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CATALOGUE OF
THE GENUS FELTS

BRITISH MUSEUM

(NATURAL HISTORY)

CATALOGUE OF
THE GENUS FELIS

IiY

R. I. POCOCK, F.R.S.

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PREFACE

Reginald Innes Pocock died in 1947 at the age of 84; a short biography
and a list of his published works appeared in the "Obituary Notices of Fellows
of the Royal Society", 6, 1948, pp. 189-21 1. At the time of his death he
was engaged on a systematic monograph of the Felidae, and the present volume,
dealing with the genera Felts and Otocolobus, represents the portion that was in
a sufficiently complete state for publication. Many changes would doubtless
have been made in this portion had the whole monograph been completed, but
the only posthumous alterations that have been made have been editorial.
This work was carried out by Sir Norman Kinnear, C.B., and Mr. T. C. S.
Morrison-Scott, D.S.C.

H. W. PARKER,

Keeper of Zoology.
British Museum (Natural History),
London.

INTRODUCTION

Amongst systematic zoologists there are still wide differences of opinion
regarding the status to be assigned to the various groups into which the existing
species of Felidae obviously fall. By Linnaeus and several of those that immedi-
ately followed him all the known forms were considered to be referable to a
single genus, Felis, despite the manifest differences between such representatives
of the group as the house-cat and the lion, for example, although Kerr as early
as 1792 gave separate generic rank to the Lynx under that name. Hut in 1821
Gray began a series of publications, continued until 1S74, in which he proposed
a number of generic and subgeneric terms for various species, and his works
overlapped, without quoting, a paper by Severtzow in 185S in which generic
names, without definitions, were accorded to most of the then described species.
The result was considerable clashing and confusion in the nomenclature, and
many unrelated species were affiliated and closely allied species generically
separated.

In the circumstances it is perhaps not surprising that when writing his
imposing Monograph nj the Felidae, published in 1883, Elliot ignored Severtzow's
paper and set aside Gray's genera and subgenera as not worth admission, lie-
referred all the species to two genera, Cynaelwus for the Cheetah and Felis for
the rest. In this easy, conservative method of dealing with them he followed
Mivart and was followed by Lydekker, both of whom monographed the family
on a smaller scale. Blanford and W. L. Sclater did the same in their treatment
of the Felidae of British India and South Africa respectively. Others also
adopted this classification.

As thus understood Felis is a heterogeneous, unwieldy assemblage, ranging
practically all over the world, apart from Madagascar, some small islands and
the Australian Region. Considering its wide distribution and exceedingly varied
habitats, it would be strange if the family had not become differentiated into
groups of generic status, like all the rest of the families of Carnivora that are
extensively dispersed. Perhaps it was this conviction that induced Matschie 111
1895 and Trouessart in 1904 to break up Felis as understood by Mivart, Elliot
and their followers, and to employ the names introduced mainly by Severtzow
and Gray for the genera or subgenera into which they thought it might lie
legitimately split. But their classifications were clearly open to criticism from
the nominal standpoint and in some cases for the association of unrelated
species and the allocation of closely allied forms to different genera. They were,
nevertheless, efforts in the right direction.

The nomenclature and classification adopted in this volume are, with a few
amplifications and emendations, the same as those proposed in a paper I pub-
lished in 1917.

In two particulars the present volume differs from previous catalogues of
the mammals in the national collection. The first is the inclusion of the

vj

interesting and extensive material of the domesticated representatives of the
family, and the second is the more detailed attention paid to individual skins
and skulls. Although this method involves more lengthened treatment than is
customary of the forms dealt with, it was held to be desirable as the only means
of emphasising the extent of the individual variations in colour, shape of skull
or teeth to which species or local races are liable. Realisation of this is particu-
larly called for in view of the prevalent tendency to regard as deserving of
nominal distinction perhaps single specimens differing from one another in
trivial characters if inhabiting different localities.

The ciphers preceding or following the citation of a specimen in this
catalogue are the symbols by which it is entered in the British Museum registers.
The original method of registration was a simple number, followed by a letter
— e.g. i27g. This was replaced by a more complicated method involving four
figures, indicating the date of arrival and the number of the specimen in a
consignment. For instance, 79.9.25.82 means that the specimen was the
eighty-second of a collection received on 25 September 1879. This system was
practised for over a century, but in 1939 was abolished in favour of a simpler
one in which the specimens were consecutively numbered as received throughout
the year, e.g. 42.33 indicates that the specimen was the thirty-third entered in
1942. For the mounted specimens of domesticated animals a new register was
established early in this century, the Cats being entered as C 1, etc.

Order CARNIVORA

Existing Carnivora arc divisible into two suborders, the ARCTOIDEA
and AELUROIDEA, distinguished as follows:

a. In the nasal chamber the ethmo-turbinals are comparatively short and
excluded from the anterior portion of the chamber by the enlarged
maxillo-turbinals which occupy the greater part of the space just within
the anterior narial aperture; the auditory bulla is composed of a single
tympanic bone ARCTOIDEA

b. In the nasal chamber the ethmo-turbinals are comparatively long and
extend to the anterior portion of the chamber, overlying the reduced
maxillo-turbinals just within the orifice; the auditory bulla is composed
of two bones, the ectotympanic and the entotympanic,1 and is divided
by a partition rising at the junction of these bones AELUROIDEA

Suborder AELUROIDEA
Family FELIDAE

Characters. — The most highly specialised of Aeluroid Carnivora distin-
guished by the sum of a number of external, cranial and dental characters.

The penis is short with at most a small bone and the prepuce close to the
scrotum. There are no specialised cutaneous glands either on the perinaeum
or round the anus.

The limbs are digitigrade, with the feet hairy below, apart from the naked
pads, the plantar pad forming a wide, compact indistinctly trilobate cushion;
the claws are short, curved, pointed and retractile, their tips being raised from
the ground and usually protected by lobes of skin constituting sheaths; the
fore paw has five digits, but the first, or pollex, is small and set high above the
rest, and there is only a single small subconical carpal pad; the hind foot has
four digits, the first or hallux being absent, and there is no trace of metatarsal
pads above the plantar pad.

In the head the muzzle is broad and short with the nose not appreciably
overlapping the chin; the ears are comparatively simple with a well-developed
bursa, which has its anterior flap mesially notched, and a simple supratragus
with a clavate thickening; the superciliary and mystacial vibrissae are well
developed and the genal tufts are present, though often difficult to find in the
hairs of the cheeks; but the interramal tuft is absent.

In the suppression of the interramal tuft of vibrissae the Felidae are unique
in the Aeluroidea. In the structure of the genitalia and the entire absence of
specialised cutaneous glands associated with them and with the anus they

1 In the primitive tropical .African genus Nandinia the entotympanic remains cartilaginous
throughout life and is frequently missing from prepared skulls,
i — C.G.F. I

resemble the Prionodontinae, a subfamily of the Viverridae. The feet in the
latter are also similar in their general hairiness below and their retractile claws
protected bv cutaneous sheaths; but in the tore foot the pollex is not set so high,
the plantar pad is composed of four sharply differentiated lobes and the carpal
pad is bilobed, all more primitive features: the hind foot is similarly more
primitive in retaining the first digit, or hallux, and its four-lobed plantar pad.

The skull and teeth have several peculiarities. The skull differs from that
of other families of Aeluroidea in the situation of the posterior palatine foramina
on the maxillo-palatine suture, not in front of it on the maxillae. In general
form it is short as compared with its width, especially in the muzzle; the
auditor)' bullae are typically high and rounded, only occasionally marked with
a well-defined groove indicating the division between the two chambers, and
there is no alisphenoid canal.

The teeth are reduced in number and highly specialised for predatory and

\ i i or 2 i

sectorial purposes. The dental formula is: i. '-; c. ; pin. ■ ; m. . The

incisors above and below form a straight, transverse line; the canines arc-
pointed, grooved, and have the posterior border somewhat compressed; the
morphological first upper premolar is absent and the second is sometimes absent
and, when retained, almost always small, conical, single-rooted, and practically
functionless ; the third is moderately large, has a triangular, compressed crown
\\ ith a single large pointed cusp and smaller cusps behind and in front at its
base; the fourth upper premolar, the upper "carnassial", is much larger than
the third and its crown is also compressed and carries three cusps set in a line,
the first small and conical, the second (paracone) high and pointed, the third
(metacone) lower and more blade-like; usually, also, it has a well-developed
cusped lobe (protocone) projecting inwards from its anterior portion: the only
upper molar retained is very- small, transversely set and practically functionless.
In the lower jaw the morphological first and second premolars are absent; the
third and fourth closely resemble the third of the upper jaw; the crown of the
single lower molar, the "lower carnassial", is composed of two compressed
blade-like cusps, the paraconid and protoconid, which form a cutting shears
with the paracone and metacone of the upper carnassial; but there is no trace
of the cusp called the metaconid which in more primitive forms rises on the
side of the protoconid, and the "heel" of this tooth, which is large in primitive
Aeluroids, is at most represented by a small tubercle. The great reduction in
size of the "heel" makes this tooth smaller than the upper carnassial, an unusual
feature in the Carnivora.

Owing to the total suppression or reduction in size of the first two premolars
above and below there is almost always a considerable postcanine space between
the jaws, which is accentuated by the upcurvature of the anterior part of the
mandible carrying the incisors and canines. The function of this is to give
deep penetration to the canine teeth in killing prey. The space varies in dimen-
sions in different species, and is most manifest in the Clouded Leopard (Neofelis).
In the Hunting Leopard (Acinonyx), which does not seize its prey with its
mouth, the space, on the contrary, does not exist when the jaws are closed.

In the typical Viverridae, a more primitive family of Aeluroidea than the-

Felidae, the dental formula is: i. -; c. -; pm. -; m. -. The upper carnassial

(pm.1) has the inner lobe (protocone) much less reduced in size, the first molar
is a comparatively large functionally crushing tooth, nearly as large as pm.*,
and the lower carnassial (m.^ retains the posterior inner cusp (metaconid) and
the large cuspidate heel. But in the Prionodontinae, the most specialised sub-
family of the Viverridae, the dentition shows an approach to that of the Felidae

in some respects. The formula is: /'. -; c. -; pm. -; m. -. As in the Felidae, the

upper carnassial (pm.*) has the protocone reduced, the first upper molar small
and transverse and the second suppressed; the lower carnassial, while retaining
the metaconid, has the heel very considerably reduced, although not to the
same extent as in the Felidae. Of all the Aeluroid Carnivora Prionodon clearly
shows the greatest number of resemblances to the Felidae in its genitalia, feet
and teeth. The combination suggests that these resemblances have genetic
significance.

Remarks. — Quite recently G. M. Allen (Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 83, p. 232,
1939) and recently Harper (Extinct and Vanishing Mammals of the Old World,
p. 254, 1945) revived the heresy, upheld by W. K. Gregory, that the Mascarene
Aeluroid Cryptoprocta belongs to the Felidae, Allen giving it subfamily rank in
that family.' No one knowing Cryptoprocta as a living animal could mistake
it for a cat : and in all the external characters used for the classification of the
Aeluroidea, it most emphatically resembles primitive arboreal Viverridae or has
special characteristics of its own. Its low head with the long muzzle, peculiar
rhinarium, interramal tuft of vibrissae, are Viverrine, not Feline, characters,
and its semi-plantigrade feet, naked below and primitively padded, are Para-
doxurine. Moreover, the anus is sunk in a cutaneous sac as in the Hyaenas
and Mongooses and the prepuce of the very long penis is abdominal and remote
from the scrotum, as in Hyaena and Paradoxurus; but the penis is unique in
the Aeluroidea for its large baculum. All these features were described and
illustrated in my paper (Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (8), 17, p. 413, 1916). The head,
feet, anus, and genitalia are so entirely different from those of the Cats that
there is, in my opinion, no doubt that the approach to the feline dentition
shown by Cryptoprocta is purely adaptive, as it is adaptive in Hyaenas and
Weasels.

The classification here adopted for the existing Felidae is the one I proposed
in 1917 (Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (8), 20, p. 332). The numerous genera are
divisible into three subfamilies, of which the distinguishing characters may be
briefly stated as follows:

a. The hyoidean apparatus modified by the conversion of the median portion
of the suspender (suspensortum) into a long elastic tendon giving con-
siderable mobility to the larynx; paws with complete cutaneous lobes
protecting the claws when retracted Pantherinae

1 Mivart long ago pointed out its kinship with the Viverridae.

u1. The hyoidean apparatus of the normal mammalian type, the suspender
composed of a series of bones jointed together restricting the mobility

of the larynx

/). Paws with more or less well-developed cutaneous lobes forming
sheaths tor the retracted claws; larger or smaller post-canine space

between the upper and lower jaws in front Felinae

b1. Paws with the cutaneous claw-sheaths entirely suppressed; jaws with
no postcanine space giving deep penetration to the canines

Acinonychinae
The Acinonychinae contains the single genus and species Acinonyx jubatus,
the Cheetah or Hunting Leopard. To the l'antherinae belong two genera and
rive species, Panthera leo, the Lion, Panthera tigris, the Tiger, Panthera onca,
the Jaguar, Panthera pan/us, the Leopard or Panther, and Uncia uncia, the
Ounce or Snow Leopard. All the rest of the genera are assigned to the Felinae.1

Subfamily FELINAE
Genus FELIS, Linnaeus

1758. Felts, Linnaeus, Syst. Nat. 10th ed., I, p. 41 (Type Felis catus, Linnaeus,

the blotched tabby domestic cat); Miller, Cat. Mamm. West. Europe,

pp. 458-68, 1912; Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (8), 20, p. 333, 1 ij 1 7 and

Mamm. Brit. India, I, p. 285, 1939 [sensu stricto).
1*43. Chaus, Gray, List Mamm. Brit. Mus., p. 45 (Type Felis chaus, Gray,

entered as lybica by Gray).
1855. Catus, Fitzinger, Wiss.-pop. Naturgesch. der Saugeth., 1, p. 205 (Type

Felis catus, Linnaeus).
1858. Catolynx, Severtzow, Rev. Mag. Zool., Paris (2), 10, p. 385 (Type Felis

chaus, Gray, restricted by Satunin, 1905).
1858. Otailurus, Severtzow, op. cit., p. 388 (Type Felis megalotis, Miiller, the

feral striped domestic cat of Timor =catus).

1925. Poliailurus, I.iinnberg, Arkiv. Zool., iS, No. 2, p. 1 19 (Type Felis

pallida = Felis bieti).

1926. Eremaelurus, Ognev, Ann. Mus. Zool. Leningrad, 27, p. t,~,<i (Type

Eremaelurus thinobius, Ognev = /•'. margarita).
192''. Microfelis, Roberts, Ann. Transvaal Mus., 2, p. 2,0 (Type Felis nigripes,
Burchell).

1 In the paper quoted above 1 commented on the failure to express with any approach to
accuracy the kinship between many of the genera of Felidae embodied in the then comparatively
recent classi6cations proposed by Matschie in 1895 and Trouessart in 1904. It would be needless
to refer to this matter on the present occasion were it not that a quite recent classification of the
African members of the family published by the late G. M. Allen (Checklist of African Mammals,
1939) displays surprising misapprehension on the same point. To begin with, as stated above,
Cryptoprocta has no place in the Felidae, although he gives it the rank of a subfamily equivalent
to the true Cats, which are comprehensively grouped as Felinae. In this subfamily three genera
are admitted, namely Acinonyx, Caracal, and Felis, the last being subdivided into several sub-
genera, Panthera, Felis, etc.; and this association clearly implies that the kinship between the
lion (Panthera leo) and the African Wild Cat (Felis lybica) is closer than the kinship between
the latter and the Caracal, which is not the case.

Geographical Distribution. — The Old World : Europe and Asia south of
about latitude 60 degrees north, in Asia eastward to Annam, absent from
Malaya and the Sunda Islands; the whole of Africa, except the forested area.

Characters. — Small- or medium-sized Felidae with the jaws typically short
as compared with the braincase; the ears narrowed towards the point, which is
sometimes pencilled with a short tuft; the cheeks not fringed; the hairs of the
nape sloping backwards, tolerably uniform on the body, tail and limbs, but
sometimes developed into a spinal crest; the tail well developed, usually over
half the length of the head and body, sometimes a little less; the paws narrow,
with comparatively poorly developed claw-sheaths and only moderately exten-
sive, emarginate, interdigital webs; the pupil contracts to a vertical slit under
a strong light.

Colour. — The ground colour very variable according to the environment,
brownish buff or grey, the distal portion of the contour hairs with those tints
and the extreme tip darkened to a varying extent; some underwool always
present even in tropical forms in summer; the soles of the feet black, this colour
on the hind foot frequently extending up to the hock. The pattern of the body
consists fundamentally of solid spots, not rosettes, which never coalesce into
longitudinal stripes on the flanks, but may be represented by transverse vertical
stripes, and always show at least a marked tendency to form vertical stripes
behind the shoulder on each side. This pattern, when visible, is characteristic
of the genus; but it may be faint or altogether suppressed in the adult. The
crown and nape are typically marked with four or five longitudinal stripes
sometimes extending on to the shoulders above, sometimes breaking up into
spots on the head, but sometimes obsolete. On the sides of the head a stripe
runs backwards from the corner of the eye and there are typically two below
it on each cheek. The ear never has the conspicuous white spot so prevalent
in many other members of the subfamily; this is at most represented by a
reddish patch set off by black above and below; but the back of the ear may
be uniformly coloured. The fore legs have at least one stripe, the brachial,
below the elbow on the inner side and the hind legs are striped at least externally
above the hocks. The tail may be banded above throughout and is always
strongly striped in its distal half, and may have a black tip. The under side
of the body is at least spotted in its median portion and the throat may have
three transverse collars, the posterior being always retained though sometimes
faint. The pattern above described on the limbs, tail, and usually on the
under side persists even when that of the rest of the body is obliterated.

Skull. — The skull is wide and high as compared with its length; the orbit
is large, typically with noticeably salient lower edge, and its posterior border,
defined by the frontal and malar processes which sometimes meet, is at most
a little in front of the middle of the skull. The frontal postorbital processes
are broad, blunt and ligulate, a very characteristic feature. The upper profile
of the skull seen from the side is convex, but the muzzle is typically more steeply
sloped so that the nasal orifice is set lower in relation to the summit than in
most of the other genera. The muscular moulding of the cranium is compara-
tively weak ; the temporal ridges at most meeting on the summit and the sagittal

crest, when developed, is short and restricted to the posterior portion of the
crown. The mesopterygoid fossa is wide, parallel-sided or wider in front, with
a slightly biconcave anterior edge. The bulla is strongly inflated and its outer
tympanic chamber is relatively large, sometimes about as extensive as the inner
or entotympanic chamber, but usually a good deal smaller.

Felis catus1 Linnaeus
The Domestic Cat

1758. Felis catus, Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., 10 ed., 1, p. 42 (Sweden); Pocock,

Proc. Zool. Soc. '907, p. 149, PI. VIII; id. Mendel. Journ. 1911, p. 16;

Miller, Cat. Mamm. West. Europe, p. 457, 1912 (sensu stricto).
1777. Felis catus (fs) domesticus (Sweden), (8) hispanicus (Spain), (c) caeruleus

(Europe and Siberia), Erxleben, Syst. Regni Anim., pp. 520-2.
17SS. Felis catus (;■) angorensis (S) (Persia and Angora), ruber (Cape of Good

Hope), Gmelin, Syst. Nat. 1, pp. 80, 81.
1792. Felis catus sinensis (China), aureus (New Spain), madagascariensis (Mada-
gascar), Kerr, Anim. King., pp. 154, 155.
1S00. Felis catus longiceps (New Spain), striatus Bechstein, Uebers. 4-fiiss.

Thiere, 2, p. 678.
1826. Felis torquata, F. Cuvier, Hist. Nat. Mamm., PI. 126 (Nepal).
1829. Felis domestica vulgaris, antiquorum (Abyssinia), tralatitia (Japan),

japonica (Japan), syriaca (Syria), Fischer, Syn. Mamm., pp. 207, 20S.
1836. Felis pulchella (Egypt) and inconspicua (Nepal), Gray, Mag. Nat. Hist.,

(N.S.) 1, p. 577 (Nepal).
1839. Felis megahtis, Miiller, Verh. Nat. Ges. Nederl. Zool., p. 54 (Timor).
1844. Felis cumana (Venezuela or Trinidad) brevicaudata (Japan), Schinz, Syn.

Mamm. I, pp. 452 and 455.
1846. Felis huttoni, Blyth, Journ. As. Soc. Beng., 15, p. 169 (Kandahar).
1883. Felis bouvieri, Rochebrune, Actes Soc. Linn. Bord. (4), 7, p. 126 (Cape

Verde).
1904. Felis libyca siamensis, Trouessart, Cat. Mamm., Suppl., p. 273 (Siam).
1904. Felis daemon, Satunin, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1904, pt. 2, p. 162 (Elizabetpol,

south of the Caucasus).
1906. Felis ocreata agrius, Bate, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 317 (Crete).

1 In 1930 Schwarz (Zool. Anz., 91, p. 223) suggested extending the name Felis cants to
embrace the two wild cats here regarded as distinct species, namely F. silvestris and F. lybica,
as well as all domestic breeds. I have not adopted this view because, while admitting the obvious
kinship between F. silvestris and F. lybica, I can find no evidence that they intergrade in a wild
state. On the western countries of their range F. lybica of Morocco and Algeria is strikingly'
different from F. silvestris of Spain; in Asia /•'. lybica found in Palestine and Turkestan is equally
distinct from F. silvestris of Asia Minor and the Caucasus, and so far as I am aware there is
no reason to think that the two forms even hybridise in Italy, where both are alleged to occur.
There are, moreover, obscurities connected with the origin of domestic cats. Those that exhibit
the (or^uufa-style of pattern are probably, but only probably, hybrids between F. silvestris and
F. lybica and those with the unique rafHS-style of pattern are probably, but only probably,
mutants of the other; and nothing approaching this peculiar pattern is ever seen in wild examples
of the two forms. There is indeed less to be said in favour of applying the name catus as a
specific term to these two kinds of wild cats than for calling the Wolf Cards familiaris.

7
Notes on Synonymy.- — The names Felts catus, dotnesticus, vulgaris and striatus were
given to domestic cats of the "blotched tabby" type with spiral pattern on the flanks;
hispanicus to a "tortoise-shell" phase supposed to have come from Spain. Felis caeruleus
is the name for a blue-grey phase from Europe and Siberia ; ruber, a red phase from the
Cape of Good Hope, and sinensis, a black and yellow phase with pendulous ears from
China. Both the names aureus and longiceps were given to domestic cats of a reddish-
yellow type with long heads and sharp snouts from New Spain and cumana to a specimen
of the striped tabby type from Venezuela or Trinidad. Felis madagascariensis is the name
for a domestic breed with twisted tail said to have come from Madagascar, but doubtless
imported from Malaya, where the malformation is not uncommon. Both Felis torquata
and inconspicua were given to feral cats of the transverse "striped tabby" type from
Nepal ; obscura stands for a blackish phase from South Africa, while antiquorum is the
name for a grey-coloured animal from Abyssinia. Felis tralatitia, japonica and brevi-
caudata are names for Japanese cats, the first black and white or piebald, and the other
two black and white animals with stunted tails. Felis megalotis and huttoni are names for
feral "striped tabbies" from Timor and Khandahar, and agrius for a similarly coloured
cat from Crete. Felis siamensis is a fawn and black cat from Siam, and daemon, a black
feral cat obtained at Elizabetpol south of the Caucasus.

Origin. — Probably a composite form of which the European representatives,
at all events, owe their origin to the crossing of the two wild species described
below as Felis silvestris and Felis lybica.

Colour. — The pattern, known as "tabby", is dimorphic. In the typical
form, described by Linnaeus as catus and sometimes called the "blotched
tabby", the body-pattern behind the shoulders consists of broad stripes which
on the sides usually exhibit a looped or "spiral" arrangement and three dorsal
stripes running to the root of the tail are usually distinguishable. In the second
type, referred to as torquata and known as the "striped tabby", the pattern on
the sides of the body behind the shoulders consists of narrower stripes trans-
versely or vertically arranged, but commonly showing a tendency to break up
into shorter stripes or spots posteriorly1; and the spinal area seldom has three
well-marked black stripes, but is blackish with ill-defined edges and shows at
most traces of spots or lines.

The two pattern-phases above described are individually variable to a
certain extent ; but one or the other can be detected in a majority of skins at all
events of European domestic cats, although the stripes on the body may be
entirely suppressed in the torquata-phase, which is less stable than the
catus-phase*

The prevalent ground colour of the upper side is clear, darkish grey due
to black and white speckling of the contour hairs; but the pale area of these
hairs may be pale buff or even pale brown, giving a generally darker tone to

1 Of these two pattern-phases that of torquata, closely resembling the patterns of the two
wild species cited above, is no doubt the original. The pattern of catus is unique in the family
and its source is unknown. On the whole, it seems probable that it arose abruptly and fully
developed as a mutant "freak" or "sport" from the other. The two cats freely interbreed and
kittens with the two patterns commonly occur in the same litter; but the patterns always remain
true to type and never blend. A similar case apparently of pattern dimorphism has occurred in
the Rhodesian Cheetah {Acinonyx jubatus jubatus), which is normally covered with small, close-set
solid spots. But comparatively recently in that country has appeared a cheetah, described as
Acinonyx rex, in which the pattern consists of large black blotches and broad, longer or shorter
stripes.

2 Photographs of skins of cats from London, showing these variations, are reproduced on
pis. viii and ix of my paper quoted above.

8

the pelage. Numbers of tame cats, moreover, are affected by melanism, ery-
thrism, and albinism. The face, paws and chest are particularly liable to
albinism; but this defect of pigment may occur in big patches elsewhere in
combination with the normal grey tabby hue or with red or with black. Some
skins are a mixture of the three colours; and a mixture of black and red,
without white, gives rise to the true "tortoiseshell", 99 per cent of which
are females.

A peculiar blend of black and white results in a diluted black or slate-grey
tint commonly called "blue"; and wholly black or red cats are common, the
latter being perhaps invariably males, the pattern, when retained, being deeper
red than the ground colour; but in red cats of the torquata-type the body
pattern may be altogether suppressed. Red with black stripes and white with
dark brown stripes, like normal and semi-albino tigers respectivelv, are unknown
varieties in domestic cats. In wholly white cats, which typically have blue eyes
and are uncommon, the pattern can usually be detected under reflected light.
So far as colour is concerned the breed long ago established in Siam is quite
peculiar in turning from white to nearly black as age advances. The kittens
are white, or nearly so, with blue eyes. The eyes usually remain blue throughout
life, but the hair becomes darker with age, passing from cream to pale fawn
and pale brown on the body and deep brown to blackish on the extremities,
the adult being pale brown on the body with the head, ears, limbs and tail
blackish.

Another breed with stabilised coloration, known as the chaus-type, is not
uncommon in India, and is referred to in some detail below (p. 13); and there
are two admitted breeds characterised by the abbreviation of the tail. One of
these, in which that organ is reduced to about the length of the hind toot and
is frequently "kinked" or bent, is common in Malaya, whence it was many
years ago introduced into Madagascar. The other is the so-called "Manx"
breed, in which the tail is at most a mere stump, about one inch long. The
evidence that this breed arose in the Isle of Man is quite inconclusive. It occurs,
but not commonly, in London, where it varies in colour and as a rule exhibits
the pattern of torquata.

Domestic cats have been carried by their owners from one part of the world
to another and occur in all the continents. In some places, moreover, they have
run wild and established themselves as obtrusive elements in the fauna. In
Europe, Africa and the greater part of Asia where Felis is indigenous, it is
possible, perhaps probable, that these feral cats interbreed with wild species of
the genus, particularly their supposed ancestral forms, F. silvestris and /•'. lybica.
But there seems to be no evidence that such a cross has ever been detected in
the case of the species mentioned or in the case of the less closely related species
F. margarita, F. chaus and others. In America, where the cats are generically
distinct from Felis, the occurrence of hybrids is very unlikely; and in countries
like Madagascar and Australasia, where indigenous species of Felidae do not
occur, crossing is out of the question. This gives special interest to the feral
cats of such places as Timor, Celebes, Queensland, and Tasmania, which
are likely enough to become differentiated and stabilised as distinguishable

9

forms as well worth studying, it not naming, as the subspecies of other
mammals. To further this end, the following notes on the skins and skulls of
most of the feral representatives of F. catus in the British Museum have been
compiled.

Skins of Feral Domestic Cats from Various Parts
of the World
Europe

The different varieties of house-cats to be seen in London and other English
towns need no description, since they were dealt with in some detail in my
paper quoted above. No doubt the same kinds occur in continental Europe,
but only one presumably feral skin is available, an example of the torquata-type
from Hungary.

There is also only one English feral cat's skin (7.2.1 6.1). This, however,
is of exceptional interest. It was captured as a kitten in the New Forest and
surprisingly recalls the British Wild Cat (F. silvestris), more so than any feral
cat examined, in the texture of the coat, which is 40 mm. long on the flank,
45 mm. on the spinal area and in the general colour and pattern, especially the
presence of the two strong stripes on the shoulders, a very pronounced feature in
most skins of the wild species. It differs, however, in lacking the fullness of the
tail of the latter, in having that organ invaded by black above and the head
blacker, with the pattern less pronounced. If it had come from Scotland I should
without hesitation have regarded it as a hybrid house-cat and F. silvestris
grampia. But since it was presented to the Museum as a very old animal in
1907, it was probably born in 1890, or thereabouts, when there were certainly
no true wild cats in the South of England.

An undated skin (Rothschild Bequest, 39.1661) from "above Luchon" in
the Pyrenees probably has the same history as the two examples of F. silvestris
silvestris described below (p. 31). It differs in several respects from them. The
coat, although tolerably full and soft, is much shorter, the hairs on the spine,
flanks and tail being only about 35, 23 and 25 mm. respectively. The ground
colour above is nearly the same, namely grey, showing buff patches when the
coat is disturbed, and the lower side is buff; but the pattern is different, being
indistinct on the nape, absent on the shoulders, black on the spine where the
stripe is indistinctly double, and on the flanks and legs strong and black; and
on the tail, which is narrow and attenuated towards the tip, the stripes, nine or
ten in number, extend to the base, those on the distal half of the organ being
confluent above, making it black in the middle line. If caught within the
geographical range of F. lybica (see below, p. 50), this cat might have been
regarded as representing a race of that species; but it is no doubt a feral house-cat
of the torquata-type. A second specimen (39.1664) in the same collection,
which has no history, is tolerably similar and may have come from the same
place. This I also consider to be F. catus.

The Hungarian skin mentioned above (1143.1) was labelled "wild cat,
Felts catus", the technical name being the one then applied to the typical

European wild cat now known as F. silvestris. It is unquestionably a feral
domestic cat with the ground colour and strongly marked pattern of the torquata-
type. The coat is short, with the hairs on the flanks 30 mm. and on the crest
42 mm., the wool on the- flanks is greyish buff at the summit, on the spinal area
greyish brown; the backs of the cars are brown, contrasted with the grey head,
but blackish at the tips and pencilled; the under side is greyish ochreous, the
backs of the thighs are richer ochreous and the hind foot is black to the
hocks behind. In the brighter tint of the ears, of the wool and of the upper
part of the backs of the thighs, this skin differs from skins of typical English
house-cats of the torquata-type and approaches the North African wild cat
/•'. lybica sarda.

The Cretan cat, a«iitis, was described by Miss Bate in 1906 as representing a
race of the North African wild cat. In 1907 I stated that it was a feral house-cat;
but in 191 2 Miller gave it full specific rank as a wild cat related to the Sardinian
form, and in 1930 Schwarz reverted to Miss Bate's opinion. The type (5. 12.2. 15)
has the coat 26 and 34 mm. and resembles the feral skin from Hungary in the
colour of the ears and nearly in the tint of the wool; but it is paler, clearer grey
above, a good deal paler below from the throat backwards, has a whiter face,
the pattern less strongly emphasised and less spotty on the hinder part of the
body and the hind foot not so black behind in its upper part. But it comes
nearest to the feral Tunisian cat described below (p. 15), so near, indeed, as
to be describable as a duplicate of it. It also closely resembles several of the
skins referred to below as feral house-cats, namely one from Gangootra, North
India, and one from New Mexico, the latter differing principally in having the
ears apparently dark grey. Quite clearly the evidence is opposed to the con-
clusion that the type of agrius, carrying the name, represents a race of the North
African wild cat.

It is of interest to note that although typical catus, with the bold blotched
pattern, is as common a house-cat as any in England, it is very scarce as a feral
form, at all events outside Europe. Out of the large number of feral cats in
the British Museum, three only belong to this type, namely one from Meshed,
in Persia, and two from different localities in Queensland. According to Blyth
it was unknown in India in his time, and none was secured by the collectors
for the Bombay Survey of the Mammal Fauna of British India. But in 1938
Col. R. Meinertzhagen secured one in very wild country at Doab, in the Hindu
Rush. A great majority of the feral cats, at all events of Asia, Africa and
Australia, are either typical torqnata or red, black, parti-coloured or other
mutants of that type.

Asia and Australia

Arabia. — An adult $ (95. 6.1. 61) trapped in the bazaar in Aden by Colonel
Yerbury, 18 February, was regarded by him as a domestic cat, but was quoted
as Felts mamculata by Thomas (Proc. Zool. Soc, 1895, p. 507). Yerbury's
opinion was, I think, correct. The coat, although at its best according to the
date, is harsh, thin, with very little wool, and short, the hairs of the flanks being
about 20 mm. and of the crest 30 mm., very different from the soft full coat ot

genuinely wild specimens; the general colour is greyish brown and the deeper
brown pattern is fairly well defined, the black of the spinal area breaking up
into longitudinal stripes; the black of the hind foot is restricted to its lower
part. The skull with a condylobasal length of 89 mm. is about as long as in
Philby's adult 3 from Wadi Thar (see under F. lybica tristrami, p. 114), but the
bullae are smaller, only 19 mm. long, as compared with 22 mm., and the
carnassials are also smaller, the upper being 10 and the lower ~j\ mm. long,
whereas in the J of the Arabian wild cat they are 1 1 and 9 respectively. The
bullae and teeth are typically smaller in domestic cats, feral or tame, than in
related wild races.

The other specimen (99. 1 1 .6.33), shot in desert scrub by Percival and Dodson
at Lahej, near Aden, August 27, was regarded as a genuine wild cat and identified
by Thomas as F. maniculata (Proc. Zool. Soc, 1900, p. 100). But since it has
a coat similar to the last, although even thinner in accordance with the date,
I regard it as a feral tame cat. It differs from the Aden specimen in colour,
being pale sandy grey with fainter pattern, suggesting faded summer coat.
Since, however, its bullae and teeth are as large as in Shortridge's Jerusalem
specimen, it may be a half-bred specimen.

Persia. — Three strikingly different skins. An adult 9 from Meshed (Sykes,
13.4.2. 1) is a handsome, full-coated example of the blotched tabby (catiis), a
rare feral type,1 differing entirely from two skins of the wild cat of Meshed
which are assigned to F. lybica caadata (see below, p. 126). An adult J from
Seistan (6.1.2.4) might be mistaken for a wild cat, since it is only a little darker
than the two skins from Meshed just mentioned; but its coat is much thinner
and shorter, its pattern is stronger everywhere, especially on the shoulders,
limbs and lower side, and its skull and teeth are a little smaller. It is possibly of
mixed breed. A second from Seistan (8.1. 13. 4) is nearly uniformly fawn-coloured
above with the spinal crest and back of the ears red, the pattern absent on
the body and head, obscure on the outer sides of the limbs, strong and black
only on the end of the tail. This skin recalls F. chaiis in several respects, and
although it has a long tail it may be a hybrid between that species and a feral
house-cat.

Djarkent, in Semiryechensk, East Turkestan. A young adult <$ skin
(14.5. 10.60), October, killed by Riickbeil, with two examples of F. lybica caadata
(see below, p. 125) differs from them in its less luxuriant coat, dark grey ground
colour above, black ears, blackish head, conspicuous black spinal band on the
hind back and loins, and heavy black body-pattern, consisting of stripes on the
neck and large scattered black spots on the flanks and below and strong bands
on the legs. The wool, moreover, is dark grey on the flanks, black on the spinal
area. The skull and teeth are also smaller than in the wild cat of the district.
It may be a mongrel between the latter and a feral house-cat, but in its general
colour and style of pattern, it closely resembles the skin of a London cat I
figured in 1907 (pi. 9, fig. 3), except that the latter is largely albino on the
limbs and below.

1 A3 recorded above (p. 10) Col. Meinertzhagen shot one in very wild country at Doab, in the
Hindu Kush.

Kandahar. — An imperfect skin (91.10.7.14) of the torquata-type with
unusually luxuriant coat, 30 and 36 mm. long, the Hanks speckled greyish-white
and fuscous, the spinal area huff and black, the wool dull huff on the flanks, a
little darker on the crest and turning deep grey on the shoulders; the pattern
brown and obscure. This skin is a topotype of /•'. huttoni, Blyth.

Tibet. — A single skin (Hodgson, 45.1.8.218) is patched red and white, the
red showing faint torquata-paltem.

India.— A large series of skins shows that domestic cats have run wild
practically all over the country, and in some places have established themselves
definitely as wild forms. There are three main phases: typical grey torquata in
various shades; red mutants of torquata; and the chaus-type.

The dominant form is the grey torquata. According to Colonel Ward, who
regarded it as a valid species, this is abundant in Kashmir, is quite unmistakable,
and appears to have established itself and to breed tolerably true to type. The
only skin in the Museum from that country came from Srinagar (O. B. St. John,
91.01.7.12) and is a little abnormal in colour, being dull grey with hardly any
black and white speckling in the pelage.

From Gopalpur, Kangra (Wells, 44.1-2) there are two skins, one from
S,ooo ft. is brownish grey and very closely matches the skin from Kandahar;
the other, 4,500 ft., is clearer grey; both are creamy buff below.

A darkish grey skin from Nepal (Hodgson, 45.1.8.289) is a topotype of
torquata and agrees closely with Cuvier's description; and the type of incon-
spicua, Gray, probably from Nepal, belongs to the same kind, but has the
pattern less distinct. A skin from Gangotri (118 a), labelled inconspicua by
Gray, is tolerably similar.

From south of the Himalayas is a skin from Sambhar, Rajputana (Adam,
85.8.1.20), which is like the greyer of the two Kangra skins. Two from Kathia-
war, 200 ft. (Crump, 44.3-4), differ a good deal individually. One (44.3)
decidedly brownish grey, with brown pattern, is like the darker of the two skins
from Kangra, except that the pattern is better defined owing to the much
shorter coat, but the lower side from behind the white chin is buff. The other
(44.4) is dark, blackish grey, with black pattern and greyish under side. From
Kolar Town, Hast Mysore^ 2,786104,026 ft. (Shortridge, 13.4.11.44-47), there
are four very short-coated specimens, in three of which the pattern is brownish
and rather faint, and the ground colour greyish with very little black speckling,
the under side being whitish; but in the fourth the pattern is blacker and stronger.
The number of specimens procured at this place suggests that the cat has
established itself as a wild form. A skin from Halery, Coorg (Shortridge, 44.10),
is clear grey with blackish pattern very like the skin from Sambhar.

In the red mutants of torquata, which are darker on the spinal area than on
the Hanks, the pattern is retained at least on the legs, unless they are white,
and on the end of the tail, but may be altogether suppressed on the body, and
the under side is always white. One from Sikkim (Flodgson, 58.6.26.53) has
the pattern suppressed on the upper side of the body and faint on the legs and
tail. One from Kumaun (Stevens, 44.15) has the body-pattern represented by
\erv small spots on the flanks. One from Philibhit, Rohilkund, 800 ft. (Crump,

13

44-14). 7 February, has the ground colour pale red on the back, whitish on the
Hanks and the pattern distinct. One from the United Provinces (St. G. Burke,
27.2. 14. 1 2) is deeper red than the last, with the normal torquata-pattem strongly
pronounced. One from Sukkur, Sind (Prater, 44.13), March 24, has the coat
longer and thinner than in the skin from Philibhit, and the ground colour whiter
and throwing into greater relief the pattern which is red on the hinder part but
brown on the shoulders, nape and head. This skin seems well adapted by
colour to its desert environment. One from Sehore, in Bhopal, 1,700 ft. (Captain
Whitehead, 9.6. 10. 12), has the pattern very faint, and one from Mogul Serai,
United Provinces (Stewart Betton, 6.6.15.1) resembles it in that respect, but
has white fore legs, hind feet, and a median white band on the lumbar region,
a very unusual place for an isolated white patch to occur. A specimen brought
from Bombay (H. C. Brooke, 44.20) is much deeper red than any of the
preceding and has no pattern on the body.

Another mutant of torquata, called the "chaus-type" by Blyth, occurs
sporadically at least in northern India. The pattern persists only on the base
of the limbs, the end of the tail and the ventral surface, and may be strong or
weak; the general colour of the body is grey or greyish due to close speckling
of the hairs with black and whitish or buff, with the spinal area considerably
darker and the under side white; the ears are dark brownish grey or rusty
ochreous. Blyth believed this cat, which has not been recorded wild in any
countries but India and Burma, to result from the crossing of house-cats with
Felis chaus. But the skull and the tail are as in Felis catus and the spinal crest is
not developed as in F. chaus.

A couple of specimens in the collection (Zool. Soc, 55.12.24.263, and Blyth,
66.1 1. 20.1) are labelled "Domesticated Cat of India". Two feral specimens
may be selected for description to illustrate individual variation in the breed.
One from Dening, in the Mishmi Hills, 2,250 ft. (Wells, 23.1.7.8), is darker,
more buff-grey with reddish ears and the pattern on the limbs, tail and under
side strongly pronounced. The other from Hasimara, Bhutan Duars, 600 ft.
(Baptista, 16.7.29.49), is clearer grey, with dark grey ears and the pattern absent
on the tail and nearly suppressed on the outer side of the limbs and on the
belly. A third from Nimiaghat, Hazaribagh (Crump, 37.3.24.21), is nearly
intermediate in the distinctness of the pattern, and has the ears as in the skin
from Bhutan Duars.

Ceylon. — The feral occurrence of typical torquata in the island is attested
by a skin from Ambawela, collected by E. W. Mayor (44.27 a), who also shot
a black specimen at Yatiyantota, 500 ft. (44.22).

Burma. — The feral cats are similar to those found in India, as attested in
particular by one of the chaus-type secured by Mackenzie (44.7) at Toungoo,
500 ft., which is slightly buffy grey with stripes on the insides of the legs, on
the end of the tail and, very obscurely defined, on the head. Also at Toungoo,
but at a lower level of 100 ft., the same collector shot two red examples of
torquata (44.8.12), one with the pattern very faint, and a typical grey torquata
(44.6), with white legs, labelled "domestic cat". A specimen from Maymyo,
3,500 ft. (Shortridge, 44.11), is a clear grey torquata with very faint pattern

'4

and the paws and under side white; and one from Paunggaung, North Shan
States (Shortridge, 44.9), is a faintly striped brown torquata. The same collector
trapped at Victoria Point, Tenasserim, a dark greyish brown specimen (44.16)
without pattern, but with white on the paws, throat and chest, and with a very
short tail about equalling the hind foot in length, representing a breed unknown
in India, but common in Malaya. A note on its label states that "an enormous
percentage of cats in the east Indies have stunted tails".

Of the unmistakable Siamese breed, of which no feral examples seem to
have been recorded, enough has already been said; and the traditionally alleged
Chinese breed, with pendulous ears, is known to me only from the original
description.

Philippine Islands. — A female of the torquata-lype shot wild by J. White-
head in North Luzon is interesting from having the bright tinted ears, wool
and genital area occurring as in the skin from Tunis, and in the type of agrius.
It differs principally from those two skins in being sandy grey instead of ashy
grey above, and in having the lateral stripes more broken into spots. In its
general colour above it differs from most normally coloured skins with the
torquata pattern from the Oriental Region, coming nearest to one from Bonthain
Peak, Celebes. It was discussed at some length by Thomas (Ann. Mag. Nat.
Hist. (6), 18, p. 245, 1896), who correctly identified it as a feral F. domestica;
but it is not quite like the specimen from Celebes, nor does it resemble F. chain,
as he stated.

Malav Archipelago. — A black skin (C. Darwin, 68.2. 19. 1 18), with white
on the face, feet and chest, has a short tail hooked at the end apparently re-
sembling in this respect the type of madagascariensis.

Timor. — Three skins (Frost, 40.377-379) from Amarassie, are topotypes of
F. megalotis and are typical examples of dark grey torquata, with blackish grey
ears. On account of its record by Meyer from an island to the east of Wallace's
line, the locality of this cat was disputed by Elliot and, following him, by
Wallace, and tacitly ignored by Mivart. But the arrival in Holland of additional
specimens from Timor induced Jentink to uphold the species as valid (Notes
Leyd. Mus. 13, p. 219, 1891). None of these authors seems to have been
acquainted with the common striped tabby house-cat of Europe.

Celebes. — A skin from Macassar (Wallace, 57.8.6.1) is dark greyish brown
above, darker on the shoulders, nape and head, and buff below, with the pattern
everywhere distinct. Of two skins from the same locality (Frost, 34.7.24.1-2)
one is very similar to the foregoing, but the other is grey with black pattern.
One from Rantekaroa, Quarles Range, 6,600 ft. (Frost, 40.376), is dark grey
with obscure pattern; another from Tamalanta, 3,300 ft. (Frost, 40.384), is
brown on the back, grey on the flanks and legs, with the pattern strong; and
one from Bonthain Peak, 6,800 ft. (Everett, 97.1.3.8), is of the brown type,
resembling two of the Macassar skins. These skins from Celebes are on the
average browner than those from Timor.

