefts of partridges and quails, 
feizes the mother on her eggs, and defiroysa vaft quantity 
of | - ame. The fox is exceedingly voracious; befides flefii 
of all kinds, he eats with equal avidity, eggs, milk, 
cheefe, fruits, and particularly grapes. When the young 
hares and partridges fail him, he makes war againft rats, 
field-mice, ferpents, lizards, toads, &c. Of thefe he 
defiroys vaft numbers ; and this is the only lervice he 
does to mankind. He is fo fond of honey, that he attacks 
the wild bees, wafps, and hornets. They atfirfi put him 
to flight by a thoufand ftings ; but he retires only for the 
purpofe of rolling himfelf on the ground, to crufii them ; 
and he returns lo often to the charge, that he obliges 
them to abandon the hive, which he foon uncovers, and 
devours both the honey and the wax. 
Foxes produce but once a year ; and the litter com¬ 
monly confifls of four or five, feldom fix, and never lefs- 
than three. When the female is full, fhe retires, and fel¬ 
dom goes out of her hole, where fhe prepares a bed for 
her young. When (he perceives that her retreat is difeo- 
vered, and that her young have been dilhirbed, (he car¬ 
ries them off one by one, and goes in fearch of another ha¬ 
bitation. The fox deeps in a round form, like the dog ; but, 
when he only repofes, he extends his hind legs, and lies on 
his belly. It is in this (ituation that he watches the birds 
along the hedges, and meditates fchemes for their furprife. 
The fox flies when he hears the explflion of a gun, or 
fmells gun-powder. When purfued by the bounds, he 
feldom fails to deceive and fatigue them, becaufe he pur- 
pofely paffes through the. thickeff parts of the foreft or 
places of the nioft difficult accefs, where the dogs are 
hardly able to follow him ; and, when he takes to the 
plains, he runs ftrait our, without (lopping or doubling. 
It is a great admirer of its bulhy tail, with which it fre¬ 
quently amufes and exercifes itfelf, by running in circles 
to catch it: and, in cold weather, wraps it round its nofe. 
The fmell of this animal is generally very ftrong, but 
that of the urine is remarkably fetid. This feems (o of- 
fenfive even to itfelf, that it will take the trouble of dig¬ 
ging a hole in the ground, firetcliing its body at full 
length over it; and there, after depofiting its water, covers 
it over with the earth, as the cat does its dung. The 
fmell is fo obnoxious, that it has often proved the means 
of the fox’s efcape from the dogs ; who have fo flrong an 
averfion to the filthy effluvia, as to avoid encountering the 
animal it came from. It is faid the fox makes life of its 
urine as an expedient to force the cleanly badger front its 
habitation ; whether that is the means, is rather doubtful ; 
but that the fox makes ufeof the badger’s hole is certain * 
not through want of ability to form its own retreat, but to 
fave itfelf fome trouble; for, after the expullion of the 
firft inhabitant, the fox improves as well as enlarges it 
confiderably, adding fever*! chambers, and providently 
making feveral entrances to (ecure n retreat from every 
quarter. In warm weather it will quit its habitation for 
the fake of balking in the fun, or to enjoy the free air ; but 
then it rarely lies expofed, but choofes fome thick brake, 
that it may reft fee tire from furprize. Crows, magpies, 
and other birds, who conftder the fox as their common 
enemy, will often, by their notes of anger, point out his 
retreat. When attacked, he defends himfelf to the 1 aft 
with great courage and bravery, and dies under the teeth 
of the dogs, or the (trokes of the bludgeon, without com¬ 
plaint, in (ilence, and without a groan. 
His flelh is not fo bad as that of the wolf: dogs, and 
even men, eat it in France, and<in many other countries. 
Thefe creatures are extremely common in the Holy Land. 
From the earlieftto the prefent time, they have always bee» 
particularly noxious to the vineyards. “ Take us the 
foxes, the little foxes, shat fpoil the vines; for our vines 
have tender grapes.” Solomon. Whether they were the 
fpecies that Sampfon ufed to deftroy the corn of the Pbi- 
liltines, is undecided. Since jackals are found, to this day, 
in great abundance about Gaza a it is much more proba- 
% Y ib’fe* 
r • 
