: ind Me ad ea a 
"~* *y Os hea Sry 
© axe a 
* 
rs Ht 
LEGENDS ABOUT LEOPARDS 
leopards are said to be most common in damp and hot 
localities, such as the steaming forests of the Malay 
peninsula. Even then the leopard does not entirely 
change its spots, for in the proper light the spots can 
be recognized by their pattern, just as the pattern of 
a white damask tablecloth can be recognized in spite 
of the absence of differentiation of colour. The 
ancients held that the leopard had a fragrant breath, 
which is unexpected in so carnivorous a creature. 
The idea not only crops up in Pliny, whose works are 
a heap of confusion, where anything in the nature of 
legend may be shot and subsequently utilized, but in 
an Anglo-Saxon poem. Even Dryden was not above 
the naturalists of antiquity in this belief. ‘The 
pantere like unto the smaragdyne” seems to be an 
equally inept description of this cat, unless indeed 
the eyes alone are referred to. 
THE SNOW LEOPARD OR OUNCE 
It is only rarely that this beautiful feline has been 
on view at the Zoo. In fact until very recently it was 
quite unknown in that collection. Since then, how- 
ever, there have been several examples. The ounce 
is not, as it might be thought to be, simply a pale and 
rather woolly variety of the common leopard. It is 
a perfectly distinct form, and is limited to Thibet and 
the highlands of Central Asia, like the kiang. It is 
certainly of a furry aspect, as is also the kiang, and as 
befits an inhabitant of a cold climate. The skin has 
a paler ground colour than in the leopard, and is 
sprinkled over with spots, which are rather less defined. 
The tail is particularly thick and long, and this indeed 
is the most obvious character of the beast. The tail — 
is so long that it is actually longer than the head and 
body together in some, though not in all, specimens 
that have been carefully measured. 
oY) 