Australia. — A specimen from the Annan River, Cooktown, (Jueensland
(Sherrin, 23.1.5.27) and one from Rollingstone, 23 miles north of Townsville,
North Queensland (YVilkins, 23.12.6.8) have the bold pattern of typical catus.

IS

Judging from a note by Sherrin stating that he shot several of these cats near
Cooktown because they ate the small mammals in his traps, it seems that the
breed has established itself at least in that district. But a specimen from
Mount Driven, South Central Queensland (Young, 23.10.4.1) is a typical grey
turquata with black pattern and one from Tasmania (Gunn, 127 g) is of the
same breed.

Africa and America

Tunis. — An adult $ (Sir Thomas Reade, 55.12.24.257) so closely matches
the type of agrius, the Cretan Cat, described above, that it is unnecessary to
enumerate its external features. It apparently differs only in having the wool
on the flanks and spinal area a shade less bright. In its ashy grey colour above
and bold pattern everywhere it differs strikingly from the Tunisian wild cats
described below as F. lybica sarda and F. lybica lybica. Since the skull has the
occiput cut away, its condylobasal length can only be estimated at 86 mm. ;
and although the postorbital area is narrow and the temporal ridges only 7 mm.
apart at the suture, the skull is not strongly moulded, the ridges in question
being very weak; the teeth are smaller on the average than in S wild cats, the
upper canine being only 4 mm. The small size of the skull and teeth confirms
the conviction conveyed by the skin that this cat is a feral house-cat.

Egypt. — The cat from Egypt (165 a), described by Gray as F. pulchella,
a name hitherto assigned to the synonymy of lybica or ocreata, must be regarded
as a feral domestic cat of the torquata-style of pattern. The type is a small,
now much faded, adult or subadult female with the flanks whitish, the crest,
of which the hairs are 38 mm. long, banded brown and buff and the fore part
from the shoulders to the head sandy buff; the ears are the same tint as the
crown and the face is white with a faint patch in front of the eye, a red upper
genal stripe ; there are faint stripes on the crown and on the sides of the body,
brown stripes on the limbs and a blackish bracelet; the fronts of the limbs and
the lower surface from the chin backwards are white. The skull and teeth are
too small for lybica, smaller indeed than in most females of F. catus, tame or
feral. The skin of a kitten (165 b), with the same history, is soiled and faded,
but seems to have been pale like the type.

Evidently very similar to the type of pulchella is an adult £ cat collected
at Ber Victoria, Wady Natron, Lower Egypt (3.8.1.1) by N. C. Rothschild.
It is red all over the upper side, white below, with the pattern of the torquata-
type on the head, nape and body very faint, but stronger on the cheeks, legs
and tail, with the soles of the feet buff, not black. The skull, although well
developed, with wide zygomata and narrow cranium and postorbital area, is
short and has small bullae and teeth, differing in these respects from the adult
J skulls from Upper Egypt and the Sudan assigned to the Egyptian wild cat
(F. lybica lybica) described below (p. 61).

Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. — The skin of a young adult $ (4.1 1.3. 13) from
Meroe, on the Upper Nile, March 17, is regarded as a feral domestic cat because
in its darker, greyish brown general colour, dark ears of nearly the same tint,
closely matching the head, the dull tinted wool and thin short winter coat, only

2; and 31 mm. long, it differs from the sand-coloured skins regarded as typical
F. lybica lybica from the Nile Valley. The pattern on the flanks is perceptible
but faint, on the legs stronger and on the lower side black, thrown into relief
by the whitish ground colour. The flesh measurements in English inches are:
head and body 20!; tail 12?; hind foot 5; ear 2?. The skull, although not
quite full-sized, is considerably longer than that of the <J from Wady Natron,
but being undeveloped, although the sagittal and occipital crests are about as
large, has the cranium and postorbital area wider; its bullae too are much more
strongly inflated.

The skin of an adult V ( r .5.5. 1 3) from Shendy, south of Meroe, February 23,
differs strikingly in its colour and coat from the specimen from Shendy referred
to Felis lybica lybica (p. 64). It closely resembles the skin from Meroe in its
superficial colouring and thin winter coat, which is even shorter, only 18 and
31 mm. long; but it differs in having the wool on the flanks pale buff, on the
spinal area ochreous, the pattern on the body more distinct and the black of
the hind foot restricted to the area of the pads. Its flesh measurements in
English inches are: head and body 19, tail 12?, hind foot 4?, ear 2J. In all its
dimensions the skull agrees very closely with those of the two tolerably similarly
coloured but luxuriantly coated : specimens from Nakheila on the Atbara and
the Shabluka Hills, north of Omdurman, respectively, referred to below (p. 68)
and left without subspecific name; and like those specimens and the one from
Meroe, it has the bullae much more strongly inflated than in the skulls from
Wady Natron, Bakel and Kilimanjaro entered in the table.

Captured at Shendy at the same time as the last, and confirming the view
that the latter is a feral domestic cat, was a red kitten (1.5. 5. 14) very similar
to the adult $ from Wady Natron.

A young <j specimen (1.8. 8. 21), about two-thirds grown, from Fashoda, is
provisionally regarded as the kitten of a feral domestic cat because it is hardlv
distinguishable in coat, colour and pattern from the adult 2 from Shendy,
described above.

Gold Coast. — The skin of a black variety showing no pattern (Armitage,
44.26).

Abyssinia. — A skin from Dangila representing the "domestic cat" of
North-west Abyssinia (Cheesman, 44.27) is of the torquata-type, but bright
red with very faint stripes on the body, a little stronger on the legs and strong
on the tail, as in the skin from Wady Natron. It breeds true to type according
to Cheesman.

Lado in the Sudan. — (Emin Pasha, 87. 12. 1.9) An immature skin of the
torquata-type.

Somaliland. — A skin (34.9.14.8) without skull, from Bulhar, has the coat
very thin, short and harsh, and the pattern of the torquata-type stronglv
pronounced.

Sokotra. — The feral domestic cat of this island was described by Ogilvie-
Grant (Nat. Hist. Sokotra, etc., p. 6, 1901). From information supplied by
natives he reported that it is subject to great variation in colour, some specimens
being striped, some mostly black. There is no skin in the British Museum;

I-

hut a skull, apparently of a young adult $ (81.1.6.1), is peculiar for the presence
of a distinct but shallow concavity on the fore part of the frontals just behind
the nasals. As shown by the table of measurements, the bullae are as large as
in the above-described specimens from Meroe and Shendy. This is interesting
because the wild cats of Sokotra are beyond all doubt the descendants of
imported house-cats.

Kilimanjaro. — A black skin of an adult o (37.8. 18. 16) from the south-east
slope of the mountain, 5,000 ft., shows no trace of pattern, and is regarded as a
feral domestic cat on the evidence of its colour and skull. The skull, the largest
of the African feral cats, is as large and well developed as those of the wild cats
of Kenya and Tanganyika, but differs from them in its noticeably smaller bullae
and teeth.

Portuguese East Africa. — An adult $ from Inhambane (6.1 1.8.43) 's °f
the torquata-type in colour and pattern, thus differing entirely from the wild
cats of South Africa. Its skull, also, although imperfect, is considerably smaller.
C. Grant, who collected this specimen, told me that in Inhambane he saw no
examples of the typical South African wild cat (F. lybica cafra) with which he
was well acquainted.

Machili River, North Rhodesia. — A skin, without skull, blotched grey
and red, both colours showing typical torquata-pattem (Gordon Lancaster,
35.9.1.15 b).

Zululand. — A skin (Grant, 44.25), shot in the forest at Sibudeni, 20 miles
north-west of Eshowe, 3,500 ft., is patched white and grey, the grey showing
typical torquata-pattem.

British Bechuanaland. — A black skin showing torquata-pattem (Pollard,
37.9.4.1).

Great Karas Mountains, South-west Africa. — A red skin showing torquata-
pattern (Shortridge, 44.24).

Madagascar. — A skin from Voluma (70.5.5.38) and one from the Forest
of Ankafana, east of Betsileo (Cowan, 82.3.1.7) are of the torquata-type. These
two skins differ from the type of madagascariensis in having tails of normal
length.

America. — The only skin (Warwick, 57.6.22.1) is an example of torquata,
typical in colour and pattern, from the State of New Mexico; but in the first
decade of this century Gibson exhibited at a meeting of the Zoological Society
a similar skin from the Argentine as a specimen of the Pampas cat (Pajeros).

Structural Variations in some Skulls of Felis catus, Tame and Feral,
from various parts of the world

Of S skulls the first entered on the list of those from Europe was formerly
in the Tring Museum and has no locality. It is regarded as probably from that
continent, because Rothschild identified it as F. silvestris. Both its skin, which
is of the torquata-type, and its skull show that it does not belong to that species.
I infer that it is referable to F. catus from the small size of the bullae and teeth,
the canine being only 3^ mm. at the base, and that the animal was feral rather

Measurements and Weights of Feral Examples of Feus

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

Weight

in.

in.

in.

in.

lb.

1 old

New Forest, England

7.2.16.1

20

10!

4l

zi

—

J yg. ad.

Djarkent, Turkestan

14.5. 10.60

i7l

lOf

4S

2j

—

J ad.

Srinagar, Kashmir .

91. 10. 7. 12

22

12

—

—

—

5 ad.

Gopalpur, Kangra .

44.1

23 J

12

5

2B

—

J ad.

Hasimara, Bhutan Duars,

chaus-type .

16.7.29.49

I9i

Hi

5

2i

—

o ad.

Mishmi Hills, chaus-type

23.1.7.73

19I

h!

5

2g

61

3 yg. ad.

Hazarihagh, c/iaus-t\pe .

37.3.24.21

i6i

ioi

4S

2i

4

o ad.

Philibhit, Rohilkund

44.14

20

II!

Si

2S

7l

3 ad.

Sehore, Bhopal

9. 6. 10. 12

22 J

I2j

Si

2g

;

Kolar Town, Mysore

I3-4-H-4S

I9i

ni

4i

2i

—

5

• t |i M

13.4.11.44

I7t

9i

4i

2*

Si

5

>> .» I*

13.4. 11.47

i8f

1 1

4i

2i

—

(J ad.

Junagadh, Kathiawar

44-3

20 J

n|

5

2i

9i

J ad.

Toungoo, Burma, chaus-

type ....

44-5

20 1

9i

4§

2i

—

3 ad.

Toungoo, Burma, chaus-

type ....

44.12

i9l

lot

4f

at

—

9 ad.

Maymyo, Burma

44.11

i8S

9i

41

24

—

? ad.

Victoria Point, Tenasserim

44.16

i8t

4

4i

at

—

iJ ad.

Amarassie, Timor .

4°-379

235

12

it

. —

:• ad.

Tamalanta, Celebes

40.384

20

105

—

2?

—

3 ad.

Wady Natron, Egypt

3.8.I.I

20JJ

95

4?

2

—

o yg. ad.

Meroe, Upper Nile

4-H-3-I3

20 i

I2f

5

:«

—

? ad.

Shendy

I-S-5-I3

19

I2f

4§

—

cJ ad.

Bulhar, Somaliland

34.9.14.8

«i

I I

4?

2*

—

: ad.

Inhambane, Portuguese E.
Africa

6.1 1.8.43

i8J

log

4^

at

—

9 ad.

N.E. of Eshowe, Zululand

44-25

18

II

4*

2S

—

than tame is suggested by its being preserved by Rothschild. The skull, which
in practically all its dimensions agrees closely with that of the second on the
list, a tame London cat, is muscularly well moulded, with constricted postorbital
area, temporal ridges 7 mm. apart, confluent postorbital processes on each side,
and salient occipital crest. Its only exceptional feature is the wide interorbital
area.

The only available skull of a British feral cat is the one from the New Forest,
a very old, nearly toothless male. Owing to the unusual prominence of the
occipital crest, the total length exceeds by a few mm. that of the larger of the
two male cats from 'London a\ although its condylobasal length is shorter by
about the same amount. For the same reason the sagittal crest of the inter-
parietal is longer. It differs noticeably in some other respects. The temporal
ridges are strong but 18 mm. apart at the suture, and define a definite area

•9

about 27 mm. long; the postorbital bars are complete and exceptionally wide;
the lower rim of the orbit is strongly arcuate, the nasals are short, with a median
length of 19 mm., have straight, evenly convergent sides and bullae are low.
In 'London b' , a much younger skull, the temporal ridges are weak but only
6 mm. apart on the suture and confluent 8 mm. behind it; the postorbital bars
are incomplete by about 6 mm., the lower rim of the orbit is less arcuate, the
nasals are 21 mm., are mesiallv constricted and the bullae are higher. 'London
/)' differs from 'a' in the slightly more arcuate orbits, more steeply sloped face,
owing to the development of air-cells in the frontals, and in its higher bullae.
In its widely fused postorbital bars, unusually prominent occipital crest, strong
and widely separated temporal ridges and broad, short, unconstricted nasals,
the New Forest cat differs from all the other skulls entered in the table, all of
which are more like the London skulls.

The adult $ skull from Tiflis, which has no skin, probably represents the
apparently common black Caucasian cat described as F. daemon by Satunin,
who regarded it as a valid species. The skull differs from that of the wild cat
of the Caucasus (F . silvestris caucasica) in its more prominent forehead, a common
feature in F. catus, and in its smaller teeth.

An Indian skull of some interest is that of Brooke's red cat from Bombay,
which is about the same age as the skull ' London a ', but although a little narrower,
is decidedly longer owing to the greater length of the jaws, which have the nasal
branch of the premaxillae exceptionally wide. In the two skulls the length from
the foramen magnum to the suture of the palate in the middle line is the same,
namely 63 mm., but in the Bombay skull the length from that point to the end
of the premaxillae is 25-5 mm., whereas in the London skull it is 20 mm. This
elongation of the jaws is accompanied by less steeply sloped and longer nasals,
25 mm. in the middle line. The bullae also are noticeably bigger.1 The (J skull
from Mogul Sarai (6.6.15.1) is almost the same length as the one from Bombay,
but it is older and more robust with much stouter, almost meeting postorbital
processes. Hodgson's $ skull from Nepal (45.1. 12. 516), a topotype of F. tor-
quata, is very like 'London a' in every respect but, being older, has bigger
postorbital processes and sagittal crest. The two $ skulls of the chaus-type
from Bhutan Duars (16.7.29.49) and the Mishmi Hills (23.1.7.78) are of exactly
the same type as the preceding and show no trace of chaus-descent. The
cj Siamese skull (91. 10.6. 1) is also quite unmistakably of the catus-type, although
the frontal postorbital processes are unusually slender for a muscularly well-
moulded skull, with strong posterior, sagittal and occipital crests. The £ skull
from South-west Timor (40.377), a topotype of F. megalotis, has a rather
unusually narrow and elongated muzzle, with the upper cheek-teeth a trifle
longer and the nasals 24 mm. in the middle line, 3 mm. longer than in the

1 The skul] of this Bombay cat is the longest of all the skulls of F. catus examined; but its
measurements both in length and width agree almost precisely with those of a 6* skull (No. 2.6.3.1)
from Baranza, River Drave, Hungary, given by Countess Bathyany to Dr. Hamilton, who figured
it as representing the European Wild Cat F. silvestris (see below, p. 35). This skull is much
older than the skull from Bombay and differs from it principally in having a complete low
sagittal crest extending from the suture and larger, more nearly meeting postorbital processes,
both age-characters.

topotype of torquata, which has a rather longer skull. The nasals and teeth are
even a shade longer than in the much bigger skull from Mogul Sarai. The
interorbital area is flat and nearly horizontal and the extension of air-cavities
into the anterior part of the frontal bones gives prominence to this portion
of the face and makes the slope of the anterior half of the nasals abrupt and
steep.

The skull from lionthain Peak, Celebes, closely matches the skull from
Timor except for being older and bigger, having a strong occipital crest, a
complete but very low sagittal crest rising to 4 mm. on the interparietal, and
in having more strongly compressed, shorter nasals, 20 mm. long mesially; and
the imperfect skull from Macassar is like the last. The skull from near Towns-
ville, Queensland, has the same prominent forehead as the last three, with the
nasals as long as in the Timor skull, but almost unconstricted. The Tasmanian
skull is similar, with the nasals as in the Timor skull. The noticeable prominence
of the forehead in these skulls is here and there foreshadowed in skulls to the
west of Wallace's line; but it is undeveloped in the young adult skull from
Mount Driven, Queensland, although it is manifest in the skull from Kiliman-
jaro. The skull from New Mexico has the forehead normally sloped and lightly
convex.

Adult female skulls usually resemble young male skulls in their smaller size
and less manifest muscular moulding, especially attested by the relatively wider
postorbital area. They vary individually like S skulls. In the English skull
(127 f) the upper part of the face at the junction of the frontals and nasals is
very prominent, so that the greater part of the nasals is abruptly and steeply
sloped, even more so than in the J skull from Timor, and the highest point of
the skull is just behind the postorbital processes; but in 127 k the highest point
is at the fronto-parietal suture, there is no marked fronto-nasal prominence
and the nasals are not abruptly and steeply inclined. In the skull from Meshed
the area just behind the postorbital processes is inflated and high and from
that point the upper surface forms a nearly straight incline to the anterior nares.
In the Rajputana skull the highest point is between the postorbital processes,
from which the facial profile slopes with a slightly sinuous convex curve; the
bullae are strongly inflated, about 1 1 mm. high, as compared with about 8 mm.
in other $ skulls, and pm1 and pin- are retained on both sides. The skull of the
ckaus-type from Hazaribagh closely resembles the last in shape, but has normal
dentition and bullae. The skull of the same mutant labelled " India" is a longer
and older skull, but owing to its strong muscular moulding, resembling a $ in
that respect, has the postorbital area and the cranium narrower. Also excep-
tionally strongly moulded and male-like is the skull of the Siamese ?, which
has much flatter frontal bones than the younger o skull of the same breed, and
has even narrower postorbital processes. In two additional skulls of this breed,
however, these processes are normal in shape.

The ;r skull from south-west Timor is the same shape as the j. A young
adult '■ skull (5S.4.S.3), without skin, from St. Vincent, presumably in the
Cape Verde Islands, has one or two points of interest. If it comes from the
Cape Verdes, it is a topotype of F. bouvieri, Rochebrune. It is small and weakly

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Lahej, Aden .

Aden

Djarkent

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Meshed .

Seistan .

Srinagar

Nepal

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Bombay .

Sambhar

Kolar, Mysore

Mishmi Hills, chaus-

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Bhutan Duars, chaus-

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Tunis .

Wady Natron, Egypt
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St. Vincent, Cape

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Bama, N. Cameroons
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25

moulded, like the type of pulchella, with the temporal ridges 17 mm. apart, no
sagittal and hardly a trace of occipital crest. It closely matches the English
skull (127 f), but the brow is not so prominent at the base of the nasals, which
are consequently rather less steeply sloped; but its chief peculiarities lie in its
dentition. Although not fully adult, it has no trace even of the socket of pm1
on either side, as in 127 k; the carnassials are small and pm* is remarkable for
the great reduction in size of its inner lobe, a feature in which it resembles the
dwarf South African species, Felis nigripes (p. 145), F. margarita (p. 139), and
some specimens of South African races of F. lybica.

An adult ? skull (19.7.7.3693), without skin, from Bakel, Senegal, also
probably represents bouvieri, which Rochebrune recorded from Senegambia.
Its measurements agree tolerably closely with those of the adult o from Wady
Natron, Lower Egypt, except that the zygomatic and postorbital widths are
narrower and w, larger, less worn; the frontals between the eyes are flattened
very much, as in the St. Vincent skull, but they are more swollen and prominent
so that the slope of the nasals is still steeper, the temporal ridges are 16 mm.
apart, the crests are better developed and the dentition is normal, although the
teeth are small.

An adult <j> skull from Last Hope Inlet, Chile, resembles the one from St.
Vincent in the reduction of the inner lobe of />/«*, and it is further remarkable
for the projection of the lower jaw beyond the upper and general lack of muscular
moulding, the postorbital area and the cranium being exceptionally wide for
a fully adult skull of its length.

Specimens in the Collection

Europe

16 skins

Mtd.

6"

1
1

3 mtd.

Skull
Skull
f ? skull
o? „
2 ? „
Skull

2 skulls

3 ..

Skull

3 mtd.

London (showing variation in

colour and pattern)
England — Chinchilla Persian
Smoke Persian
Blue Persian
India (England ?) Blue Angora
England ? Blue Persian
,, Russo-Persian
(17 lb. in weight)
England ? Brown Tabby
Persian (catus pattern)
England ? New-born kitten
London
England

Dunkeld, Scotland
England, Manx-breed
Cornwall, Red and White
Manx

R. I. Pocock [P]

28.7.13.1-15;

39.678

Mrs. L. B. Balding [P]

C14

W. F. Heath [PI

C 1

Mrs. Herring [P]

Co

37.6.10.39

44.18

Miss E. Watts [P]

C 16

Sgt. S. Ingram [P]

C3

Yarrell [P]

56.13.10.1177

R. I. Pocock [P]

42-33

John Ray [P]

46.4.2.2

Xo history

46.5. 11.9

Dr. Mantell [P]

41. 1. 14.46

Purchased

127 n

,,

127 0 and p

E. T. Newton [P]

E. R. Alston [P]

79.9.25.82

Zoological Society [P]

127 r

Mrs. Collings and L. Hart

Smith [P]

c7

26

Mtd.

Isle of Man. White and Grey

Manx
England, White Manx
New Forest. England
Siamese breed, brought from

India bv Lord Curzon

Skin

London, Siamese breed

Mtd.

England ?

Skin

o

Siam

2 skulls

France

Skin

Hungary

Skin

Luchon, Central Pyrenees

f

No locality

-;

Blair Atholl

G. C. Bacon [P]

CS

Miss T. S. Cochrane [P]

P. H. Baker [C & PI 7.:

Zoological Society [P]

R. I. Pocock [P] '

Mrs. Windham

Holley [P]

W. K. Taunton [P]

Morant [P]

F. Latastc [C & P]

Zoological Society [P]

Rothschild Bequest

Tetley Coll. [Purchased]

.16.1

44.21
44-17
C .7

C20

91. 10. 16. 1

19.7.7.1980, 2335

1 '43- '

39.1661
39.1664
39.1662
45-29

Asia and Australia

Skin

o

2 skin

Skin
6"

Skin
1

;
1

Skull
1

2 skulls

Skull

Skull

Tiflis
Aden

Lahej, Aden

Seistan, East Persia

Meshed, East Persia
Kandahar (Sir O. B. St.

John)
Djarkent, Turkestan

(W. Riickbeil)
Tibet
Srinagar, Kashmir (Sir O. B.

St. John)
Gopalpur, Kangra, 4,500 to

5,000 ft. (H. W. Wells)
Kumaun (E. R. Stevens)

Gangotri, Tehri Garhwal
Pilibhit, Rohilkund (C. A.

Crump)
United Provinces
Nepal

Katmandu
Sikkim

Hasimara, Bhutan Duars, 600
ft., Wia»s-type (N. A. Bap-
tista)

Purchased 20.7.4.2

Col. W. J. Verbury 95. 6.1. 61

[C & P]

A. B. Percival and W. 99.1 1.6.33

Dodson [C & P]

Calcutta Museum [Pj 6.1.2.4

Col. R. L. Kennion S.i.13.4

[C&P]

Sir P. Svkes [C & P] 13.42. 1

Dr. W. t. Blanford [P] 91. 10.7. 14

Hon. N. C. Rothschild 14.5. 10.60

B. H. Hodgson [P]
Dr. W. T. Blanford [P]

Bombav Nat. Hist. Soc.

[P] '
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

[P]
Purchased
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

[P]
R. St. G. Burke [C & P]
B. H. Hodgson [P]
B. H. Hodgson [PJ

Type of F. inconspicua
B. H. Hodgson [P]
Mrs. H. A. Oldfield [P]
B. H. Hodgson [P]
B. H. Hodgson [P]
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

[P] '

45.1.S.21S
91. 10. 7. 12

44.1-2
44- 1 5

118a

44-1

1

27-2

45-i
45-1

14.12

8-35
8.289

45 -1
26.6
58.6
58.6
16.7

12.515-

7-4

24-145

24-53

29.49

-516

27

6"

Angarakhata, South Kamrup,

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

21. 7.8. 19

Assam, chaus-type (H. W.

[P]

Wells)

6"

Dining, Mishmi Hills, 2,250

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

23.1.7.8

ft., chaus-type (H. W. Wells)

[P]

9

Nimiaghat, Hazaribagh

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

37.3.24.21

(C. A. Crump)

[P]

6"

Mogul Sarai, United Pro-
vinces

C. Stewart Betton [C & P]

6.6. 15. 1

6"

Sehore, Bhopal, Cen. India,

Capt. C. H. T. Whitehead

9.6. 12. 12

1 ,700 ft.

[C&P]

9

Sambhar, Rajputana (R. M.
Adam)

A. O. Hume [P]

85.8.1.20

6"

Sukkur, Sind (S. H. Prater)

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

44-13

i

? India ex Indian Museum

Secretary of State for
India [P]

79.11.21.2S8

2 <J

Junagadh, Kathiawar (C. A.

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44-3-4

Crump)

[P]

s

Bombay (imported by H. C.
Brooke to England)

R. I. Pocock [P]

44.20

3 6*9

Kolar Town, Mysore (G. C.

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

13.4.1 1.44-47

Short ridge)

[P]

i

Halery, North Coorg (G. C.

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44.10

Shortridge)

[P]

Do. (Capt. W. J. E. Boys)

Purchased

48.8.14.4

i

"Domestic cat of India",
chaus-type

Zoological Society [P]

55.12.24.263

i

India, chaus-type

A. D. Bartlett [P]

65.4.28.1

Mtd.

"Domestic cat of India",
chaus-type

E. Blyth [P]

66.i 1. 20. 1

.Mtd.

"Indian domestic cat", My-

Purchased

C 10

c?

sore
Ambawela, Ceylon (E. W.

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44.27a

Mayor)

[P]

I

Yatiyantota, Ceylon (E. W.

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44.22

Mayor)

[P]

9

Maymyo, Upper Burma

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44.11

(G. C. Shortridge)

[P]

3

Paunggaung, N. Shan States

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44-9

(G. C. Shortridge)

[P]

3

Toungoo, Lower Burma,

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44-7

chaus-type (J. M. D. Mac-

[P]

kenzie)

Skins

Toungoo, Lower Burma, red

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44.8, 12

torquata-type (J. M. D.

[P]

Mackenzie)

i

Toungoo, Lower Burma,

Bombav Nat. Hist. Soc.

44.6

tabby and white domestic

[P]

cat (J. M. D. Mackenzie)

9

Victoria Point, Tenasserim

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.

44.16

(G. C. Shortridge)

[P]

9

North Luzon, Philippines (J.
Whitehead)

Purchased

43-2343

Skin

Malaya

Charles Darwin [P]

68.2.19.118

<J9

Amarassie, South-west Timor,
1,400 ft. (W. J. C. Frost)

Purchased

40-377-379

28

J
Skins

Skull

Macassar, Celebes

„ (W. J. C. Frost)
Rantekaroa, Quarles Range,

Celebes, 6,boo ft. (W.J. C.

Frost)
Tamalanti, West Celebes,

3,300 ft. (W. J. C. Frost)
Bonthain Peak, South Celebes,

6,800 ft. (A. Everett)
Rollingstone, 23 miles north

of Townsville, Queensland

(G. H. Wilkins)
Mount Driven, South Cen-
tral Queensland
Annan River, Cooktown,

Queensland (T. V. Sher-

rinl
Tasmania

A. R. Wallace [C]

Purchased

Purchased

57.8.6.1

34-7-24-I-

40-370

Purchased

40-384

Purchased

97. 1. 3. 8

Purchased

23. 12. 16. 8

J. E. Young

LI']

23.10.4.1

F. du Cane (

rodman

[p]

23.1.5.27

R. Gunn [C i P]

127 g

Africa

Tunis
; skull St. Vincents, Cape Verde is.
Egypt, type of F. pulchella
1 and skin of kitten

Ber Victoria, Wady \atron,

Lower Egypt
Meroe, Upper Nile
et juv. Shendy, Sudan
skull Bakel, Upper Senegal
1 Gold Coast

Principe Is., Gulf of Guinea

Skin Dangila, North-west Abys-

sinia
Fashoda, Sudan
Lado, Sudan
Bulhar, Somaliland

9 skuli Sokotra (Prof. Bayley Balfour)
Kilimanjaro, Tanganyika,

5,000 tt.
Sibudeni, North-east Eshowe,
Zululand, 3,590 ft. (C.H.B.
Grant)
Coguno, Inhambane, Portu-
guese East Africa (C. H. B.
Grant)
1 British Bechuanaland

Great Karas Mts., South-west
Africa
Skin Machili R.. Northern Rhodesia

1 Voluma, Madagascar

SI in Ankafana Forest. Betsileo,

Madagascar

Sir Thomas Reade 55.12.24.2

Purchased 58.4.8.3

Dr. Turnbull Christie 165 a-b

[C & P]

X.C. Rothschild [C & P] 3.8.1.1

N. C. Rothschild [C s\ P] 4.1 1.3. 13

N. C. Rothschild [C & l'l
F. Lataste [P]
Capt. C. Armitage
Lt. Boyd Alexander

[C & P]
Major R. E. Cheesman

[C & P]
R. M. Hawker [C & P]
Dr. Emin Pasha [C & P]
Dr. R. E. Drake Brock-
man [C & P]
British Ass. [P]
B. Cooper [P]

Col. A. Sloggett [P]

Rudd 1 1'|

1. 5. 5. 13-14

19.7.7.3693

44.26

1 1. 6. 12. 13-14

44-^7

1. 8.8.21

87.12.1.0

34014-8

81. 1.6. 1
37.8.18.16

6. 1 1.8.43

A. Pollard 37-Q-4-"

G. C. Shortridge [C cc P] 44.24

D. Gordon Lancaster 35.9.1. 156

[C&P]

Mrs. Cutter [Purchased] 70.5.5.38

Rev. W. D. Cowan 82.3.1.7

[C & P]

29

America

Skin

New Mexico

Purchased

57.6.22.1

? skull

Puerto Prat., Last Hope Inlet,
Chile (Dr. J. F. Haegert)

J. A. Woolfssohn [P]

12.7.12.3

Felis silvestris, Schreber

1777. Felis (catiis) silvestris, Schreber, Saugthiere, 3, p. 397, pi. 107a (Germany).
Synonymy under subspecies.

Geographical Distribution. — Great Britain, France and Spain eastwards
through Central and Southern Europe to South-west Russia, Asia Minor and
the Caucasus.

Diagnosis. — Size medium for the genus, with the tail about half the length
of the head and body, usually over but sometimes under, and almost invariably
over twice the length of the hind foot. The coat is full, soft and long, about
50 mm., and thickened with wool; but there is no definite crest of longer
hairs on the spinal area of the back, nor usually are the hairs on the tip of
the ear sufficiently elongated to be called a tuft or pencil; the tail is bushy,
cylindrical, not appreciably narrowed at its posterior end and its tip is broadlv
rounded.

Colour. — The general colour of the upper side of the body, excluding the
pattern, varies from brownish to silvery grey in accordance with the tint of the
generally extensive subterminal paler area of the contour hairs, which may be
pale brown, buff-grey or bleached to nearly white, these hairs having a black
tip above and a black area below the pale area, the base being white-, the wool
is pale grey at the base, almost always pale buff or ochreous at the summit, and
this tint may appear on the surface when the contour hairs are disturbed. The
backs of the ears are nearly uniformly coloured, greyish brown or brownish
grey, sometimes with a faint ochreous or rusty wash and a trifle darker at the
tip, but never very sharply contrasted in tint with the head; the muzzle and
upper lip are rich buff, but there may be some whitish on the edge of the upper
lip; the lower lip, chin and interramal area are white, and there is a whitish
patch on the inner side of each eye. On the lower surface the throat behind
the whitish interramal area and the chest are greyish, often tinged with buff,
and there may be an albino patch varying in size and shape on the throat and
another on the fore part of the chest ; the hinder part of the abdomen in front
of the genitalia is usually white to a varying extent, and this is surrounded bv
bright hairs ranging from buff to rich ochreous, these tints spreading over the
inner and posterior surfaces of the thighs, the genital area and the basal part
of the tail below. The upper side of the tail is like the back, except that the
wool is generally black or grey throughout, without the buff tint, and the spaces
between the terminal stripes are paler, greyish to nearly white above and below.
The fore and hind legs are greyish or buffy, typically brighter and buffier on
the paws and the soles of the feet round the pads are typically wholly black or
blackish, this colour extending to the carpal pad on the fore foot and frequently
up to the hock on the hind foot.

3°

The pattern on the head consists of t\vi> check stripes, one rising from the
corner of the eve and passing backwards beneath the ear, where it curves
downwards, the other from the cheek below the eye and, following the same
, ceases close to the upper, but they do not pass on to the throat to form
a collar behind the interramal area; sometimes there is an abbreviated stripe
between these two in front and there is a patch or spot in front of the eye, and
another just above it, whence the superciliary vibrissae rise. On the crown
there are fundamentally five stripes, but these are often broken up into spots
and confused, although two of them at least are distinct on the forehead above
the eyes, where they abruptly cease. The median may be traceable, although
narrow and discontinuous, over the nape and shoulders; but behind the shoul-
ders it expands into a conspicuous black spinal stripe running to the root of
the tail. The two pairs of lateral stripes on the head pass on to the nape, where
they diverge and are thick and strongly emphasised; the inner pair may
occasionally extend uninterruptedly backwards over the shoulders, but usually
they are broken, so that two shoulder stripes are isolated and confined to that
area, although they are sometimes traceable posteriorly as blotches or short
stripes on each side of the spinal stripe; the outer pair either cease at the
posterior end of the nape or, taking an outward curvature, are continued to the
base of the fore legs. These dorsal, longitudinal stripes are more persistent
than those on the sides of the body, which are generally less emphasised and
may be evanescent, but are sometimes as sharply defined and, about a dozen
in number, extend transversely or vertically from just behind the shoulder to
the root of the tail, the three in front, of which the first runs to the fore leg,
being complete and unbroken, whereas those on the hinder part of the body
are more irregular and tend to be broken up more or less, giving a blotched,
spotted or brindled pattern to this area, although where they pass on to the
thighs and take an oblique direction down to the hocks they are typically better
defined, and one or more of these may pass on to the inner surface of the thigh,
almost encircling it; occasionally there are a few short stripes below the hock
in front. The fore leg may have as many as six stripes on its outer side and
two a little below the elbow extend on to its inner surface encircling the limb,
the lower at least being broad and strongly pronounced, and the back of the
upper part of the leg below the elbow may be heavily pigmented with black.
On the under side a narrow transverse stripe may form a collar just behind the
interramal area and sometimes there are traces of two similar juxtaposed stripes
on the posterior part of the throat. The chest behind the fore legs may have
a pattern of strong, irregular stripes continuous with those of the sides of the
body, but usually these are broken up into spots which are sometimes so faint
as to be scarcely detectable.

Skull. — The skull is short as compared with its width; the anterior or
orbital portion of the zygomatic arches is salient, arcuate when viewed from
above, and provided with a prominent thickening above and external to the
infraorbital foramen. The bullae are of moderate size, their extreme length
being much less than one-fourth the condylobasal length and much less than
the length of the upper cheek-teeth; the occipital space between them is a little

31

narrower than their width and the inner chamber is noticeably larger than the
outer. The cranial portion is wide, rounded and weakly moulded muscularly,
the postorbital area being only slightly constricted and the sagittal crest usually
restricted to its posterior portion, the temporal ridges in both sexes typically
forming a lyrate area which reaches to or beyond the middle of the parietals;
but the occipital crest is salient. In the teeth p»r is normally present and pni4
has the inner lobe (protocone) well developed. Some variations in the skull
and teeth are described under the subspecific headings.

Characters. — Individual skins show considerable variation in colour and
distinctness of pattern. Two from France are strongly contrasted. One from
Selanon, Haute Marne (95.1 1.9.2), February 5, with the coat about 50 mm.
long, has a pronounced silvery grey cast, the stripes on the head, nape, shoulders
and spine are strong and black, but the lateral stripes are weaker, and rather
obscure, although more pronounced on the legs; the spots on the chest are
strong; the abdomen is buffy and the tail is grey with four distinct stripes, three
forming complete rings; the hind foot is brown below the hock. One from
Mouladier Forest, near Moulins, Allier Province (19.7.7.3646), no date, has the
coat about the same length and is probably an early winter skin, the colour
above being yellowish brown without any greyish white in the contour hairs;
the dorsal stripes are distinct and black, but those on the flanks and outer side
of the fore leg are obsolete, those on the thighs obscure and on the chest fuscous;
the abdomen is ochreous, the tail buffy with two strong stripes; the hind foot
is black to the hock.

One from Manonville, Meurthe-et-Moselle (95.11. 9.1), February 25, has the
coat about 57 mm. and closely matches the skin from Selaron in ground tint,
but is not quite so silvery, has the pattern on the sides and thighs weaker, with
scarcely a trace of them on the outer side of the fore leg and the spots on the
chest are almost obliterated; the tail has only two complete rings and the hind
foot is buff below the hock, and the black on the sole is relieved by a white
patch in front of the plantar pad. One from Caterille, Haute Garonne (8.7. 15. 1),
January 15, with the coat about 53 mm., is nearly intermediate between the
darker Mouladier skin and the two "frosted" French skins above described;
the lateral pattern is hardly traceable, on the fore leg and thighs it is faint, but
stronger close to the hock; the tail is about as in the Mouladier skin, the abdomen
is rich ochreous and the chest-spots are strong and black; but the hind foot is
yellowish brown below the hock, black about the pads.

One German skin from near Ingelheim, in Hessen (11. 1.2. 104), is silvery,
like the first described two skins from France, and the tail is pale grey; the
lateral stripes are brown and rather faint, but those on the thighs are stronger,
and on the outside of the fore legs visible; spots on the chest are large and
black, and the hind foot is greyish brown below the hock. A skin from North
Germany (95.5.1.1) is an exact match of the one from Caterille, but the wool is
paler buff at the summit, there is less ochreous on the abdomen, and the tail
has three complete black bands.

Two male skins (Rothschild Bequest, 39.1659-60) from Luchon, on the
northern slopes of the Central Pyrenees, dated February 9, 1906, have

32

the coat full and long, 50 mm. on the spine, 35 mm. on the flanks and
45 mm. on the tail. The stripes on the nape, shoulders and spine are well
defined and black, as are those on the legs; but the flank stripes are indistinct,
giving a brindled effect. They closely resemble the skin from Caterille, dated
January 15; but are not so grey and bleached as the skin from Selaron, killed
on February 6.

Felis silvestris silvestris, Schreber

1777. Felis silvestris. Schreber, Saugthiere 3, p. 397, pi. 107 a (Germany).

1777. {Felis catus) ferns, Erxleben, Syst. Regni Anim., 1, p. 518.

1857. Felis catus, Blasius, Saugethiere, p. 162, and many subsequent authors.

including Elliot, Mon. Felidae, pi. 30, 1876-83; Lydekker, Cats, Allen

Nat. Library, p. 170 (1895); Hamilton, The Wild Cat of Europe,

1896 (not Felis catus, Linnaeus, see ante, p. 6).
1863. Catus fetus, Brehm, Illustr. Thierleben, 1, p. 275 (Germany).
1896. Catus ferox, Martorelli, Atti. Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat., Milano, 35, p. 253

(January) (Germany).
1907. Felis silvestris, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 150; Trouessart, Faune

Mamm. d'Europe, 1910, p. 98.
1912. Felis silvestris silvestris, Miller, Cat. Mamm. Western Europe, p. 462;

Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk., 5, p. 53, 1930; ibid. Mamm. U.S.S.R.,

3, p. 120, 1935; Pocock, Jour. Linn. Soc, Zool., 39, p. 7, 1934.

Geographical Distribution. — Central Europe from France, Northern
Spain and Italy in the west eastwards into South-west Russia, the western
shores of the Black Sea, and probably Greece.

Colour. — Two undated skins from Burgos, North Spain, agree closely with
those from Luchon, and with German skins. A $ (8.7.7. 11), witn the coat
about 47 mm. long, is silvery almost, as in the skin from Ingelheim, but has
the stripes on the sides of the body and the fore and hind legs more distinct,
those on the sides being brown and much paler than the strong black dorsal
stripes; the spots on the chest are black and the tail has three well-defined
stripes. A ? (8.7.7.10) is not so silver}' as the o, almost exactly matching the
skin from North Germany, but has the pattern on the chest more pronounced
and more black on the base of the fore leg and on the hock.

Measurements of Skins

Sex Locality

Head

X umber and Tail

Body

Hind

Flint

3 ad.

cJ yg-

; ad.

yg-

Burgos. North Spam

(vide Cabrera)

^3!

103

4!

Caterille

. 8.7.15-1

1 <J 1

105

4t

North Germany

95-S-i-i

ait

I2§

5E

Rheinhessen .

1 1. 1. 2. 1 04

i9i

12*

4*.

33

It is to be noticed that in the three specimens in the British Museum, which
were measured in the flesh, the tail is considerably more than half the length
of the head and body and the hind foot about one-fourth the length, a little
more or less, whereas in Cabrera's specimen the tail is a good deal less than
half and the hind foot much less than one-fourth the length of the head and
body. This suggests that Cabrera's measurements were taken from a dried skin,
mounted or flat, in which the head and body were more stretched than the tail
and foot, a very usual result 6f that method of preservation.

Fig. i.

Felis silvestris silvestris

A <S B. — Upper and Lower view of skull of adult 3; Tubingen, S. Germany.
C. — Nasal bones not foreshortened.
D. — Side view of right auditory bulla.

Skull. — The variations in the available skulls, allowing for such as arise
from age and sex, are comparatively slight. The highest point of the cranium
lies as nearly as maybe at the level of the posterior edges of the frontal post-
orbital processes where the inflation with air-cells is greatest. The inflation
varies individually and is greatest in the skull from Mouladier Forest, near
Moulins (19.7.7.3645). The extent of the inflation where the frontals abut
against the maxillae and nasals and the consequent steepness of the shape of
the median part of the nasals also vary to a certain amount; but none of the
skulls shows the marked prominence of this area so commonly developed in
domestic cats both tame and feral. The temporal ridges always form a more
or less lyrate area which is narrowest, 16 mm. wide, at the suture in the above
quoted skull from Mouladier, which is younger than the male skull from South

34

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p
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Locality

■ - (J

03 C

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3 *

o 2
b -

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£ "3 - VK X S S c-c

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J £ SO en 'fi A'-r

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35
Germany (i 143 f), in which the area is 21 mm. wide. In the latter also the sagittal
crest on the interparietal is low, only 1 mm. high, and the postorbital processes
are massive and almost in contact, whereas in the Mouladier skull the crest is
3 mm. and the postorbital processes are not so massive and are more widely
separated. The nasals are variable in width and length. In the skull from
Meurthe-et-Moselle (95. 11. 9.1) their median length is 23 mm. and their least
width at the frontal points is 5 mm. ; in the skull from the Mouladier Forest,
near Moulins (19. 7. 7. 2901), the same dimensions are 25 and 7 mm., and in one
from South Germany (1143 d) 20 and 6 mm. In the last they do not overlap
the maxillae, whereas in the others the overlap is considerable, as is usually the
case, and as a rule there is no marked constriction, such as is seen in 95.11. 9.1.

As regards general size, the two imperfect skulls from Luchon, considered
to be (J, are larger than any from Western Europe, especially the first, which
probably had a condylobasal length equalling that of the skull from Varna.

The adult $ skull from Baranza, in Hungary, figured by Hamilton (The
Wild Cat of Europe, p. 50, 1896) as a representative of the European species,
is entered in the table of measurements because Miller assigned it, without
comment, to F. s. silvestris. But it differs in several points from all the other
skulls assigned to that race. It is exceptionally long, especially in the muzzle,
and narrow, its condylobasal length considerably exceeding that of all the others
except the one from Varna, which I have not seen, and its postorbital width is
much less. This last character, associated with its narrow, rugose cranium, is
accompanied by a complete sagittal crest extending from the fronto-parietal
suture, as in one of the skulls of the Spanish race (see below, p. 43), and an
occipital crest more salient than in the other skulls, in which the temporal ridges
form a sublyrate area not less than 1 1 mm. wide, as it is in the skull (19.7.7.3645)
from near Moulins, the sagittal crest being restricted to the posterior slope of
the upper surface. In 1934 I ignored this skull as being that of a domestic cat
or possibly of a wild cat reared from early cubhood in captivity;1 and the same
course is here followed.

Specimens in the Collection

Burgos, North Spain (S. and G. Purchased 8.7.7.10-11

Gonzalez)
2 o Luchon, Pyrenees, France Rothschild Bequest 39.1659—60

2 o Forest of Mouladier. near F. Lataste [P] 19.7.7.3646, 2901

Moulins, France
6" Caterille, Haute Garonne (H. O. Thomas [P] 8.7.15.1

Robert)

1 Evidence in favour of this conclusion is supplied by the mandible which will not balance
upright on a flat surface on its postdental portion. In this it resembles the mandible of over
90 per cent of domestic cats. In the wild cat, on the contrary, the mandible stands in that
position. This difference, first pointed out to me by Heneage Cocks, who had implicit faith in
the test, is due to the more backward slope of the coronoid in domestic cats. On p. 462 of his
Mammals of Western Europe, Miller figured the mandibles of the domestic and wild cats to
show this difference; but the legend of the illustration should be transposed, the upper figure
being the mandible of F. catus and the lower that of F. silvestris. This backward slope of the
coronoid is a common feature in menagerie-reared Carnivora.

36

Manonville, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Dr. E. Hamilton [I'] 95.] 1.9.1

Lomont Mountains
Selaron, Lomont Mountains. Dr. E. Hamilton [P] 95.11.9.2

Haute Marnc

1 Near Ingelheim, Rheinhessen, 11. 1.2. 104

Germany

o North Germany Lord Lilford [P] 95.5.1.]

2 skulls South Germany Dr. A. Gunthcr [P] 1 1 43 d and 1 1 43 f
o Kirnbergwald, near Tubingen Purchased 20.7.4.3

o skull Baranza, Hungary (reared in Dr. E. Hamilton [P] 2.6.3.1
captivity)

Felis silvestris grampia. Miller

1907. Felis grampia, Miller, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th series, 20, p. 396
(Invermoriston, Inverness, Scotland); Trouessart, Faune Mamm.
d'Europe, p. 99, 1910.

1912. Felis silvestris grampia, Miller, Cat. Mamm. Central Europe, p. 464,
Pocock, Journ. Linn. Soc. Zool., 39, p. 1, 1934. id. The
Scottish Naturalist, 1934, p. 36; Tetley, Proc. Zool. Soc, ser. B, 3,
p. 13, 1941.

Geographical Distribution. — Formerly throughout Great Britain, now-
restricted to the wilder parts of Scotland north of a line between Glasgow and
Dundee.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished on the average from the typical Central
European race (F. s. silvestris, p. 32) by its slightly larger size, darker ground
colour and more pronounced pattern.

Measurements. — Comparatively few of the specimens in the Museum were
measured in the flesh, but Tetley gave the dimensions of nine adult jJcJ and six
adult V+, mostly from Perthshire, which agree very closely with those enumer-
ated below. His largest two rJc? have the head and body and tail 25 § + 1 2 \ and
25J+ 14J, inches slightly exceeding the jj from Ardgay, the same dimensions
in his smallest, an old o, being 23J + 13J. His largest ? is 22? + 12 and his
smallest 20§-f 10;'. As regards weight the $ from Ardgay is the heaviest
recorded, the second being one of \c,\ lb. mentioned by Kirk. Tetley's £<$,
with one exception, vary from n to 1 ^ lb., the exception being a very thin
specimen of 7 \ lb. The average weight of his normal $$ is about 12 lb. His ?9
vary from 6| to ioi lb., the average being about 81 lb.

Colour. — Colour on the average darker and the pattern on the flanks and
limbs better defined, than in the typical Central European race, the stripes on
the legs and spots on the ventral surface never so nearly evanescent and the
transverse stripes on the throat, not conspicuous in any of the examined skins
of that race, very commonly present and often well defined. The coat a little
longer and fuller than in the Southern Spanish race, the colour on the average
a little darker, but the pattern about the same, except that the throat "collars"
are not developed in the few available skins of tartessia.

Skull. — The skull a little longer on the average than in F. silvestris silvestris,

with the teeth about the same size; but a little shorter than m F vhestll
turtessia with the teeth a little smaller. ' s"lestris

Remarks -Individual variations in the colour and pattern were pointed
out by myself ,n ,934 and by Tetley in 1941. Hence it is only necessan' to
deal now w,th { out f the ]arge number of sk.ns Rrftish MuseLm

One from the Ardnamurchan, Argyllshire (37.6.10.1), May 22 is as si hen Ts
any of the sk.ns of typical silvestns, closely matching in this respect ho e?kln

1 1 Cr r°m Selaru0n' '" FranCe' and Testemel- >n Dobrudscha, but w "h
the lateral pattern much stronger. Two other skins come near it in silverings
namely one from Glencassley, Sutherlandshire (92.10.2..,), and one from

SmTdn10" (T-240' SePutCmber I3' The dateS °f this *" and of the 0™
from Ardnamurchan suggest that the "frosting" is not a seasonal feature Other

Upper view of skull of adult 3 Fetis silve^ris grampia from Ardgay, Ross-sh.re.

skins show every graduation in the tint of the subterminal pale area of the con
tour hairs from wh.te to ochreous brown In the latter case th! Z

^oui:!!0861^"86"1?16 that,°f ,He d3rkeSt ^ rffe^lSftaS
Moulad.er Forest (19.7.7 3646 . A skin from Inverness-shire fo . T.) is
unusual for having the chin and area between the lower jaws rich ocLeous
and the who e throat ochreous grey apart from an alb.no spot. This area from
the ch.n backwards vanes from that tint to nearly wholly white
h„tTh d°rSa' Pattern is always strongly pronounced, as in the other races-
but the skin above referred to from Ardnamurchan is peculiar in that he t™
pairs of stripes on the crown are cont.nued posteriorly as comparatively narroT
.lux.aposed l.nes along the nape to the shoulders, the median pa ? JEE
Without .nterrupt.on over the shoulders to the anterior part of the back The

thl'Tirb^k'H68 ° thC b°dy ^^ bL6 VCry famt a"d are "ear'v altys broJnhe
than the black dorsal pattern; but they are commonly well developed and fn
a skin from Dundonnell (16.11.27.3) they are very nearly as black as the dorsa"
pattern. I he skins, with heavily marked lateral pattern," doKlyl^WeX

38

of the South Spanish race /•'. silvestris tartessia. On the other hand, skins with
the lateral pattern faint, as in a ,j from Aehnacarry, Inverness-shire (25.7.7.1),
in which it is obscure and detectable only as indistinct brindling, are like most
of those of the typical Central European race F. silvestris silvestris; and, as in
the colour, there is every gradation between the extremes in the distinctness
of the pattern.

-Measurements and Weights of Ftus silvestris grampia

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind

Foot

Ear

Weight

in.

in.

in.

in.

lb.

1 ad.

Ardgay, Ross

34.1.6.1

25

■4?

51

2l +

■5l

o* ad.

Glenmoriston, Inverness

26.9.24.1

23J

'3

5?

2!

13 J

6* ad.

Beauly, Inverness

29.11.4.1

22J

12

Si

2«

—

ad.

Dunkeld, Perthshire

45-352

22 A

I2i

5

2k

81

ad.

Aberdeenshire

4.1.25.4

2iE

II*

S

2j

—

ad.

Dundonnell, Ross

16.1 1. 27. 1

20 1

12?

Si

2|

—

9 ad.

.. ,1

16. n. 27. 3

20

12?

5i

1',

—

9 ad.

,, ,,

16. 1 1.27.2

19*

>3S

5

2?.

—

. ad.

Braulen Forest, Inver-

ness-shire

6.12. 18. 1

20!

II

4*

26

—

Skull. — As in other races of the species, q* skulls are longer and wider than
skulls on the average, and have slightly larger teeth. In adult ,_J skulls the
condvlobasal length ranges from 88 to 99 mm., the average in many specimens
being about 93 mm. In adult ,' skulls the same dimension varies from 82 to
88 mm., the average of many being 85 mm. In youngish rj skulls the temporal
ridges are faint and define a wide lyrate area about 20 or more mm. apart at
the fronto-parietal suture. In older or old skulls the area is narrower, the ridges
stronger and from 15 to 12 mm. apart at the suture, and meet behind on the
posterior half of the parietals. They meet at that point in an adult 3 in Tetley's
collection (45.44) from Killihangie, and in an old c? (45-47) from Calvine,
Perthshire. In the latter, which has the teeth worn, the ridges are 12 mm.
apart, in the former the distance is 15 mm. In $ skulls the ridges resemble
those of the younger adult males. In both sexes the sagittal crest is a low ridge
restricted to the occipital area. The nasal bones are almost always wide with
evenly convergent edges, but they may be constricted, as in a $ from Ben
Ghormaig (Tetley's collection, 45.36). The posterior ends of these bones
usually extend beyond the upper ends of the maxillae, up to 6 or more mm.;
but they are occasionally level with them or even a little behind.

The teeth vary a little in size and number. In the upper jaw />///'- is usually
retained,1 but may be lost in old animals. In the lower jaw a minute p»i- is
occasionally present.

1 An additional small premolar, judged to be pm1, was recorded by me in a skull from
Ross-shire (Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., r8, p. 272. 1916).

39

ft.
u.
O
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M N M W M

u-i m J^ m ^f Tf

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Number

34.1.6. i
29.2.27.2
29. 11. 4. 6
20.9.24.1
34.6.28. 15

to

CO "

^ «? M ■: 2

O* " ir> c> C*

r^ -j- •*■ o* m

in

M v©

Locality

Ardgay, Ross .
Beauly, Inverness

Glenmoriston, ,,
Ardgour, Argyllshire
Inchnadamph,

Sutherland
Invermoriston,

Inverness-(type)
Sutherland
Dunkeld, Perthshire
Fort William .
Ben Nevis, Inverness
Invermoriston,

Inverness
Arisaig, Inverness

Sex

T3 TJ "O t3 "O "0
« rt w w n c3

"2 T3 -d

*0 Of Of Of Of Of

■d

4°

Specimens in the Collection

2 skulls
Skull

2 skins

3 o
S,
<?
3 o

2 cj, i ■;

3

2 3, i ?
6" mtd.

6*

i<!,2S,4

Sutherland

Glencassley, Sutherland
Inchnadamph, Sutherland

(J. A. Harvie Brown)
Loch Carron, Ross
Dundonnell, Ross

Ardgay, Ross

Beauly Dist., Inverness-shire

Guisachan, Beauly, Inverness.
Knock Fin, Beauly River,

Inverness-shire
Invermoriston, Inverness-shire

E. T. Newton [P]

Lady W. H. Flower [P] 92. 10.21. 1

E. R. Alston [P] 79.9.25.81

Zoological Society [P]
Miss Firth [P]

Sir' R. \v" Brooke [P]
Sir Lionel Fletcher [P]

Lord Tweedmouth [P]
Col. R. Stephenson Clarke

[P]
A. H. Cocks [P]
(type of subspecies)

Glenmoriston,

3 skulls Ben Nevis, Inverness-shire
Lochailort ,,

Mtd. Balmachan, „

Brauhn Forest,
Knovdart.

2 o

Skul

6
2 o

Arisaig,

Achnacarry,
Inverness-shire

Yg. mtd. Ardnamurchan, Argyllshire
Glencrispdale, ,,

$ Strontian,

'4 2 juv.

9
4 J, 2

c?

o

1 ;. 2
1

3 j

2 3, 1 \

Inversanda, Ardgour, Argyll.

Ben Ghormaig, Morven, ,,

Glen Caledon, Braemar, Aber-
deenshire (H. S. Foljamh)

Aberdeenshire

Glen Shee, Perthshire

Killiehangie, Ballinluig,
Perthshire

Calvine. Perthshire

Dunkeld, ..

Cluniemore, Pitlochry, Perth.

Balnakeill,

Bonskeid, ,, ,,

Fonab,

Ben Vrackie, ,,

Fincastle, ,,

Borenich, LochTummel ,,

Loch Tummel ,,

39.667, 668
16.11.27.1-3
30.2. 1 7. 1-2
34. 1. 6. 1
29.2.27.1-2
29.11.4.1
5. 10. 12. 1
23-4-4'-3

4-I-25-3

. ,,

4-I-25-2.5

Hon. N. C. Rothschild [P]

1.5.22.4

A. L. Marriott

20.9.24.1

Col. J. Hamilton Leigh

34.6.28.33,35,37

[PI

38-40,43-44

Dr. E. Hamilton [P]

1937. 12. 11. 1-3

Kenneth Macdonald [P]

35.12.4.1

J. E. Harting [P]

83. 11. 3. 1

G. W. Henderson [P]

6.12.18.1

Sir Herbert Maxwell [P]

98. 12. 26. 1

,, ,,

99.2.9.1

Dr. E. Hamilton [P]

2.6.3.4

Cameron of Lochiel [P]

25.7.7.1

Purchased

33-II7-I

32.3. 10. 1

Rothschild Bequest

39-365!

E. Baker [P]

38.8.5.1-5

Col. J. Hamilton Leigh

34.6.2S.41

[P]

Col. J. Hamilton Leigh

34.6.28.43-46

[P]

Tetley Coll. (Purchased)

45-30-7

Purchased

51.10.4.90-

A. H. Cocks [P]

4.1.25.4

Sir M. Ramsay [P]

28. 4. 1. 1

Tetley Collection

45.45-46,48-51

(Purchased)

Tetlev Coll. (Purchased)

45-47

W. S. Roy

45-352

Tetley Coll. (Purchased)

45.19-21

,, ,, ,,

45-53

,, ,,

45.40-42

,, ,, ,•

45-35

,, ■ , ,1

45-43-44.52

45,54-5"

,, ,, »>

45--»

,,

45-17

4'

6 J, i ? Blair Atholl, Perth Tetley Coll. (Purchased) 45.22-28

3 <J, 2 ? Glen Tilt, Blair Atholl, „ „ „ „ 45.30-34

Mtd. Dumfries SirW. Jardine ,, 86.7.2.13

1 mtd. Scotland Rothschild Bequest 393652

„ „ Scotland Col. R. Shoolbred [P] 33.1.16.1

Mtd. Fort William, Inverness-shire Purchased 24. 12. 16.4

Felis silvestris tartessia, Miller

1907. Felis tartessia, Miller, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 20, p. 397,

November (Coto Donana, Huelva, South Spain); Trouessart, Faune

Mamm. d'Europe, p. 99, 1910.
1912. Felis silvestris tartessia. Miller, Cat. Mamm. Western Europe, p. 465;

Pocock, Journ. Linn. Soc. Zool., 39, p. 3, 1934; id. The Scottish

Naturalist, 1934, pp. 36-9.

Geographical Distribution. — Southern Spain.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from F. s. grampia and F. s. silvestris by its
shorter, thinner winter coat and larger skull and teeth, and also from the latter
by the more strongly pronounced lateral pattern, but resembling well-marked
examples of the former in this respect. The skull and teeth are about the same
size as in manv examples of F. s. cancasica; but the colour is much clearer grev
and the pattern stronger than in that race.

Colour. — Only three skins certainly belonging to this race are available,
and they differ slightly individually. One (8.3.8.1) from Coto Donana, undated,
is probably a summer skin judging from the coat which is thinnish and short,
the hairs on the flanks being about 35 mm. and on the crest 45 mm. long. The
pale speckling of the contour-hairs on the flanks is buff grey and not extensive
owing to the shortness of the coat; the wool on the flanks is clear buff at the
summit, on the spine it is duller, deeper buff, darkening towards the shoulder;
the dorsal pattern is strong and black, the four stripes running from the head
to the nape nearly reach the two on the shoulder and are traceable down the
spine as closely juxtaposed bands which gradually lose their distinctness towards
the base of the tail; the lateral stripes are also conspicuous, but less so than
the dorsal, owing to being diluted with pale buff speckling; on the legs externally
the pattern is stronger than on the flanks and is continued to the paws; the chin
and fore throat are dirty white, the hind throat palish grey, the chest and
abdomen buff, oversprinkled with white, and the insides of the thighs are
ochreous to the hocks; the pattern on the chest is strong and black, but the
throat-collars are almost obsolete.

The type (7.6.4.1), from Coto Donana, probably killed a little later in the
season than the last, has the coat slightly longer and fuller, is a little clearer
grey, with the wool everywhere rather duller in tint; the dorsal pattern is nearly
the same, but the median stripes on the neck are more widely separated from
the shoulder stripes; the pattern on the flanks, legs and below is not so strong,
and the chest and belly are not so buff and are more extensively oversprinkled
with white.

42

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43

The third skin (7.1 2.5.1), from the Sierra Morena, marked winter, has the
coat fuller and longer than in the first described specimen, the flank-hairs being
about 42 mm. ; the general colour above is noticeably clearer grey, the wool on
the flanks is duller buff than in either of the preceding two, and that of the
spine is much darker, mostly sooty brown with a buffish tint only over the loins;
the lateral and ventral pattern is almost as in the type, that of the nape and
shoulders more as in the first described. The differences between 7.12.5. 1 and
8.3.8.1. in the tints of the flanks and of the wool probablv indicate the normal
seasonal differences that occur in this race.

No flesh measurements are available.

Fig. 3.
Skull of adult 3 of Felis silvestris tartessia from Goto Dofiana, S. Spain.

Skull. — The skull of a topotype, an oldish 5 from Goto Dofiana (8.3.8.1),
is exceptionally well developed not only in length, but in muscular moulding.
The temporal ridges meet at the obliterated fronto-parietal suture and behind
that point there is a definite, but low sagittal crest,1 about 1 mm. high, rising
to 4 mm. posteriorly, where it joins the prominent occipital crest; the postorbital
area is constricted and the zygomatic and maxillary widths, especially the latter,
are large. The highest point of the skull, as in typical silvestris, is on a level
with the posterior edges of the postorbital processes, where there is marked
air-cell inflation; the nasals are unconstricted andthe orbital rings are incomplete.

The skull of the type (7.6.4.1), also 3, although fully adult is not so old as
the last and is smaller. The temporal ridges are 10 mm. apart at the suture
and meet in the centre of the parietals; the frontals between the postorbital
processes are not so inflated, the anterior nares are narrower, 12 mm. as
compared with 15 mm., but the bullae are a little longer.

An adult <J skull from Andalucia (2.6.3.2) is smaller than the preceding, and

1 The only other skull of the species with a similar sagittal crest is the one from Baranza,
Hungary (2.6.3.1.), discussed on p. 35.

44

although the temporal area is narrower, only 7 mm. wide at the suture, the
posterior sagittal crest is lower, onlv 3 mm., and the occipital crest is much less
salient than in the type and in the topotype. A skull from Sierra Morena
(7.12.5.1) lias the zygomata slightly wider than in 2.6.3.2, but is evidently
younger by its wider postorbital area and temporal ridges 13 mm. apart. The
skull (2.6.3.3) from Andalucia is adult. It differs from the o skulls by its
much smaller size, smaller postorbital processes, wider postorbital and temporal
areas, the ridges of the latter being 18 mm. apart. Its teeth are about the same
size as in the J^, except the canine, which has a basal thickness of 5 mm. instead
of 6 mm. in the 3d-

Specimens in the Collection

Coto Dofiana, Huelva, Anda- Abel Chapman [P] 7.6.4.1

lucia, S. Spain (B. F. Buck) type

Coto Doiiana, Huelva, Anda- Abel Chapman [C & P] S.3..S. i

lucia, S. Spain (B. F. Buck)

Sierra Morena, north of Abel Chapman [C & P] 7.1 2.5.1
Palma del Rio

1 ;. ! . Andalucia (Howard Saunders) Dr. E. Hamilton [P] 2.6.3.2-3

1 Spain Zoological Society [['] 39.670

Felis silvestris molisana, Altobello

iui2. Felis silvestris silvestris, Miller, Cat. Maram. Western Europe, p. 463 (in

part, skins from Rome).
1921. Felis molisana, Altobello, Fauna dell' Abruzzo, Mamm., p. 55 (Molise,

Italy); id. Monitore Zool. Ital., 35, Rendiconti, etc., p. 35, 1924;

Pocock, Journ. Linn. Soc. Zool., 39, pp. 10-11, 1934.

Geographical Distribution. —Central Italy, Abruzzo, Molise, and
Campania.

Characters. -This race mav be provisionally admitted on the evidence of
a skin1 from Rome in the British Museum which differs from the other European
races, in the combination of a few particulars.

Colour. — The coat is short, about 40 mm. long, only moderately thick,
and smoother; the ground colour is dull, darkish grey, finely and closely speckled
with paler buffv grev and quite lacking the bolder speckling typical of the other
races when it is developed; the stripes on the head, nape and spine are strong
and black, but the two stripes on the shoulders are unusually faint; the lateral
pattern is also faint, browner than the grey ground tint, but the stripes above
the hocks and on the fore leg are rather better defined, and the chest pattern
is strong.

The short coat, dull tint, fine pale speckling and indistinct shoulder stripes
arc the most striking features of the skin; but it does not agree with Altobello's

' According to Miller there were two skins in 1912. These he referred to as apparently
identical with more northern specimens. In 1934 I stated that the single skin then available
differs from those of typical silvestris only in the indistinctness of the shoulder stripes. This was
an error, there being other differences as well.

45
skins, which are said to differ from those of typical silvestris by their greyish-
yellow colour, longer tail, over half the length of the head and body, and by
the stripes on the nape ceasing abruptly at its hinder end. In this last feature
he was presumably referring to the evanescence of the shoulder stripes; but in
typical silvestris the tail is usually half the length of the head and body. The
question is still further complicated by Altobello's claim that typical silvestris
is found in Tuscany in the north and Calabria in the south of Italy, the area
occupied bv molisana coming in between the two, a possible but improbable
occurrence.

Specimen in the Collection

i Rome (received made up as E. C. Taylor [P] 46.9 1

necklet)

Felis silvestris morea, Trouessart

1833. Felis catus ferns, Geoffroy St. Hilaire, Exped. Sci. de Moree, 3, pt. 1,

Zool., p. 13, Atlas, pi. 1 a; Reichenbach, Vollst. Naturg. Raubsaug.,

p. 362, 1852.
1904. Felis catns morea, Trouessart, Cat. Mamm., Suppl., p. 273 (north of

Dragomanou, near Mt. Diaphorti, Province of Messenia, Morea);

Harper, Journ. Mamm., 21, p. 191, 1940.
1912. Felis silvestris silvestris, Miller, Cat. Mamm. Western Europe, pp. 462-3,

1912 (in part, specimen from Athens).
1934. Felis silvestris morea, Pocock, Journ. Linn. Soc. Zool., 39, pp. 8-10.

Geographical Distribution. — Southern Greece, range unknown.

Diagnosis. — Provisionally admitted as a distinct race on the evidence of
an adult 3 specimen from Athens which differs from the skins assigned to
typical silvestris and to euxina in its brighter, yellower ground tint; the skull
also has several puzzling peculiarities.

Colour. — The coat, apparently late winter, is exceptionally luxuriant for
so southern a latitude, being 50 to 51-5 mm. long and thickened with a quantity
of wool which is matted at the base of the contour-hairs, suggesting imminence
of the moult. It is much fuller and longer than in the Southern Spanish race
of about the same latitude, and in those respects resembles the coat of the more
northern Central European race. The general colour is rather richer, yellower
and less grey than in the skins of the latter owing to the pale areas of the contour
hairs being decidedly more buffy, especially on the dorsal area and on the basal
half of the upper side of the tail. The dorsal pattern is normally heavy and
black; the lateral stripes are better defined, being distinct and brown anteriorly,
but fainter on the upper part of the thigh, although blacker in front, lower down
and above the hocks, and the hind foot is deep brown below the hock posteriorly,
turning to black on the sole of the foot; the outer side of the fore leg is faintly
striped, but there are two silvery stripes on its inner side and behind the upper
lip; chin and throat are white, the cheek-stripes are faint and the anterior throat
stripe is absent. No flesh measurements are available.

46

Skull. — The skull, sexed by the skin as J, is fully adult. It is peculiar in
the association of three features. The median frontal suture is obliterated and
the orbital rings are complete, the two processes being tolerably widely and
firmly fused. Both these features suggest advanced age. On the other hand,
the cranium is rounded and smooth, showing no trace on the frontals of the
temporal ridges which are only just visible as two faint, juxtaposed, converging
lines behind the suture. The carnassial teeth are large, as in the skulls from
Dobrudscha, but the canine is only 5 mm. at the base. As a dental abnormality,
there are two small premolars, probably pml and pin-, in the postcanine space
of the upper jaw on both sides.

Specimen in the Collection

Athens C. W. L. Merlin [P] 47.72:.:

Felis silvestris euxina, Pocock

u)4^. Felis silvestris euxina, Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 1 ith ser., 10, p. 701
(Baspunar in Dobrudscha, Rumania).

Geographical Distribution. — Rumania and apparently South Russia.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from typical F. s. silvestris by its larger teeth
and possibly on the average by its more distinct pattern.

Colour. — A barely adult ? (12.5.23.2), January 24, has the coat full and
long, up to about 55 mm. The general ground colour of the upper side is
silvery grey with a buff tinge on the spinal area and richer buff on the basal
half of the upper side of the tail, the legs being greyish burl in front and the
back of the ears uniformly dull ochreous and contrasted with the white speckled
head; the under side, apart from the whitish chin and fore throat, is mainly butf
throughout, with an overcast of white-tipped hairs, especially on the chest, but
passes into richer, more ochreous tint on the inner side of the thighs, the genital
area and the basal part of the tail. The pattern on the head, nape, shoulders
and spine is strong and black; the lateral pattern is also conspicuous from the
shoulders to the hocks, stronger than in any of the available skins of typical
silvestris from France and Germany, but not so pronounced as the dorsal pattern
owing to the stripes being diluted with buff speckling, yielding a brindled effect,
although on the thighs and especially just above the hocks they are darker; the
back of the hind foot below the hock is deep brown above, turning to black
below on the soles; the fore leg has about four indistinct stripes externally and
two strongly emphasised on the inside with a good deal of black below the
elbow ; the tail has four stripes, the first being indistinct above and incomplete
below.

The type, a young adult J (12.5. 23.1), Baspunar, January 22, has the coat
as in the ', , but the general coloration above is duller, the ground tint being
noticeably less silvery owing to the pale areas of the contour hairs being buffy
instead of clear white and the pattern, except on the head, mid-nape and spine,
fainter and paler yellowish brown, but it is more distinct on the average than

47

in typical silvestris; the under side differs from that of the '.. in being much
whiter on the throat behind the interramal area and more intensely ochreous
on the genital region and the basal part of the tail below.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

™ hfZ1

Ear

Baspunar, Dobrudscha
Testemel, Dobrudscha

12.5.23.1
12.5.23.2

in.
20!

in. in.
135 5?
13 5i

in.

2j +

zi-

Skull. — The two available skulls are young adult, not fully developed, and
differ in no particulars from those of F. silvestris silvestris. The dentition,
however, is noticeably heavier on the average, but intergrading in some respects.
Thus pm'-'+pm* are 20A and 19J mm. in the q and $ respectively; in F. s.
silvestris they are from 17 to 19 mm., the average being 18 mm. The antero-
posterior diameter of the upper canine at the end of the enamel-cap is 6 mm.
in both skulls; in F. s. silvestris it ranges from 4 to 5 J mm., the average being
4A. mm. In the lower jawthe posterior cheek-teeth are 21-i mm. 3 and 20 mm. V;
in F. s. silvestris they range from 19 to 22 mm., the average being 2o| mm., the
lower canine is 6i mm. $, 5 mm. 9; in F. s. silvestris it ranges from 4 to 5 mm.,
the average being 4A mm. The superiority in size of the two carnassials (pm*, mx)
in F. s. euxina is shown in the tables, their averages in F. s. silvestris being
1 1 mm. and 8 mm. respectively.

The skull of /"'. s. silvestris with the upper and lower cheek-teeth 19 and
22 mm. is that of the adult $ from Tubingen; but its upper and lower canines
are 5 and 4I mm. respectively. The skull of the same race with the upper and
lower canines 5 A and 5 mm. is that of the J from near Moulins (19. 7. 7.2901),
and its upper and lower cheek-teeth are 18 J mm. and 21 mm. These two skulls
of F. s. silvestris come nearest to F. s. euxina in the size of their teeth.

Specimens in the Collection

a Baspunar, Dobrudscha, Rumania Hon. N. C. Rothschild [P] 12.5.23. 1
(R. Rettig) type

Testemel, Dobrudscha, Rumania Hon. X. C. Rothschild [P] 12.5.23.2
(R. Rettig)

Felis silvestris caucasica, Satunin
1905. Felis catus caucasicus, Satunin, Mitt. Kauk. Mus. 2, pp. 1^4 and 316

(Borzhom, Caucasus).
1916. Felis silvestris trapezia, Blackler, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 8th ser., 18, p. 73

(Khotz, near Trebizond).
1930. Felis silvestris caucasicus, Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 52; id.

Mamm. U.S.S.R., etc., 3, p. 118, 1935; Pocock, Journ. Linn. Soc.

Zool., 39, p. 11, 1934.

48

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49

Geographical Distribution. — South-east Russia, north and south of the
Caucasus, Asia Minor.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from typical silvestris by its darker, duller
colour on the average, and by its larger size, resembling tartessia in the latter
respect, judging from the skull and teeth, but differing in its longer, fuller coat
and much less strongly emphasised pattern; in its duller coat and less distinct
pattern on the average it also differs from grampia. The hairs at the tip of the
ears also form a definite, though short "pencil", about 4 to 5 mm. long, longer
than in any of the skins of the three European races. Apart from its slightly
greater length and larger teeth on the average, the skull apparently only differs
from that of silvestris in having the nasals on the average more constricted
and narrower.

This diagnosis is taken from a few skins and skulls in the British Museum
and from Ognev's table of skull and tooth measurements.1

Colour. — A <$ skin from the Caucasus (79. 11. 15. 4), undated, but probably
early winter, has the coat about 45 mm. and not very full; the general colour
is darkish olive grey above with comparatively fine buffish grey speckling, and
the wool differs from that of all the other skins of the species examined in being
uniformly darker grey throughout, not buff or ochreous at the summit; the
dorsal pattern is black, the spinal stripe forming an unusually well-defined
narrow line with elongated black spots on each side of it; the lateral pattern is
distinct, but brown from the shoulders to the thighs and hocks, and on the
body is more broken up into smaller spots than is usual in F. silvestris; the fore
leg is indistinctly striped, but has a good deal of black about the elbow, and
the hind foot is black up to the hock behind.

An adult $ skin, an example of trapezia, from Scalita, south of Trebizond
(6.3.6.218), December 14, has the coat about 48 mm. long, fuller than in the
Caucasus skin, from which it also differs in having the wool pale buff at the
summit, more ochreous tint on the breast and belly, and bigger lateral blotches,
but the general colour is darkish olive grey, as in that specimen. A 3 topotype
of trapezia from Khotz, near Trebizond (6.5.1.30), February 6, is much paler
than the last, being distinctly frosted with grey, and has the wool much richer
buff at the summit; the lateral pattern is faint, but stronger above the hocks.
It closely matches the skins typical of silvestris from Caterille and from Burgos,
North Spain (8.7.7.10). Another j from Khotz (6.5.1.29), February 6, closely
resembles the last and almost exactly matches the skin from North Germany,
but has the lateral pattern better defined.

Skull. — Ognev published measurements of eleven presumably adult <3<$
of this race from various localities in the Caucasian area. A selection of these
showing the range in variation is entered in the table (p. 51). Their average
condylobasal length, with that of the single Caucasian skull in the British
Museum, is, as nearly as maybe, 97-5 mm., about the same as in the Spanish
race, tartessia, some 4 mm. more than in the Scottish race grampia, and about
7 mm. more than in the typical race from Central Europe. Similarly, the

1 This author's description of the race in which presumably the pattern and colour variations
are discussed, is printed and written in Russian, which I am unable to read.
4 — C.G.F.

5°

average condylobasal length of four 22 entered by Ognev is just about 91 mm.,
surpassing that of grampia by 6 mm. There are not enough 2 skulls of tartessia
and typical silvestris for comparison. The teeth also are large, /»«'■ ranging
from 1 1 to 13 mm., the average in twelve J skulls being very nearly 12 mm., as
in tartessia, whereas in typical silvestris and in grampia it is about 11 mm.

The skulls from near Trebizond, described as trapezia, and the one from
Mount Taurus, entered in the table, are not included in the summary given
above. The 5" skulls from Khotz are not fully developed, the only adult of the
trapezia series being the 5 from Scalita, which is 5 mm. shorter in condvlobasal
length than the smallest 2 of the Caucasian skulls. In 1934, before seeing
Ognev's complete table of measurements of the latter, I assigned trapezia to
the synon5rmy of caucasica, but the evidence supplied by the 2 skull of trapezia
supports in a measure Blackler's claim that his Trebizond race may be distin-
guished from the Caucasian form by its smaller skull. The teeth also, especially
iRj, appear to be a little smaller; p»rl in both sexes is smaller on the average,
but the canines in the <J are 5 mm. at the base, as in the o Caucasian skull
(79.1 1. 15. 4). Hence trapezia may perhaps prove to be a valid race distinguished
by its smaller skull and teeth.

The three skulls from Khotz illustrate the variation in the constriction of
the nasals distinctive of this race. In the type of trapezia the constriction is
very pronounced, the median length of the bones being 23 mm. and the least
width only 3 mm. In none of the western races are the bones so thin, but in
the two topotypes those dimensions are 20 mm. and 4 mm., 21 mm. and 5 mm.,
and in the 2 from Scalita they are the same as the last. The proportion is nearly
the same in the £ from the Caucasus, namely 24 and 6 mm.

The adult skull from Mount Taurus is unsexed, but appears to be 2, and
agrees in its dimensions with 22 of typical caucasica recorded by Ognev. Its
unusually short nasals are only 17 mm. along the median line and wide at their
narrowest point. Their upper ends fall 5 mm. short of the upper ends of the
maxillae, whereas in the other skulls assigned to caucasica they are about level
with the maxillae or slightly surpass them. This, however, is known to be an
individually variable feature in F. s. grampia (see p. 38).

Specimens in the Collection

Caucasus Warsaw Museum [P] 79.11. 15. 4

3 Khotz, nr. Trebizond (A. Robert) Oldfield Thomas [P] 6.5.1.28

type of F. trapezia

2 '. Khotz, nr. Trebizond (A. Robert) ,, ,, 6.5.1.29-30

Scalita, south of Trebizond (A. ,, ,, 6.3.6.218

Robert)

Skull Zebil, Taurus C. G. Daniord [C & P] 76.8.7.18

Felis lybica, Forster

(Synonvm under subspecies)

1780. Felis lybica, Forster, Buffon Nat. Vierfuss. Thiere, 6, p. 313 (Gafsa,
Tunis).

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Diagnosis. — Closely allied to F. silvestris, but distinguishable at a glance by
the comparative inconspicuousness of the stripes on the nape and shoulders,
the less sharply defined stripe on the spinal area and typically by the slender,
more tapering tail,1 which is not so bushy, cylindrical, or even subclavate as in
/•'. silvestris. There is typically a spinal crest and the ears are normally tipped
with a small tuft. There is no constant difference between the skulls and teeth
of the two species.

Geographical Distribution. — Sardinia certainly and possibly Corsica,
Majorca, and Italy in Europe; the whole of Africa, except the thick forested area,
from Morocco and Egypt to the Cape Province, and thence northwards to Angola ;
in Asia from Arabia and Palestine to Northern India and the Turkestan area.

Remarks. — As a result of its wide range and adaptation to diverse environ-
ments, including bush and desert conditions, this species exhibits much greater
variation in colour and pattern than /*'. silvestris. The skull and teeth, too, are
less constant in form, a noticeable variation in the teeth being the occasional
great reduction in size of the inner lobe (protocone) of pw1, which occurs as
an individual peculiarity in some skulls of the South African races.

Skins alone are frequently very difficult to distinguish from those of feral
house-cats of the torquata-type of pattern, which is seldom the case in F.
silvestris; but the feral cats, when skulls are available, may commonly be deter-
mined by their smaller teeth.

Felis lybica sarda, Lataste

1843. Felis lybica, Geoffroy St. Hilaire, Descr. Coll. Jacquem., Mamm., etc.,

p. 56 (Tangiers); [and of many subsequent authors at least in part as

libyca or lybica (not F. Ivbica, Forster, 1780, nor F. libycus, Olivier,

1804)].

1867. Felis lybicus, Loche, Expl. Alg., Mamm., p. 42.

1885. Felis libyca var. sarda, Lataste, Actes Soc. Linn. Bord., 39, p. 231

(Sardinia); id. Explor. Sci. Tunisie, p. 16, 1887.-
1895. Felis mediterranea, Martorelli, Atti. Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat., Milano, 35,

pp. 250-2, 266, pis. i, ii (Sardinia).
1910. Felis ocreata sarda, Troussart, Faune Mamm. d'Europe, p. 101.
1912. Felis sarda, Miller, Cat. Mamm. Western Europe, p. 46S, 1912.
1906. Felis ocreata mauritana, Cabrera, Bol. Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat., 6, p. 362
(Mogador).
1 In the aberrant Turkestan race F. I. caudala the tail is very bushy in winter; but the general
pattern of the body is quite different from that of F. silvestris.

- When Lataste described this cat from Sardinia he was unacquainted with
Algerian examples of the race. Subsequent examination of skins from Bone convinced
him of the identity of the two and he withdrew the name sarda in 1887 under the erroneous
impression, held by many authors, that the older name lybica or libyca, which must be
regarded as spelling variants, was applicable to the dark-coloured North African race.
Lataste's skins from Sardinia and Algeria, with several others in the British Museum
from those localities, confirm his opinion regarding their subspecific identity. Ignoring
Lataste's name, sarda, Martorelli proposed mediterranea for examples from Maremma
and Pisa in Tuscany and from Sardinia. Miller selected Sardinia as its type locality.

53

1920. Felis lybica cyrenarum, Ghigi, Mem. Real. Accad. Sci. 1st. Bologna, cl.
di. sci. fis. (7), 7, p. 79 (Cyrene).

1929 IFelis reyi, Lavauden, C.R. Acad. Sci. Paris, 189, p. 1023 (Corsica).

1930 }Fetis catus jordansi, Schwarz, Zool. An., 91, p. 223 (Majorca).

1 93 1. Felis lybica constantina, Cabrera, Trav. Mus. Nac. Cienc. Zool., 56,
p. 167; G. M. Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 83, p. 236, 1939 (not
F. constantina, Forster, 1780).

1944. Felis Ivbica sarda, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 66.

Notes on Synonymy. — In the last paper quoted in the synonymy I gave in some
detail my reasons for choosing the name sarda for this race and for rejecting the much
older name constantina adopted for it comparatively recently by Cabrera and following
him by G. M. Allen. Briefly stated they were as follows: (1) Buffon's description of the
cat seen by Bruce at Constantine in Algeria is inapplicable in most respects to the North
African wild cats of this species but agrees tolerably closely with the Serval (Leptailurus)
of that district. (2) The wild cat of Sardinia appears to be racially indistinguishable from
the cat identified as constantina by Cabrera, who correctly stated its range to be from
Morocco to Algeria. Hence sarda, as the oldest admissible name, must be accepted as
stated in my paper in 1944. Two names entered by Cabrera in the synonymy of this
race drop out of it with constantina since they were applied to the same cat, namely
constantinensis Link, 1795, and algiricus Fischer, 1829.

Diagnosis. — A bush-cat intergrading with the North African semi-desert
race F. I. lybica (p. 61), but usually readily distinguishable by its darker ears
and generally darker upper side, without the "sandy" hue of that race, the
flanks being speckled silvery white or buffy white and black, resulting in a clear
grey or more tawny grey tint. Only when the coat is disturbed or thinning
with the moult, so as to expose the buff or ochreous wool, is a yellowish cast
imparted to the pelage. The under side varies individually from deep rusty
ochreous to pale buffy grey. The spinal band is typically blackish and sharply
emphasised, but may be comparatively ill-defined; the pattern of stripes and
spots on the flanks may be tolerably conspicuous or faint or obsolescent and
the stripes on the legs may be strong and black or weaker and brown.

Well-marked variations may occur in the same district, whereas specimens
from remote localities may be almost alike.

Colour variation in Sardinian skins

Two adult 3 skins from the type locality, Sarrabus, in Sardinia (Doria),
differ considerably. The type (Lataste, 19.7.7.3020), March 5, has the hairs
on the flanks 35 and on the crest 46 mm., the general colour above is tawny-
grey, the lateral contour hairs being speckled buffy grey and fuscous, and those
of the spinal area ochreous and black ; the wool of the upper side is everywhere
rich ochreous, showing no appreciable dullness of tint over the fore back and
shoulder, and where the contour hairs are moulting and exposing the wool, as
on the nape, a reddish cast is given to the pelage; the pattern on the sides
consists of faint brown brindling; the head has the crown deep brown, much
darker than the nape, and finely speckled with greyish buff; the backs of the

54

ears are reddish at the bast-, dark brown mesially, and gradually blackening at
the tip; the patches bordering the eves internally are buff, the muzzle red, the
cheeks buffy grey with their stripes brown; the chin butt in front, passing into
dirty white behind; the throat is oehreous with a grey cast and a brown collar;
the chest anil abdomen are richer oehreous, with dark brown spots; the genital
area, base of the tail below and backs and inner surfaces of the thighs are rusty
oehreous, this tint gradually fading down the inner surface of the hind
the fronts of the legs are buffy grey, becoming buffier on the paws, their external
stripes are brown, the bracelets are blackish and the hind foot to the hock is
blackish behind; the tail has three separated black stripes in front of the black
tip, the first very taint.

The topotype (Doria, 8S.12.1.1), March 30, with the coat 43 and 58 mm.,
differs from the type in having more black and white and less red in the pelage.
The sides of the body are silvery grey, white speckled with black; the spinal
area has more black in it and is strongly emphasised by the clear grey of the
flanks; the wool is nearly the same rich hue as in the tvpe, but on the spinal
area its bright tint fades away on the fore back and shoulders; the coat is in
better condition and nowhere shows the wool unless disturbed, and the obscure
pattern is blacker; the crown of the head is greyer and has traces of black
stripes; the ears are browner, not so red at the base behind and the black tip
is much more sharply defined; the interocular patches are white; the chin and
interramal area are whiter, the throat, chest and fore belly are buff, more over-
cast with white, not nearly so deeply tinted as in the type and the hind belly,
insides of the thighs and base of the tail not so rich, the spots on the chest
and the collar being blacker; the legs are grey, without buff tint, and their
stripes are black; the tail has its stripes broader and largely confluent in the
middle line.

The rest of the Sardinian skins in the British Museum very closely resemble
the topotype from Sarrabus in the clear grey hue of the upper side, but several
are like the type in the deep oehreous hue of the under side; no two skins being
quite alike in every respect.

A ' from Ogliastra (Wolterstorff, 0.5.24.1), December 28, with the hairs
on the flanks and crest 33 and 53 mm., differs from the topotype in having the
lateral pattern a little more distinct; the wool and the lower side paler, the ears
darker and the tail-stripes not fused above. An undated ? labelled Sardinia
(Linnaea, S6.7.10.1), with the hairs 42 and 54 mm., is rather darker above than
the topotype owing to the silver)' area on the hairs being less extensive, the
spinal wool is oehreous only on the loins, being dark purplish brown from
the mid-back to the shoulders, the ears are darker, blackish brown throughout;
the lateral pattern is more distinct and the lower side much redder, even more
richly and deeply tinted than in the type. A young adult, marked 2 (Lord
Cranbrook, 34.1. 19. 2), without special locality, is a little darker above than the
topotype owing to the silver)1 speckling being less extensive and slightly duller,
thus approaching the type which it closely resembles in the rich deep hue of
the under side, but the pattern is more distinct than in any of the foregoing.
In a still younger <J, with the same history (34.1.19.1), April 16, the coat is

55
much shorter, 28 and 40 mm., and the pattern of brown stripes and spots is
still stronger, but the lower side is not so richly tinted.

Since the reference of Sardinian skins to the same race is not likely to be
questioned, the individual variations are a useful guide to the systematic value
of the differences between skins of similar cats found elsewhere.

1. In accordance with the season the hairs on the flanks vary from about
30 to 40 mm., and on the spinal crest from about 40 to 55 mm.

2. The ground colour above varies from clear dark grey, due to the blending
of the white and black speckling of the contour hairs, to tawny grey
when the pale speckling is buffy instead of white; the clear grey phase
vanes in tint in accordance with the extensiveness of the white banding
on the individual hairs. The general colour is also subject to variation
with the condition of the coat. When the contour hairs are thinning
with the moult, the consequent exposure of the wool, either in patches
or larger areas, imparts a brighter, yellower aspect to the pelage.

3. The spinal area is sometimes strongly emphasised by its black and
ochreous or buff speckling, but is sometimes only slightly darker than
the flanks and ill-defined.

4. The summit of the wool of the flanks may be buff or ochreous, on the
spinal area it varies from rich ochreous from the shoulders to the root
of the tail to dull ochreous on the loins and purplish or greyish brown
on the rest of the back.

5. The backs of the ears are black or darkened at the tips to a varying
extent, below this mesially they are blackish brown or rusty brown or
grey brown, and at the base dull or bright ochreous to a very variable
extent.

6. The crown of the head may show traces of pattern, and is dark but
speckled with buff or whitish more or less, the speckled area advancing
between the eyes; the pale patches on the inner sides of the eyes are
buff or whitish, the summit of the nose pale reddish; the upper lip below
the rmnarium is buff or white; the cheeks are grey or tawny grey, and
their stripes blackish or reddish.

7. The chin and interramal area are clear white or buffy, and there may
be one or more reddish or blackish collars on the throat; the rest of the
under side, including the genital area, the inside of the thighs, and the
base of the tail vary from deep rusty ochreous to pale greyish buff, with
a little bright colour restricted to the genital area.

8. The pattern on the body varies greatly in distinctness, consisting some-
times merely of faint patches, sometimes of comparatively conspicuous
stripes and spots. On the outer sides of the limbs the stripes may be
strong and black or faint and brown; and on the tail the terminal black
stripes and black tip may be separated or fused along the middle line
dorsally ; on the lower side the pattern varies from black to reddish brown
and the incidence of blackish or reddish collars on the throat is indivi-
dually variable.

5&

( 'olour variation in North African skins

Algerian skins show individual difference in the same locality similar to
those of Sardinian skins, which in a general way they closely resemble. An
undated adult J (Tristram, 7.1. 1.47), from south of Algiers, with the coat 40
and 56 mm. long, closely resembles the topotype of sarda in the colouring of
the upper side, but the silvery speckling is less extensive, as in the Sardinian
skin (86.7. 10. 1 ), and the spinal area is not nearly so black, although its wool is
a trifle deeper in tint; the ears are a little more rusty, the stripes on the hind
legs fainter, and the under side richer ochreous. A V (7.1. 1.48) with the same
historv, probably from the same locality, but labelled merely Algeria, is,
however, much paler below than the o, slightly paler even than the topotype
of sarda, the pale speckling of the flanks is as extensive as in the topotype, but
not quite so silvery and the ears are browner, less rusty, and blacker at the tips
than in Tristram's o.

Two skins from Bone, Algeria (Lataste), differ from each other more
profoundly than the two preceding collected by Tristram. One of them

(19.7. 7. 3127) closely resembles Tristram's $ (7.1. 1.48) in its generally paler hue
due to the extensive whitish speckling of the flanks, but it is even paler below,
the tint being dull, buffy grey; the ears are rather rubbed, but seem to have
been rusty brown at the back without any appreciably blacker tip. An adult S

(19. 7. 7. 3128) is, on the contrary, much darker and very like the type of sarda
in its tawnier grey tint above, in having the wool partially exposed, giving
the "reddish" hue described by Lataste, and in the deep rich ochreous colour
of the under side; but the pale speckling above is a little buffier, less clear,
and the stripes on the hind legs are stronger; the backs of the ears are very
different from those of the first described skin from Bone, being extensively
blackish at the tip, as in Tristram's ^ skin (7.1. 1.48), but more rusty brown below
as in Tristram's 3 (7.1. 1.47). It was the unmistakable likeness between this
skin from Bone and the skin of the type of sarda that convinced Lataste of the
racial identity between these Sardinian and Algerian cats.

A skin from Tangiers (51.4.23.8), unmistakably resembling those from
Sardinia and Algeria, is interesting as a topotype of Geoffrey's Felts lybica,
which was recorded from Oran. The coat is 35 and 50 mm. long; the flanks
are grey, extensively whitish with fuscous speckling, and marked faintly with
brownish pattern, the spinal area being black and ochreous; the wool of the
flanks is buff, of the spinal area rich ochreous from the shoulder to the tail root;
the backs of the ears are rusty brown, with a black tip; the crown has a broken-
up pattern of black spots; the nose is red, paler and brighter than the ears; the
patches on the inner sides of the eyes are whitish buff; the cheeks are buffy,
with the upper stripe dark brown, the lower reddish; the lower side, apart from
the white chin and fore throat, is buff, with faint fuscous spots; the legs are
grey in front, with the paws pale buff, the inner side of the hind legs is ochreous,
with the foot black to the hock; the bracelets are strong and black and the external
pattern of the limbs is moderately well defined and blackish brown. This skin
is very like the skin from Ogliastra, in Sardinia, in the colouring of the upper

57
and the under sides, but the spinal area is better defined, the pattern of the
flanks is fainter and the ears are paler; the ears, however, are like those of the
topotype of sarda, but not quite so reddish at the base. It also closely matches
Tristram's 3 skin from south of Algiers, and has the same coloured ears, but
is more extensively whitish speckled above and much paler below; and it hardly
differs from the paler of the two skins from Bone (19. 7. 7. 3127), except that its
ears are darker.

Three skins (4.7.5.7-9), labelled Morocco, but without particular locality,
resemble the one from Tangiers and the greyer Algerian and Sardinian skins
sufficiently closely to call for no detailed description. They vary individually.
In one (4.7.5.8) the wool above is as rich as in the (J from the south of Algiers,
and has the under side only a little paler, but the spinal area is darker, as in some
Sardinian skins. In another (4.7.5.9) the wool and the under side are pale, as
in the ? from Bone. But a skin in the Quex Museum from Khenifra (Curio),
Morocco (Captain Carpentier), March 12, with the flank hairs 45 mm. and the
crest 58 mm., is noticeably clearer, more silvery grey above than the preceding
Moroccan skins, but shows a similar faint brindled pattern, has the under side
buff, the wool on the flanks brightish buff, and on the crest ochreous.

A female skin (Fraser, 47. 10.21. 8), labelled Shebel L'Enserin, Tunisia, with
the hairs on the flanks 38, on the crest 48 mm., is the same colour above as
Tristram's Algerian male, although the summit of the wool on the flanks is pale
buff and much less rich in hue, and the ears are rusty brown almost throughout,
only slightly darker at the tip. Also, there is no rich ochreous on the abdomen
posteriorly, but the genital area is richly tinted reddish ochreous. The pattern
is strong only on the tail and inner side of the fore legs, being just traceable as
faint patches on the sides of the body, weak on the fore and hind legs externally,
scarcely visible on the chest and the cheek-stripes are reddish.

A skin from "Longstop Hill", 600 ft., Western Tunisia (Payn, 43.26), April,
with the flank hairs 30 and the crest 50 mm., is unusually silvery grey above,
with the spinal area sharply defined and the dorsal pattern obsolescent. It
closely matches the skin from Khenifra, Morocco, above referred to, and differs
from the foregoing Tunisian skin not only in its more silvery hue above, but
in its brighter tint and stronger pattern below, its more strongly striped legs,
and duller tinted ears. The habitat of this cat was rocky ravines overgrown
with scrub.

A skin (39.1670) in the Tring Museum, collected by Hartert on May 10,
in the juniper woods on the plateau north of Merdj, in Cyrenaica, and no doubt
representing F. lybica cyrenarum, is racially indistinguishable from the fore-
going. In the colour and pattern of its upper side it is an almost exact match
of Cranbrook's Sardinian skin (34.1. 19. 2), except that the partial exposure of
the wool by the seasonal thinning of the contour hairs gives a reddish cast to
the pelage, the head is not so dark, the ears are a little paler, and the cheeks
with their stripes lighter and more buffy. The lower side also is not so deeply
ochreous, resembling that of the other Sardinian skin (34.1.19.1).

A particularly interesting male skin (34.8.2.7), without skull, was collected
by Colonel Meinertzhagen on March 17 in the Arak, Hoggar Mountains in the

53

Algerian Sahara. It closely resembles the Algerian skins in its generally dark
hue, apart from the spinal area, which is more uniformly ochreous, lacking the
contrasted black and ochreous speckling. The skin, however, is in poor condition
and the spinal crest is thin, moulting and probably faded; the flanks are silvery
speckled, the lower side is pale ochreous, overcast with white, and the backs of
the thighs and the genital area are bright reddish ochreous; the hind foot is
black from the hock downwards, and the ears are dark brown at the base,
blackish in the upper part. Colonel Meinertzhagen tells me (in litt.) that the
Hoggar plateau attracts a great deal of moisture, and that the humidity is
relatively high. There is nothing like the Algerian forests, but there is a lot of
bush in the ravines, especially where the cat was killed.

None of the skins of this race in the British Museum has measurements
taken in the flesh; but Martorelli recorded the following dimensions, converted
into English inches, for two of his examples of mediterranea; and Cabrera gave
the dimensions of his type of mauritana.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Head
and
Body

™, ., Hind
Tml Foot

Ear

sub. ad.
? young
o ad.

Tuscany ....
Sardinia ....
Mogador (type of mauritana)

in.

22§
21 J

in.

ios
I3i

in.
(3l)

5S

in.

2

(3i)

The length of the hind foot in Martorelli's specimen from Tuscany excluded
the digits; and Cabrera's ear measurement of mauritana, given as 8o mm., must
have been taken from the base behind, unless 8o was misprinted for 50 or 60.

Skull. — Adult <J skulls, which have an average condylobasal length of 88
or 89 mm., differ individually sometimes to a considerable extent in muscular
moulding and other respects. Of the two from Sarrabus, Sardinia, the topotype
is the older and has much wider zygomata, the occipital crest more prominent,
giving it a relatively greater total length, and the sagittal crest on the posterior
slope of the crown about 4 mm. high; but although the temporal ridges are
only 5 mm. apart on the suture, the postorbital area is wide, as in V skulls; its
upper facial profile shows an abrupt down-bend at the middle of the nasals,
making the anterior end of these bones markedly concave. The skull of the
type differs in having the sagittal crest 2 mm. high, the temporal ridges 1 1 mm.
apart, the downward slope of the nasals much less abrupt, and the teeth smaller
owing to wear. The two <$ skulls from Algeria differ from each other much
more profoundly, the two Sardinian skulls being in some respects intermediate
between them. The one from South Algeria (7.1. 1.47) is strongly moulded.
Its sagittal crest is as high as in the topotype; and, although its temporal ridges
are 8 mm. apart, its postorbital area is noticeably constricted; the facial profile

59

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Locality

Felis lybica sarda
Sarrabus, Sardinia

(type of sarda)
Sarrabus, Sardinia
Sardinia

Mogador, Morocco
(type of maiiritana)
Bone, Algeria .
South Algiers
Tunisia .
Tunis

Felis lybica ocreata
Ozozo, Gondar, N.

Abyssinia
Adigrat, Tigre, N.

Abyssinia
Near Robi River,

Abyssinia

a /I

"° £
a 3

Sex

-O *d 6CT3 .T3 T3 T3 "d T3
W WP->n eg c3c3c3C3
*0 *o *o Of OUSq f^jfQoof

-6 -6

■6

M

*o

6o

is shaped nearly as in the type, the down curvature of the nasal region being
gradual and lightly convex. The skull From Hone, although fully adult, is
muscularly unmoulded, the sagittal crest being only about i mm. high, the tem-
poral ridges 19 mm. apart, and the postorbital area very wide, as in the ?.
It is also a high, vaulted skull, 4 mm. higher than the skull from south of
Algiers and 2 mm. higher than the topotype from Sarrabus; the upper facial
profile being strongly convex from the forehead to the end of the nasals, which
.ire steeply sloped and show no concave curvature at their anterior ends, such
as is present in the other .$ skulls.

The young J skull (34.1.1 q. 1 ) from Sardinia calls for no special comment;
but the slightly older skull (34.1.19.2), marked +, is probably .$, judging from
the size of the teeth, the basal diameter of the canine, where the enamel begins,
being ^ mm., as in the topotype from Sarrabus and in the young q" skull
(34.1. 19.1)1 which although younger has pin1 slightly smaller. In the only
certainly known 2 skull from Sardinia (86.7.10.1) the diameter of the canine is
4 mm. and the temporal ridges are 15 mm. apart. It has the upper facial profile
gradually sloped; but in the 5 from Tunis (47. 10. 21. S), which has the canine
4 mm. and the ridges 27 mm. apart, the upper facial profile is strongly convex,
approaching the curvature of the J skull from Bone, and the whole skull is
very poorlv moulded.

Specimens in the Collection

Marquis G. Doria [P]

Sarrabus, Sardinia
(G. B. Traverso)

$8.12.1.

J

Sarrabus, Sardinia

F. Lataste [P]

19.7.7.3019 skull

(( i. B. Traverso)

ex Marquis Doria's coll.

(type of sarda)

and 3020 skin

:

Ogliastra, Sardinia
(Dr. Wolterstorff)

Oldfield Thomas [P]

0.5.24.1

Sardinia

Purchased

86.7. 10. 1

.'.

Lord Cranbrook [P]

34. 1. 19. 1-2

J

South of Algiers (Canon H. B.
Tristram)

R F. Tomes [P]

7. 1. 1. 47

Algeria (Canon H. 13. Tristram)

R. F. Tomes [P]

7. 1. 1. 48

>

Bone, Algeria (Dr. Hagen-
muller)

F. Lataste

19.7.7.3126-S

. juv.

Shebel L'Enserin, Tunisia (L.
Fraser)

Purchased

47. 10. 21. 8-9

Longstop Hill, Western Tunisia

Capt. F.H. Payn[C&

P]

43-26

I

Tangiers (F. Faravier)

Purchased

51.4.23.8

5

Morocco (Riggenbach)

4.7.S-7-9

Plateau of Merdj, Cyrenaica
(Dr. E. Hartert)

Rothschild Bequest

39.1670

0 skin

Arak, Hoggar Mts., Central

Col. R. Meinertzhagen [P]

34-8.2.7

Sahara

Note. — Owing to lack of material for comparison I cannot definitely classify
the cats described from Corsica and Majorca.

From the brief description I am unable to distinguish the Corsican Wild
Cat, F. reyi, from F. lybica sarda. The type; the flat skin and skull of an adult £,

6i

came from the forest of Aunes, but the cat was said to be found all over the
island, in the hills as well as the low country. The general hue was dark, grey
with brown pattern, the wool imparting a reddish wash to the pelage when the
coat was disturbed; the spinal band was darker, the face reddish, the backs of
the ears deep blackish brown, and the hind foot black to the hock. The head
and body of the flat skin were 23^ inches, no doubt considerably stretched, and
the tail just under 11 inches. The skull had a condylobasal length of 80 mm.,
about the same as in the $ skull (47. 10.21. 8) of F. I. sarda from Tunisia; but its
zygomatic breadth was stated to be 70 mm., 8 mm. wider than in that specimen,
and about as wide as in adult $ skulls of F. I. sarda with a condylobasal length
of from 88 to 90 mm. Although it is known that the zygomata expand with
age, there is probably an error in Lavauden's figure.

No specimens from Corsica are available for examination.

The cat from Mallorca (Majorca), Balearic Islands, described by Schwarz
as Felis catiis jordansi, was said to resemble most nearly the North African race
he quoted as F. catus mauritana, here named F. lybica sarda, but to differ in
having the pattern more strongly marked, the tail with six black rings, and the
legs paler. The possibility of it being a feral house-cat was dismissed on account
of its alleged very long winter coat, very red nose and ears, and other features,
one of which was, no doubt, the rusty tint of the under side.

No skin from Majorca is available for examination, and I am unable to
classify jordansi from the description, which calls for the following comments.
The type, a young adult $, had the hairs of the back, i.e. the spinal area short,
only 34 mm. long, which is about the same as in the feral domestic cat from
Tunis recorded above (p. 15), but too short for the skins assigned to sarda.
In one skin from Sardinia (34.1.19.1) the pattern is well defined because the
skin is that of a young adult and short-coated like the type of jordansi; and
Martorelli figured six rings on the tail in one of the specimens he named
mediterranea. In most of the skins I assign to sarda the legs are well coloured ;
but in one from Tunisia (43.26) they are decidedly paler and more creamy.

A specimen (19. 7.7. 3015) of doubtful status, connecting F. I. sarda with
the next race, is a $ from Mettamer, or Metameur, in Tunis, wrongly identified
by Lataste as Felis libyca var. margarita (Actes Soc. Linn. Bord., 39, p. 231,
1885). It has the same dark greyish brown ears as the skin from Khenifra, in
Morocco, and the Tunisian skin (43.26), above described, but differs from both
in being decidedly paler grey owing to having less black speckling on the flanks
and comparatively little on the spinal area, which is ochreous rather than black ;
also the wool on the flanks is cream rather than buff and that of the crest a shade
paler ochreous. Its skull characters are described under F. I. lybica.

Felis lybica lybica, Forster

1780. Felis lybica, Forster, in Buffon Nat. Vierfuss. Thiere, 6, p. 313 (Gafsa

in Tunisia).
1792. Felis lynx lybiensis, Kerr, Anim. Kingd., p. 156 (Gafsa).
1804 } Felis libyca, Olivier, Voy. Emp. Oth., 3, p. 71 (Alexandria).

62

1824. l\ lis maniculata, Temminck, Mon. Mamm., |>. i 2N (Ambukol in Nubia);

Cretzschmar Ruppcll's Alias zu Saug. (1), p. 1. [826.
[824. Felts ruppelii, Schinz, Cuv. Thierr., 4, p. 509, 1824 or 1825 (Dongola);

Syn. Mamm., p. 452, [844 (under maniculata, but spelt ruppellii).
1832. Felis dongolana, Hemprich and Ehrenberg, Symb. Phys. Mamm., dec. 2

(Dongola).
[S85. Fclis aistata, Lataste, ic. Linn. Bordeaux, 39, p. 229 (not of

Falconer and Cautley, 1836) (Haidra in Tunisia).
1902. Felis lybica, Anderson and de Winton, Mamm. Egypt, p. 171 (in part).
1906. Felis ocreata lybica, Cabrera, Bol. Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat., 6, p. 364 (in part;

not ocreata, Gmelin).
h)2.S. Felis ocreata ocreata, Lavauden, Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Afr. Nord., 19,

p. 2(>i (in part; not ocreata, Gmelin).
1932. Felis ocreata, Howes, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 388.
1932. Felis lybica lybica, Cabrera, Trab. Mus. Nac. Cienc. Nat. Zool., 57, p. 165

(in part); G. M. Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 83, p. 236, 1939 (in

part).
1944. Felis lybica lybica, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 66.

Notes on Synonymy. — As was the case with Constantino (p. 53). Forstcr gave the name
Felis lybica i<> a cat described by Buffon from information supplied by Bruce, who saw a
specimen at ( lafsaorCapsa in Tunisia. The only diagnostic feature mentioned for lybica
was the "bright red" tint of the ears, indicating a much paler line than that of the
previous race, sarda.

Anderson and de Winton gave a full description of the colour of the type of maniculata,
showing clearly that it belongs to the race here named lybica. According to these authors
Olivier's libyca was F. chaus nilotica. Others have assigned it to the cat now under notice;
but the name is not available for either species, being preoccupied by Forster's libyca.

According to Cabrera, 1931, and Allen, 1939, lybica ranges from Morocco to Tunisia.
in my conception it extends eastwards to Egypt, up the Nile and to Suakin, and to the
west coast of the Red Sea. Hence the synonymy above quoted, including maniculata,
ruppelii, and dongolana applied to Egyptian specimens, contains more names than were
entered by those authors. Admittedly, my material consists mainly of single specimens
from widely separated localities; but the differences between them are comparatively
slight and not in my opinion of subspecific value.

Geographical Distribution. — The semi-desert districts of North Africa
from Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia to Egypt up the Nile through Nubia to the
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, and eastwards to Suakin and Massowah and, according
to Flower, the western coast of Sinai.

Diagnosis. — Intergrading with F. I. sarda, but readily distinguished on
the average by its lighter, dominantly buff or sandy hue, matching its habitat,
with less black in the general pelage above, paler with reddish spots below,
paler, nearly uniformly ochreous cars, whiter face, and apparently slightly
larger skull.

There is no topotype of this race in the British Museum, but a young adult

skin from Gabes, in Tunisia (P. Spatz, 96.7.15.1), April 16, may be taken as

representing typical lybica from Gafsa. The coat is in moult, with its contour

hairs 33 mm. on the flanks, 48 mm. on the crest. The general colour above is

63
pale grey, speckled whitish and fuscous on the flanks, black and pale buff on
the spinal area, which is moderately sharply defined, but owing to the compara-
tive thinness of the contour hairs the upper side, especially the shoulders, neck
and head, is suffused with the buff tint of the wool of the flanks and the rich
ochreous tint of the wool of the spinal area. The backs of the ears are dull red,
perhaps faded; the face is mainly whitish with a little red on the nose and
tinged with grey on the cheeks, showing up the genal stripes. The stripes on
the flanks are faint, dusky brown on the outer sides of the legs, the fronts of
which are very pale cream grey, with the bracelets on the fore legs pronounced
and the hind foot black to the hock. The tail above is like the spinal area, but
without the ochreous wool, and its distal black and white stripes are strongly
contrasted with its proximal portion. On the lower side, the chin and fore
throat are white, with a red collar, the hind throat buff and also red-collared;
the chest between the legs is white, passing posteriorly into buff", the spots
being red ; the abdomen posteriorly is white, but the genital area and the backs
of the thighs, not the base of the tail, are rich rusty ochreous.

An adult ? skin from Oued Nca, Mzab country*, Algerian Sahara (39.3653)1
April 26, closely resembles the skin from Gabes in the coat, which is thin with
the contour hairs on the flanks and crest about 35 and 50 mm. The general
colour above is a little more sandy, or yellower, owing to the pale speckling of
the contour hairs being a little finer and more buffy, not so white; the spinal
area is equally well defined by its black and pale ochreous speckling, and the
wool of the flanks and crest is very nearly the same tint, perhaps a shade
richer, and being similarly exposed by the thinness of the contour hairs
adds to the generally buffy aspect of the pelage. The backs of the ears are
slightly brighter red; there is a little more buff on the face and cheeks and
the lower side is richer, though overcast with white, and the spots are red.
The stripes on the flanks are almost obsolete, and on the outer sides of the
legs are a little less distinct, but the genal stripes, the two throat-collars, and
the bracelets are as well defined and the same rich tint pervades the backs of
the thighs.

A o skin from Wadi Outras, north of Tiznit, about 100 miles south of
Mogador, on the west coast of Morocco (R. Akroyd, 32.4.1. 1), March, has the
coat more luxuriant than in the skin from Gabes, the hairs of the flanks and
crest being 35 and 50 mm. long and entirely concealing the wool. The general
colour above very closely matches that of the skin from Gabes, but is a trifle
darker owing to the pale areas of the contour hairs of the flanks being less white,
slightly buffy, and of the crest a trifle richer. It is, on the other hand, a shade
paler than the skin from the Mzab country, the pale areas of the contour hairs
being a little lighter and more extensive; the wool and the backs of the ears are
about the same as in the last. The stripes on the sides are very faint and on
the outer side of the limbs weak, as in the Mzab skin; but the spots are obsolete
on the under side, a character in which it differs from the other two skins in
which they are conspicuous and red; the under side is tolerably uniformlv
cream buff, nearly as in the Gabes skin, paler and duller than in the Mzab skin,
1 This cat, collected by Hartert and Hilgert, was exhibited in Tring Museum as F. margaritu.

but, as in them, the backs of the thighs are richly tinted, the tint extending
down to the foot along the inner side, hut gradually fading.

This skin belongs beyond doubt to the pale sand-coloured North Saharan
race of the species, and on that account is of particular interest from its locality,
which is not far from Mogador, the type locality of F. ocreata mauritana,
Cabrera, referred to above under /•'. lybica sarda. Akroyd tells me (in lilt.) that
the cat was killed in open undulating country, cut up by watercourses and
sloping towards the sea. It was provided with very little scrub, but carpeted
with aubretias and Spanish delphiniums and frequented by plenty of ground
squirrels.

Three skins from Suakin (John Anderson), differing a little individually in
tint and distinctness of pattern, are of special interest from their likeness to
those above described. An adult <J from the Tamai Plain (4.8.2.13) is an almost
exact match in every way of the skin from Tiznit, in Morocco, except that the
coat is shorter, being about 26 mm. on the flanks and 35 mm. on the crest, and
the ventral side is marked with red spots. It is also very like the skin from
Gabes, in Tunisia, except that the coat is shorter, the pale speckling on the flanks
slightly buffy, less clear whitish, with less black on the spinal area and the wool
both dorsally and laterally less rich in hue. A second adult rj (7.4.3.1), from
the same locality, has the coat longer, 30 and 44 mm., and the pale speckling
clearer, less buffy than in the first described, thus still more closely resembling
the skin from Gabes.1 An adult $ (97.3.12.4), labelled merely Suakin, is
practically indistinguishable in colour from the first described rj1; but a headless
skin from Suakin (Penton, 93. 10. 15. 1), although short-coated like 4.8.2.13, has
the general tint clearer and whiter even than in 7.4.3.1, and the pattern is
stronger than in the others, the buff stripes standing out more boldly on the
paler ground colour. The difference between this skin and the first described
Tamai skin is greater than the difference between the latter and the skin from
Tiznit, in Morocco.

A youngish specimen (69.10.24.9) from Zoulla, near Massowah, shot in
July by Blanford, who correctly, I think, identified it as F. maniculata, has a
short, faded summer coat and closely resembles the buffy o* from Tamai,
Suakin (4.8.2.13) in general colour, but has the lateral pattern comparatively
strong, as strong as in Penton's skin from Suakin, although not thrown into
such bold relief owing to the darker colour of the Hanks. An adult $ (69.2.2.5),
collected by Jesse in the Zoulla district, is in better coat than the last and
differs from it in being generally greyer in tint owing to the more conspicuous
black and white speckling in the pelage, especially on the spinal area, and has
the stripes on the legs blacker and less red. It closely matches the skin from
Gabes, Tunisia, and the $ skin from Suakin.

An adult $ from Shendy (39.1666), March 12, with a thick but rather
short coat, 25 mm. on the flanks and 34 mm. on the crest, has the general colour
above a little brighter and more buffy than in the skins above described with
the spinal area more emphasised by black speckling, even a trifle more than in

1 These <J specimens from the Tamai Plain are the two of which Anderson, under the
numbers 75 and 85, gave the flesh measurements (Mamm. Egypt, p. 172, 1902).

&5
the skin from Gabes, and the ears are a little paler and more ochreous; the
pattern is very faint on the flanks and limbs, strong only on the tail and cheeks;
the under side is mostly cream with a reddish collar on the hind throat.1

A youngish 2 skin from Dueim (25.6.6.1), March 21, has the crest hairs
42 mm., a little longer than in the <J from Shendy and a little less black, but
the ground colour and the ears are very nearly the same tint. It differs, however,
strikingly from it, as well as from the other previously described specimens,
including Penton's from Suakin, in the greater distinctness of its pattern, which
consists of brownish streaks on the nape and transverse stripes on the body and
limbs. This pattern is probably a mark of the immaturity of the specimen.

A youngish $ from Sennar (46.6. 15. 112) matches the adult ? from Suakin
(97.3.12.4); but a kitten from the same locality (46.6. 15. 113) is darkish grey
above, like the bush-cats, although whitish below.

A specimen (22. 12. 28.1), from the Setit River, a tributary of the Atbara,
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, about 36°E. and I4°N., close to the north-western
Abyssinian boundary, is uniformly sandy-coloured, speckled buffy white and
fuscous on the flanks, black and buff on the spinal area and with pale buffy ears;
there are no stripes on the body or thighs and those on the fore legs are faint;
the hind feet are black to the hock.2

Measurements

Only four of the skins assigned to F. lybica lybica have flesh measurements.
With these are included a specimen, coloured like a bush-cat, from Nakheila
which is described below (p. 68), but left unidentified.

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

(J ad.
<*ad.
6" ad.
9 ad.

? ad.

F. lybica lybica
Tamai Plain, Suakin

Shendy, Sudan

Mzab country, Algerian Sahara

F. lybica subspecies ?
Nakheila, Atbara River .

4.8.2.13

7-4-3-I
39.1666

393653

4.11.3.14

in.

23i

22S

19!

22

18s

in.

I4i

15

I3f

12

9l

in.
5?
5t
5*

5

4!

in.
zi

zi

Skull. — The average condylobasal length of seven adult rj skulls is 91^ mm.,
a little longer than that of the four adult o skulls of sarda. There are some
interesting individual differences in the skulls in the British Museum. The one
from Mettamer, or Metameur (19.7.7.2978), is just adult, has feebly developed
occipital and sagittal crests, the postorbital area only a little constricted, the

1 Two additional specimens procured by N. C. Rothschild at Shendy are very different from
the above described, one being a red kitten, the other a dark grey adult 9, with fairly well-
pronounced pattern and short, thin winter coat. Both are regarded as feral house-cats (see p. 16).

3 It is impossible to describe this specimen in the same detail as the rest because it is exhibited
with other mammals in a case to illustrate colour adaptation to desert conditions.

5 — C.G.F.

91.

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7'". /. lyhica
Metameur, Tunisia .
Assouan, Egypt
Tamai Plain, Suakin

Erkowit, south of

Suakin
Shendy Sudan
Oued Nca, Mzab

Country
Gabes, Tunisia
Zoulla, Eritrea

^ ■ _c ■

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— —

67

temporal ridges 15 mm. apart, and the canine small, only just over 4 mm. in
basal longitudinal diameter. The skull from Assouan (97.3. 12. 1 a), which has
no skin, is fully adult and, like the last, has the occipital and sagittal crests
small, the temporal ridges are strong and 1 1 mm. apart, but the zygomata are
exceptionally wide and the bullae are noticeably smaller than in the skull from
Mettamer. The skull from Tamai plain, Suakin (4.8.2.13), has the occipital
and sagittal crests well developed, the sagittal being 5 mm. high, but the post-
orbital area is wide and the temporal ridges 10 mm. apart; the forehead is
higher than in the other skulls owing to air-cell inflation, and the facial profile
consequently more steeply sloped; the bullae are small, as in the Assouan skull.
In the other skull from Tamai (7.4.3.1), on the contrary, the bullae are much
longer, the sagittal crest is only 2 mm. high, the ridges are 15 mm. apart, and,
although the skull is younger, the teeth are smaller, the canine being only 4 mm.
instead of 5. These differences, especially those of the bullae, in two skulls
from the same locality are interesting. The skull from Erkowit (15.11.19.1),
which has no skin and is provisionally included, is well moulded and unique in
the race for the junction of the temporal ridges at the suture and their continua-
tion over the parietals as a very low sagittal crest rising to 5 mm. posteriorly;
the occipital crest is also well developed, the postorbital area is distinctly
constricted, and although the teeth are somewhat worn the canines are 5 mm.
in basal diameter.

Of the $ skulls, the one from the Mzab country, Algerian Sahara, is excep-
tionally large, thus confirming the flesh measurement. Its muscular moulding
is negligible, the occipital and sagittal crests being poorly developed, its post-
orbital area hardly constricted, and the muscular ridges 24 mm. apart at the
suture; the teeth are small, the basal diameter of the canine being only 3 \ mm.
But the skull from Zoulla, Massowah (69.10.24.9), is quite young, as shown by
its open sutures, narrow zygomata and small postorbital processes, and with
growth would probably have reached, perhaps surpassed, the size of the one
from the Mzab country. The remaining $ skulls, ranging from Gabes, in Tunisia,
to Shendy and Dueim, are very much alike in size and other features, all being
better developed than the ? from the Mzab district, the muscular ridges varying
from 15 to 21 mm. apart. In the skull from Dueim the canine is only 3+ mm.
in basal diameter; in the rest it is about 4 mm.

Specimens in the Collection

F. I. lybica

6" Wadi Outras, north of Tiznit, R. Akroyd [C & P] 32.4.1.1

west coast of Morocco

f mtd. Oued Nca, Mzab country, Rothschild Bequest 39-3°53

Algerian Sahara (E. Hartert)

9 Gabes, Tunisia Purchased 96.7.15.1

$ Metameur, Tunisia 19.7.7.2978

6" skull Assouan, Egypt Dr. J. Anderson [C & P] 97.3.12.1a

2 6" Tamai Plain, Suakin (J. An- Mrs. J. Anderson [P] 4.8.2.13, 74.3.1

derson)

Dr. J. Anderson [C&P]

97.3.12.4

R. H. Penton [C & I'l

93. IO.15. 1

A. L. Butler [C & I']

15. 11. 9.1

Rothschild Bequest

39.1666

Count J. PotockifC & I'l

22. 12. 28. 1

Wellcome Tropical Res.

25.6.6.1

Laboratory [P]

46.6. 1 5. 1 1

Dr.W.T. Blanford

69.10.24.0

[C & P]

Purchased

'"1.2. 2. 5

68

Suakin

J Erkowit, south of Suakin

j Shendy, Sudan

Mtd. Si tit River, Atbara River

Dueim, White Nile (H. 1.
Brocklehurst)
iv. Sennar, Sudan 46.6.15.1 12-1 13

Zoulla, nr. Massowah. Eritrea

Zoulla district (W. Jesse)

F. /. subspecies

Shabluka Hills, north of Om- Major S. S. Flower [P] S. 6. 15.3

durman (A. L. Butler)

Xakheila. Atbara River Hon. X. C. Rothschild 4. 11. 3. 14

|C & P]

Felis lybica, subspecies

A fully adult (8.6.15.3), captured in the Shabluka Hills, north of Omdur-
man, that lived for about one year in the Zoological Gardens, Cairo, has the
teeth greatlv worn apparently from biting steel rods rather than from age. The
coat is full and long, 31 and 40 mm., in November. The general colour above
is darkish buffv grey, darker than in the skins assigned to typical lybica, especially
on the face, with the spinal area dull ochreous and black, the wool on the flanks
brightish buff, and on the crest dull ochreous; the ears, although much rubbed,
appear to have been deep rusty brown, darker than in typical lybica; the pattern
is mostly suppressed; the under side is buff overcast with white, and the hind
feet are black to the hock.

This skin, which hao no flesh measurement, looks like that of a pure-bred
wild cat. Presumably its darker colour is associated with its habitat in the hills,
where there is probably more vegetation and moisture than at the lower levels
where typical lybica occurs. The skull has the bullae much larger than in the
feral 3 domestic cat from Wady Natron, in Lower Egypt, referred to above
(p. 15), and is about the same length. It is moderately well moulded, but has
poorly developed occipital and sagittal crests considering its age.

An adult : skin (4. 11.3. 14) from Nakheila, on the Atbara, February 4, has
a long full coat, 33 and 42 mm., and the general colour darkish grey above, as
in the bush-cats of this species, recalling that of the adult rj skin of ocreata
from Tigre, but the face is not so pale and the ears are unusually dark, being
dull grey-brown and matching the head, as in the greyish skin from Shendy
(1.5. 5. 13) regarded as a feral house-cat (p. 16); the spinal area is ochreous and
black; the wool on the flanks is rich buff, on the crest rich ochreous; the pattern
on the body above is practically obsolete, black but not strong on the limbs,
and black below; the hind throat and the rest of the under side are buffy. The
skull is about the same size as in the last, but, although a good deal younger,
with the temporal ridges 17 mm. apart, has the occipital and sagittal crests better
developed, and the orbital portions of the zygomata more salient.

6o

Considering that Nakheila, as I learn from Major S. S. Flower, is in the
desert, the dark hue of this cat is puzzling, if it is pure bred. It is much darker
than the sandy-hued cat from the Setit River, higher up the Atbara, which is
referred to typical lybica (p. 65).

Felis lybica ocreata, Gmehn

1 791. Felis ocreata, Gmelin, Anhang zu Bruce Reisen, 2, pp. 27 and 79

(Ras-el-Feel, North Abyssinia).

1792. Felis Lynx nubiensis, Kerr, Anim. King., p. 156 (Ras-el-Feel, North

Abyssinia).
1824. Felis caligata, Temminck, Mon. Mamm., 1, p. 123 (Ras-el-Feel, North

Abyssinia); Blanford, Obs. Geol. Zool. Abyssinia, p. 228, 1870.
1902. Felis lybica, Anderson and de Winton, Mamm. Egypt, p. 171 (in part,

not F. lybica, Forster).
1904. Felis ocreata ocreata, Schwann, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 13, p. 426 ;

Heller, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 61, pp. 14-15, 1913.
1925. Felis ocreata maniculata, De Beaux, Atti. Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat., 64, p. 212

(not maniculata, Temminck and Cretzschmar).
1939. Felis lybica ocreata, G. M. Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 83, p. 238

(in part, excluding synonymy).
1944. Felis lybica ocreata, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 67.

Note on the Synonymy. — Gmelin gave the name Felis ocreata to the cat from Ras-el-
Feel described and figured by Bruce as the "Booted Lynx" (Travels, etc., 5, p. 146,
1790). Under Felis Lynx nubiensis Kerr cited the names of three different cats. The
first was the Nubian Caracal of Buffon (Suppl. Hist. Nat., 3, p. 232, 1772, not 5, p. 224,
as quoted by Kerr) which Buffon described on information received from Bruce, who
saw at Meroe a specimen, obviously a genuine Caracal. The second was the Lybian
Lynx of Pennant (Quadr., p. 284, No. 173 B, 1781), which is typical F. lybica, Forster.
The third was the Booted Lynx of Bruce. This has been selected as the type because
Kerr's diagnosis was derived practically verbatim from Bruce's text. Temminck used
the name Felis caligata in a comprehensive sense to include cats of this species ranging
from North to South Africa. But since the first name quoted in his synonymy was the
Booted Lynx, which suggested the name caligata, Blanford's application of the latter to
the cat he shot in northern Abyssinia was amply justified.

G. M. Allen's conception of this race, derived from earlier authors, covered the bush
cats and semi-desert cats of Abyssinia and Egypt, involving a long list of synonyms
published later than ocreata. Under that name he entered maniculata, ruppelii, and
dongolana, ascribed above to lybica, as well as guttata, Herman, 1804, bubastis, Hemprich
and Ehrenberg, 1832, given to the sacred cat of the ancient Egyptians, and pulcliella.
Gray. The description of guttata does not apply to any cat of this species, the type of
pulcliella is a feral house-cat (see above, p. 15), and the only skull of the mummy cat
known to me is much too large to be referred to either of the races lybica or ocreata as
here understood.

Geographical Distribution. — Abyssinia.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from typical lybica, although intergrading with
it, by the dominant tint of the ground colour above being grey with more black
speckling and a reddish or yellow wash, not so sandy buff in adaptation to

7°

desert or semi-desert conditions. The general colour above is more like that
of sarda, but is paler grey, with less black speckling, especially on the sides of
the body, the ears are paler and the face noticeably whiter. There is evidence-
also that the skull is a little larger, sex for sex, than in either of the preceding
two North African races, particularly sarda.

This diagnosis is derived from the descriptions of three examples given by
Bruce, Blanford, and de Beaux respectively, and from a specimen in the British
Museum which has been compared with the specimens assigned to libyca
and sarda.

Bruce briefly described his "Booted Lynx", the type of ucreata, as being
21 inches long from the nose to the anus, dirty grey in colour above, dirty white,
with red spots on the belly, the nose reddish brown, the backs of the ears the
same, but a little darker, and the under side of the feet black. There is no
reference to pattern on the body, apart from the spots below. The locality,
Ras-el-Feel, as shown by the map of Bruce's Travels,1 is about 40 miles north-
west of Lake Tana, in Abyssinia, but is not entered in modern atlases in which
the only locality of that name is in Darttir. This apparently has been a source
of some confusion regarding the colour of the "Booted Lynx".

Bruce's account of the habits and habitat of this cat is also important. It
lives in company with the elephant and rhinoceros, feeding on the guinea-fowl
found in the thickets and bushes. It hides in the bushes; but in the "fly-season"
retreats to holes in the ground, and when pursued climbs high trees. This
account attests tolerably luxuriant vegetation and abundance of rain, not
semi-desert conditions.

Blanford killed an adult $ at Adigrat, Tigre Province, 8,000 ft., north-east
of Ras-el-Feel, in Abyssinia. His opinion that this cat represents the Booted
Lynx and that the latter is the type of F. caligata may be accepted without
qualification. He drew attention to the luxuriance of the winter coat in April,
stating that the hairs on the back were zh inches (62 mm.) long; the general
colour above was somewhat rufous grey, darker towards the centre of the back,
and rufous white below. Comparing this cat with the specimen he collected
at Zoulla, near Massowah, and identified as Felts maniculata (see above, p. 64),
he remarked that the two are so entirely different that no naturalist of that
period would consider them to belong to the same species.

De Beaux had an adult £ from Azozo, in Gondar, north Abyssinia, which,
erroneously in my opinion, he identified as Felis ocreata maniculata. He com-
mented on the large size of the skull, gave some dental measurements, and
described the colour above as light yellowish grey.

Blanford's skin (69.10.24.8) from Tigre, 8,000 ft., April, has a full, long
coat, 40 mm. on the flanks, 60 mm. on the spinal area; the general colour above,2

1 I am indebted to Mr. F. Allen of the Royal Geographical Society for this information.
The account of this cat quoted above is taken from the third edition of the Travels, 7, p. 263,
1813, the only copy of the work I have seen.

- There is no trace of the "rufous" tinge mentioned by Blanford. It has either entirely
faded or was due, as I suspect, in the freshly killed specimen to exposure of the bright-coloured
wool beneath the contour hairs. The yellowish tinge in De Beaax's specimen may have been
due to the same cause.

71

except on the spinal area, is clear silvery grey, paler than in sarda owing to less
black speckling, especially on the lower half of the sides; the spinal area is dark,
the hairs being extensively black with rich buff speckling; the summit of the
wool is pale buff on the flanks, ochreous on the spinal area from the shoulders
to the tail; the crown of the head is grey, not darker than the flanks, although
more finely speckled; the backs of the ears are about the same tint as in typical
lybica, paler than in sarda; there is some reddish ochreous on the nose, but the
face is much paler than in sarda, especially between the eyes and on the cheeks,
the latter being buffy white up to the upper genal stripe, the lower being obsolete ;
there is no perceptible pattern on the head, nape or shoulders, that on the
flanks is so faint as to be practically negligible, and on the limbs, which are
buffy grey in front, the stripes, apart from the bracelet, are fuscous and weak;
only the end of the tail is strongly striped; the under side has the chin and
interramal area white, the rest buff, with very faint chest spots; but this hue is
intensified, but not markedly, round the genital area, on the backs of the thighs,
down the inner side of the hind legs, and on the base of the tail.

The skin of a young adult specimen alleged to be $ (K. M. Guichard, 46.93)
from Debra Sina-Dessie Road, near the Robi River, Ethiopia (= Abyssinia),
4,000-5,000 ft., in its generally grey hue above, with darker, richer tinted spinal
area and buffy white under side, resembles the q skin from Tigre, but differs
in a few particulars. The mid-winter coat, December 29, is shorter, the flank
hairs being 28 mm. and those on the crest 40 mm. ; the head has more pigment,
the area between the eyes and the cheeks being buff, not so white, and the ears
darker; the pattern on the flanks is more conspicuous, especially posteriorly,
and passes inferiorly into blackish spots on the belly and chest, and the stripes
on the outer side of the legs, particularly the fore leg, are also stronger. These
differences in the coat colour and pattern are no doubt partly attributable to
season, altitude, and age.

The male skull from i\digrat, in Tigre, North Abyssinia (69.10.24.8), re-
garded from its distribution as typical ocreata, although only just adult, has the
occipital crest strongly developed, the sagittal crest 6 mm. high, and the temporal
ridges 11 mm. apart at the suture, and meeting in a point near the middle of
the parietals; the interorbital area is unusually flat owing to the considerable
development of air-cells in front, making this area prominent and giving the
nasals an abrupt downward slope. The large size of this skull is of interest in
connection with the dimensions given by de Beaux of the skull of his male
specimen, referred to above, from Azozo, in Gondar. In this the condylobasal
length was 97J and the zygomatic width 74J mm., both dimensions exceeding
those of any skulls of cats of this species from North Africa.

The skull of the alleged £ from near the Robi River differs from the Adigrat
skull in being shorter, having the anterior portion of the frontals less inflated
with air-cells so that the summit of the muzzle is not so steeply sloped. The
maxillary and interorbital areas are narrower and the width across the post-
orbital processes is 49 mm., as opposed to 51 mm.; but the cranial portion is
practically as wide everywhere, being feebly muscularly moulded, the weak
temporal ridges being 18 mm. apart at the suture and forming an indistinct

72

lyrate area on the parietals, the sagittal crest is only about 2 mm. high and the
occipital crest is much less salient. These features, in which it differs strikingly
from the j skull from Adigrat, although not much younger, give it all the
appearance of being $. The bullae are slightly less inllated, the distance between
them being 10 mm. as opposed to 7J mm. in the Adigrat skull. A rather
noticeable difference in the teeth is the reduction in size of the inner lobe
(protocone) of pmA, this tooth being 5 mm. wide in front, as opposed to 6 mm.
in the Adigrat skull.

Specimens in the Collection

Adigrat, Tigre, N. Abyssinia Dr. W. T. Blanford [C & P] 60.10.24.8

Debra Sina-Dessie Road, near K. M. Guichard [C & P] 46-03

Robi River, Abyssinia

Felis lybica bubastis, Hempr. and Ehr.

1832. Felts bubastis, Hemprich and Ehrenberg, Symb. Phys. Mamm. dec. 2,
(Egypt); Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 67, 1944.

Diagnosis. — This sacred cat of the ancient Egyptians, as here identified, is
distinguished from the existing North African races of lybica, namely sarda,
lybica, and ocreata, by the considerably larger size of the skull, which is a trifle
longer even than the two exceptionally long skulls of the South African race
cafra (p. 102), the teeth being about the same size as in the latter.

This race is provisionally admitted on the evidence of a skull in the British
Museum (90.3.7.1), labelled "Mummied Cat". It was one of a large number
(19 tons) sent over to England for manure.

This skull, obviously that of an oldish $, of which the measurements are
given in the table (p. 59), is exceptionally well moulded. The temporal ridges
meet at the suture and are continued over the parietals as a low ridge, which
posteriorly rises into a high sagittal crest ; the occipital crest is well developed, the
zygomatic arches salient, the postorbital area constricted and the orbits on each
side completed by the junction of the frontal and malar postorbital processes.

This skull was not identified by Thomas. I refer it to Felis lybica because
of its size and general shape, especially the salience of the orbital and temporal
areas of the zygomata which gives it the wide look characteristic of the skulls
of that species and of silvestris, distinguishing them readily as a rule from
the narrower more elongated skulls of typical F. chaus. It is, moreover, con-
siderably shorter in its total and condylobasal lengths than adult £ skulls of
F. chaus nilotica, the Egyptian race of the Jungle Cat (see p. 159), although
about as wide, and has the upper carnassial tooth (pmi) much smaller. In its
lengths it is nearly the same as the only adult V skull of /•*. chaus nilotica
entered on the table (p. 160), namely the one from Akmin (92.5.22.1), but is
much wider across the zygomata and has />m4 smaller. In all its dimensions,
nevertheless, and in the size of its teeth, it agrees tolerably closely with an adult
6* skull of the Sind race, F. chaus prateri (15. 1 1.1.67).

73

In view of the above-stated facts the following possibilities connected with
the skull suggest themselves. It may represent a big Egyptian wild race of
/•'. hbica, now extinct. That is the possibility here provisionally adopted. On
the other hand, since the sacred and "mummied" cat to which it belonged
may have been a tame specimen bred and reared in captivity, it is conceivable
that the peculiarities of the skull are due to its being that of a hybrid between
F. lybica and F. chaus; or, indeed, it may have belonged to a pure-bred stock
of chaus, domesticated for several generations, in which the skull and teeth
were reduced in size by conditions of captivity, exactly as has taken place in
some of our domestic cats; and since it is known that rearing from early cubhood
in menageries has the effect of expanding the zygomata, e.g. in lions, the same
phenomenon may possibly have occurred in the skull under discussion.

Specimen in the Collection1

Skull Egypt Professor G. B. Howes [P] 90.3.7.1

Felis lybica lynesi, Pocock

1923. Felis ocreata, Thomas and Hinton, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 253 (in part,

excluding the specimen from Jebel Marrah; not ocreata, Gmelin).
1925 IFeHs haussa, Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 9th sen, 16, p. 188. (The

specimens from Tchsiderak in Air which are not F. I. haussa, Thomas

and Hinton as recorded below.)
1944. Felis lybica lynesi, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 68 (35 miles north

of El Fasher in Darfur).

Geographical Distribution. — The deserts of Darfur.

Diagnosis. — A desert race paler in general colour than F. lybica lybica,
with the ears paler and more ochreous, as in the specimen from Shendy, and
the skull smaller.

Colour. — The type, young adult J (23.1. 1.65), February 5, has the coat
tolerably full, 35 mm. long on the flanks and 45 on the crest; the general colour
above is very pale creamy white, speckled with black on the back and with
fuscous on the sides, there being no appreciable buff except on the spinal area,
which has comparatively little black speckling; the wool on the flanks is pale
buff, on the spinal area darker buff; the pattern is everywhere almost suppressed,
except the "bracelet" on the fore leg and the bands on the tail; there are no
stripes on the head, nape or shoulders, those on the flanks are scarcely per-
ceptible, and on the outside of the fore legs faint; the ears behind are light
ochreous with a brown pencil; the lower side is superficially white from the
chin backwards, but on the chest and abdomen the hairs are buff at the base,
and there are no spots; the backs of the thighs are buff and the hind foot is
black up to the hock.

A young <J (23.1. 1.64) from El Fasher, February 8, has the coat shorter,

1 The author did not take into consideration the many specimens of mummied cats in Pro-
fessor Flinders Petrie's collection which was presented to the Museum in 1904.

74

\o mm. on the Hanks and 38 on the crest, the ground colour is butt and darker,
and the spinal area ochreous with more black speckling; but it differs most
strikingly from the type in having the pattern everywhere pronounced, pale
brownish on the head, nape, shoulders and flanks, blacker on the legs and red
below; the backs of the thighs are richer ochreous, but the black on the hind
foot does not spread much above the pads. The comparative distinctness of
the pattern in this specimen and the restriction of the black on the hind foot
to the sole are probably juvenile characters. The same explanation may apply
to its generally richer colour. This skin is an almost exact match of the immature
skin from Dueim, assigned to /•'. /. lybica (see p. 65), but the pattern is every-
where more pronounced.

Skull. — The young adult male skull of the type, with a total and condylo-
basal length of 93 and 85 mm., is shorter than six adult male skulls of typical
lybica from Tunis, Assouan, Suakin, and Shendy, in which the total length
ranges from 98 to 102 mm., with an average of 99J, and the condylobasal length
from 90 to 93 mm., with an average of 91'. The skull of the young male from
1 1 Fasher, with a condylobasal length of 78 mm., calls for no further comment.
For skull-measurements see p. 77.

According to the information kindly supplied by Mr. Willoughby Lowe
these two cats were trapped in the open plain consisting of desert sand almost
without vegetation. They feed upon gerbils and share the burrows made by
the fennec foxes. The habitat is clearly quite different from that of the type
of F. I. lowei, from Jebel Marra, described below (p. 76).

Felis lybica, subspecies

Representing the same, or a very closely related, race are three specimens
collected at Tchsiderak, in Air or Asben, 2,300 ft., by Angus Buchanan. They
were identified by Thomas in 1925 as Felis haussa, although they contradict
the definition of the latter given by him and Hinton in 1921.

A young adult (25.5.12.7), January 11, has the coat 23 and 37 mm.,
decidedly shorter than in the type of lynesi; the ground colour is very nearly
the same, but the spinal area is better defined by having more black in it; the
wool on the flanks is very pale buff, on the crest pale ochreous, and the pattern
is much more apparent, being intermediate in distinctness between the pattern
of the two skins from Darfur, and the black on the hind foot is restricted to its
lower part, as in the young male from that district. This last character, like the
comparative distinctness of the pattern, is no doubt due to the specimen being
not quite adult.

A young adult j (25.5.12.6), January 12, has the coat 28 and 36 mm., the
colour and the wool on the flanks a little deeper buff, but there is much less
black on the spinal area, the pattern above is a little fainter, but below a little
stronger. Another male (39.1671) has the coat 28 and 42 mm., the ground
colour and the wool still a little deeper, the spinal area still fainter and the
pattern below still stronger than in the other. The three specimens have the
backs of the ears uniformly ochreous, the face largely white, with the usual four

75

short brown streaks above the eyes, the area between the eyes almost unspeckled,
a brown streak running from the eye to the muzzle on each side, two reddish
genal stripes, and at least a couple of collars on the throat; all these marks
being more emphasised than in the type of lynesi, but practically the same as
in the young o from Darfur.

Flesh Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

6" yg. ad.

(J ad.
6" ad.
$ yg. ad.

F. 1. lynesi
El Fasher, Darfur

F. 1. subspecies
Tchsiderak, Air

(type)

23. 1. 1. 65

25.5.12.6

39.1671

25-5-I2-7

in.
20

19

.8s

16*

in.

13 +

i4i

III

13

in.

Si

5

4l

4*

in.
2 1

21

2.1
2\

Skull. — The skull of the young adult $ (25.5.12.6) seems to have attained
nearly its full length, but is weakly moulded, its temporal ridges being 18 mm.
apart and its sagittal crest only 3 mm. high. Its total and condylobasal lengths
are 98 and 90 mm., a little longer than in the type of lynesi, and very nearly as long
as in the ^^ of typical lybica referred to above. Its carnassials are 1 1 and 9 mm.
and its upper canine 5 mm. The skull assigned to the skin (39.1671), which is
certainly £, has all the characters of a ?. It is adult, with the basioccipital
suture closed, but its condylobasal length is barely 81 mm., 9 mm. less than
in the <J skull (25.5.12.6), whereas its postorbital width is 35 mm., 2 mm. wider
than in the $ skull, although its temporal area is narrower, 14 mm. wide, with
the sagittal crest at most 2 mm. high. The teeth, too, are smaller, the carnassials
being 10J and 7 mm., and the canine 4 mm. thick. I do not believe the skull
belongs to the skin and have treated it as 2. The skull of the young adult £
(25.5.12.7) has the condylobasal length 78 mm., the postorbital area 35 mm.,
as in the last, the temporal area 23 mm. wide, the carnassials 9 and 7 mm., and
the canine 3 mm. thick.

For skull measurements see p. 77.

Specimens in the Collection

F. I. lynesi
6" El Fasher, Darfur (W. P. Lowe) Admiral H. Lynes [P]

t?

23. 1. 1.65

type
23. 1. 1. 64

F. I. subspecies

6\ S Tchsiderak, Air or Asben Angus Buchanan [C S: P] 25.5.12.6-7

6* ,, ,, ,, Rothschild Bequest 39.1671

76

Felis lybica lowei, Pocock

i<)2^. Felis ocreata, Thomas and Hinton, I'roc. Zool. Soc, p. 253 (in part,
i.e. the skin from Jebel Marrah; not ocreata, Gmelin).

1 1144. Felis lybica lowei, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 6N (Jebel Marrah,
4,000 ft., Darfur).

Geographical Distribution. -Unknown with certainty, apart from the
type locality, hut possibly extending to Fort Lamy on the Lower Shari
River.

Diagnosis. — A bush-cat, clear dark grey in colour on the flanks, and
distinguished from typical ocreata, as above defined, at least by its much thinner
and snorter winter coat, and apparently by its smaller skull and teeth; and from
sarda by its paler colour, especially of the ears, which are ochreous and strongly
contrasted with the head.

Colour. — The type, an adult °. (23.1.1. 66), has the winter coat (April 11)
thin and short, only 30 mm. on the flanks, 35 mm. on the spinal area, and 16 mm.
on the tail. The colour of the upper side throughout is darkish grey, with a
slight olivaceous cast, the contour hairs being very finely and closely speckled
with black and buffv white, with the spinal band a little blacker; the wool on
the flanks is pale greyish buff and only a little brighter on the spinal crest; the
ears, however, are bright ochreous buff, strongly contrasted with the head;
the stripes on the flanks are only just perceptible, but are stronger on the limbs,
the fore legs having the normal two black "bracelets" on the inner side; there
are no stripes on the shoulders or nape and scarcely a trace on the head, except
the two normal abbreviated streaks above the eyes and the two red genal stripes;
the two patches between the eyes are conspicuous and white, and there is some
reddish on the muzzle; the lower side is mostly white, but the hind throat is
buff with two brownish collars, the ventral spots are brown and reddish, there
is some ochreous on the backs of the thighs, but not on the base of the tail,
which has at most a couple of stripes in front of its black tip, and the hind foot
is normally blackish to the hock behind.

The measurements are: head and body, 22 in.; tail, 13] in.; hind toot, 5 in.;
ear. 2! in.

There is nothing to be noted in the general form of the skull, ot which the
measurements are given in the table (p. 77).

According to YVilloughby Lowe's information this cat was "killed near
Kallokitting", a district consisting of "granite boulders with considerable
vegetation and moisture".

Provisionally referred to the same race is a ^ skin in the British Museum
(36.2.2.2), collected by Dr. Malbrant, at Fort Lamy on the Lower Shari
River, Lake Chad, some 600 miles almost due west of Jebel Marrah. It has
no skull and only differs from the type of lowei in being just a shade more
huffy, and therefore slightly less grey above. The measurements of the flat
skin are: head and body, 23J in.; tail, 13.I in.; closely agreeing with those of
the type.

77

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78

Specimens in the Collection

[ebel Marrah, Darfur, 4,000 ft. Admiral H. Lynes [P] 23.1. 1.66

(W. P. Lowe) '(type)

o" Fort Lamy, Lower Sliari River, Dr. Malbrant [C & P| 36.2.2.2

Lake Chad

Felis lybica haussa, Thomas and Hinton

1921. Felis haussa, Thomas and Hinton, Novitat. Zool., 2X, p. ^42 (Zinder,

some 300 miles due south of Air).
1025. Felis haussa, Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 9th ser., 16, p. 188 (in

part, i.e. the specimen from Farniso, near Kano, Northern Nigeria, not

the specimens from Tchsiderak, in Air).
1938. Felis ocreata haussa, Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (11), 1, p. 472

(excluding specimens from Tchsiderak).
1944. Felis lybica haussa, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114. p. 70.

Geographical Distribution. — Zinder in French W. Africa and Farniso,
near Kano, Northern Nigeria.

Diagnosis. — A semi-desert cat like typical Ixhica and lyuesi, and resembling
them in its general sandy hue, hut distinguished from all the races of the species
by its noticeably smaller skull.

Colour. — The type, an oldish ; (Buchanan, 21.2.11.16) from Zinder,
1,500 ft., February 16, is an almost exact match in colour and pattern of the
young adult <J from Tchsiderak (25.5.12.6).

An adult V (21. 2.1 1.17) from Farniso, 1,700 ft., near Kano, in North Nigeria,
about 100 miles south of Zinder, December 22, is greyer than the type, not so
buffy above, and has darker wool. Another adult 'i (39.1672), from Dan Kaba.
1,520 ft., also in North Nigeria, May 11, has the coat thin and short, 25 and
40 mm. long, exposing the buff tint of the wool; it is a little lighter than the
type because of the scantier black speckling of the contour hairs and the pattern
is absent except for faint stripes on the outer sides of the legs and collars on
the throat. A kitten from Farniso (21. 2. 11. 18) differs from the adults in being
darker above, with the ears dark brown and broyvnish stripes on the head and
flanks, stronger stripes on the legs, the genal stripes and collars brownish, the
spots on the belly black, all these being reddish in the adult, and the black on
the hind foot, as in all immature skins of the species, restricted to the area
of the pads.

In these external characters, including the flesh measurements, these
specimens closely resemble those from Air, and since the measurements were
taken by the same collector they may be regarded as strictly comparable.

Ski ll. -But the skulls of haussa are decidedly smaller sex for sex. The
skull of the type, an oldish $, is well moulded, with its temporal area 10 mm.
wide and salient zygomata, has its total and condylobasal lengths 86 and
80 mm., 10 mm. shorter than the young adult <$ skull from Air; its teeth, too,
are smaller, the upper and lower carnassials being 10 and jl mm. and the upper

79

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind

Foot

Ear

in.

in.

in.

in.

(J ad.

Zinder . (type)

2 1. 2. 1 I. I 6

18*

ioi

Al

zi

9 ad.

Dan Kaba

39.1672

17

11 I

4i

zl

^ad.

Farniso .

21.2. 1 1. 17

16

•>'.

4

2 +

?yg-

21. 2. II. 18

11 A

(>i

34

>i

canine 4 mm. Its condylobasal length is very nearly the same as in the adult
J from Air, but the total length is 5 mm. shorter, owing to the weak occipital
crest. The adult 9 skulls from Farniso and Dan Kaba, with a condylobasal
length of 75 and 76 mm. respectively, are 6 and 5 mm. shorter in that dimension
than the adult ? from Air, and there is a still greater discrepancy between the
total lengths, which in the Air skull is 92 mm., whereas in the two from North
Nigeria it is 80 and 83 mm. From this it may be seen that the three skulls of
haussa have the occipital crest much less salient than in those from Air.

A flat native skin (23.3.24.4), probably brought down to the coast from
Northern Nigeria, was procured by Captain C. Armitage on the Gold Coast.
In its coloration it is indistinguishable from the foregoing; but the absence of
the skull makes the identification doubtful.

Specimens in the Collection

6* Zindi-r, 300 miles south of Air (type)

2 Farniso, near Kano, N. Nigeria,

1,700 ft.
Dan Kaba, N. Nigeria, 1,520 ft.
Skin Gold Coast? native collector

Angus Buchanan [C & P] 2 1 .2. 1 1 . 1 6

,, ,, 21.2.11.17— if

Rothschild Bequest
Capt. C. Armitage [P]

39.1672
23-3-24.4

Felis lybica foxi, Pocock

1944. Felts lybica foxi, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 71 (Kabwir, 2,700 ft.,
on the slopes of the Panyam plateau, Bauchi Province, Northern
Nigeria).1

Geographical Distribution. — Panyam plateau, Bauchi Province, Northern
ia.

Diagnosis. — A bush-cat much darker in general hue than F. I. haussa
and other desert or semi-desert races of F. lybica; darker also than F. 1. lozvei
and F. I. ocreata, and most nearly resembling in this respect the more northern

1 In three papers (Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 1912 and 1913) Thomas reported on several
collections, mostly of Rodents, made by G. T, and J. C. Fox in the Bauchi Province,
about io°E. and io°N., some 300 miles south of the localities of F. I. haussa. Most of the
specimens were claimed to represent new races or species, but no reference was made to the
skin and two skulls of this cat, which was also new.

So

race of F. I. sarda, particularly in the red hue of the face, but the coat is much
less luxuriant, the spinal area and crown are less black, there is no blackish tip
to the ears, and the pale speckling on the flanks is more buffy, less clear grey.

Colour. — The skin of the type, an undated <$, has the coat short, the hairs
of the flanks being 27 and of the spinal area 46 mm., but the tail in comparison
is bushv, its hairs being about 40 mm. The general colour above is ruddy, dark
greyish brown, the hairs being very closely speckled buffy grey and black, with
the spinal area deep rusty brown, speckled reddish and black; the wool on the
flanks is pale buff, on the crest rich ochreous; the backs of the ears are dark
earthy red; the face has no white, except on the edge of the upper lip; the muzzle
is deep reddish brown, like the ears, and the pale patches on the inner sides of
the eyes are buff. The under side of the chin and interramal area are white,
but the throat is rich buff in front, turning to ochreous behind; the chest and
abdomen are rich ochreous overcast with white, and the genital area and the
backs of the thighs down to the hocks are rusty ochreous, and the hind feet are
black to the hocks; the upper side of the tail is contrasted with the spinal area
by being blacker, with the hairs exclusively white, and there are only two
well-defined black stripes in front of the black tip. The pattern, except for the
tail stripes and the bracelets, is obsolete almost everywhere, being faint even on
the outer side of the legs and represented by reddish spots below.

The flat skin, no doubt stretched, has the head and body 28 in., the tail 15 in.

Skull. — The skull of a q, just adult (13.9. 9.1), with the same history as
the skin, has a condylobasal length of 90 mm., and a zygomatic width of 67 mm.,
and is considerably bigger than the much older skull of the o type of /*'. /. haussa
and as big as the 3 skull from Tchsiderak, in the Air Province of the Sahara,
referred to F. L Iviiesi. It is moderately well moulded, has the temporal ridges
17 mm. apart and the sagittal crest 2., mm. high, its upper canine is 4.} mm.
thick, and its carnassials are respectively 11 and 8 mm., as in the type of F. I.
lynesi. The skull of a young adult <J (13.2.5.3), with the same history, has a
condylobasal length of 87 mm., and its other dimensions nearly the same as in
the first, but its sagittal crest is only 1 mm. high and its teeth are a little larger,
the upper canine being 5 mm. thick and the carnassials 12 and 9 mm. respectively.

I tentatively refer to this race an apparently adult skin made up as a
bandolier and procured from a native at Zaria, North Nigeria, by Bruce Smith
(23.6.5.1). It differs from the type oifoxi in the greyer speckling of the ground
colour, blacker spinal area, very distinct brownish pattern, and much less
ochreous under side. It is, of course, not certain that Zaria was the original
home of this specimen.

Specimens in the Collection

J Kabwir, Panyam Plateau, 2,700 ft.,

Bauchi Prow, North Nigeria

o skulls Kabwir, Panyam Plateau, 2,700ft. ,
Bauchi Prov., North Nigeria
? Zaria, North Nigeria, native col-
lector

. C. Fox [C & P]

12. 11. 7. 5

type

13.9.9.1

I3-2-S-3

iruce Smith [P]

23.6.5.1

8i

Felis lybica brockmani, Pocock

1910. Felis ocreata, Drake-Brockman, Mamm. Somaliland, p. 20 (Sogsodi,

Golis Range, British Somaliland).
1944. Felis lybica brockmani, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, vol. 114, p. 72.

Geographical Distribution. — British Somaliland and Ogaden.

Diagnosis. — A bush-cat intergrading with F. I. ocreata from the highlands
of Abyssinia and with the southern forms described as F. I. taitae from Kenya
and F. I. ugandae from Uganda, but typically distinguished from them by its
strongly pronounced pattern on the average and its smaller skull.

Colour. — In typical skins the pattern varies in distinctness individually
from palish brown to black, but is represented above by longitudinal stripes on
the head, nape, shoulders and usually on the spinal area, by normal vertical
stripes on the sides, well-defined stripes on the outer sides of the limbs to the
wrist and hock, and up to five or six stripes on the tail; on the under side of
the body and inner sides of the legs it is always strong and blackish, there are
collars on the throat and the backs of the hind feet are black to the hock.

The skin of the type, a young adult cj, from Sogsodi, near Upper Sheikh,
in the Golis Range, 5,000 ft. (Drake-Brockman, 6.5.4.1), February 26, has
the hairs of the winter coat 30 mm. on the flanks, 47 on the crest; the ground
colour above is slightly tawny grey, the pale speckling of the hairs being
pale buff, the dark speckling fuscous rather than black, and the spinal area is
weakly defined, there being comparatively little buff in it ; the wool of the flanks
is pale buff, of the crest pale ochreous; the ears are rusty brown; the pattern
on the upper side is well defined and as described above; on the under side the
chin and interramal area are white, the throat is marked in front by two mesially
interrupted reddish collars and behind by two complete broader deep brown
collars; the rest of the under side is buff, with strong black pattern, and there
is an ochreous tinge about the genitalia and on the backs of the thighs.

The skin of an adult $ from Gorahai, in the Ogaden district, about 2,500 ft.
(H. N. Dunn, 4.5.9.6), February 9, tolerably closely resembles the type, but
has the coat a little shorter, 25 and 41 mm., the general colour above rather
clearer, less tawny grey, the pattern a little fainter, with less black on the stripes
and spinal area, and on the legs and throat not so strong, but on the belly it is
equally pronounced; below the general colour is paler, cream, and the hue of
the backs of the thighs is less rich.

A young adult £ skin from Gerlogubi, in the Ogaden district, about 2,500 ft.
(Dunn, 4.5.9.5), January 18, has the coat 28 and 44 mm., and differs from both
the preceding by the silvery grey ground colour of the upper side and its more
pronounced blacker pattern, which is thrown into stronger relief by the whiter
ground colour; the lower side is whiter than in the skin from Gorahai,
but the wool and the backs of the thighs are richer ochreous than in either
of the two 36-

The rest of the typically coloured and patterned skins agree closely with
those described above. One (Drake-Brockman, 34.9.14.9), December, procured

6 — C.G.F.

from a native at Bulhar, in the Esa country east of Zeyla, and probably brought
from the Gudabursi Hills, has the coat 26 and 40 mm. and resembles the
skin from Gorahai, but has the pattern above, especially on the spine, and
on the outer sides of the legs not so pronounced and is whiter below. Another
(Drake-Brockman, 34.9. 14. 1 1), probably from near Odweina, west of Burao, and
without collector's number, closely matches the skin from Gerlogubi in its clear
grey colour and strong pattern.

Another (34. 9. 14.10), probably from the same locality, is very like the type,
but a little greyer above and below, and has the pattern not quite so strong.
It is in a measure intermediate between the type and the skin from Odweina
mentioned below. A skin from Burao Fort, 4,200 ft. (G. W. Bury, 8.7.24.10),
December 29, also closely matches the type, but has the coat fuller and longer,
42 and 52 mm.

Two skins differ from the above described in the almost complete suppression
of the pattern and darker, more iron-grey colour above. An adult ,J (Drake-
Brockman, 9.6. 1. 12), from Odweina, 3,400 ft., 45 miles west of Burao, March,
with the coat 34 and 45 mm., is darkish grey, the speckling of the coat being
black and white; there is no appreciable pattern above, and it is weak on the
legs and chest and there are no collars on the throat. This skin very closely
matches the one assigned to ocreata from Tigre, in Northern Abyssinia, but has
the coat shorter and less luxuriant, the ears a little darker, and the under side
and inner surfaces of the legs white, not so buff. It is also very like a skin from
Mokotan, Baringo, representing the Kenya race (taitae), but the latter is
ochreous and much more richly coloured below. A V skin from Berbera
(W. A. Bowring, 2.6.1 8.1), with the coat 30 and 43 mm., resembles the last
from Odweina, but has the stripes on the legs stronger and the wool everywhere
dull, without the buff and ochreous hue of the Odweina skin.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

in.

in.

in.

in.

6 yg- ad.

Sogsodi, nr. Upper Sheik .

6.5.4-1
(type)

23

14 J

J ad.

Gorahai, Ogaden

4.5.9.6

2lJ

Hi

5l

zi

•3 yg-

Burao Fort

8.7.24.10

17 i

I2E

4i

2.-!

Cad.

Berbera ....

2.6.18.1

(20)

(13)

—

—

yg. ad.

Gerlogubi, Ogaden

4-5-9-5

18

14

5

2;

The measurements of the ? from Berbera are bracketed because they are
estimated from the given dimension of the specimen as 33 inches from nose-tip
to tail-tip.

Skull. — Of the adult $ skulls, the largest is that of the specimen from
Gorahai, with a condylobasal length of 93 mm., and the smallest the one from near

83

,tu4

11SU3]

! oo cooooo o*oo oo i^ t~*

£

X

J
J

M

CO

o

z

p

i

°77"ff

yip™1
■xv'w

qipim
qjo mi

yipim
qjotsoj

yjpmt

V) ■**■ •* ITi^O

£ in ft-^o M -*• « N h H

g N N N N N N N N N

lO m w N m o »n N O

* •*■<*••* ■+ -J" T<- TJ- -J-

yiptcti

■svq 'puoQ

fO NNO OOON^Om

o c* o« o* oo oo oo r^oo

4 4

vO ■

loifl 1 u"l\0
■O 4 m 4 N

8

-rl OT

00 &

o

rt C

2 S
o -a

oo

a

>n c

• « >-' «i

'S.5 m a to- =

I £ S &o I

3 rt i-« « J3 « t-t

« g S g>co g s
-Zco OZ

Offl

■a-o -d-d hi

mm m m ^

"OM *o*o*o

■a -a -a
oi oi oi"2

Of Of Of Of

84

Odweina (34.9.14.1 3), which is 90 mm. Two additional adult ,j skulls from
Odweina have the occiput cut away and their condylobasal lengths are estimated;
the skull of the type from Sogsodi is young adult. I make the average condylo-
basal length of the five skulls about 91 mm. The ,' skulls have the average
condylobasal length about 81 mm. The upper and lower unworn carnassial
teeth in the tvpe are 11 and 9 mm. respectively, but these teeth vary from
12 to N mm. respectively in the o and are a trifle smaller in the ?.

Specimens in the Collection
Gorahai, Ogaden MajorH. N. Dunn [C&P] 4.5.9.6

skull

Gerlogubi Well, Ogaden
Sogsodi, near Upper Sheik
Golis Range, 5,000 ft.

Odweina, 45 miles west of Burao
Skin Bulhar, Esa country, east of Zeyla

2 skins Near Odweina ?
[ skulls ,,
J skull ,, ,,

Berbera
1 Burao, causht alive

Burao Fort, 4,200 ft.

,,

4-5-9-36

4-S-9-S

Dr. R. E. Drake Brock-

6.5.4.1

man [C & P]

(type)

,.

9. 6. 1. 12

,,

34.9.14.9 etc.

,,

34.9.14.10-11

• 1 n

34.9.14.12 13

,, ,,

34.9.14. 14

W. A. Bowring [C & P]

2.6. 18. 1

Zoological Society [P]

39.6/2

G. W. Bury [C & P]

8.7.24.10

Felis lybica rubida, Schwann

1904. Felis ocreata rubida, Schwann, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 13, p. 422
(Tingasi, Monbuttu, Belgian Congo); Heller, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 61,
13, p. 14, 1913; Hollister, Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., 99, pp. 178-9, 1918;
J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 47, p. 276, pis. 76-8, 1924.

Geographical Distribution. — Belgian Congo.

Diagnosis. A very imperfectly known darkish coloured bush-cat, distin-
guished, at least so far as the type is concerned, by the dominantly pale brown
or "cinnamon" hue of the upper side, with little, if any, black speckling in the
pelage, except on the dorsal middle line, and by the peculiarity of its pattern,
which is not only unusually distinct for a sub-adult specimen, but consists on
the flanks of spots showing no tendency to form vertical stripes.1

Colour. — The type, a youngish o (87. 12. 1.6), October, with the coat short,
22 mm. on the flank and 34 mm. on the crest, is exceptional for the dark greyish
brown hue of the upper side, the bright orange ochreous hue of the chest, belly
and inside of the legs, and the distinctness of the pattern below and above,
that of the sides of the body consisting of conspicuous dark brown spots not
forming definite stripes anywhere, but the head, nape and shoulders are marked

1 This type of pattern is unknown in the other African races of F. I. lybica and may be an
aberrant individual feature. It is reminiscent of the pattern of the Asiatic races, F. I. oinata
and F. I. caudata (see pp. 118 and 124).

8s

with fainter brown spots; the spinal area is brown, a blend of black and ochreous
speckling, and the wool is rich orange ochreous. A younger specimen from
Gadda, Monbuttu (87. 12. 1.7) is greyer than the type, not nearly so deeply and
richly coloured above and below, with the wool much paler, the pattern much
fainter and consisting of numerous normally vertical pale brownish stripes
giving a brindled effect. This specimen rather closely resembles in the tint of
the upper side the topotype of F. I. ugandae described below. A third skin
from Monbuttu (87.12.1.8), a half-grown specimen, is much brighter and
yellower, or buffier, than the preceding, has the striped pattern much stronger
and the black of the hind foot restricted to the area of the pads, both this and
the distinctness of the pattern being, no doubt, juvenile characters. Another
young specimen (19.5.8.23) from this area of the Belgian Congo, namely from
Poko, on the Welle River, differs from those from Monbuttu in being greyer
on the sides, blacker on the spinal area, and in being more obscurely striped.
It is an almost exact match of the $ topotype of F. I. ugandae, except that the
wool of the upper side and of the ventral surface is not so richly tinted. With
the specimen from Gadda it attests complete intergradation between skins from
the Belgian Congo and Uganda.

According to J. A. Allen, thirteen adult skins from Faradje exhibit two
extreme but intergrading colour phases, one distinctly grey, the other rufescent.
In the grey phase a brown spinal band runs from the head to the root of the
tail and the lateral pattern consists of deep brown transverse stripes composed
of more or less confluent spots, the lower side being cream or pale fulvous,
with dark spots. In the rufescent phase there is merely a slight grey cast from
the pale hair-tips and the median dorsal band and the lateral stripes are pale
reddish cinnamon. His photograph of a freshly killed specimen shows a distinct
but rather faint pattern of lateral stripes and no black extending to the hock
on the hind foot, two features in which it differs markedly from the type and
photographs of five native skins show the typical "torquata "-pattern of con-
spicuous black stripes. It must be remembered that red is reproduced as black
by photography. Nevertheless, these photographs might have been taken from
English house-cats with typical torqiiata-pzttem. Allen stated, moreover, that
four of his series of skins were partially albinistic.

This suggests that they may have been pure-bred feral house-cats or half-bred
specimens. And this suggestion may supply the explanation of the anomaly
he pointed out in the females being larger than the males.

All the skins assigned to this race in the British Museum are young and
none was measured in the flesh. The flesh measurements in English inches
recorded by Allen of the Faradje specimens are given on p. 87.

Skull. — The only skull in the British Museum old enough to be worth
recording is that of the type, a young and imperfect specimen. I estimate its con-
dylobasal length to have been only about 80 mm. Allen gave some measure-
ments of four 5 and two (J skulls he referred to this race. His adult ? skulls range
in condylobasal length from 85-4 to 79-2 mm., the average in four specimens
being 82 i mm., a little shorter than in the Kenya Colony race, F. 1. laitae,
described below (p. 92), and pml in the same skulls varies from 1 1-8 to 103 mm.

86

as

z

Oh

en

o

Q

Q W

PL,

c

'J

H

w
3

:-

u.

en

H

z

_
V.

I I

■uioiiCz

1(jStt3J

•svq 'puoQ
1">°J,

p OOO r^O CI 1^ O

I ■■ II I I I I

bo TJ T3 T3 T3 "2 ^a
>., rt rt rt M rt -'•
*0 Of Of Of Of *o *o

87

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

and
Body

7Yu7

Hind
Foot

Ear

in.

in.

in.

in.

6"yg.

1'aradje, Belgian Congo

(/)

■ 73

Ill

5~

2*

5 ad.

IT »• 1* "

(e)

i6i

"1

5

2i

V ad.

,, ,, ,, .

(6)

21

12

5 +

2S

9 ad.

,. ,, ,, . .

(d)

19?

12*

5 +

2 +

9 ad.

„

to

19

12

5 +

2i

Of his o skulls, one, indicated as adult, has the condylobasal length only 78 mm.
and pm* 107, the other marked "young" has those two dimensions 77-5 and
11 mm. The adult skull is slightly shorter than the smallest ? skull, and it is
noticeably narrower across the zygomata and wider across the postorbital area
instead of conversely, which should be the case if both belong to the same race
of wild cat. The young <J skull may be that of a pure-bred rubida; but there
is obvious evidence that the adult £ skull may be that of a feral house-cat.
Allen's material clearly needs revision.

Specimens in the Collection

s

Tingasi District, Monbuttu,

Dr. Emin Pasha [C & P]

87.12.1.6

Belgian Congo

(type)

I

Gadda, Monbuttu District

87.12.1.7

1 yg-

Monbuttu District

87.12.1.8

1 yc.

Poko, Welle River, Belgian
Congo

Dr. Cuthbert Christy ,,

19.5.8.23

Felis lybica ugandae, Schwann

1904. Felis ocreata ugandae, Schwann, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 13,
p. 424 (Mulema, Uganda, 1° S. 31° E., 5,000 ft.); Heller, Smiths. Misc.
Coll., 61, No. 13, p. 14, 1913; Hollister, Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., 99,
pp. 178-9, 1918; J. A. Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 47, p. 277,
1924.

1913. Felis ocreata nandae, Heller, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 61, No. 13, p. 14
(source of Lukosa River, Nandi Escarpment, Kenya Colony); G. M.
Allen and B. Lawrence, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 79, No. 3, p. 66, 1936.

1944. Felis lybica ugandae, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, pp. 299 and 301.

Geographical Distribution. — Mongalla, in the South Sudan, Garamba,
in the Belgian Congo, Uganda, Kenya Colony, ? Tanganyika Territory.

Diagnosis. — Intergrading with F. I. rubida, but on the scanty available
evidence regarding the latter, differing from it at least on the average in having
more black speckling in the pelage, in being generally duller in the hue of the
upper side, and the pattern, when visible, being always normal. Dark grey
examples are adaptively like some skins of F. I. sarda, but the latter has a

smaller skull, the average condylobasal length in (JcJ being about S8 mm., as
compared with about 94 mm. in F. I. ugandae, in which the skull is as big as
in F. I. ocreata of North Abyssinia, and a little bigger than in /•'. /. brockmani
from Somaliland.

Colour. — Adult £ and i skins, the type and a topotype respectively from
Mulema, q,ooo ft. (3.1 1.7.8-9), differ considerably in colour. The type,
killed in May, is very dark grey, closely speckled black and white with the
spinal area dominantly black with comparatively inconspicuous dull, pale
ochreous speckling; the wool of the flanks is rich buff, of the crest mostly deep
black, but becoming buffish on the loins; the head is dark above, with obscure
black stripes, a lot of reddish and ochreous on the face, the upper genal stripe
deep brown, the lower reddish and broken up in front and the ears are deep
reddish brown. The pattern on the flanks consists of faint, fuscous stripes. On
the lower side the chin, interramal, and fore throat are white, the rest being
palish buff overcast with white, with two red collars on the hind throat and
black and brown spots on the chest. The legs in front are grey, with buffy paws,
the stripes are strong and black and the hind foot is black to the hock.

The V topotype, killed in March, is decidedly tawny or buffy grey above,
the spinal area is not nearly so black as in the $, and has more extensive ochreous
bands; the wool of the flanks is brighter, of the crest only blackish for a short
distance on the fore back, the rest being rich ochreous. The pattern on the
sides consists of faint brown stripes. The lower side is richer tinted, less
overcast with white, and the spots are paler. The legs are decidedly buff,
especially the inner side of the hind legs, and their external stripes are not
nearly so pronounced. Considering the dates of these two skins, the differences
between them may be seasonal.

Two skins (34.8.10.11-12) from Mabungo, South-west Uganda, 7,000 ft.,
also differ individually. The o is very like the type from Mulema, but is darker
grey, the dark and pale speckling of the contour hairs being respectively blacker
and whiter; the wool on the flanks, however, is slightly paler buff and on the
crest paler, dark ochreous brown in front, richer ochreous on the loins; the
head is very black, with the ears deep, dull brown, the area round the eyes
whiter, the cheeks dark grey, the summit of the nose red, and the cheek-stripes
blackish but obscure, not reddish, as in the type; the pattern on the flanks is
black, but obscure, on the legs and tail strong; the lower side is rich ochreous
on the chest, belly and on the inside and backs of the thighs, with the spots
black, as in the type. The $ is not so silvery grey as the <J, and further differs in
having a strong pattern of deep brown stripes and spots on the flanks, nearly
as pronounced as in the type of F. I. rubida, but deeper tinted; the ears are
brighter and more rusty than in the o, and the hue round the eyes and on
the cheeks is brighter; the lower side and the limbs are to a great extent albino,
but the fronts of the limbs are much richer ochreous than in the $. The partial
albinism of this skin suggests the possibility of its being of impure breed.

Heller compared his type of iiam/ae, from the source of the Lukosa River
on the Nandi Escarpment, Kenya, 7,000 ft., with the type and topotype of
ugandae from Mulema, and separated it racially on account of its generally

89

darker colour, laying special stress upon the blackish hue of the ears. Additional
specimens from Kakamega, at the base of the escarpment, although a little
paler than the type, were also described as darker than the examples from
Mulema. Hollister, however, who had Heller's specimens in his hands, declared
them to be very much like the specimens of ugandae, judging from Schwann's
description of the latter; and J. A. Allen considered the two named forms to be
probably identical. This opinion, which I adopt, is strengthened by the two
above-described examples from Mabungo which are darker than Schwann's
examples of ugandae and apparently differ from them in nearly the same way
as the type of nandae; and, it may be noted, they come from exactly the same
altitude, namely 7,000 ft., as the type of nandae. G. M. Allen, moreover, stated
that in a series of skins from Kaimosi, near the Lukosa River, which he referred
to as topotypes of nandae, the backs of the ears vary from nearly red to nearly
blackish. His description of the general colour as buffy grey, with faint indica-
tions of the stripes, suggests that his series resembles the topotype of ugandae
rather than the type. The distinctness of the lateral pattern in Heller's type of
nandae is perhaps due to its being not quite full grown, as shown by the skull,
although he described it as adult.

A young adult <J skin (30.12.2.22) from Serere, Teso district, in the Eastern
Province of Uganda, January-February, closely resembles the $ topotype of
ugandae in superficial colouring, but has the body pattern stronger, more
pronounced than in any of the skins assigned to this race, except the ? from
Mabungo in South-western Uganda. An adult o skin (30.8.1.32) from Kamdini,
Gulu, Uganda, 3,000 ft., is an aberrant erythristic mutant, being red almost
all over, with the spinal area deeper than the flanks, the under side, the cheeks,
chin and inner side of the thighs buffy whitish, the pattern on the body a little
deeper red than the ground colour and the red stripes on the tail set off by
whitish interspaces. If the skin alone had been preserved it might reasonably
have been dismissed as that of a feral domestic cat ; but the large size of the
skull, with its bullae and teeth, does not support that conclusion. A half-grown
kitten (4.2.6.6) from Burumba, Ankole, Uganda, 5,000 ft., is younger than the
kitten of F. I. rubida from Monbuttu, and has a decidedly darker ochreous
ground colour, and the pattern blacker and stronger, being represented by
longitudinal stripes on the head, cheeks and spinal area, but broken on the
nape, and with the normal transverse stripes on the sides and legs.

The skin of an adult $ (25. 1.6. 18) from Juba, Mongalla, in the Southern
Sudan, June 4, attests the extension of this race considerably to the north of
Uganda. In general ground colour it closely resembles the topotype of ugandae,
but is a shade paler and has the pattern a little more distinct probably owing
to the coat being shorter. It also closely resembles a skin from Machakos, in
Kenya Colony, referred to under the next race, F. I. taitae, but has the pattern
better defined, the wool a little duller, and the under side not quite so buff}',
differences of no systematic importance. From Garamba, north of Faradje in
the Belgian Congo, a locality like Mongalla in its physical features, J. A. Allen
recorded a skin which he referred to ugandae, because it was darker and larger
than the specimens from Faradje, which he identified as F. I. rubida.

go

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Ihud
and
Body

Tail

Hind

Foot

Ear

in.

in.

111.

in.

j ad.

Juba, South Sudan

25.1.6.18

22 \

Hi

5"

2 J

,' ad.

Garamba, Belg. Congo

{vide]. A. Allen)

22\

>.V.

5 3

—

' yg. ad.

Mulema, Uganda, type
of ugandae

3.II.7.8

23S

13S

5.1

2I

: 5 g. ad.

Nandi, Kenya, type
of tiandae

(vide Heller)

21 i

ibi

5

_; ad.

Kakamega, Kenya

(vide Hollister)

20t

I3t

5 3

—

i ad.

Kaimosi, Kenya .

(vide C. M.

Allen)

22 f

14

5'.

2 j

. ad.

Mulema, Uganda

3.1 1.7.)

22!

—

5

2§

V ad.

Kakamega, Kenya

(vide Hollister)

19

15'.

4'.

? yg-

Hurumba, Uganda

4.2.0.0

ioi

5l

2 '

i.:

These measurements suggest that there is practically no difference between
the males and females in bodily size, but this is not borne out by the skulls. The
dimensions of the specimen from Burumba attest the relative shortness of the
tail in a half-grown kitten.

Skull. — The skull of the type is fully adult and well moulded, with the
temporal ridges only 4 mm. apart, the occipital crest salient and the sagittal
crest 5 mm. high; the nasals are long and constricted, 24 mm. long in the
middle line, but only 4 mm. wide between the frontal points; the facial profile
from the crown to the anterior end of the nasals is evenly and lightly convex
and the frontals between the orbits are flattish owing to the absence of air-cell
inflation. The skull from Kamdini, Gulu, belonging to the red skin, is excep-
tionally large and is older and more moulded than the type, although the
temporal ridges at the suture are the same distance apart; it also differs noticeably
in its shorter, broader nasals, which have a median length of 20 mm. and a
width of 6 mm. between the frontal points, and it is higher owing to the
considerable inflation of the frontals between and behind the orbits. The skull
from Mongalla, although adult, is vounger than that of the type, the temporal
ridges being 11 mm. apart and the occipital and sagittal crests less developed;
in its nasals and frontal inflation it closely resembles the Kamdini skull. The
skull of the type of nandae was described by Heller as adult; but Hollister's
photograph shows it to be a young-adult, with widely separated temporal ridges,
wide postorbital area, and open basioccipital suture. Its dimensions agree very
closely with those of the skull from Serere, Teso district, which is also young-
adult, and when fully developed both would probably have been intermediate
in size between the type and the skull from Kamdini. The young-adult o skull
from Mabungo has the frontals inflated as in the skull from Kamdini.

The young-adult 5 skull, the topotype from Mulema, with the temporal
ridges 22 mm. apart, has the frontals flat and uninflated, as in the type, but

CT> O* 00 O00

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differs from it noticeably in having short, broad nasals, as in the Kamdini skull,
and the anterior half of the nasals rather abruptly sloped. The adult V skull
from Mabungo, with the temporal ridges 15 mm. apart, resembles the last in
the flatness of the forehead, thus differing from the cJ from the same locality,
but the upper ends of the olfactory chambers are more inflated than in the
topotype, so that the nasals are more abruptly sloped.

In the table of measurements the condylobasal length in the two imperfect
skulls from Mabungo has been estimated from the length of the mandible.

Specimens in the Collection

Juba, Mongalla, Sudan Rev. Archdeacon A. Shaw 25. 1.6. 18

[C & I']

Mulema, Uganda, 5,000 ft. (W. G Col. Delmg Radcliffe [P] 3.1 [.7.8 (type)

Doggett) and .9

Juv. Burumba, Ankole, Uganda ., ., 4.2.6.6

Kamdini, Gulu, Uganda Capt. C. R. S. Pitman 50.8.1.32

[C &P ]

Serere, Teso Dist., East Uganda ( ',. W. Foster [C & P] 30.12.2.22

Mabungo, South-west Uganda, R. Akroyd [C & P] 34.8.10.1 1-12
7,000 ft.

Felis lybica taitae, I Idler

1913. Felis ocreata taitae, Heller, Smiths. Misc. Coll., 61, No. 13, p. 14 (Voi,
South-eastern Kenya Colony, 1,830 ft.); Hollister, Bull. U.S. Nat.
Mus., 99, p. 17S, pis. 50-1, 1918.

Geographical Distribution. — Kenya Colony and Tanganyika Territory.

Diagnosis. —Completely intergrading with F. I. ugandae, but on the
average paler and greyer. Also intergrading with F. I. brockmani, but on the
average not so strongly striped and with a larger skull.

Colour. — This race was described by Heller as a "desert cat". He had
two specimens agreeing with each other in "body coloration minutely", the
type from Voi and the other from the northern Guaso-Nyiro River, near its
junction with the Isiola, some 300 miles to the north of Voi. Hollister recorded
it from the Ulukenia Hills on the Athi Plains, east of Nairobi; and stated in
effect that certain specimens he assigned to this race are only slightly paler than
an example identified as nandae from Kakamega.

Heller diagnosed this race as light-coloured, with fulvous ears, and closely
resembling typical F. ocreata as represented by two Abyssinian specimens in
the British Museum, but distinguished from them by having the under side
darker buff and distinctly spotted. Since the two specimens alluded to, as stated
above (p. 70), differ in the colour of the upper side and the ventral spots are
traceable in both, the diagnosis is somewhat vague. I have assumed that the
type of taitae resembled in dorsal coloration the clear grey skin of F. I. ocreata
from Tigre.

The specimens above referred to seem to have had no perceptible pattern

93
above, although spotted below. A skin of an adult $ (9.5.13.4) in the British
Museum evidently closely resembling them in these respects, as it does also in
the clear grey hue of the upper side, was shot in "open bush country" at
Mokotan, Baringo, 3,200 ft., January. It is slightly the palest of the tropical
East African skins in the British Museum, and has the pattern weak on the
legs, with the lower side from the fore throat to the inguinal region and inner
side of the thighs ochreous, with black spots on the chest. In the colour of the
upper side it is hardly distinguishable from the grey, patternless skin of F. I.
brockmani (9. 6.1. 12) from Odweina, in Somaliland, described above (p. 82),
but the latter is much more extensively whitish between the eyes, has paler
cheeks and legs, and practically the whole of the under side white. An immature
<J skin (3.11.1.1) from Fort Hall, 4,000 ft., June, resembles the one from
Mokotan in the absence of pattern above, but is slightly less grey above and
mainly white below. An adult 2 skin (35. 2. 12. 1) from the Eldama Ravine,
5,800 ft., March, is like the Mokotan skin in its clear grey ground colour above,
and was also shot in bush country, but differs in having a rather faint brindled
pattern above.

A young adult <$ (24.1. 1.74) from Kilosa, Usagara district, Tanganyika
Territory, May, is also clear grey in ground colour, but is rather darker than
the skin from Mokotan owing to there being more black and less whitish
speckling in the pelage; it also has a distinct though faint pattern on the sides,
but not so distinct as in the skin from the Eldama Ravine, and its leg stripes
are stronger than in the Mokotan skin, although it resembles the latter in its
rather pale ears and in the richness of its hue, with black spots, below. This
skin decidedly approaches the type of F. I. ugandae, but is rather paler grey on
the flanks, much less black on the spinal area, and has paler ears. A younger
skin (24.1. 1. 75) from Mtalis, Mkalama district, Tanganyika Territory, October,
is very similar to the one from the Eldama Ravine.

In the above-described grey skins tentatively assigned to F. I. taitae, there is
practically an unbroken gradation between the palest from Mokotan, through
the darker from Kilosa to the type of F. I. ugandae, and thence to the darkest
of all, the type of nandae and the cj from Mabungo.

Other skins similarly intergrade with the tawnier 2 topotype of ugandae and
are hardly distinguishable from it. One from Machakos (92.12.3.2) is slightly
more tawny in general tint than the clearer grey series and is intermediate
between them and the 2 topotype of ugandae, and the skin from Mongalla,
differing from them only in unimportant details. A 2 from Baringo (30. 1.2. 15)
differs only from the topotype of ugandae in having the hairs of the crest less
black and coppery, the pattern more fuscous, not so brown, the limbs greyer,
the ears a shade darker and the under side a little paler. A skin from Njemps,
Baringo, 3,200 ft. (44.30), is moulting, and with faded fur is a little paler than
the last and superficially resembles the Machakos skin. A skin (63.7.7.16) from
Meninga, about 70 miles north of Tabora, Tanganyika Territory, is tawnier
than the two from Mtalis and Kilosa, closely matching the topotype of ugandae,
although a shade paler above, with less black on the crest, and the pattern a
little more distinct. It is also unmistakably like the skin referred to ugandae

94

from Mongalla and, like some of the skins from Kenya Colony, might with
equal propriety have been referred to that race, so impossible is it to draw the
line between the two.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head

and | Tail
Body

Hind
Foot

Ear

<J yg. ad.

9 ad.

<i ad.

Kilosa, Tanganyika Terri-
tory
Isiola River, Kenya
Voi, Kenya (type) .

24. i. i. 74

(vide Hollister)
(vide Heller)

in.

20
I9l

in. j in.
13 i 4j

J
'3i ; 5
'2i i 4l

in.
zi

2i

These measurements agree tolerably closely with those of F. 1. ugandae.

Skull. — The skulls do not appear to differ in size from those of F. I. ugandae,
with which F. I. taitae intergrades to the west, but they are a little bigger than
those of F. I. brockmani, with which it intergrades to the north. In $ skulls of
taitae the average condylobasal length is about 85 mm., whereas in the Somali-
land race it is probably not over 81 mm. as far as can be estimated.

The first skull, from Solai, Mount Kenya, entered on the table, consisting
only of the jaws, is marked $, but from its size and the length of the teeth I do
not doubt that it is a $. Judging from the length of the mandible, it was nearly
as large as the <J skull assigned to F. I. ugandae from Kamdini. The young
adult S skull from Kilosa, Tanganyika Territory (24.1. 1.74), has the frontals
more strongly inflated with air-cells than the skull from Kamdini ; but although
its condylobasal length is 10 mm. less than in that skull, its nasals are a little
longer, 22 mm., with the width at the frontal points 5 mm.; the profile from
the summit to the end of the nasals forms a strong, evenly convex curvature.
The fully adult skull from Kenya Colony (6.7.8.31) is unsexed; but I judge it
to be 5 by the width of the postorbital area, which exceeds that of the younger
<J skulls of F. I. ugandae. It is a much larger skull than that of the type of
taitae, but only slightly if at all larger than the skull from the Eldama Ravine
(35. 2. 12. 1), which is marked ?, and than the ? skull of F. I. ugandae from
Mabungo, in both of which the condylobasal length has been estimated by the
mandible. Its temporal ridges are 12 mm. apart at the suture and the frontals
are inflated to a moderate extent, not so flat as in the $ skull from Mulema.
The $ skull from Machakos is younger, with the ridges 26 mm. apart, the fore-
head flat and the nasals rather abruptly bent. The skull from Mokotan, with
the ridges 18 mm. apart and the frontals not so flat, as in the Machakos skull,
is remarkable for the strong inflation of the upper part of the olfactory chambers,
giving a very abrupt slope to the distal half of the nasals.

The differences enumerated are purely individual and there appears to be
no difference between the skulls from Kenya Colony and Uganda.

95

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Solai, Mt. Kenya .
Kilosa, Tanganyika .
Kenya Colony
Eldama Ravine,

Kenya
Machakos, Kenya
Mokotan, Kenya
Guaso-Nyiro .

Voi, Kenya (type) .

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96

Specimens in the Collection

I

Kenya Colony

I | Skull

,, ,,

Machakos, Kenya

:

Fort Hall, ,,

i 'I

Solai, Mount Kenya (R. Kci

Eldama Ravine, Kenya

Baringo, Kenya

i

Njemps, Lake Baringo

Mokotan, Baringo

i

Meninga, Tanganyika

i

Kilosa, Usagara, Tanganyika

i

Mtalis, Mkalama, ,,

Lord Delamere [C & P] 0.10.6.4

Mrs. Holms-Tarn [P] 6.7.8.31

Sir F. J. Jackson [C & P] 92.12.3.2

Dr. S. L. Hinde [C & P] 3.11.1.1

C. D. Rudd [P] 1 1. 4.7. 1 5

S. O. Crowther [C & P] 35.2.1 2.1

Sir F. J. Jackson [C & P] 30. 1.2. 15

Hon. K. R. Dundas [C & P] 44.30

9S-I3-4

Capt. J. H. Speke[C&P] 63.7.7.16

A. Loveridge [C] 24.1. 1.74

24.1. 1. 75

Note. — The types of the three races above considered are quite distinct in
coloration. The type of rubida from Monbuttu, in the Belgian Congo, is distin-
guished by the greyish brown tint of the upper side, relieved by a bold pattern
of deep brown spots, not stripes, and by the very bright hue of the under side.
The type of ugandae from Mulema, in North-west Uganda, differs by the dark
iron-grey hue of the upper side due to the blend of the black and whitish
speckling of the contour hairs, the pattern of the flanks being faint and consisting
mostly of normal stripes and the lower side pale buff overcast with white. The
type of nandae from the Nandi Escarpment, Kenya Colony, is even darker than
the last, but closely resembles a skin from Mabungo, South-west Uganda. The
type of taitae from Voi, south-eastern Kenya Colony, was described as a desert
cat and as much paler than the types of ugandae and nandae. But a topotype
of ugandae is also a good deal paler than the type, being tawny or buffy grey
above, and there is a complete intergradation between this skin and the palest
skins from the Kenya Colony plains. Similarly, this topotype of ugandae differs
only in minor particulars from a young skin of rubida from the type locality
Monbuttu and from another from Poko, on the Welle River, both of which are
much paler and greyer than the type, have the pattern consisting of normal
stripes, and are less richly tinted below.

Felis lybica mellandi, Schwann

1904. Felis ocreata mellandi, Schwann, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 13,
p. 423; Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 9th ser., 17, p. 180, 1926.
(Mpika, north-eastern Rhodesia).

1944. Felis lybica mellandi, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 300.

Geographical Distribution. — Nyasaland; Northern Rhodesia; Southern
Belgian Congo.

Diagnosis. — Closely resembling the type of F. I. ugandae in the darkish
"iron-grey" hue of the upper side, but differing from that race by its more
uniform colouring above, the "tawny-grey" phase being undeveloped, by the
brighter hue of the ears on the average, by the complete or almost complete

97

suppression of the pattern on the flanks, and the weaker stripes on the limbs and
the end of the tail. Judging also from a single specimen the skull of the adult $
is relatively wider in nearly all its dimensions, the cranial and postorbital areas
being less constricted by muscular moulding so that the skull resembles a
large ? skull.

Colour. — The colour of the upper side exhibits comparatively little indi-
vidual variation, being dark grey due to the blending of the fine black and
whitish-buff speckling of the contour hairs; the head is darker than the flanks,
with the ears strongly contrasted by their rusty ochreous or rusty brown hue;
the spinal area is generally not sharply differentiated, with its wool mostly, but
not always, sooty over the fore back, that of the flanks being bright or paler
buff; the under side is whitish, pale buff or richly tinted in the latter case, but
varying in the extent to which the underlying bright, sometimes ochreous, buff
is diluted and over-sprinkled by the white ends of the hairs; the pattern is
comparatively little in evidence, usually not or barely detectable on the sides
of the body and typically weak on the outer sides of the legs, and even on
the end of the tail the stripes are generally not well pronounced, although
the black tip is always retained ; the spots on the chest when visible are reddish
or fuscous.

There is a considerable number of skins in the collection from the localities
entered on the list, but very few were measured in the flesh, most of them being
flat skins, without skulls, procured from natives. One of these from Broken
Hill (C. R. S. Pitman, 33.3.6.17) has the faint brindling representing the lateral
pattern more pronounced than in the others, and the belly is pale buff. Con-
trasted with this is a skin from Balovale (T. Vaughan Jones, 37.1.4.42), which
has the under side exceptionally rich orange ochreous, no pattern above and
the markings on the tail represented by little more than the black terminal tip.
A skin from the district between the Kafue and the Zambesi Rivers (D. Gordon
Lancaster, 35.9.1.151) is exceptional in having the wool of the spinal area only
a little duller on the fore back than elsewhere, instead of sooty brown, as is usual.
An adult o (35-9-I-I54) from Choma, Northern Rhodesia, nearly resembles the
skin from Broken Hill in retaining a faint brown pattern, but is soiled white
below and has unusually bright, rusty ochreous ears.

The type from Mpika (F. H. Melland, 4.3.1 1.2) is in poor condition and
undated. It has a full coat, the flank hairs being 35 and the crest hairs 48 mm.
long. A topotype (F. H. Melland, 7.9.1 1.1), killed at 4,750 ft. in August, has
the coat of the same length and thickness. Both have a red collar on the hind
throat and nearly obsolete reddish chest spots. In the topotype the wool of the
flanks is rich buff, in the type it is much paler. A more noticeable difference is
the presence on the posterior side of the fore leg in the type of a lot of black,
which is absent in the other.

Two adult skins from Luluabourg, Kasai, in the Belgian Congo (Callewaert,
27.12.21.22 and 23), collected in May, have the coat much shorter than in the
Mpika skins, the flank hairs being 28 and the crest hairs 35 mm. The difference
is probably seasonal. They are both more richlv coloured below than the Mpika
skins and have the chest spots and the collar fuscous. The i (27.12.21.23)

7 — C.G.F.

98

lias the wool of the upper side and the lower surface brighter than in the $, but
the leg stripes are not so strong. The hind foot is black to the hock behind, as
in the topotype from Mpika; but in a specimen shot by S. A. Neave in the
Loangwa Valley or Broken Hill, Rhodesia, which is paler below than in the two
from Mpika, the hind foot is black in its lower half only.

Two young skins from Nyasaland are doubtfully referred to this race. One,
from Zomba (A. Sharpe, 95.7.22.1), has the pattern above more distinct than
in the Rhodesian series, and the ears are darker. Another, from the Upper Shire
(A. Whyte, 94.6.7.5), resembles the last in the distinctness of the pattern and
dark ears, but differs in being whitish instead of buff below. The distinctive
features of these skins may be due to their immaturity.

A kitten (26.7.6.156), less than half-grown, from Luluabourg, resembles
in colour and pattern the one from Ankole, in Uganda, described above
(p. 89).

Fig. 4.

A. — Skull of adult $ of Felis lybica mellandi from Choma, N. Rhodesia, showing the
"broad-waisted" type characteristic of adult males of the three South African races
F. lybica cafra, F. lybica griselda, and F. lybica mellandi.

B. — Skull of adult <J of Felis lybica ugandae from Kamdini, Uganda, showing the " narrow -

waisted", muscularly moulded type characteristic of that race and of most of the more

northern races of the species.

C 'S D. — The right upper carnassial tooth (pm') of two adult <3 skulls of Felis lybica

<rriselda from Kovares, South Kaokoveld, showing the individual variation in the size

of the inner lobe (protocone).

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Measurements

Sex

Locality

.Xttmber

Head
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Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

3 ad.
? ad.
Juv.

Luluabourg

27.12.21.22
27.12.21.23
26.7.6.156

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Skull. — The only available adult <J skull of F. I. mellandi belongs to the
skin from Choma, Northern Rhodesia (D. Gordon Lancaster, 35. 9.1. 154). It has
a condylobasal length of 97 mm. and the same robust build, indicating slight
muscular moulding as the adult $ skulls of F. 1. cafra and F. I. griselda described
below. The following measurements illustrate the difference in shape between
this skull and the adult $ skull of F. I. ugandae. As an example of the latter,
I have selected the largest available skull which came from Kamdini, Gulu,
Uganda (C. R. S. Pitman, 30.8.1.32). So far as it is possible to judge, the two
skulls are approximately the same age, both being fully adult. Some of their
dimensions are as follows, those of the Uganda skull being in brackets: condylo-
basal length, 97 (100); mastoid width, 46 (42); zygomatic width, 78 (74); cranial
width, 49 (44); postorbital width, 35 (30).

It will be seen that the Uganda skull, although actually longer, is noticeably
considerably narrower than the Northern Rhodesian skull.

The upper carnassial (pm*) of the skull from Choma is 1 1 mm. long and
5! mm. wide in front; but in a young adult 6" skull from the Sesheke district,
Northern Rhodesia (D. Gordon Lancaster, 35.9.1.159), the tooth is also 11 mm. .
long, but only 4 mm. wide, owing to diminution of the inner lobe such as may
occur in the two South African races described below. In both these skulls,
this tooth is smaller than in F. 1. cafra.

Fort Liwindi, Upper Shire,

Nyasaland (F. Whyte)
Zomba, Nyasaland
Mpika, North-east Rhodesia

Specimens in the Collection

Sir II. H.Johnstone [P]

Sir A. Sharpe [P]

F. H. Melland [C & P]

Zoological Society [P]

04.6.7.5

95.7.22.1

4.3.11.2

(type)

7.9.11.1

Mpika. North-east Rhodesia

(F. H. Melland), 4,750 ft.
1 Loangwa Valley, Northern Rhodesia S. A. Neave [C & P] 7.1. 11. 17

1 Broken Hill, Northern Rhodesia, Capt. C. R. S. Pitman [P] 33.3.6.17

3,800 ft.
Kashitu, North-west Rhodesia
1 Kafue-Zambesi Rivers (D. Gor- Percy Sladen Trust [P] 35. 9.1. 151

don Lancaster)
6" Choma, Northern Rhodesia (D. ,, ,, 35. 9.1. 154

Gordon Lancaster)

j skull Sesheke Dist., Northern Rhodesia Percy Sladen Trust [P] 35. 9.1. 159

(D. Gordon Lancaster)

2 Shamakanda, Mumbwa Dist., Capt.C.R.S. Pitman [P] 32.9.1.52-53

Kafue River, Rhodesia
1 Chipeluns, Namwala District, ,, „ 32.9.1.54

Rhodesia

1 Banga, Namwala District ,, ,, 32.9.1.55

2 Shamabanzas, Nansanga River, ,, ,, 32.9.1.56-57

Namwala District, Rhodesia

2 Balovale, Northern Rhodesia T. Vaughan Jones [P] 37. 1.4. 41-42

1 Lake Mweru Sir A. Sharpe [P] 94.3.8.2

2 9, 1 6* Luluabourg, Kasai, South Belgian Purchased 26.11. 1.66
cj juv. Congo (Pere R. Callewaert) 26.7.6.156

27.12.21.22-23

Felis lybica pyrrhus, Pocock

1944. Felis lybica pyrrhus, Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., n ser., 11, p. 131,
(Sogera, on the road from Bokoio to Luimbale, Benguella).

Geographical Distribution. — Southern Benguella, in Angola, about i6°E.
and 12° S.1

Diagnosis. — A bush-cat resembling and intergrading with F. I. mellaiidi,
but distinguished on the average by the richer hue of the under side, the more
buffy, less uniformly dark grey tint of the flanks, and the more conspicuous
pattern.

Colour. — The type (37.5.12.9) has the general colour above greyish brown,
with the spinal area blackish, but not very sharply defined laterally, and a good
deal of brightish buff on the side behind the shoulder, spreading upwards from
the chest; the wool on the flanks is rich buff at the summit, but on the crest it
is mostly sooty grey, only slightly tinged with buff on the loins. The crown of
the head is noticeably darker than the nape and the backs of the ears are deep
rusty brown ; there is no white on the face, the patches between the eyes being
buff, the summit of the muzzle rusty brown, and the upper lip and lower cheek
rich buff; the chin and interramal area are buff and defined behind by a reddish
collar continuous with the lower genal stripe, the rest of the under side is rich
ochreous red; the pattern of the upper side consists of fairly well-defined grey-
brown stripes, becoming stronger on the thighs; the spots below are rusty or
rusty brown, and there is a deep red-brown collar on the hind throat; the fore
leg is mostly rich golden ochreous down the front, with a good deal of black
behind and strong black stripes; the hind legs are defective.

A second skin (37. 5. 12. 10), from Umbulu or Evavaela, a village, also in the
Umbundu district, on the Luimbale-Balundu road, differs from the type in
being greyer, not so brown above and less richly coloured below, but the pattern
is nearly as well defined.

Several additional skins in the Quex Museum connect the foregoing and

supply further evidence of individual variation in the race. They are indicated

1 All except one of the known skins of this cat were purchased from natives by the Misses
D. and A. Powell Cotton, and most of them are preserved in the museum at Quex Park, Birching-
ton, Kent.

by the collectors' numbers. One (59) from the same spot as the last described
skin closely resembles it except that the pattern is very faint. A topotype (t;)
closely matches (59), and differs therefore from the type in being greyer above,
paler below, and in the faintness of the pattern. A skin (17) from Hokoio, on
the Luimbale road, is nearly as red as the type below, but has the pattern faint
and the upper side definitely darkish grey, pepper-and-salt. Another (31) from
the same place has a similar grey hue above, is paler below, but has the pattern
nearly as strong as in (58); a third (25) from the same place is deep red below,
with the pattern above very faint, as in (17). A skin from Kangomho (164) has
the dark pepper-and-salt grey hue above and the pattern of (31), and of two of
a set from kambango, one (149) closely matches (17) in its deep red hue below,
pepper-and-salt grey hue above and indistinct pattern, whereas another (150)
closely matches (50) in its very distinct pattern, which is, however, more spotty,
and in colour, but has the patches between the eyes, the cheeks and chin white.

The skin of a kitten, from the same locality as the type, has a head and
body measurement of 12 inches, and is therefore about half-grown. The ground
colour of the upper side is pale ochreous with a sprinkling of white-tipped hairs
and fading to buff below, the crown of the head being brown; the ears are
rusty brown with darker tips; the pattern is blackish-brown and strongly
pronounced, nearly concealing the ground colour of the upper side from the
shoulders backwards; there is some white on the chin and throat, but none
elsewhere.

A youngish native skin from Mount Moko, Luimbale (Dr. K. Jordan,
35.1.6.72), is not so rich-tinted below as the foregoing adult skins, and has no
appreciable pattern. It connects this race with /•'. /. mellandi.

No flesh measurements or skulls are available.

Specimens in the Collection

1 Mount Moko, Luimbale, Benguella Dr. Karl Jordan [C & P] 35.1.6.72

1 Sogera, Bokoi-Luimbale Road, Misses D. and A. Powell 37.5.12.9

Benguella Cotton [C & P] (type)

1 Umbulu or Evavaela, Luimbale- Misses D. and A. Powell 37.5. 12. 10

Balundu Road, Benguella Cotton [C & P]

Felis lybica cafra, Desmarest

1822. Felis cafra, Desmarest, Encyclop. Method., Mamm. Suppl., p. 540
(Kaffraria).

1826. Felis caffra, A. Smith, Descr. Cat. R. Africa. Mus., p. 10; id. S. Afr.

Quart. Journ., 2, p. 123, 1834; Layard, Cat. Mamm. S. Afr. Mus., p. 39,
1861; Elliot, Mon. Felidae, pi. 31, 1883; Lydekker, Handb. Carnivora,
1, p. 155, 1895; W. L. Sclater, Mamm. S. Africa, 1, p. 42, 1900.

1827. Felis caligata, Temminck, Mon. Mamm., p. 123 (in part); Smuts, Enum.

Mamm. Cap., p. 30, 1832.
1902. Felis lybica ohscura, Anderson and de Winton, Mamm. Egypt, p. 175 (not
F. ohscura, Desmarest, which is /*'. catus).

i°3

1904. Felis ocreata cajjra, Schwann, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 13, p. 425

(and of most subsequent authors, including Shortridge, Mamm. S.W.

Africa, 1, p. 92, 1934).
1926. Felis ocreata namaqnana, Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (9), 17, p. 180

(in part, the type from Klipfontein, Little Namaqualand).
1928. Felis ocreata rusticana, Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 10th ser., 1,

p. 319 (Zuurbron, near Wakkerstrom, Transvaal).
1944. Felis lyhica cafra, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 297.

Geographical Distribution. — South Africa, south of the Orange River
from the Cape of Good Hope and Little Namaqualand in the west to Kaffraria
and Natal, and thence northwards to the Transvaal.

Diagnosis. — Closely resembling F. I. ugandae in colour and pattern, two
colour phases, the "iron-grey", with black and whitish speckling, and the
"tawny-grey", with less black and more buffy speckling, occurring in the same
locality, but distinguished by its more luxuriant coat, by a pronounced tendency
in the grey phase for the development of black pigment on the fore leg, especially
on the pale areas about the "bracelets", and by some skull characters of the <J
mentioned in greater detail below. Distinguished from F. I. mellandi by the
dominance of the "tawny-grey" phase, by the more luxuriant coat, and by the
blackness of the fore leg and darker ears in the "grey phase", but apparently
resembling it in cranial characters. It also closely resembles the North African
race F. I. sarda in coat and colour, but has a noticeably larger skull.

Colour. — The marked individual variation in the colour of the upper side
is as described above. The wool of the spinal area may be sooty from the
shoulders to the loins, or mainly ochreous. The ears also vary from dark brown
to rusty brown, the tips being frequently blackish and pencilled, and the under
side varies from deep orange ochreous to palish buff, with the tips of the hairs
whitish to a greater or less extent. The pattern of stripes and spots on the
upper side may be distinct, but is never strongly pronounced, and may be
practically obsolete; the spots on the under side may be black and conspicuous,
brown or reddish and less in evidence or hardly detectable; the stripes on the
tail and legs are stronger than on the body, but vary in distinctness; a common
feature in skins of the "iron-grey" phase is the black pigmentation of the fore
legs above the elbow, the normally pale area between the two bracelets being
sometimes deep black, sometimes dark grey, but frequently pale ochreous, in
which case these two bands are well defined. The variations above enumerated
may occur in skins from the same district.

An undated, unmeasured $ topotype of cafra,1 without skull, from Kaffraria
(G. C. Shortridge, 35.9.1 .155), has the general colour above dark grey with a
buff cast, the contour hairs of the flanks being speckled buffy white and fuscous,

1 The type F. cafra was described by Desmarest as fulvous grey above, fulvous below, the
ears being without pencils and the same tint as the upper side; there are three collars on the
throat, twenty brown bands on each flank, eight on the front leg, and twelve on the hind leg ;
the long tail having four well-marked rings and a black tip. The description was based upon
two specimens killed by Delalande in Kaffraria which is the type locality, not the Cape of Good
Hope, as has been stated.

104

with the crest more heavily blackened and its pale speckling a little deeper; on
the hinder part of the back to the root of the tail the spinal band is differentiated
into two thin black stripes; the wool of the sides is rich buff at the summit, that
of the spinal area is also rich buff behind the shoulders, but on the mid-back
it is dark greyish brown, the brighter hue setting in again over the loins. The
ears are darkish rusty ochreous. The crown is rubbed, the only pattern preserved
on the head being the normal four streaks behind the eyes and the two red
genal stripes. The lateral pattern consists of numerous faint stripes extending
from the shoulders to the loins and a little darker than the greyer ground colour;
on the hind leg the stripes are black from the thighs to the hock and on the
fore leg from the elbow to the wrist; there is no excessive development of black
about the elbow and the two bracelets are separated by a wide pale buff area.
On the under side the chin and fore throat are white, the hind throat rather
rich buff with one complete and two incomplete reddish collars; the chest and
abdomen are rich ochreous buff, overcast with the white ends of the hairs and
the spots are deeper reddish; the tint of the backs of the thighs is rich, almost
orange ochreous, and the back of the hind leg is black from the pads to the
hock. The tail has four black rings and a black tip sharply emphasised by the
greyish white interspaces.

A $ skin from King Williamstown (H. Trevelyan, So.io.ii.i) closely
resembles the foregoing, but the fronts of the legs are grey instead of buff, and
the area between the bracelets on the fore legs is tinged with black.

Two specimens from practically the same locality in Natal show striking
individual differences. An adult $ from Willbrook, Estcourt, 4,500 ft. (R. C.
Wroughton, 4. 12. 5. 13), September 1, very closely resembles in almost every
respect the topotype from Kaffraria, the colour and pattern of the upper and
under sides, the tint of the ears and the disruption of the spinal band posteriorly
into black stripes being the same; but there is more black about the elbow of
the fore leg and the tail stripes are not so sharply defined. Also, there are some
stripes on the crown of the head which cannot be verified in the topotype.
Another adult $ from Hidcote Highlands, Estcourt, 4,900 ft. (C. W. Turner,
5.5.1.8), October 9, is differently coloured, the pale areas of the contour hairs
being clearer silvery, and there is more black pigment in the pelage, generally,
of the upper side. The wool of the flanks is duller in tint and of the spinal
area sooty brown almost throughout. The ears are dull greyish brown without
ochreous or rusty hue, and are not nearly so sharply contrasted with the crown
of the head. The lateral stripes are more pronounced, there are black stripes,
but not very well defined, on the crown, nape and shoulders, and the spinal
band is even more subdivided than in the Kaffrarian topotype and the other
skin from Estcourt. The rich hue of the under side is over-sprinkled with grey,
not white; and the area between the bracelets is deep dusky grey or pale black,
as in the skin from King \Villiamstown.

To the west of Natal and Kaffraria, at Deelfontein, in the centre of the Cape
Province, four skins (C. H. B. Grant), April-May, exhibit individual differences
similar to those between the two from Estcourt. Two (2.12.1.1 and 2) exactly
match the Kaffrarian topotype and Wroughton's skin from Estcourt in the

colour of the upper side, but 2.12.1.1 is richer tinted below than the other, and
has the backs of the fore legs intensely black, rather blacker than in the skin
from King Williamstown and in Turner's Iistcourt skin, whereas in 2. 12. 1.2 the
bracelets are widely separated by a buff area, as in the Kaffrarian skin. In
2. 12. 1. 3 and 3. 1. 4. 17 the fore legs are heavily black-pigmented behind, as in 1,
but 3. 1. 4. 17 is dark silvery grey above, as in Turner's Natal skin, 3 being
intermediate in tint above, between it and 2. The ears in most of these skins
are darkish rusty ochreous, as in the Kaffrarian and Natal skins, not as in Turner's
Natal skin, but in 3.1.4.17 the rusty hue is apical, the base of the ears being
deep greyish brown, closely matching the head. Great contrast in the tint of
the under side is shown by 2.12.1.1, in which it is intensely, almost orange
ochreous with reddish brown spots, and by 3. 1.4. 17, in which it is palish buff
with black spots.

A female skin from Cape Agulhas (F. C. Selous, 95.9.3.3) closely matches
Turner's Natal skin in the tint and pattern of the upper side and the Deelfontein
skin (2. 1 2. 1. 4) in the same respect, as also in the extensive blackness of the
posterior surface of the fore leg.

A series of four skins from Klipfontein, in Little Namaqualand (C. H. B.
Grant), May, representing namaquana, Thomas,1 exhibit individual variations
similar to those of the Deelfontein series. One (4.2.3.21) exactly matches the
skin from Cape Agulhas in practically every detail, except that the buff tint of
the spinal wool sets in a little farther back. But the type of namaquana (4.2.3.20)
and the remaining two (4.2.3.22 and 23) are like the Kaffrarian topotype of cafra
and Wroughton's Natal skin in being buffier and not so silvery and black. The
spinal wool in the type is mostly rich ochreous throughout, only a little darker
and duller in the middle of the back; but 4.2.3.21 has the wool mostly deep
sooty grey, but slightly buffy far back on the loins and on the shoulders; the
tint of the lower side varies in intensity and the spots from reddish to black.
In the three paler skins the ears are rusty ochreous, but in 4.2.3.21 they are
darker and less rusty.

Skins from the Transvaal exhibit the same two colour phases of the upper
side as those from Natal and the central and western districts of the Cape
Province, and are racially indistinguishable from them. The type and topotype
of F. ocreata rusticana,2 Thomas, from Zuurbron, near Wakkerstrom, 4,500 ft.,
south-east Transvaal (C. H. B. Grant, 4.9.1.27 and 26), are of the tawny type,
matching skins from Deelfontein (2.12.1.1 and 2), from Klipfontein (4.2.3.20.22
and 23), and very closely resembling the Kaffrarian topotype of cafra and the
tawny skin from Estcourt, Natal. They differ from each other in the distinctness

1 Thomas based his description of namaquana upon a skin from Berseba in Great Namaqua-
land and upon the Klipfontein skin (4.2.3.20), stating the latter to be the type. He also took
Selous's Cape Agulhas skin as representing typical cafra and separated namaquana on the
evidence of the two paler skins from Berseba and Klipfontein respectively, entirely ignoring
the practical identity between another of the Klipfontein skins and Selous's specimen from
Cape Agulhas.

2 Thomas contrasted the three paler Transvaal skins, which he named rusticana, with the
dark skin collected by Selous at Cape Agulhas, taking the latter as representing typical cafra ;
but he ignored the dark Transvaal skin from Klein Letaba which closely resembles the Cape
Agulhas skin.

io6

of the pattern, the stripes on the legs in the type being rather faint and the rings
on the tail thin and wide apart, whereas in the topotype the leg stripes are black
and strong and those on the tail normally thick and spaced; the tail in the
topotype, indeed, is unusually well banded, there being seven or eight stripes
on its upper side. In both skins the colour of the lower side is of average
brightness, with reddish brown spots. A . skin from TurHoop, 18 miles east
of Pietersburg, in Zoutpansberg, North Transvaal, 4,450 ft. (C. H. B. Grant,
6.8.2.14), March, also referred by Thomas to rusticana, is abnormally coloured
above with an erythristic tinge, the spinal area being mainly reddish, with hardly
a trace of black, and the lateral stripes reddish and contrasted with the generally
tawny grey hue of the flanks; the under side is more overcast with white than
in the skins from Zuurbron.

An adult o skin from Klein Letaba, in Zoutpansberg, North Transvaal
(C. II. B. Grant, 5.12.9.15), August 21, left unidentified by Thomas, is of the
dark silvery grey colour-phase above, matching Turner's skin from Estcourt,
Natal, the skin from Deelfontein (2.12.1.3), and the skin from Klipfontein
(4.2.3.21), the last-mentioned almost exactly; there is no appreciable pattern on
the body above and the spinal wool is sooty brown almost throughout.

Skull. — The skull is apparently slightly longer than in the two admitted

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

in.

in.

in.

in.

-; ad.

Klein Letaba, Zoutpansberg,
Transvaal

5.i2.g.i5

23^

15

<)l

2-jJ

2 ad.

Zuurbron, Wakkerstrom
Dist., Transvaal (type of

rusticana)

4.9.1.27

21

13

ss

,;;

j yg.

Zuurbron, Wakkerstrom

Dist., Transvaal

4.9.1.26

3li

'4

5'.

2?

. ad.

Turfluop, Pietersburg, Trans-

vaal ....

6.8.2.1 +

21

13

$'■

2*

2 ad.

Willbrook, Estcourt, Natal .

S-S-i-8

2-i

12H

5':.

2 ',

V ad.

,, ,, ,,

4. 12. 5. 13

20 J

11?

4.!

2f!

S ad.

Deelfontein, Cape Province .

2. 12. 1. 1

23*

I4J

sf

2?.

:?ad.

,, ,, ,,

2. 12. 1. 2

221,

I4!.

6-;

2.:

ad.

2. 12. 1. 3

->! '-

12 +

5l

2',

t \j. ad.

,, ,, ,,

3-I-4-I7

m

12 ;

51

25

(J ad.

Klipfontein, Little Namaqua-

land (type of namaquana) .

4.2.3.20

23"

■3.5

6

3

2 ad.

Klipfontein, Little Namaqua-

land ....

4^. 3-23

21!

i3ii

si

26

2 ad.

Klipfontein, Little Namaqua-

land ....

4.2.3.21

21?

I3S

si

2* +

?

Klipfontein, Little Namaqua-

land ....

4.2.3.22

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races found in Uganda, Kenya Colony, and Tanganyika Territory, namely
/•'. /. ugandae and /•'. /. taitae, the average condylobasal length in six oc? and
twelve of F. I. cafra being respectively 98 and 89 mm. as compared with
<I4 mm. in seven 3 J and 86 mm. in nine $$ of the two more northern races.
But it is also relatively wider in /•'. /. cafra, as it is in F. I. mellandi. The average
zygomatic, cranial and postorhital widths in six adult $$ of F. I. cafra are
respectively 75, 48 and 36 mm., the same averages in adult etc? °f F. I. ugandae
being respectively 71, 44 and 30 mm. Also, the average length of the upper
carnassial (/>/'/') in seven 00 of /•'. /. cafra is 12.I mm., whereas in eight cJ<J of
/ '. /. ugandae it is a little over n mm.

Two adult o skulls from Deelfontein may be cited to illustrate individual
variation in shape in the same locality. One (2.12.1.1) adult, but not old, has
the temporal ridges 17 mm. apart at the suture and the frontals inflated in
front, giving a steep slope to the nasals, and expanding the interorbital area,
which is 21 mm. yvide. Another (2.12.1.2a), about the same age, has the ridges
14 mm. apart, the frontals not so inflated so that the slope of the nasals is not
so abrupt, the interorbital area is narrower, 18 mm. wide, and the nasals are
more constricted, 5 mm. yvide at the frontal points. In a 3 skull (46.3.28.4),
labelled South Africa, yvhich is older than the two from Deelfontein and as old
as the skull of F. I. ugandae from Gulu, the ridges are only 6 mm. apart. The
following measurements of these two skulls, those of the Uganda skull being
put in brackets, well illustrate the differences in cranial and dental dimensions
between the two races: condylobasal length, 102 (100); zygomatic width, 78 (74);
cranial width, 50 (44) ; postorbital width, 37(30); length of/)//;4, 12(11). The con-
siderably greater cranial and postorbital widths of the South African skull attest
the suppression of the muscular moulding characteristic of adult c?(J of this race.

An interesting variation in the structure of pm* is exhibited by one of the
skulls from Klipfontein. As a rule, in this South African race the anterior width
of the tooth is about half the total external length or a little less. For instance,
in one ? (4.2.3.21) from Klipfontein the length is 11 mm. and the anterior
width $\ mm. But in another V (4.2.3.22) from the same locality the length is
also 11 mm., whereas the anterior width, oyving to reduction in size of the
inner lobe, is only 4 mm. In this feature this particular skull resembles some
of those referred to the next race, in which it occurs sporadically.

Specimens in the Collection

.• Klein Letaba, Zoutpansberg, N. C. D. Rudd [PI 5.12.0.15

Transvaal (C. H. B. Grant)
Turfloop, 1 8 miles east of Pieters- ,, ,, 6.8.2.14

burg, N. Transvaal (C. H. B.
Grant)
J Zuurbron, 30 miles east of Wak-

kerstrom, South-east Trans-
vaal (C. H. B. Grant)

Willbrook, Estcourt, Natal
Hidcote, Estcourt, Natal
2 Newcastle, Natal

• 1 11

4.9.1.27

type of rusti

cana

4.9.1.26

R. C. Wroughton [C & 1»]

4.12.5. 13

C. W. Turner [P]

5-S-I-8

Col. E. S. Butler

94. 1. 6. 1

IOQ

mtd.

Kaffraria

King Williamstown

Port Elizabeth (A. W. Guthrie)

South Africa

The Cape

Cape of Good Hope (marked J)

Cape Agulhas
3 d", 2 9 Deelfontein, Cape Province

(C. H. B. Grant)
cj Klipfontein, Little Namaqualand

(C. H. B. Grant)

3?

Klipfontein, Little Namaqualand
(C. H. B. Grant)

G. C. Shortridge [C & P]
H. Trevelyan [C & P]
Zoological Society [P]
Purchased

35-9-I-I55
80.10. 11. 1

39-67I
43.12.7.21

n

46.3.28.4

J. Gould [P]
Purchased

47.6.14.7

119a

38. 6. 9. 116

"

39. 11. 11. 23
119 d

Earl of Derby [P]
F. C. Selous [C & P]
Col. A. Sloggett [P]

nge
1 igf

95-9-3-3
z.i2.i.i,2,2a,3;

C. D. Rudd [P]

314-17
4.2.3.20

type of nama-

quana

II >>

4.2.3.21-23

Felis lybiea griselda, Thomas
1926. Felis ocreata griselda, Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 9th ser., 17, p. 180

(50 miles south of Dombe Grande, Benguella).
1920. Felis ocreata namaquana, Thomas, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 9th sen, 17,

p. 180 (in part only, the specimen from Berseba, not the type from

Klipfontein); id. Proc. Zool. Soc., pt. 1, p. 102, 1929.
1926. Felis ocreata xanthella, Thomas, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 291 (Ukualukasi,

North-west Ovamboland) ; id. Proc. Zool. Soc, pt. 2, p. 374, 1927.
1932. Felis ocreata vernayi, Roberts, Ann. Transvaal Mus., 15, p. 6 (Tsotsorogo

Pan, North Bechuanaland).
1944. Felis lybiea griselda, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, 114, p. 299.

Geographical Distribution. — From Southern Angola, Ovamboland,
Kaokoveld, Damaraland, eastwards into Bechuanaland and southwards into
Great Namaqualand.

Diagnosis. — Intergrading with F. I. cafra, but distinguished by its paler,
brighter ochreous ears, slightly or considerably paler general hue, and by the
pattern above and below being on the average suppressed to a greater extent.
Also by a difference in its colour phases, one phase, the darker, being tawnv
with a grey cast, only slightly different from the paler, tawny phase of cafra,
the other being much lighter and whitish, strikingly different from the heavily
pigmented dark phase of cafra, which is unknown north of the Orange River
in South-west Africa.1

1 From Little Namaqualand in the south to Angola in the north there is an almost complete
gradation in colour between the blackish type of cafra, which occurs at Klipfontein, and the
whitish type of griselda, which occurs at Benguella, the tawny intermediate type, which is also
found at Klipfontein, being dominant in Great Namaqualand, Damaraland, Kaokoveld, and
Ovamboland. The occurrence of the whitish type at such widely separated localities as Central
Kaokoveld, Benguella. and northern Bechuanaland, with the tawny type coming in between,
shows the impossibility on the available evidence of admitting their racial status. They appear
to be merely sporadic varieties.

Colour. The type of /•'. u. xanthella, an adult y from Ukualukasi,
North-west Ovamboland, 3,400 ft., 32 miles north-west of Kehoboth Mission
(25.12.4. 53), October 8, has the contour hairs 30 mm. long on the Hanks, 45 mm.
on the crest, but they are thinning out, apparently with the moult, so that the
huffy wool beneath is displayed to a great extent, imparting the yellowish
appearance which suggested the name. The general colour of the contour hairs
on the sides is huffy white, with faint fuscous or blackish speckling; on the
crest the pale areas are richer huff, with more extensive and deeper black
speckling; the wool of the flanks is pale buff at the summit, of the crest richer
buff from the shoulders to the root of the tail. The backs of the ears are pale
brightish ochreous. There is no pattern on the head apart from the normal
short streak above the eyes and the small patch in front of them, and the red
genal stripes, the nose being reddish; there are no appreciable lateral stripes
on the body; but the legs have greyish brown bands, and there is a single strong
stripe on the inner side of the fore leg; the usual black on the posterior surface
of the hind foot only extends a short way above the plantar pad. On the under
>.ide the chin and throat as far back as the red collar are white; the chest between
the fore legs and the middle of the belly are also white, the rest being pale
ochreous diluted with white and the backs of the thighs down to the hocks are
rich ochreous.

An adult o specimen from Sandfontein, in the Gobabis district, East
Damaraland, 4,100 ft. (26.12.7.30), November 25, is an almost precisely similar
cat in everv way, except that the under side is considerably brighter, an indivi-
dually variable character;1 the back of the hind leg is only black in its lower half.

A skin from Karolinenhof, near Sandfontein, 4,000 ft. (G. C. Shortridge,
26.12.7.29), December 11, is greyer, darker and less buffy than the one from
Sandfontein and the type of xanthella, mainly because the coat is closer, con-
cealing the underlying wool. The contour hairs of the flanks have less extensive
pale areas and those of the spinal area are grey, not so buff; the wool of the
flanks is pale buff, of the spinal area dusky greyish brown in front, becoming
gradually paler and more buffy over the loins; the pattern on the legs is more
strongly pronounced and black, the back of the hind leg is black to the hock,
and the spots on the lower side are stronger.

Two adult <J skins from Kovares, South Kaokoveld (Shortridge, 28.9.1 1.86
and 87), differ only in minor individual details from the skins from the Gobabis
district of Damaraland, from Great Namaqualand, and from the type of
xanthella from Ovamboland. But an immature o* skin from Otjitundua, in
Central Kaokoveld, 1,348 metres (Shortridge, 28.9.1 1.88), is of special interest
on account of its much paler hue, the contour hairs, except on the spinal area,
being white with fine fuscous speckling, giving a pale whitish grey hue to the
upper side; the contours of the spinal area are banded pale buffy grey and black;
the wool of the flanks is very pale buff, of the spinal area rich buff over the
shoulders, dark sooty grey with scarcely a trace of buff on the mid-back, and

1 Thomas (Proc. Zool. Soc, 1927, pt. 2, p. 374) identified this specimen as xanthella; but
-.ubsequently, in his bound volume of tracts and on the label, erased the name and substituted
namaquana, apparently because of the great distance between the localities where the cats
were killed.

pale buffy over the loins; the ears are the same tint as in the other skins; there
are faint fuscous lateral stripes, due probably to the immaturity of the specimen,
and on the legs the stripes are strong and black; on the under side the white
interramal area is defined by a red collar, the hind throat is rich buff with a red
collar; the chest is buff, over-sprinkled with white, with fuscous spots, and the
abdomen and inner side of the thighs are white; the legs are buff in front and
the hind foot is black.

A <J topotype of F. o. vernayi from Tsotsorogo Pan, North Bechuanaland,
18° 45' S., 24° 20' E. (Vernay and Lang, 33.9.6.6), is almost exactly the same
whitish grey hue above as the last. The wool of the flanks is dull buffy grey, of
the spinal area deep and blackish in front, but greyish buff over the loins; the
lateral pattern has disappeared, but the stripes on the legs are black and strong,
as in the Kaokoveld skin, but the front of the legs are greyer, not so buff, and
the black on the hind leg does not reach the hock; the lower side is more
over-sprinkled with white.

The type of F. o.griselda1 from 50 miles south of Dombe Grande, Benguella
(E. N. Buxton, 25.5.16.1), is an exact match of the topotype of vernayi in its
pale whitish hue above, but the spinal wool on the loins is richer buff and the
lower side is not so clear white, having a faint buffy tinge, perhaps due to
artificial soiling.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Fool

in.

in.

in.

<J ad.

Berseba, Great Namaqualand .

25.1.2.42

24J

r4f

6

(J ad.

Karolinenhof, Kalahari .

26.12.7.29

24i

"f

6i

o*ad.

Kovares, South Kaokoveld

28.9.1 1.87

23t

13!

5l

c?ad.

Sandfontein .....

26.12.7.30

23t

i3i

6{

6" ad.

Okavango, Grootfontein District

35.9.1.153

23 1

13*

6

£ad.

,, ,, ,,

35.9.1. 145

23i

13!

6!

d"ad.

Kovares, South Kaokoveld

28.9.1 1.86

22f

Hi

sS

5 ad.

Ssanukana, Grootfontein District

35.9.1. 148

23i

I4i

6?

9 ad.

North-west Ovamboland (type of

xanthella) ...

25.12.4.33

22

I4l

5?

Sad.

Numkaub, Grootfontein District

35. 9. 1. 147

20 i

12!

Si

9 ad.

Okavango, Grootfontein District

35. 9.1. 149

20f

I2f

Si

Skull. — With the condylobasal length varying from go to 100 mm., the
average in eight being about 95 mm., the skulls of adult S<S appear to be a trifle
smaller than in F. I. cafra\ but they have the same robust appearance as in that

1 In his description of the type and only known specimen, Thomas separated it radially
from mellandi by the "dull, pale, buffy whitish" hue and from the south-western form he named
namaquana by the paleness " tending in the direction of grey instead of buffy ". In his subsequent
report on the Kaokoveld specimens he apparently noted the resemblance between the skin from
Otjitundua and his type of griselda, without admitting the impossibility of separating them
subspecifically.

-

z

-

2
f.

IM

CO o o

s -

o o o

c- o O O* CO o o

,M(J

N N N

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go no r-

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n n m

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ro n M m MO O*

M N N N M N m

yipiai
xv'w

£ \D O "t"
p N N N

\C IT", •}•

N PI N

vO o in in mi- o

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• 13

race and F. I. mellandi, resembling large adult $ skulls in the width of the cranial
and postorbital areas due to the absence of the muscular moulding presented
by adult (J skulls of F. I. ugandae and most of the other races.

A striking instance of variation in the size of the inner lobe of pm*, attesting
its systematic unimportance, is shown by two adult <J skulls from Kovares,
South Kaokoveld. In one (28.9.1 1.86) this tooth is 12 mm. long and 6 mm.
wide in front. In another (28.9.1 1.87) it has the same length, but the width,
owing to reduction of the lobe, is only 4 mm. The difference is not due to
wear, the first skull being the older of the two, with the main cusp of pm* more
worn and the temporal ridges only 4 mm. apart at the suture, whereas in the
second they are 14 mm. apart. In the skull from Sandfontein (26.12.7.30) the
lobe is also small, the width of the tooth being 4J mm. and, as in 28.9.1 1.87,
there is no trace even of the socket of pm2, whereas in the skull from Karolinenhof
(26.12.7.29) the width of pm* is 6 mm. and pm- is present on both sides. In
the very old <J skull from Andara, West Caprivi (35.9.1.145), so old that the
sagittal crest reaches the suture in front and all the teeth are extensively worn,
pm* is 12 by 5 mm. and pm- is still retained. It is noticeable that despite its age
the two postorbital processes on each side are widely separated.

Specimens in the Collection

<J Berseba, Great Namaqualand (G. C.

Shortridge)
c? Karolinenhof, Gobabis Dist.,Dama-

raland (G. C. Shortridge)
cJ Sandfontein, Gobabis Dist., Daraa-

raland (G. C. Shortridge)
3 Bambi, Damaraland

2 6* Andara, West Caprivi, Damaraland

(G. C. Shortridge)
$ Ssanukanu Village, Grootfontein Dis.

Damaraland (G. C. Shortridge)
$ Numkaub, Grootfontein District,

Damaraland (G. C. Shortridge)
6* 9 o Okavango, Grootfontein District,

Damaraland (G. C. Shortridge)
Leopard's Kopje, GrootfonteinDist.,

Damaraland (G. C. Shortridge)
Skull Kanoo Vlez, Grootfontein (G. C.

Shortridge)
2 6*¥ Kovares, South Kaokoveld Dis.,
juv. Damaraland (G. C. Shortridge)
c? Otjitundua, Central Kaokoveld Dis.,

Damaraland (G. C. Shortridge)
o* Tsotsorogo Pan, North Bechuana-

land (Lang)
$ Ukualukasi, North-west Ovambo-

land (G. C. Shortridge)
50 miles south of Dombe Grande,

Benguella, Angola

Percy Sladen Trust [P]

Percy Sladen Trust and
KarTrarian Mus. [P]

Maj. Powell Cotton

[C&P]
Percy Sladen Trust and

S. Afr. Res. Board [P]

A. S. Vemay [P]
Percy Sladen Trust [P]
E. N. Buxton [C & P]

25.1.2.42

26.12.7.29

26.12.7.30

38.7-8.1-3

35.9.1.145-46

35.9.1. 148

35.9.1. 147

35.9. 1. 149, 150,

and 153
35-9-II52

35.9.1.157,158
28.9.11.86-87,90
28.9. 1 1. 88
33.9.6.6

25.12.4.33
(type of xanthella)

25.5.16.1
(type of griselda)

"4

Felis lybica tristrami, Pocock

[867. Felis syriaca, H. B. Tristram, Nat. Hist, of the Bible, p. 67 (not Felis
domestica syriaca, Fischer, ex Aldrovandi, Syn. Mamm., p. 107, 1829).

1935. Felis ocreata, Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 10th ser., 15, p. 455.

1939. Felis constantina syriaca, Morrison-Scott, Novit. Zool., 41, p. 197.

i()44. Felis lybica tristrami, Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (11), 11, p. 125
(Ghor Seisaban, Moab, Palestine).

Geographical Distribution. — Palestine, Western and Southern Arabia.

Diagnosis. — A bush-cat1 generally resembling those of North Africa in
coloration, but differing on the average from F. I. sarda by its lighter tint, less
luxuriant coat and less extensive blackness on the back of the metatarsus, from
F. I. brockmani by this last character, as well as by the less distinct pattern on
the body, and from F. I. ocreata at least by its shorter coat and smaller skull.

Colour. — The series of skins is, on the whole, tolerably uniform, the colour
of the upper side varying from pale, slightly tawny grey, to duller or brighter
ashy grey and on the under side from whitish to rich buff, almost ochreous;
the face is well pigmented and the ears vary from rusty brown to darker greyish
brown, darkening at the tips; the pattern on the upper side is always faint,
sometimes hardly visible, and shows a tendency to break up into spots; it is
never strong below, is typically weak on the outer sides of the limbs, and the
black on the upper part of the back of the hind foot is less deep and less extensive.

The type, an adult $, from Ghor Seisaban, Moab(H. B.Tristram, 93.1 1.29.3),
March 12, has the coat very soft, full and long, 44 mm. on the flanks, 47 mm. on
the crest, the difference between them being very slight. The general colour
above pale buffy white, darkened with fuscous speckling, the spinal area being
deeper buff with black speckling; the wool on the flanks is rich buff, exposed
to a certain extent by the thinning contour hairs, on the crest rich ochreous
from the nape backwards; the ears are palish rusty brown, darkening at the tip,
which is pencilled; the speckling of the crown spreads between the whitish
patches bordering the eyes internally, the top of the muzzle is rusty, the cheeks
buffy white with two red stripes, and the upper lip and chin are white; the legs
externally are like the flanks, with the paws deeper buff. The pattern is obsolete
on the head, nape and shoulders, faint on the flanks, weak and brown on the
outer side of the legs, being strong and black only on the tail, apart from the
bracelet. On the under side the throat, which has a fuscous collar, and the chest
are superficially white, but buff below, and the white extends all down the
middle line, narrow on the belly, but spreading over the inner side of the thighs;
the spots are red, and there is some ochreous round the genitalia and on the
backs of the thighs, whence it extends, gradually fading, to the hocks; the hind
foot is only black distally behind, being greyish brown in the upper half.

An adult ? from Junction Station, Jerusalem (G. C. Shortridge, 18. 8. 1.8),
April, has the coat 31 and 45 mm., thinner and a little shorter than in the type,

1 According to Major Maurice Portal the cats of this race he saw at Ramleh inhabited country
characterised by abundance of rocky outcrops and loose rocks affording them shelter and by
tolerably thick scrub consisting of juniper and ilex.

"5

but is like it in colour above, although ochreous below, the hairs being much
less extensively whitened, with the stripes on the legs stronger; the hind foot
is not "booted" in its upper part.

An unsexed skin labelled Palestine (M. Portal, 44.29) has the coat 39 and
40 mm., concealing the wool, but otherwise the colour of the contour hairs and
of the wool is nearly the same as in the type, although the pattern is a little
stronger; the ears are rubbed, but were apparently as in the type. A $ skin
(44.28) with the same history has the coat 33 and 48 mm. and differs from the
preceding in being more ashy grey above, the pattern everywhere more distinct
and apparent on the nape and shoulders, the ears dark greyish brown with no
rusty tint, the under side less white, more buffy and the spots blacker. A $
from Ramleh, 10 miles from Jaffa (M. Portal, 19.4.11.1), November, has the
coat 30 and 42 mm., the ears dark, as in the last, but differs in being decidedly
more silvery grey above, less buffy below, with the pattern on the legs and
abdomen still blacker, and the hind foot blacker towards the hock. Another
? with the same history (19.4. 1 1.2), December 20, has the coat 30 and 43 mm.,
and is more ashy grey above than the type, but a little darker and much less
silvery than the other from Ramleh, and further differs from the latter in having
less black on the spinal area, with the pattern less pronounced above and below,
the under side less buffy and the hind foot not so black in its upper part. A
young skin from near Jaffa (Sladen, 39.1667), June, has the coat 21 and 35 mm.
and is hardly distinguishable from the type in superficial colour, including the
ears, but differs in its much shorter coat and very pale wool, both seasonal
features, and its more distinct pattern due to its short coat and immaturity.

The following three Arabian specimens are assigned to the same race. An
adult <J from Iraq Well, Wadi Thar (i7°4o'N., 440 o'E.), 4,300 ft. ,(H. St. J.
Philby, 40.175), November 6, with the coat 36 and 42 mm., matches the skin
from Ramleh (19. 4.1 1.2) in superficial colouring, except that the ears are paler,
as in the type, and the wool is duller in tint, almost as in the skin from near
Jaffa (Sladen, 39.1667). A ? skin from 15 miles north of Jidda, on the Red
Sea coast (A. G. Griffin, 40.176), January, with the coat 31 and 35 mm., very
closely resembles the first described skin collected by Portal, and its ears are
as in the type. It may be noted that the pattern is greatly broken up into spots
and that the black on the hind foot is restricted to its lower part. A young £
from north-east of Jidda (Philby, 40.177) differs from the preceding in being
uniformly ashy grey all over, and the pattern above is practically obsolete,
although present on the legs and below.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

<Jad.
9 yg. ad.

Wady Thar, Arabia
Jerusalem ....

40-I7S
18.8.1.8

in.
20
2if

in.
I5f

I3S

in.
St
5

in.

28

n6

o
z

-
y.

►J

l;/i

C O O OO OCO 00CO ^

0

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£ mvD o m o r^. r^- u-i

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8 -i- O - MM -i-o

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£ -+r^ rj r^ri « O N
d co f) co f*i t*i r*i r*3 r*i

rn

iflpua

jDUWAQ

g Tfrf -t" -t-t- -1- *t -+•

-H

•*-

yipwi
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£ 0060 o con n aov

t/JtJUJ/

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£ o -t- 1 mh. o oco
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&

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"3

o

F. /. tristrami
Iraq Well, Wadi Thar,

Arabia
North of Jidda
15 miles north-east

of Jidda
Umm al Qurun, S.

Arabia
Jerusalem
Ghor Seisaban,

Moab (type)
Ramleh, Jaffa .

0>

a

C

■S3 -O

-5 *

CO

'O Of Of *0 Of Of Of Of

ii7

The given dimensions of the head and body and the tail of these two
specimens suggest a difference in the method of measuring those two areas. It
is unlikely that Philby's Arabian specimen, an adult $, with a condylobasal
length of 90 mm., had a shorter head and body than Shortridge's Jerusalem
specimen, a young adult ? with a condylobasal length of 87 mm.; and it may be
noted that the total length from nose-tip to tail-tip in Philby's is slightly longer
than in Shortridge's specimen. The relative dimensions of the latter are more
normal, although large for a $, its skull being 7 mm. longer than that of the type.

Skull. — The skulls, which are about the same size as those of most of the
North African races, show no distinctive features; but the teeth vary individually
in size, as noticed in the two 5 skulls from the north-east of Jidda by Morrison-
Scott, who suggested that the smaller teeth might be due to the cat being of
impure breed, with a domestic strain, but from the evidence of the other skulls
the teeth in the young skull are exceptionally large. This race is interesting for
two other reasons. As explained above (p. 10), the type of the alleged Cretan
race, which carries the name agrius, Bate, is a feral domestic cat, but the topotype
(5. 12.2. 14) in its more luxuriant coat and general colour closely resembles the
type of F. I. tristrami from Moab, has the same pattern as the skin from Jeru-
salem, except that it is stronger on the nape and shoulders, and the dark ears
of the skin from Ramleh. Its hind feet also have the black restricted to the
lower portion. If this specimen represents, as is possible, an indigenous Cretan
race, its close likeness to the Syrian race is interesting. On the scanty evidence
it is not worth naming.

In the second place, the tendency in F. I. tristrami for the pattern on the
flanks to be more spotty, for the disappearance of the black on the back of the
metatarsi and for the lesser differentiation of the spinal crest, are all features
leading towards the two more Eastern races, ornata and caudata, which in 1939
I assigned to the same species as the African Wild Cat.

Specimens in the Collection

? Ghor Seisaban, Moab

Junction Station, Jerusalem

1 ?, 1 Palestine

2 Ramleh, 10 miles from Jaffa
1 Near Jaffa (Maj. A. G. L. Sladen)
o" Iraq Well, Wadi Thar, 1 70 40' N.

44° E.
$ Red Sea coast, 15 miles north of

Jidda
$ N.E. Jidda (A. G. Griffin)

? 3 skull Umm al Qurun, South Arabian

desert

Felis lybica iraki, Cheesman

1920. Felis ocreata iraki, Cheesman, Journ. Bomb. Nat. Hist. Soc, 27, p. 9
(Koweit, North-east Arabia, on the Persian Gulf).

Canon H. B. Tristram

93. 11. 29.3

[C&P]

(type)

G. C. Shortridge [C & P]

18.8.1.8

Major Maurice Portal

44.28-29

[C&P]

,, ,,

19.4. 1 1.1— j

Rothschild Bequest

39.1667

H. St. J. Philby [C & P]

40.175

A. G. Griffin [C & P]

40.176

H. St. J. Philby [P]

40.177

[C & P]

40.177a

!l8

Geographical Distribution. — Only known from the type-locality and from
Sheik Saad, on the Tigris, Iraq.

Diagnosis. Distinguished principally from F. I. tristrami by its more
uniformly tawny hue above, by the undifferentiated spinal band, and whiter
face and feet.

COLOUR.— The type and only available specimen, a young adult J (20.1. 19. 2),
killed on May 13, has the coat full and longish, the hairs on the flanks being
40 mm., on the crest 45 mm., the difference between the two being very slight,
as in some skins of tristrami; the general colour above is more sandy than in
the latter, and more obscurely speckled; there is no differentiated dark spinal
band, the whole of the back being uniformly tinted and blending with the
Hanks; the backs of the ears are a little brighter and paler than in pale-eared
skins of tristrami; the face is whiter than in that race, the area between the eyes
being almost all white, the summit of the muzzle pale buff, with a rusty streak
on each side running from the eye to the nose; there is no perceptible dorsal
pattern, that on the flanks consists of very pale brownish patches and the spots
below are only just traceable; on the lower side the chin and fore throat are
white, the hind throat buff, with no collar, the chest whitish, the abdomen buffy
white; the legs are white inside, whitish on the paws in front, and the black on
the back of the hind foot is restricted to the lower part.

No flesh measurements were taken.

The undeveloped skull of the type, a youngish j, would probably have
reached approximately the size of the adult (J skull of F. /. tristrami from Wadi
Thar. Its temporal ridges are 17 mm. apart at the suture and the sagittal crest
is only about 1 mm. high; the nasals are steeply sloped owing to the inflation
of the anterior ends of the frontals with air-cells, a feature which would probably
have been accentuated with increased age. The dimensions are entered on the
table (p. 116).

Specimen in the Collection

3 Koweit, Persian Gulf (Capt. W. H. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P] 20.1.19.2

Shakespeare) (type)

Felis lybica ornata, Gray

183 . Felis ornata, Gray, Hardwicke's Illustr. Ind. Zool., 1, pi. 2 (India); id.
Proc. Zool. Soc, 1867, p. 401; Blyth, Cat. Mamm. Mus. As. Soc,
p. 63, 1863; Elliot, Mon. Felidae, pi. 32, 1883; Blanford, Mamm. Brit.
Ind., p. 84, 1888; and of subsequent authors on Indian Mammals to

'939-

1834. Felis servalina, Jardine, Nat. Libr., Felinae, p. 232 (F. ornata on pi. 25)

(India).
1863. Felis torquata, Blyth, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 185 (in part); Jerdon, Mamm.

Ind., p. no, 1867 (in part) (not F. torquata, Cuv.).
1939. Felis Constantino ornata, Pocock, Mamm. Brit. Ind., 1, p. 287; and n,

p. 479, 1941.

Iig

Geographical Distribution. — The drier desert, semi-desert, or scrub
country of Western and of Central India south of the Ganges, its extension to
the west of Sind unknown.

Diagnosis. — A desert cat resembling F. 1. lybica and F. I. iraki in the greyish
sandy ground colour of the upper side, but typically distinguishable at a glance
from all the previously described races by its pattern, which consists mainly of
strongly emphasised black or brown, irregularly arranged spots. But the pattern
varies a good deal individually in distinctness and is sometimes quite faint; on
the head, nape, shoulders and loins the spots commonly run into longitudinal
streaks and on the fore part of the flanks they often show a vertical arrangement
and sometimes coalesce to form the vertical stripes, characteristic of this and
other species of Felts; on the thighs and fore legs also the spots often run into
transverse stripes. The spotted pattern, moreover, is foreshadowed in some
skins of F. I. tristrami, as pointed out above (p. 117). The spinal area is not
so sharply contrasted by its darker colour and elongated hairs, as in most African
races, but in these respects it resembles that of F. I. iraki; the black on the
back of the hind foot may be restricted to its lower part in adult specimens, as
in F. I. tristrami, and the tail has from three to six stripes in front of its black
tip; the ears are pencilled and may match or differ slightly from the head in
colour; the wool of the upper side is buff, the upper lip, chin and fore throat
are white, the hind throat buff; the chest and belly buff, overcast with white
to a varying extent and marked with blackish spots, and there is an ochreous
tint on the backs of the thighs and round the genital area.

There does not appear to be a single external character in which this Indian
wild cat does not intergrade with the other races of F. lybica, and its skull and
teeth are the same.

Colour. — There is a large number of skins in the British Museum from
widely separated localities in the extensive area occupied by this desert cat.
They attest considerable variation in general tint and distinctness of pattern
in individuals from the same locality taken at the same season of the year,
mostly winter, and in one case seasonal change in a summer skin; also close
resemblance between skins from remote localities. They supply no adequate
data for the admission of more than one race.

A young adult J (25. 10.3. 1) from the Salt Range, 1,100 ft., North West Pun-
jab, Februarv 21, has the coat full and soft, about 32 mm. long on the flank and
37 mm. on the spine; the ground colour above is relatively rich greyish buff,
darker and greyer on the spinal area, the wool on the flanks being rich buff, on
the spinal area nearly ochreous; the pattern is strong and black from the head
backwards, the spots on the sides behind the shoulders in front forming incipient
or complete vertical stripes; the ears are brownish grey, a little darker than the
head, the patches between the eyes, the upper lip and chin are white, the cheeks
soiled white and the nose rusty ochreous; the throat is buff and the belly buff,
diluted by the white tips of the hairs and with the spots black; the genital area
and the backs of the thighs are ochreous; the hind foot is black to the hock
and the tail has three complete rings.

A young adult ,3 from Sehore (10. 12.2. 15), 1,600 ft., in Bhopal, Central

India, some 700 miles south-east of the Salt Range, March 19, closely matches
the last in colour and pattern, but is not quite so buff above and has the coat
shorter and thinner, only 22 and 25 mm. long on the flanks and spinal area
respectively.

Five skins (85.8.1.21-5) from Sambhar, Rajputana, December to February,
are not quite so buffy as the last, perhaps owing to fading from longer preserva-
tion, varying above from pale buffy or sandy grey to pale, but not silvery, grey,
at most a little darker on the spinal area; the pattern above may be practically
as well pronounced as in the preceding two, but in some skins the spots are
browner and, as a rule, the streaks are weaker on the nape than on the head
and shoulders; the ears nearly match the head, but are sometimes a little
brighter. On the under side the chin and fore throat are white, the hind throat
buff, the chest between the legs whitish or white, the hind chest and abdomen
buff diluted to a greater or less extent by the white tips of the hairs, with black
spots, the inner sides of the thighs white, turning to pale ochreous behind and
above the genitalia, the tail commonly has as many as six rings and the backs
of the hind feet may be black throughout or only low down even in adult etc?-
The coat is about as luxuriant and long as in the Salt Range skin.

A skin from Kishunghar, in Rajputana (85.8.1.26), December 28, has the
pattern nearly obsolete, as in many skins of the African races.

Many specimens (43.107-115) from Sind, collected by Frost at Umarkot and
Chachro, in Thar Parkar, in December, vary like the series from Sambhar.
The early winter coat is thick and soft, with the hairs of the flanks and crest
about 30 and 36 mm. respectively. The general colour above varies from sandy
to clear stone-grey, the best tinted skins having the ends of the contour hairs
buff, with the wool rich ochreous buff, whereas in the paler skins the tips are
bleached to nearly grey, with the wool paler buff; the ears closely match the
crown and have the tips sometimes darkened; the body pattern varies in
distinctness, being on the whole better defined in the grey than in the buffy
skins.

A 5 skin (12. 1. 9. 6) from Islamkot, Thar Parkar, October 7, is interesting
from having a decided ochreous wash on the ears. In general colour and
pattern it fits in with the greyer of the preceding specimens, but has the coat
less full and a trifle shorter, only 27 and 35 mm. In a V (12. 1.9. 7) from
Chachro, November 1, the coat, despite the later date, is still shorter, about 22
and 30 mm.

An adult $ skin (15. 11. 1.69) from Gambat, Khairpur, April 17, and an
adult + (15.11.1.69a) from Jacobabad, February 24, match each other very
closely in colour and pattern. The colour is duller than in the bright skins from
Thar Parkar, and the pattern is browner, being diluted with pale speckling; the
bands of the legs are more faded in the Khairpur than in the Jacobabad skin.
These are probably seasonal differences.

The only summer skin is the one from Cutch (12.6.27. 14), collected in July.
The coat is thin and short, only 25 and 30 mm. long; the general colour above
is dull sandy drab, neither buff nor grey, and the pattern on the flanks is
greyish brown, but on the back, nape and shoulders it forms blackish streaks,

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

in.

in.

in.

in.

<Jad.

Khairpur, Sind

15.11.1.69

23*

>2i

5

2f

d"ad.

Sambhar, Rajputana .

85.8.1.23

22

10

44

2

6" ad.

ii »

85.8.1.22

19

10J

5

2f

(J ad.

,, ii

85.8.1.25

i8i

ioi

5

2S

6" ad.

Rhoda Matha, Cutch

12.6.27. 14

I9l

II

4*

2f

cj yg. ad.

Sehore, Central India

IO. 12.2. 15

18I

III

5

2?

6" yg. ad.

'Rohtas, Punjab

25. 10.3. 1

(18)

10*

si

zi

6* yg. ad.

Islamkot, Sind .

1 2. 1. 9. 6

n\

IO*

si

2i

5 ad.

Jacobabad, Sind

i5.ILI.69a

22i

lit

44

zi

9 ad.

Sambhar, Rajputana .

85.8.I.2I

18

10

44

24

9 yg. ad.

Kishunghar, „

85.8.I.26

174

ioi

—

2i

is strong on the legs and tail, but, unlike the other skins, is faint and grev-
brown below.

The weights of the qS from Cutch and the Salt Range were respectively
7J and 7 lb.

A point of interest in this table is the apparently large size of the $ from
Jacobabad, which exceeds all the adult (JcJ except the one from Khairpur
measured by the same collector. The genitalia show that both skins were
correctly sexed. The $ is considerably larger than the adult <J from Cutch, and
still more so than the young adult $ from Rohtas in the Salt Range, but its
skull is noticeably smaller than in either. The combined head and body are
no less than 5 inches longer than in the young adult $ from Islamkot, Thar
Parkar, but their skulls are nearly the same length. There are other discrepancies
between the flesh measurements and skull measurements. The adult $ from
Khairpur is several inches longer in the head and body than the adult $ from
Cutch, but the latter has a decidedly larger skull.

Skull. — The skull has exactly the same shape as in the previously described
races of F. lybica, and is about the same size as in the race from Palestine, and
in most of those from the northern districts of Africa. The condylobasal length
in seven adult (JJ varies from 87 to 91 mm., with an average of just under
89 mm. ; and the same dimension in five adult $$ varies from 77 to 83 mm., with
an average of about 79 mm. The teeth are almost the same size in the two sexes,
those of the $ being very slightly smaller on the average.

In the oldest <J skull from Chachro, Thar Parkar (43.135), with the narrowest
postorbital area, the temporal ridges are 5 mm. apart at the suture, but the
short sagittal crest is only 3 mm. high, the occipital crest moderately prominent,

1 The head and body in this specimen are entered as 360 mm., about 14 inches; but the
tail, foot, and ear are of about normal length and the condylobasal length of the skull is very
nearly the same as in the skull from Sambhar (85.8.1.25). Hence, there is probably very little
doubt that 360 was a mistake for 460 mm., about 18 inches. This dimension has been adopted
and bracketed.

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123

and the postorbital processes on each side almost meet. The skull from
Sambhar (85. S. 1.25) is similar in the last-mentioned particular, but in the
largest, although younger, skull from Cutch (12.6.27. 14) the postorbital pro-
cesses fuse to form a complete ring on the left side. The upper profile of the
skull varies individually in shape with air-cell inflation, particularly of the
frontals anteriorly, which affects the slope of the nasals. In the skull from
Cutch the slope of the nasals is straight and gently inclined, whereas in the skull
from Sambhar, the slope is sinuous, the posterior half of the nasals being
convex and down bent. A similar difference occurs in the two °. skulls from
Rajputana.

Specimens in

the Collection

1 India

Sir Walter Elliot

109a

1 Nusserabad, Rajputana (Capt.

Purchased

48.8.14.3

W. J. E. Boys)

(type)

Mtd. North-west Provinces »

Rothschild Bequest

39-3659

cJ Salt Range, Punjab

Prof. T. Oldham [P]

1173a

6* Rohtas, Salt Range, 1,100 ft.

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc

[P]

25. 10.3. 1

(H. W. Wells)

4 <J, 1 ? Sambhar, Rajputana (R. M.

A. O. Hume [P]

S5.8.1.21-25

Adam)

2 Kishunghar, ,, ,,

>t »t

85.8.1.26

(J Sehore, Bhopal, i,6oo ft.

Capt. C. T. Whitehead

10. 12. 2. 15

[C&P]

S Rhoda Motha, Cutch (C. A.

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc

[P]

12. 6. 27. 14

Crump)

<J Gambat, Khairpur, Sind (S. H.

,, ,,

15. 11. 1.69

Prater)

9 Jacobabad, Upper Sind (S. H.

»! >>

15.11.1.69a

Prater)

3 Islamkot, Thar Parkar Dist.,

E. Priestley [C & P]

12. 1.9.6

Sind

? Chachro, Thar Parkar Dist.,

„ „

12. 1. 9. 7

Sind

9 Thar Parkar Dist. (W. J. C.

Sir J. Ellerman [P]

43.107-115

Frost)

8 skulls Thar Parkar Dist. (W. J. C.

>» »'

43.1 16-120,

Frost)

135 a and b
234

2 skulls Umarkot, Thar Parkar ( W. J. C.

» >»

43.121-122

Frost)

2 skulls Chachro, Thar Parkar (W. J. C.

J, >J

43.134-135

Frost)

Felis lybica nesterovi, Birula

1916. Felis ornata nesterovi, Birula, Ann. Mus. Zool. St. Petersb., 21, Suppl.
pp. 1-11 (Lower Mesopotamia); Ognev, Mamm. U.S.S.R., etc., 3,
pp. 141 and 695, 1935.
Felis ocreata (error for Constantino) nesterovi, Pocock, Mamm. Brit.
India, 1, p. 288, 1939.

124

Geographical Distribution. — Mesopotamia and South Persia, limits
unknown.

Diagnosis. — About the same size as F. lybica ornata, smaller, if anything,
from the scanty evidence, but provisionally distinguished by its apparently
longer coat, judging from a single skin in summer coat in which the Hank hairs
arc about ^7 and the spinal hairs about 40 mm. long, decidedly longer than the
winter coat of the Indian race.

The account of the summer coat given above is taken from the skin of an
adult shot by Sir J. E. I!. Ilotson at Persepolis, South Persia, on June 29, and
provisionally assigned to this race. The contour hairs are long and rather harsh
and the under wool is scanty; the general colour, seasonally bleached, is whitish
grey, darker on the back, where patches of burl are exposed when the hairs are
parted, and the pattern consists of the normal stripes on the tail and limbs,
faint streaks on the shoulders and obscure spots elsewhere; the backs of the
ears are faded ochreous.

A well-grown kitten, killed with the y, ts strikingly different. The coat is
full and soft, about 20 mm. long, the colour above is buff, gradually fading on
the flanks, the pattern is black and strongly pronounced, and the ears are
brownish ochreous, turning nearly black at the tips.

Measurements. — Adult y, head and body, 19 g ; tail, 12; hind foot, 5; ear, 25.
Young y, head and body, 11 \; tail, 7; hind foot, 3; ear, — .

The dimensions of the adult agree very closely with those of the Indian
race entered in my volume above cited; but Ognev gave the cranial measure-
ments of a presumably adult o which had the condylobasal length only 81 mm.
In four adult 33 of ornata that dimension ranges from 91 to 82 mm., the
average being 88 mm.

Specimens in the Collection

2 jv. Persepolis. S. Persia Sir J. E. B. Hotson [C & P] 25.10.4.1 1-12

Felis lybica caudata, Gray

1 841, Felis servalina, Brandt, Bull. Acad. Sci. St. Petersb., 9, p. 34 (not

F. servalina, Jardine, 1S34).
1874. Chans caudatus, Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 31, pis. 6, 7 (Kokand).
1889. Felis (Chaus) caudata, Radde and Walter, Zool. Jahrb., 4, p. 1014.
11)12. Felis caudata, Birula, Ann. Mus. Zool. St. Petersb., 17, p. 226;

Satunin, Consp. Mamm. Imp. Russ., p. 165, 1914.
11)14. ?Felis caudata schnitnikowi, Birula, Annu. Mus. Zool. Akad. St. Petersb.,

19, p. 1 (Semiryechensk).
11)14. Felis griseo-flava, Zukowsky, Arch. Naturg., 9, p. 95 (near Lake Balkash).
1030. IFelis hngipilis, preoccupied, replaced by macrothrix, Zukowsky, 1914;

Ognev, Zeitschr. Siiuget., V, p. 64.
1930. Felis ornata caudata, Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 61; and Mamm.

U.S.S.R., 3, p. 132, 1935.
1939. Felis constantina caudata, Pocock, Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 288.

'25

Note on Type Localities. — Locality of the type of caudata, according to
Gray, Cocan or Khokand, in Ferghana, but, probably correctly, according to
Birula and Ognev, the Djany (Dyanan)-Daria, a tributary of the Syr-Daria, in
the western Lake Aral district of Turkestan. It is believed to have been collected
by Severtzow.

Geographical Distribution. — The Steppes of Turkestan as far east as the
Thian Shan and southwards into Persia and Afghanistan.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from F. I. ornata at least by its more luxuriant
winter coat and larger size, judging from the skull, which is longer on the
average sex for sex, and has rather larger teeth.

Although the skins in the British Museum come from widely separated
districts in Turkestan, from northern Persia and north-western Afghanistan,
I am unable to distinguish them subspecifically. No two are exactly alike, they
vary noticeably in the same locality in colour and pattern, and skins from widely
separated areas are often more alike than from the same area.

Colour. — The ground colour of the upper side varies from pale sandy or
buffy in the unfaded coat to clearer whitish grey when the coat is seasonally
faded, the two tints being sometimes observable on the same skin when the
coat is changing. The pattern of the upper side may consist practically entirely
of isolated spots showing very little tendency to fuse as stripes or the spots
may run into definite streaks on the crown, nape and shoulders, and into two
or three very distinct vertical stripes on the sides of the body in front, con-
siderable variation being observable in skins from the same locality. The ears
may be nearly the same tint as the crown, but are usually more ochreous brown ;
there is always an apical tuft.

The type, an adult ?, has a luxuriant winter coat, the hairs being about
55 mm. on the spinal area and 45 mm. on the flank; the general colour is pale
grey above, a little darker dorsally than laterally, the contour hairs being
distinctly white, with a small black tip; the wool is purplish grey at the base,
ochreous buffy above, richer dorsally than laterally, and the tint may be exposed
in patches when the coat is parted; the pattern is not very conspicuous on the
body, the spots being rather small and fuscous; the ears are about the same
tint as the crown and the terminal tuft is 15 mm. long.

This skin, which was exhibited as a mounted specimen, is probably a little
faded. The coloured plate is not the least like it, the general hue being slate
grey, the pattern much too strongly emphasised and the paws too ochreous.

Two <j> skins from Djarkent, in Semiryechensk, topotypes apparently of
schnitnikowi, differ a good deal. One (14.5. 10.59), October 28, in fresh but not
full winter coat, has the spinal hairs 45 mm. and the flank hairs 35 mm. The
general colour is sandy, but on the back behind the shoulders a large patch of
the summer coat is retained and is much clearer grey without appreciable
under-wool. The pattern consists mostly of spots, but on the flanks of the right
side they run into a few stripes. The other skin (14.5. 10.58), December 20, has
the winter coat about as luxuriant as in the last; the general colour is not so
sandy, the contour hairs being subapically more bleached, but the tint is slightly
darker owing to the hair-tips being more pigmented. The pattern also differs,

126

there being much more black pigment on the hinder half of the spinal area, the
spots are definitely larger and more scattered, and the stripes on the crown,
nape, shoulders and flanks are exceptionally well defined. The ear also is much
darker ochreous brown.

Two unmeasured, undated adult J skins, without skulls, are from Meshed,
North Persia (Sir P. M. Sykes). One (13.6.10.2) has the coat tolerably long
and luxuriant, the hairs on the spine being about 45 mm. and on the flank
}<S mm. long. The general colour of the upper side is buffy grey, exactly
matching that of the darker skin from Djarkent; but the pattern is more spotty,
less lineate on the nape and shoulder, and without such definitely vertical stripes
on the fore flank. The other (13. 6.10. 3) has the coat a little less luxuriant, the
spinal hairs being about 40 mm. and the flank hairs about 35 mm.; the general
colour above is noticeably greyer, but the throat is more buffy. This skin
closely matches the type in the colour of the upper side, but the spots are a little
larger and blacker.

A specimen of doubtful identification is represented by the skin and skull
of an old $ (23. 9. 16. 1), labelled "Siberia". It was imported alive by Carl
Hagenbeck and bought by Sir Claud Alexander, who kept it in captivity for
many years and finally presented it to the Museum. Although it died in the
middle of July, it was still carrying a luxuriant winter coat about 50 mm. long.
The colour is of the grey type; the stripes on the nape and top of the shoulders
are strong and on the rest of the body the spots are large and scattered very
much as in the darker of the two skins from Djarkent, but the lateral stripes are
not nearly so much in evidence. The flesh measurements, given below, show
slight superiority over those of the Djarkent specimen.

An imperfect, undated, unsexed and unmeasured skin without skull from
Bala Murghab, in Afghanistan (86. 10. 15.2), closely resembles the darker of the
two skins from Djarkent in colour; but the summit of the wool is richer ochreous
than in any of the previously described skins.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

9 ad.
9 yg. ad.
9 ad.

Djarkent
"Siberia"

14.5. 10.58

14.5. 10.59
23.9. 16. 1

in.
20 i
19*

2IS;

in.

Hi

12I

in.

4l
4i
5

in.

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Skull. — The skull of a fully adult $ (20.7.4.4), without skin, and with no
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ridges being 9 mm. apart at the suture, but the sagittal crest only 2 mm.; the
slope of the anterior half of the nasals is moderately steep owing to air-cell
inflation of the area just behind; with a condylobasal length of 96 mm., it is a
little bigger than the biggest skull of ornata and has slightly bigger teeth; but

127

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14.5. 10.58

14.5. 10.59
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128

it is considerably shorter than the longest skull recorded by Ognev, in which
that dimension is over 103 mm. This author, however, recorded as that of an
adult o ;1 skull with a total length of 93A mm., which is less than the total length
in most of our skulls of ornata. But the wide postorbital area in that skull
betrays it as either an undeveloped J or a 2 skull. I suspect the latter. An
adidt 2 skull (14. 5. 10. 58) from Djarkent with a condylobasal length of 85 mm.
is only a trifle longer than the adult 2 of ornata from Jacobabad, but has larger
teeth. It is not so old as the skull from Transcaspia, and has the temporal
ridges 17 mm. apart at the suture, the sagittal crest lower, the occipital crest
less salient, and there is no appreciable inflation of the anterior part of the
frontals, so that the slope of the nasals is less abrupt.

The skull of the type (73.7.22.1) is adult, but younger than the Djarkent
skull, as shown by its wider postorbital area, with the temporal crests 25 mm.
apart, and the less salient occipital crest. The slope of its nasals are as in the (J.
The canine teeth in these two £2 are 4 mm. thick at the base; in the c? skull
they are 5 mm.

The skull of the skin labelled Siberia (23.9. 16. 1) is that of a very old 2
with the teeth broken and worn; the temporal ridges are very strong, but 17 mm.
apart at the suture; the sagittal crest is 4 mm. high and the occipital crest is as
prominent as in the o skull. Since it is a good deal bigger than the other 2
skulls described above, and than those recorded by Ognev, it may represent
a cat of a different race, but since it has no precise locality and was many years
in captivity, it would be premature to name it.

Specimens in the Collection

Khokand, Fergana? (probably 73.7.22.1

from the Djany-Daria, tribu- type

tary of Syr-Daria, Turkestan,
and collected by Severtzow)

0 skull Transcaspia (Dr. E. Pfizenmayer) Purchased 20.7.4.4

2? Djarkent Hon. N. C. Rothschild [P] 14.5.10.58-9

2^ Meshed, North-east Persia Sir P. M. Sykes [C & P] 13.6.10.2-3

1 Bala Mergbab, North-west Af- Afghan Boundary Com- 86. 10.15. 2

ghanistan (Dr. J. E. T. Aitchi- mission [P]

son)
Siberia (imported alive by Hagen- Sir Claud Alexander [P] 23.9.161
beck)

Note. — For the descriptions and the skull measurements of the following
Asiatic races related to typical F. lybica caudata and established by Zukowsky
and Ognev, I am indebted to the information supplied by the latter in his two
works cited. Considering the widely separated localities from which the skins
described above as caudata came, it seems probable that some of them may
represent some of the alleged races entered below, but the differences between
those skins all appear to me to fall within the limits of individual variation.
The differences between the two skins from Djarkent in the black pigmentation

I2g

of the spinal area, the size and distribution of the spots, the distinctness of the
stripes on the crown, nape and shoulders, and the colour of the backs of the ears
are characters used to distinguish some of the following races from each other.

Felis lybica murgabensis, Zukowsky

1914. Felis murgabensis, Zukowsky, Arch. Naturg., 1, p. 127 (Tachta-Basar

(Pendshe), Transcaspia).
1930. Felis ornata murgabensis, Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 65; and

Mamm. of U.S.S.R., 3, p. 143, 1935.

Geographical Distribution. — The Murghab Steppes of Transcaspia.

Diagnosis. — Said to be very like the steppe-cat of Syr Daria. Ognev
identified it as caudata, but differing in having the spots smaller and more
widely separated ; the general colour of the summer coat is buffy whitish grey
with a mixture of a cream yellow straw tint, of the winter coat yellowish red
straw tint. Ognev's measurements supply no evidence that the skull differs
from that of typical caudata.

No specimens in the Collection.

Felis lybica matschiei. Zukowsky

1914. Felis matschiei, Zukowsky, Arch. Naturg., 10, p. 130 (no kilometres

south of Geok-Tepe, near Persian border).
1930. Felis ornata matschiei, Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 67; and Mamm.

of U.S.S.R., 3, p. 146, 1935.

Geographical Distribution. — Probably the south-west corner of Turk-
menistan and the mountains of Kopet-Dag.

Diagnosis. — Declared by Ognev to differ from typical caudata by the
markedly darkened and blackened central region of the back, by having hardly
any spots on the body, none on the head, and no stripes on the legs.

Skull. — The skull and teeth seem to resemble those of murgabensis and
typical caudata in size.

No specimens in the Collection.

Felis lybica, subspecies

1876. Felis shawiana, Blanford, Journ. As. Soc. Beng., 45, pt. 2, p. 49 and p. 17,
pi. 1 b, 1879 (in part; skins only) (Yarkand Bazaar); Elliot, Mon.
Felidae, pi. 35, 1883.

1930. Felis ornata shawiana, Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 66, and Mamm.
U.S.S.R., 3, p. 144, 1935 (not shawiana, Blanford, sensu stricto).

Geographical Distribution. — Eastern Turkestan from Kashgar and
Yarkand to Hami Kum-Taga and the whole of the basin of the River Tarim
(Ognev).

Diagnosis. — Distinguished according to Ognev, from caudata by the

somewhat paler and purer drab rusty-yellow colour of the winter coat, by the
usually pale, dull grey basal part of the under fur, by its relatively small, widely
separated blackish spots, and by its very short tail, marked with from six to
eight rings. The summer coat is thinner, coarse, duller and whiter than the
winter coat, the spots are less distinct and the lower side is dirty white, with
a rusty shade. Ognev also states that this race is undoubtedly closely allied to
murgabensis, but differs by its shorter tail and generally rustier colouring.

Remarks. — It must be pointed out, however, that in 1891, W. L. Sclater
1 Cut. Manini. hid. Mils., pi. 2, p. 227), who had Blanford's specimens to
examine, stated that the skins were bought in the bazaars at Yarkand and
Kashgar, and that the shortness of the tails mentioned by Blanford seemed to
be due to mutilation. This opinion I confirmed later (Mamm. Brit, bid., 1,
p. 290, 1939) from an examination of Blanford's two skins, which I determined
as belonging to immature examples of F. Constantino ( — lybica) caudata. At the
same time I detected that the skull Blantord assigned to one of these skins is
clearly the skull of /*'. chaus and could not belong to either of the skins; and
since this skull was marked as the type of shawiana, that name was relegated
to the synonymy of F. c/iaus.1 I may have been wrong about the precise deter-
mination of the skins, but on the available evidence did not feel justified in
regarding them as representing a new race.

According to Ognev's measurements the skull is about the same size as that
oi typical caudata.

No specimens in the Collection.

Felis lybica issikulensis, Ogne\

1930. Felis ornata issikulensis, Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, ,, pt. 1, pp. 67-9,
pi. 2, figs. 1-3 (the north-western shore of Lake Issvkkul); and Mamm.
U.S.S.R., 3, p. i_|i>, 1935.

Geographical Distribution. — Only known from type locality.

Diagnosis. — Readily distinguished, according to Ognev. from typical
caudata by its darker winter coat. The general colouring is dirty grey, with a
drab shade; the pattern consists of blackish brown spots which on the dorsal
area are elongated and tend to run into two or three longitudinal stripes. The
backs of the ears dark, grevish-drab brown, turning to blackish brown towards
the edges and dark tan at the tips, which carry a small tuft. In other Asiatic
races related to caudata the backs of the ears are relatively pale grey-drab,
sometimes whitish.

Apart from some obvious error in the length of the tail, the dimensions
agree very closely, so far as the is concerned, with those of the r specimens
of typical caudata entered above. The skull, however, appears to be a little
smaller sex tor sex.

Remarks. As Ognev pointed out, this race most closely resembles the next,
F. I. koslowi, its nearest geographical ally, but is distinguished from it principally

1 See below, p. 151.

Measurements

13'

Sex

Head

and Body

Tail

Hind Foot

Ear

in.

in.

in.

in.

S

2 1?.

Ml

5l

2*

9

20j

(?) 81

4l

2l

by its normally striped neck, rather differently coloured ears, the absence of
the spinal band and of the posterior collar on the throat, and by the incom-
pleteness of the anterior collar. The skulls of the two are approximately the
same size.

No specimens in the Collection.

Felis lybica koslowi, Satunin

1 904. Felis (Felis) koslowi, Satunin, Priroda i Ochota, p. 10 (Oasis of Ljuktschun,

Turfan- Thalkessel, East Tian-Shan).
1904. Felis (Felis) koslozi, Satunin, Ann. Mus. Zool. St. Petersb., 9,

p. 533 (of separate p. 10) (1905); Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 69,

1930, and Mamm. U.S.S.R., etc., 3, p. 148, 1935.

Geographical Distribution. — Known only from the typical locality.

DIAGNOSIS. — Distinguished from caudata by its generally darker colour,
particularly of special areas of the upper side. The head above is brownish,
closely speckled with yellowish white, and the middle of the crown and nape
are so thickly spotted and striped as to be almost black, four black stripes being
traceable on the neck; the ears are blackish brown with a reddish cast, the tip
being black and pencilled; the ground colour of the flanks is grey, intermixed
here and there with reddish yellow (? when the coat is parted displaying the
wool), and down the back from between the shoulders to the upper side of the
tail runs a reddish brown band thickly pigmented with black spots; the pattern
consists of vertical stripes, some complete, some broken up, extending from
the dorsal band to the lower side of the body, with spots between; the lower
side is mostly yellowish white, with reddish yellow on the genital area and the
base of the tail below, and there are two collars on the white throat, the posterior
being blackish brown, the anterior reddish brown ; the tail has six rings in front
of the black tip.

Measurements. — The measurements of the flat skin in English inches are:
head and body, 23?; tail, 9?. Judging from the length of the tail, which was
complete, the head and body were obviously greatly stretched. The dimensions
suggest a small cat.

Skull. — The skull, which from its constricted postorbital area was probably
that of an old o, is smaller than those of caudata. Satunin unfortunately gave
no measurements of the teeth or auditorv bullae.

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Remarks. — There are many features in the description of this cat that
suggest it may be a feral domestic cat of the torquata-type of pattern. If a
genuine wild cat, it is obviously a well-marked form.

No specimens in the Collection.

Felis bieti, Milne Edwards
(Synonymy under subspecies)

Geographical Distribution. — Eastern Asia from Southern Mongolia
through Kansu to Szechwan.

Diagnosis. — A desert or semi-desert cat distinguished from F. lybica by
the great reduction in thickness of the malar excrescence of the zygomatic arch
adjoining the infraorbital foramen and almost always bv the similar reduction
of the inner lobe of/)?;/4.1

Diagnosis. — The only difference in external characters apparently is the
considerably greater length of the hair-tuft at the tip of the ear.

Remarks. — In the cranial and dental feature just mentioned it resembles
the next species, F. margarita, essentially a desert cat, but has the auditory
bullae in the skull much less strongly inflated; and in external features it further
differs by the presence of the tuft on the ear and by the pads of the feet being
unconcealed by hair even in winter, although the extent of the hairy padding
is racially variable in margarita. F. bieti is in a measure intermediate between
/*'. hbica and F. margarita.

Felis bieti bieti, A. Milne Edwards

1892. Felis bieti, A. M. Edwards, Rev. Gen. Sci. Pures et Appliques, 30, 670

(October) (Tatsienlu, Central Szechwan); id. Congr. Internat. Zool.

Moscou, 2, p. 256, 1893; Pousargues, Bull. d'Hist. Nat. Paris, 4, p. 357,

1898.
1892. Felis pallida, Biichner, Bull. Acad. Sci. St. Petersb. (2), 3, p. 433

(November) (Tatung Range, Kansu); id. Mamm. Przewalski, etc., 5,

p. 228, pi. 27, 1894; Greve, Nov. Act. Caes. Leop., p. 63, 1895;

Matschie, S.B. Ges. Nat. Fr. Berl., 1908, p. 190; Pocock, Proc. Zool.

Soc, B, 108, p. 45, 1938.
1898. Felis chaus pallida, de Winton, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (7), p. 291.
1922. Felis pallida subpallida, Jacobi, Abh. Mus. Dresden, 16, p. 9 (Sungpan,

North-west Szechwan).
1925. Felis (Poliailurus) pallida, Lonnberg, Arkiv f. Zool., 18, A, No. 2,

p. 1.
1938. Felis (Poliadurus) bieti, G. M. Allen, Mamm. China and Mongolia,

p. 451 (in part).
1943. Felis bieti bieti, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, ser. B, 113, pp. 173-5.

1 As pointed out above (p. 108), this lobe is noticeably reduced in size in some skulls of
F. lybica mellandi, cafra, and griselda, the desert cat of south-western Africa; in this cat it is
a purely individual variation.

>34

Geographical Distribution. — Szechwan and Kansu.

Diagnosis. — Ears uniformly coloured, matching the back, with the pencil
red; the stripes on the cheeks and legs faint and brownish and the backs of the
legs not heavily pigmented with black.

The coat is long and thick; the general colour above is yellowish grey,
the contour hairs having an extensively whitish subapical area and a small
blackish tip; the backs of the ears are uniformly tinted, closely matching the
body in colour, and the apical pencil, about 20 mm. long, is red; the genal
stripes are indistinct and brownish; the pattern on the body may consist of
about a dozen indistinct vertical stripes, with spots on the shoulders and
thighs, but the body stripes are sometimes obliterated and the thighs may he
indistinctly striped; the hind throat is yellowish brown and the chest and belly
whitish.

This account is abridged from the description of bieti by Milne Edwards
and of pallida by Biichner. The type of the latter is distinguished by the
absence of the body pattern and the presence of bands on the thighs. In the type
of bieti the pattern on the body consists of indistinct vertical stripes and on
the thighs of spots.

The skins of the alleged race, subpallida, were said to be a little darker in
tint and more clearly striped on the thighs than those of pallida, and the pencil
on the ears was 24 mm. long. Since these may be merely individual differences,
dependent perhaps on season, I follow Pousargues and G. M. Allen in regarding
the specimens assigned to bieti, pallida and subpallida as representing the same
subspecies.

The two chief measurements in English inches of the dried skins entered
in literature under these three names are as follows:

Head

Sex

Locality

Number

and

Tail

Body

in.

in.

Tatsienlu

F. hieti

{ride Milne Edwards)

2S

22

Centra! Szechwan

••

(vide Pousargues)

20 I
28 1

14
14/.

Sungpan

F. subpallida

(ride Jacobi)

33 i

33-!

14
14

Kweito .

F. pallida

(vide Matschie)

32 1

13I

Tatung .

(vide Biichner)

-7:',

13

31

Except in Milne Edwards's record the tails are tolerably uniform in length,
more so than the heads and bodies, and in all but one skin, are less than half
the length of the latter, suggesting that the tail is shorter than in /•'. lybica. But
since the head and body in striped skins, when pegged out to dry, are usually
more stretched than the tail, that conclusion cannot be regarded as established.
M. Edwards gave the length of the tail of his type as 55 cm. (~22 in.), but

'35

since Pousargues, who examined Edwards's specimens, gave their tail lengths
as 14 and 14] inches, it seems evident that 55 was a misprint, likely enough
tor 35 cm. ( = 14 in.).

Skull. — The only known skull, from Minshan in Kansu, which Lonnberg
identified as pallida and made the basis of his subgenus Poliailurus, is, judging
from the figures, that of a barely adult 9 and muscularly undeveloped. The
weak ridges of its temporal muscles are about 24 mm. apart, the occipital crest
is very little developed, there appears to be no trace of the posterior sagittal
crest and the postorbital area is wide, only slightly constricted. From the dorsal
and ventral views it seems that the anterior, suborbital halves of the zygomatic
arches are less everted, less arcuate and salient than in most species of Felis,
so that the skull is considerably narrower across this area than across the
posterior temporal halves of the arches. This feature may be a matter of age,
but it recalls the skull of F. chaus. The side view shows that the upper surface
is tolerably strongly and nearly evenly convex from the occiput to the middle
of the nasals, its highest point being between the frontal postorbital processes,
where air-cell inflation reaches its maximum. The nasals are barely constricted
mesially and rather short, their posterior ends not reaching the level of the
upper ends of the maxillae. The bullae are tolerably large, project about 5 mm.
below the occipital condyles in profile view, their total length being slightlv
more than one-fourth the condylobasal length, and as nearly as may be, equal
to the combined lengths of pm-, pm3 and pm*; pni1 being midway between the
canine and pm3, and the width of the basioccipital between the bullae is equal
to about half their width. They are clearly considerably smaller than in F.
margarita described below (p. 139).

Lonnberg's measurements in millimetres of this skull from Minshan were:
condylobasal length, 94; zygomatic width, 745; cranial width, 512; postorbital
width, 373; interorbital width, 195; length and width of bullae, 245 and 15 5;
pm*, 12; mlt 9.

Although the skull is that of a i which had perhaps not quite reached full
length, it has the same condylobasal length as the adult $ skull of F. lybica
caudata from Transcaspia, described above. The latter on account of its age
and sex has the cranium and postorbital areas narrower, but the bullae are as
strongly inflated. Lonnberg's skull is about the same length as the average in
2? of the smaller Indian races of F. chaus.

This incompletely developed skull was claimed to differ from that of chaus,
ocreata (= lybica) and silvestris in the sum of a number of characters, most of
which are trivial and can be shown to be individually variable in any large
series of skulls of other species of Felis (s.s.) and the most impressive, namely,
the reduction of the malar thickening outside the infraorbital foramen, asso-
ciated with the smaller inner lobe of pm*, has been independently acquired by
at least two species of the genus adapted to desert or semi-desert life, e.g.
F. margarita of Turkestan and the Sahara and F. nigripes of South Africa. For
these reasons Poliailurus is, in my opinion, a synonym of Felis as I understand
this term.

No specimens in the Collection.

,36

Felis bieti chutuchta, Birula

iyi 7. Felis chutuchta, Birula, Annu. Mus. Zool. Acad., St. Petersb., 21,

Nouv. et Faites Divers, p. 1 (Province of Goizso, Desert of Gobi, South

Mongolia).
1935. Poliailurus pallida chutuchta, Ognev, Mamm. of U.S.S.R., etc., 3, p. 173,

fig.
1938. Felis (Poliailurus) bieti, (I. M. Allen, Mamm. China and Mongolia, p. 451

(in part).1
1943. Felis bieti chutuchta, 1'oeock, l'roe. Zool. Soc., ser. B, 113, pp. 173

and 175.

Geographical Distribution. — Unknown apart from type locality.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished on the available evidence from typical bieti b\
being redder in hue on the bodv and ears, more distinctly striped, and by some
cranial characters.

Colour. — According to Birula this cat differs from 7''. pallida (—bieti) in
being redder in colour and more distinctly striped transversely. The back has
a longitudinal band tawny fuscous and varied with black; the head is marked
with short fuscous lines and three stripes on the cheek; the ears behind are
reddish grey and spotted with white at the base and apically pencilled; the lips,
chin and throat are white, with a wide, reddish band on the throat; the abdomen
is white with black spots; the tail is shortish and coloured like the back, with
four or five thin black stripes and a black tip at its distal end. All the apparent
differences from bieti might be individual, perhaps seasonal.

The measurements in English inches of the dried skin were: head and body,
24; tail 9J; both dimensions being decidedly shorter than the shortest skin of bieti.

Not knowing the skull of pallida (=bieti), Birula declared the skull of
chutuchta to be like that of F. caudata, but with a wider forehead, the "infra-
orbital" (interorbital) part strongly convex and the anterior nares wider and
less constricted.

Skull. — Birula gave only three measurements of the skull of the type of
i hutuchta, the zygomatic width, which has little significance owing to its age-
variation, the total length and what he called the basal length. The last two
are irreconcilable. A cat's skull of this kind with an alleged basal length of
89 mm. should have a condylobasal length of about 95 mm., very nearly as long
as the total length given by Birula. But Ognev's reduced figure of the skull
shows that its total length exceeds the condylobasal length by 4 or 5 mm., which
would make the total length about 100 mm. Although this slightly exceeds the
total of 97 mm. given by Birula, I provisionally assume as a possible explanation
cif the difficulty that by "basal" he meant "eondylobasal". On this supposition
his measurements of the unsexed apparently adult skull will be: total length, 97;
condylobasal length, 89; zygomatic width, 70; a little smaller in the last two
dimensions than in the . skull of bieti from Minshan.

1 G. M. Allen assigned chutuchta to th<_ synonymy of bieti, and I accept his view regarding
their probable specific identity. Possibly if he had been acquainted with < >gnev's figure of the
skull of chutuchtn, he might have held a different opinion.

137

It is noticeable that there is not a word in Birula's description of the skull
to suggest that it exhibited the characters of those of pallida on which Lonnberg
founded his subgenus Poliailurus; but since Ognev gave full generic value to
Poliailurus and assigned chutuchta to it apparently on the evidence supplied by
the skull of the type which he had in his hands, it must be inferred that the
zygomatic arch at all events has the anterior thickening adjoining the infraorbital
foramen greatly reduced. Fortunately, Ognev published a side view photograph

Fig. 5.
A. — Side view of skull of Felis bieti chutuchta; traced from Ognev's indifferent photo-
graph of the skull of Birula's type.
B. — Side view of the skull of Felis bieti bieti; traced from Lonnberg's photograph of the

skull he identified as Felis pallida, the type of his subgenus Poliailurus.
C. — Lower view of the subadult female skull of Felis bieti bieti. Traced from Lonnberg's
obscure photograph of the skull he identified as Felis pallida, the type of his subgenus

Poliailurus.

of the skull of Birula's type, and this shows that it differs from that of pallida
figured by Lonnberg in the shape of the forehead, which is noticeably prominent
from inflation with air-cells so that the basal half of the nasals is steeply sloped,
and also in the size of the bullae, which are much less inflated in profile view,
and hardly project below the occipital condyles, whereas in Lonnberg's skull
assigned to pallida they project 5 mm. below. Admittedly, these cranial dif-
ferences may prove to be individual; but taken in conjunction with the alleged
external differences between the two cats, it seems advisable to regard chutuchta,
provisionally at all events, as subspecifically distinct from bieti.
No specimens in the Collection.

13?

Felis bieti vellerosa, I'

1908. Felis catus (domestica auct.), Thomas, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 967.
1943. Felis bieti vellerosa, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, ser. [3, 113, p. 172 (near
Yu-lin-fu, 4.000 ft., border of Ordos and North-east Shensi).

Geographical Distribution. -Known only from the type locality.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished, apparently, from the preceding two races by the
backs of the ears being bi-colour, the lower half grey, the upper half jet-black,
with a long black pencil, by the limbs being heavily pigmented with black
posteriorly and marked with black stripes, and by the conspicuous black genal
stripes.

Colour. — The winter coat1 is very long and thick, the normal contour hairs
being from 85 to 90 mm. long and forming behind the ears, cheeks, and on the
throat a prominent lynx-like ruff; the tail is bushy, but the hairs on the face
and limbs are comparatively short and the wool of the upper side is massed into
a felted carpet at the base of the contour hairs. The general colour of the nape,
flanks and outer sides of the shoulders and thighs is dull grey, the hairs being
extensively whitish at their tips, but the spinal area behind the shoulders is
noticeablv darker and browner, the hairs being largely black and buff; the
pattern is obliterated on the flanks, but there is a conspicuous blackish grey
patch on the lower flank just above and behind the fore leg and the lower part
of the thigh is similarly tinted; the crown is blackish grey, thickly speckled with
whitish and indefinitely spotted or lined with black pattern; the genal stripes
are black and conspicuous on the pale grev ground; there is some whitish above
the eye, a blackish patch in front of it; the muzzle and upper lips are reddish
huff, the chin and fore throat white and the backs of the ears are dark grey at
the base, in the upper half jet-black with a narrow reddish line on the front
edge, the tuft being black and iS mm. long; the facial vibrissae are long and
white; the tail in its basal half above is like the flanks, distally it has three black
stripes and a black tip separated by white areas and the whole of its under side
is white; the inguinal area is whitish, with some ochreous on the genital area,
the abdomen and chest are pale ashy grey, paler than the flanks and without
spots, and there is no band on the throat, the fore leg is pale buff in front,
mainly black behind from the elbow downwards, and has three broad black
stripes on its outer side, of which the uppermost below the elbow is continu-
ous with the bracelet; the hind leg is coloured like the front and has three
broad black stripes above the hock, blending with the blackish grey ground
colour.

Measurements. — The dimensions in English inches of the made-up skin
are: head and body, 28; tail, 14A; hind foot, 5; ear, 2.

Skull. — Unknown.

1 The skin is dated January, but according to .1 note by the collector it was procured from

peasant and the date is consequently unreliable. From the condition 0! the wool, suggesting

imminence of the moult, it may be inferred that this cat was killed at the close of the cold

weather, perhaps as late 111 the \<sir a May or June.

'39

Specimen in the Collection

i Near Yu-lin-fu, Ordos, Shensi Duke of Bedford [P] 9.1.1.11

(M. P. Anderson) type

Felis margarita, Loche
(Synonymy under subspecies)

Geographical Distribution. — The deserts of the Sahara and of Turke-
stan.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from Felis bieti in external characters by the
absence of the tuft on the ears1 and by the presence of a mat of hairs on the
soles of the feet concealing the pads either entirely or to a great extent.

Skull. — The skull is like that of bieti in the reduction in thickness of the
zygomatic excrescence adjoining the infraorbital foramen and in the small size
of the inner lobe of pm*; but differs in the size and structure of its bullae, which
are more strongly inflated in three dimensions and less widely separated, their
extreme length being considerably over one-fourth the condylobasal length and
about equal to the upper cheek-teeth from the anterior edge of the canine to
the tip of the posterior cusp of pin*. Also, the tympanic or outer chamber of
the bulla is greatly enlarged and occupies the greater part of the anterior portion
of the bulla, reducing the front part of the entotympanic or inner chamber to
a narrow space reaching the eustachian tube. The nasal bones are also longer
than in bieti.

Remarks. — The modifications of the feet and bullae of this cat suggest that
it is much more completely adapted to desert life than F. bieti. and than several
of the races of F. lybica.

Felis margarita margarita, Loche

1858. Felis margarita, Loche, Rev. Mag. Zool., 10, p. 49, pi. 1 (Ngoussa, near
the Tripoli-Algerian border); and Expl. Sci. de l'Algerie, Mamm.,
p. 44, 1867; Lavauden, Bull. Soc. Hist. Nat. Afr. Nord, 19, p. 258, 1928;
Flower, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 389, 1932.

1867. Felis marginata (misprint for margarita), Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 275.

1897. Felis caligata margaritae, Trouessart, Cat. Mamm., 1, p. 363.

1904. Felis Ubyca margueritei, Trouessart, Cat. Mamm., Suppl., p. 273.

1905. Felis ocreata marguerittei, Trouessart, Causerie Soc. Zool. France, 1,

p. 3S6; Lavauden, La Chasse et la Faune cynegetique en Tunisie, p. 10,
1920.
1929. Felis ocreata margaritae, Antonius, Zool. Gart., 1, p. 375.

1 There is a doubtful point connected with the ears. On dried skins there is nothing to
suggest that they differ in shape or position on the head from those of F. lybica, and they are
thus depicted in the illustrations published by Loche and Ognev. But according to Flower the
ears in two living examples he saw in Egypt were set comparatively low down on the sides of
the head as in Otocolobus manul. Ognev, however, drew particular attention to the large size
of the ears compared with those of F. silvestris. In Otocolobus they are much smaller and more
rounded at the tip.

140

1937' Otocolobus margarita margarita, Heptner and Dementiev, Mammalia,

i, pt. 6, pp. 227 42.
1 9^S. Felis margarita margarita, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 41.

Geographical Distribution. Deserts of the northern Sahara from
Algeria possibly to Egypt.1

COLOUR. — General colour above "isahelline tawny", lightly ticked with
black; the nape may be marked with tour indistinct tawny-brown stripes, the
flanks with some brownish red spots and obscure vertical stripes, with the
thighs more strongly striped, but the pattern may be almost entirely wanting
or, at most, only feebly defined; the back of the ear is ochreous, with a black
spot at the apex.

This description is abridged from the accounts published by the authors
quoted above, who between them had three skins from different localities, those
described by Lavauden from Fort Polignac and by Heptner and Dementiev
from Laghouat being regarded as typical margarita.

Some notes on the skull are given below under the description of the
next race.

No specimen in the Collection.

Felis margarita meinertzhageni, Pocock

1938. Felis margarita meinertzhageni, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 43, text-tig.
(skull) and pi. 1 (El Golea, latitude 30 N., Algerian Sahara).

Geographical Distribution. — Known only from the type locality.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished provisionally from typical margarita, judging
from the descriptions of the latter quoted above, by the much more extensive
black area on the distal part of the back of the ear, the middle part of the ear
below the black being olivaceous grey.

Coat soft, long and full, 40 mm. long on the flank, 43 mm. on the spinal area.
General colour above pale sandy grev, the contour hairs speckled black and
buffish white; the spinal area blacker than the flanks, which show traces of eight
or nine vertical stripes, stronger below than above, and are mottled with buff
where the looseness of the coat exposes the under-hair; the under-hair ot the
mid-back is sooty, but fades on the loins and shoulders; there are about five
stripes on the outer side of the thighs stronger than those of the flanks; the nape
and crown of the head are less black than the back, the black of the nape tending
to run into longitudinal streaks; the ears outside are ochreous at the base,
olivaceous grey in the middle, extensively black distally, the black area covering
about half the median length of the ear; the face is white between the eyes and
on the fore part of the cheek, which is marked with a dark streak running
backwards from the eye; the upper part of the muzzle, the cheek below the

'It is possible that some "I the references quoted in the synonymy apply to pale, full-
coated examples of /•'. lybica lybica. Lataste, at all events, assigned a specimen of the latter
from Mettamer, Tunisia, to F. margarita (see above p. 61) and Hartert and Rothschild fell into
'he ime error in connection with a cat from the Mzab district of the Algerian Sahara
'see above p. 63).

I4i

ears and the side of the neck are rich buff; the lips, chin and fore throat are
white, the hind throat and the rest of the under side, apart from some clean
white on the axillary area of the chest, is buffy white or cream. The tail above
is clearer grey than the back, almost white below, its basal half marked with
obscure dark stripes which gradually increase in distinctness posteriorly, the
terminal third with from three to four black stripes and a black tip. The fore
leg is externally creamy, with the paws whitish; below the elbow it is encircled
by two conspicuous black stripes which fuse behind and extend up to the elbow;
below these stripes the back of the leg is pale buff to the carpal pad, but the
area around this pad is fuscous, passing into the greyish brown mat of hairs
covering the pads, but there is a longish black patch bordering this mat on the
outer side behind; the hind leg is like the fore leg, creamy buff from the hock
behind almost to the plantar pad, soles similarly clothed and with a similar
black postero-external patch.

The flesh measurements in English inches of the type and only known
specimen, an adult $, are : head and body, 1 8 ; tail, 1 1 ; hind foot, 4 \ ; ear, 2 f .

With the tail considerably more than half the length of the head and body
and over twice the length of the hind foot, the proportions agree closely with
those of F. lybica.

Skull. — The skull differs from that of the supposed typical margarita,
described by Heptner and Dementiev, in a few dimensional characters. For
instance, the width between the tips of the postorbital processes is nearly the
same as the length from the occipital condyle to the posterior edge of the palate,
instead of much less, and the mastoid width is about half the condylobasal
length, instead of considerably more. These may be merely individual age
differences.

As compared with that of F. lybica, the skull is broad in its cranial portion,
the mastoid width being half the condylobasal length and the zygomata are
noticeably salient; the nasals are unusually long, only a little compressed and
project posteriorly considerably beyond the maxillae, their sides behind con-
verging somewhat abruptly to form a slightly acutely angular point; the inflated
bullae are separated by a space only about equal to a third of their width, and
the groove marking the position of the partition between the two chambers
forms an evenly curved line between the stylomastoid foramen and the orifice
of the eustachian tube.

Specimen in the Collection

<J El Golea, Algerian Sahara, lat. 30°N. Col. R. Meinertzhagen [P] 34.8.2.8
(W. P. Lowe). (type)

Felis margarita airensis, Pocock

192=;. Felis margarita, Thomas and Hinton, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 9th ser.,

16, p. 188.
1938. Felis margarita airensis, Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., nth ser., 1,

p. 472 (In-Abbangarit, west of Air, French Sudan, 800-1,000 ft.).

'4-

Geographical Distribution. French Sik1.ui, known only from type
locality.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from the previously described Northern Saharan
races of margarita by its shorter winter coat and by the soles of the feet being
less luxuriantly clothed with hair which does not entirely conceal the pads;

'■■ -T

Side and lowerview of adult ski

Fig. 6.

if Felis margarita airensisiram In-Abbangarit, west
uf Air.

the colour also is apparently paler and the pattern better defined, especially on
the crown and spinal area. Distinguished in addition from meinertzhageni by
having noticeably less black speckling in the contour hairs of the dorsal surface,
the under-hair of the spinal area is rich ochreous buff, not sooty; the face is
much whiter; the ears behind are bright buff throughout, except for the fuscous
patch at the tip, which is much smaller than in meinertzhageni; the crown has
six tolerably well-defined rows of long spots forming lines which are traceable

"43

over the nape and shoulders; the spinal area of the hind back has two black
longitudinal stripes and the vertical stripes on the flanks are more distinct and
huffy; the under side from the throat backwards is clean white, not tinged with
buff; the stripes on the fore legs are less well developed, and on the sole of the
hind foot the spot close to the plantar pad is buffy, not black.

Since only one skin of each of these two races has been described, the differ-
ences may prove to be less pronounced when several are available for comparison.

Flesh measurements in English inches of the type and only known specimen,
an adult $, are: head and body, 153; tail, 94 ; hind foot, 4; ear, 2.

The skull is similar to that of meinertzhageni, but is smaller in accordance
with the difference in sex; but the teeth are approximately the same size.

Specimen in the Collection

ln-Alibangarit, west of Air Capt. A. Buchanan [C & P] 39.1673

type

Felis margarita tbinobius, Ognev

1927. Eremcehirm thinobius, Ognev, Annu. Mus. Zool. Acad., St. Petersb., 27,
p. 356 (1927) (Kepetek, Transcaspia) ; id. Zeitschr. Sauget., V, p. 76,
1930; id. Mamm. U.S.S.R., etc., 3, p. 170, pi. 3, text-figs. 78-80, 1935;
Bilkevich, Trudy Zool. Inst. Akad. Nauk., 2, pp. 1-3, 1934.

1937. Otocolobus margarita thinobius, Heptner and Dementiev, Mammalia, 1,

pt. 6, pp. 226-42.

1938. Fefiis thinobius, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, ser. B, 108, p. 45.

Geographical Distribution. — The deserts of Karakum and Kizil-Kum,
Transcaspia.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from the preceding Saharan races at least by
its larger size, judging from the recorded flesh and cranial measurements of
both sexes.

According to Heptner and Dementiev this cat can only provisionally be
regarded as representing a distinct race from typical margarita on account of
its slightly darker colouring on the average. The available skull and flesh
measurements of both sexes, however, suggest that thinobius is a little larger
than the Saharan races. For instance, the average condylobasal length of two
adult o skulls of margarita from Algeria and El Golea is nearly 10 mm. less
than in three adult 00 of thinobius. Superioritv in size of the latter is also
indicated by the flesh measurements.

Owing to the wide discontinuity in distribution between thinobius and
margarita, I treated the two as distinct species in 1938, not having seen Heptner's
and Dementiev's paper at that time; and I suggested that the likeness between
them might be due to the independent acquisition of closely similar features in
adaptation to similar conditions, the one being descended from a North African,
the other from an Asiatic representative of F. Ivbica. This view at least supplies
an explanation of the otherwise puzzling geographical severance of the two.

There are no specimens in the Collection of the British Museum.

'44

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'45

Some Flesh Measurements of three Races of
Felis Margarita

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

F. m. meinertzhageni

in.

in.

in.

in.

(J ad.

El Golea, Algerian

Sahara (type) .

34.8.2.8

18

II

4t

2!

F. m. airensis

9 ad.

In-Abbangarit, w. of Air

(type)

39-1073

15*

9i

4

2

F. m. thinobius

<?ad.

Turcomania

{vide Ognev)

22|

14

4t

2!

9 ad.

Transcaspia

(vide Ognev)

i8f

"1

~

Felis nigripes, Burchell
(Synonymy under subspecies)

Geographical Distribution. — South Africa, Damaraland, throughout
Bechuanaland, Griqualand West; the Transvaal at Kleaksdorp; Orange River
Colony and the Cape Province south of the Orange River, at least from Hanover
to Beaufort Fort and Grahamstown.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished externally from the other species of Felis by
its small size, more heavily banded limbs, and the contrast in colour between
the crown of the head and the nape of the neck ; and from all except some races
of F. lybica oniata, for example, by the prevalence of a very conspicuous pattern,
dominantly of spots, in the adult at all seasons of the year; and from all, except
F. ckaus, bv the shortness of the tail, which is typically decidedly less than half
the length of the head and body. It resembles lybica and chaus in possessing a
spinal crest; but, as in sylvestris, typically, and margarita, there is no tuft on
the ears. There is also a marked fusion, very noticeable in most skins, of the
spots on the flanks behind the shoulders to form the vertical stripes so charac-
teristic of typical Felis; and the pupil of the eye contracts to a vertical slit as
in sylvestris, lybica, and others.

Skull. — The skull is short, much shorter than in F. margarita, but in its
general shape and width proportions is tolerably similar, although the orbital
part of the zygomatic arch is more salient and arcuate, the facial line is more
abruptly and steeply inclined from the frontals, and the nasals are much shorter
and strongly compressed. The bullae are not so strongly inflated in three
dimensions and the outer chamber, although larger than in Felis lybica, is not
so expanded in front as in F. margarita, but the auditory orifice is relatively
larger. The malar thickening above and outside the infraorbital foramen is not
suppressed quite to the same extent as in F. margarita, but, although reduced,
it is still visible and varies slightly in prominence individually. The inner lobe
of the upper carnassial (pm4) is still more reduced in size than in F. margarita

10 — C.C.F.

i46

meinertzhageni. The essential characters of the skull were figured and described
in my paper quoted above.

REMARKS. — As 1 pointed out in that paper in which 1 described this little
cat from the living animal, from skins and a skull, the species is unmistakably
like typical examples oi Felis. Upon the evidence supplied by the skull characters
there described, Roberts separated nigripes from Felis and made it the type ot
a distinct genus Microfelis. This name I unhesitatingly reject because its
acceptance obscures the obvious and close kinship between the species and
other forms assigned to Felis, and thus defeats the chief function of nomenclature
as an instrument for expressing affinity.

Felis nigripes nigripes, Burchell

1N24. Felis nigripes, Burchell, Travels, 2, p. 592 (Litakun, near Kuruman,

South Bechuanaland; A. Smith, S. Afr. Quart. Jour., 2, p. 123, 1834;

Layard, Cat. Mamm. S. African Mus., p. 39, 1861 ; Matschie, S.B. Ges.

Nat., Fr. Berlin, p. 258, 1894; Bryden, Great and Small Game, p. 582,

1899; YV. L. Sclater, Mamm. S. Afr., 1, p. 40, 1900; Pocock, Proc.

Zool. Soc, 1907, pp. 669-74, figs.
1926. Microfelis nigripes, Roberts, Ann. Tr. Mus., 2, p. 250; Shortridge,

Mamm. S.W. Africa, 1, p. 95, 1934.
1931. Felis (Microfelis) nigripes nigripes, Shortridge, Rec. Albany Mus., 4,

pp. 1 19-21.

Geographical Distribution. — The drier portions of South Africa from
about 20 S. on the west coast southwards to the Alexandria and Fort Beaufort
divisions and east to the w-estern borders of the Transvaal.

Diagnosis. — Most of the available skins were received from natives, and
ha\ e unreliable or no dates; but the series shows that the coat varies in thickness
and length no doubt seasonally, possibly locally. The crest, for instance, in a
short-haired native skin from the deserts west of Bamangwato (Selous) is only
1,0 mm., whereas in a mid-winter skin reliably dated July 24, from Deelfontein
(Grant), it is up to about 53 mm. Its usual length is about 45 mm. and the rest
of the coat varies accordingly.

Colour. — The tint of the ground colour of the upper side varies consider-
ably. One skin from Gobabis (Shortridge), two from Bechuanaland (Shortridge)
and three from the desert west of Bamangwato (Selous) — all undated native
skins — are brightish creamy fawn and very much alike, with slight individual
differences, the one from Gobabis being a trifle paler than the others. Between
the latter and the two skins (Zool. Soc.) said to have come from the Zambesi,
which are much darker and more ochreous brown, the contrast is marked. Two
winter skins from Deelfontein, 100 miles south of the Orange River (Grant),
are duller coloured, but one, dated April, has a sandy buff wash only slightly
paler than Bechuanaland skins, whereas the other, dated July, is grey with
hardly a trace of the brighter tint. These two suggest that the colour fades

with advancing winter. Two from Vredefort Road, Orange River Colonv
(Barrett-Hamilton), also differ. One, dated November, closely matches the
April Deelfontein skin, whereas the other is brighter and fits in with the
Hechuanaland series.

The pattern also varies in intensity, very likely seasonally or with age, but
typically the black spots are diluted with buff, so that on the flanks they contrast

Fig. 7.

Side and lower view of adult 9 skull of Felis nigripes
from Deelfontein, Cape Province.

more or less with the black leg stripes ; on the sides of the neck thev are always
buffy and sometimes also on the nape, where they may be quite indistinct and
broken, as in the two skins from Deelfontein, and those from the "Zambesi";
but the four on the nape may be black and well defined, as in the skins from
Cobabis, Bechuanaland, and Vredefort Road, although they break up into spots
where they pass forwards on to the forehead; the three throat stripes mav be

i4S

black and well defined, although bordered with buff, as in the skins from
Deelfontein and Vredefort Road.

Although the mid-winter skin from Deelfontein differs noticeably from
those found to the north of the Orange River in the fading of practically all the
ground colour to grey, the other is inseparable from the Bechuanaland skins.
They were shot, Grant tells me, amongst rocks in typical open Karroo country
overgrown with scrub.

Measurements

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

F. n. thomasi

in.

in.

in.

in.

o* ad. ?

Grahamstown (tvpe of

thomasi) .

(vide Shortridge)

17

8

—

—

o- ad. ?

Fort Beaufort
F. v. nigripes

,,

I7J

8

4!

2'.

yg. ad.

Deelfontein .

2. 12. 1. 4

15

6»

3l

2

V vg. ad.

2.I2.I.S

15

6i

3E

2!

v yg.

"Zambesi" .

39-677

IS

61

3 J

2

6" yg.

y> (K'>

13*

62

2{

—

Judging from the measurements of their skulls, as shown in the next table,
the first two on this list are just adult So- It may be added that Burchell
gave the length of the head and body of seventeen skins as varying from 16
to 18 in.

In the following table of skull measurements, the first three, including the
type of thomasi, wrere recorded by Shortridge; the fourth, a topotype of nigripes
by Sclater, the rest being in the British Museum.

I judge the specimen from Tapelberg to be an old <$ because of its compara-
tively great zygomatic width and the specimen from Kuruman to be a young
adult ^ on account of the narrowness of that dimension. It is even younger,
no doubt, than the ?, Deelfontein (2. 12. 1.5), which has the same zygomatic
width, although a noticeably shorter skull and cheek-teeth.

1 . Near Gobabis, Damaraland

(G. C. Shortridge)

2 Bechuanaland (G. C. Shortridge)

3 Desert west of Bamangwato,

MatabelelanJ
Zambesi (purchased alive, Port

Elizabeth)
iad.,ijuv. Vredefort Road, Orange River

Colony
2 % Deelfontein, Cape Province

(Capt. C. H. B. Grant)

Specimens in the Collection

Percy Sladen Trust [P]

F. C. Selous [C & P]

Zoological Society [P]

Major G.E.H. Barrett-
Hamilton [C & P]
Col. A. Sloggett, [P]

26. 12. 7. 31

35.9.1.160-1

85. 1 1. 27. 1-2
86.2. 15. 1
39-677.679

4.3.1.14-15

2.12.1.4-5

'49

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Felis nigripes thomasi, Shortridge

1931. Felis (Alicrofelis) nigripes thomasi, Shortridge, Rec. Albany Mus., 4.
pp. 119 21 (Thorn Kloof, near Grahamstown).

Geographical Distribution.— The Southern Karroo as far east as Fort
Beaufort (Shortridge).

DIAGNOSIS. Distinguished, according to the description, from typical
nigripes hy being altogether less sandv and bleached-looking, more "saturate"
from inhabiting an area with greater rainfall, the pattern everywhere well
defined and black, only to an infinitesimal extent flecked with scattered buff
hairs, so that there is no appreciable contrast between the spots on the flanks
and the stripes on the legs. The four nape stripes are strong and pass on to
the forehead unbroken, the two admedians being continued behind on to the
rump as a row of spots on each side, and the three throat stripes are intensely
black, unbroken, and only narrowly edged with rufous.

Remarks. — Shortridge had altogether seven skins of this race from the
tvpical locality, from Fort Beaufort and Tapelberg. These he compared with
ten skins from Bechuanaland and one from Griqualand West, and his description
of the latter agrees in a general way with the skins in the British Museum here
assigned to the typical race. But the considerable variation in the colour and
pattern exhibited by the latter, in part pointed out by Burchell in his series,
shows the differences between the two to be less pronounced than Shortridge's
description suggests. His idea, moreover, that the Orange River is the boundary
between the two races is negatived by the occurrence at Deelfontein of skins
agreeing better with the more northern type than with those described as
thomasi.

No specimen in the Collection.

Felis chaus, Giildenstadt1

(Synonymy under subspecies)

Geographical Distribution. — From the Caucasian and South-east Caspian
areas, Turkestan and Persia, thence westwards through Mesopotamia and Syria
to Egypt and eastwards through Baluchistan to India, Ceylon, Burma, and
Indo-China.

Diagnosis.- The largest of the existing species of Felis, with the tail
comparatively short, almost invariably less than half the length of the head and
body, and less than twice the length of the hind foot. There is a distinct spinal
crest and a small tuft on the ears. The general colour above varies from clear
grey to tawny or deep brownish, dependent on the tint of the speckling of the
pelage, which is black and white or buff or ochreous, the spinal crest being
richer and darker; the backs of the ears vary from nearly uniformly ochreous,
with at most a small black tip, including the "pencil", to extensively black at

1 Some authors reject Giildenstadt as the author of this name on the grounds that he did
not publish it in accordance with the binominal system of nomenclature. Its ascription to him
.»r Schreber is a matter of very little moment.

151

the tip and base and ochreous in the middle; the under side is sometimes almost
entirely white, except for a broad huffish collar on the hind throat, but usually
the chest behind the fore legs is invaded by buff, and sometimes most of the
under side is rich ochreous-buff with only the fore throat and chin, the axillae,
and the inguinal region whitish; the cheeks, muzzle, and outside of limbs are
greyish or ochreous, and the tail typically paler than the body. The pattern on
the head and back is absent, on the flanks it is at most faintly traceable; there
are some spots on the chest below, an indistinct stripe on the throat collar and
two brachial stripes varying in distinctness on the fore leg. Similar stripes are
present on the hind leg above the hock; the tail has an irregular blackish stripe
above in its proximal portion, its distal end being conspicuously striped black
and white, with tip black. The kitten has a pronounced pattern.

The only external character by which skins of this species can always be
distinguished from F. lybica is the comparative shortness of the tail. The skull,
too, is similar in all its essential features, but when fully mature may be distin-
guished by being a little more elongated in the muzzle and by being narrower
across the orbital portion of the zygomata, with the cheek lower, both features
due to the less developed lower rim of the orbit.

Felis chaus chaus, Giildenstadt

1776. Felis chaus, Giildenstadt, Nov. Com. Acad. Petrop., 20, p. 483, pis.

(Terek River, north of the Caucasus); Schreber, Saugetierk, 3, p. 414,

pi. 90, 1778.
181 1. Felis catolynx, Pallas, Zoogr. Ross. Asiat., 1, p. 23 (Terek River, north

of the Caucasus).
1876. Felis shazviana, Blanford, Journ. As. Soc. Beng., 45, p. 49 (Yarkand);

id. Sci. Res. 2nd Yarkand Miss.: Mamm., p. 17, pi. 1, 1879 (in part,

skull only, which is marked type).1
1889. Felis chaus, Radde and Walter, Zool. Jb., 4, Syst. p. 23.
1898. Felis chaus typica, de Winton, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 2, p. 291.
1905. Catolynx chaus, Satunin, Mitt. Kauk. Mus., 2, p. 320.
1907. Catolynx chaus typicus, id. op. cit., 3, p. 62.

1935. Felis (Chaus) chaus chaus, Ognev, Mamm. of U.S.S.R., etc., 3, p. 159.
1939. Felis chaus chaus, Pocock, Fauna Brit. India, Mamm. 1, p. 292.

Geographical Distribution. — Turkestan, Caucasus, Persia, Baluchistan.

Colour.— General colour varying from tawny with rich ochreous spinal

stripe to clear grey with no tawny and dull greyish buff spinal stripe; backs of

the ears with well-coloured patch varying from rusty ochreous to bright buffy

ochreous; legs varying from pale ochreous to faintly buffy grey, hind leg

sometimes black behind from the hock downwards, but the black sometimes

restricted to the region of the pads; pattern consisting of the normal stripes on

the distal half of the tail and of the two on the back of the fore leg below the

1 The composite nature of this alleged "species", consisting of skins of F. Constantino
caudata and a skull of F. chaus, was explained in vol. i. Mamm. Brit. India, p. 290, 1939. Since
the skull is marked as the type shawuma falls as a synonym of chaus.

elbow; the thighs arc usually striped externally and sometimes traces of spots
can be detected elsewhere.

The following descriptions show the variations in the skins ascribed to this
race. Similar variations occur in good series of skins of other races of F. chaus
and need not be referred to in detail.

Caucasus (Warsaw Museum, 79.11. 15.5). A young adult o- The winter
coat is full and soft, 44 mm. long on the flanks, 64 mm. on the crest. General
colour of flanks buffy grey, the hairs speckled fuscous and buffy white at the
tip; under-hair pale buff, the crest is darker sandy buff or pale ochreous and
black, with the under-hair richer; the shoulders, nape and crown more con-
spicuously black-speckled than the flanks; the forehead is richer than the crown,
whitish on each side between the eyes, a black patch in front of the eye, the
upper side of the muzzle richer, more rusty buff than crown and the lips and
chin white; the ears are dull ochreous with the lips black and the base slightly-
darkened, the tail at the base is like the back, with the distal half clear grey,
emphasising three black stripes and a black tip; the fore legs are ochreous, pale
buff behind, with some black about the pads and two well-defined stripes below
the elbow; hind legs above like the flanks externally, with about four stripes
ochreous inside and on each side of scrotum, below the hocks ochreous in
front, black behind from the heel; the fore throat, axillary and inguinal areas
white; hair of the abdomen and chest buff at the tip, white at the base.

Persia (K. Loftus, 53.1.6.86). Coat thick, contour hairs 40 mm. on the
flanks, S7 mm- on tne crest. Colour of the flanks nearly as in the Caucasus
skin, but the crest darker and richer ochreous, its under-hair brightish buff, that
of the flanks also more buffy; ears more rusty; legs about the same, but the
black on the hind only extending half-way up to the hock; stripes well pro-
nounced on front and hind legs.

Gursala, Jiruft, Persia, 2,000 ft. (H. R. Sykes, 4.6.1. 1), January. Coat full
and soft, crest-hairs about 62 mm. Colour of the entire upper side from the
head backwards cleaner grey than in the preceding two skins, speckled fuscous
and nearly white; the crest much duller, pale buff, not so ochreous; ears rich
ochreous, with black tip, but no darkening at the base; legs paler and greyer,
the black below the hock as in Loftus's skin. Only on the ears is this skin so
well coloured as the others.

Seistan (Calcutta Museum, 6.1.2.3). Coat, probably summer, shorter than
in the preceding, the hairs on the flanks 35, on the crest 45 mm. Colour very
closely matches that of the Caucasus skin above and below, but the flanks and
thighs showing faint spots, probably a seasonal difference connected with the
shorter coat.

Pir-i-Banu, 9 miles south of Shiraz (J. B. Hotson, 37.3.24.19), January. Coat
long and full, flank hairs 48, crest hairs 68 mm. Colour greyer than in the
skins from the Caucasus and Seistan, but not so silvery, as in the skin from
Gursala; the ears paler and yellower than in any of the preceding, sharply
contrasted with those of Loftus's skin.

Baluchistan, 100 miles east of Bampur, south of the Jebel Bariz Range
(P. M. Sykes, 94. 10. 17.2), March. A flat, native skin with the flank hairs 41,

'53

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South Persia .
Russian Turkestan .

Yarkand, type shaiviana
Seistan .
Gursala, Persia

Sex

W W W C3 M

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'54

the crest hairs 58 mm. Colour palish silvery grey, very like the skin from
Gursala and with a dull spinal stripe, hut with the ears pale and yellowish, as
in the skin from Shiraz.

Only two of the skins in the British .Museum were measured in the flesh.
These are entered below, together with the dimensions of two recorded by
Nehring (SB. Ges. Nat. /•';. Berlin, 1902, p. 124), which 1 take to he $ ',.

Measurements

Sex

Loct

lily

Numbei

llt'tul
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

iii.

in.

in.

j ad.

Caucasus

(vide

Giilden-

stadt)

30 8

n.!,

62

j- ad.

Dcrbent

(vidt

Nehring)

29 3

ioj

<>.!

j'ad.

North Persia

,,

27!

1 1 !

6§

i ad.

South of Shiraz

37-3

24. m

27o

11 J

61

ad.

Gursala, Persia

4.6. r

. 1

24

10'

5*

The first two entries suggest that examples from north of the Caucasus may
he larger than those from Persia. But Giildenstadt's specimen has the skull
shorter than one in the British Museum from Seistan, and was probably a little
shorter in the head and body.

Skull. — Giildenstiidt did not record the condylobasal length in his skull,
but gave the basal and the total lengths as 110 and 127 mm. respectively, both
a little less than in the skull from Seistan. From Russian Turkestan Ognev had
four rj skulls, presumably adult, ranging from 132 to 121 mm. in total length,
their respective condylobasal lengths being 1 19 and 103 mm. The larger of the
two is the same size in those two dimensions as the skull from Seistan. The
average condylobasal length in four adult 00 and in the two young adult rf J
in my table is 1 13 mm.

In Ognev's skulls pmx ranges in length from 159 to 142 mm. ; in the British
Museum skulls the range is from 15 to 14 mm., the average of the series being

'41

Specimens in the Collection

Caucasus
Soutli Persia
Seistan

Gursala, Jiruft, Persia

Pir-i-Banu, q miles south of Shiraz

(Sir J. B. Hotson)
South of Jebel Bariz Range, 100

miles east of Bampur, Baluchistan

Warsaw Museum [P] 79. 11. 15. 5

Kenneth Loftus [C &: P] 53.1.6.86

Calcutta Museum [P] 6.1.2.3

Col. A. L. Kennion [C & P] S.1.13.4

H. R. Sykes [C & P] 4.6.1. 1

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P] 37.3.24. iu

Sir I'. M. Sykes [P] 94.10. 17.2

'55
Felis chaus furax, de Winton

1898. Felis chaus furax, de Winton, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 2, p. 293
(Jericho); Anderson and de Winton, Mamm. of Egypt, pp. 178 and
182, 19021; Nehring, SB. Ges. Nat. Fr. Berlin, 1902, p. 147; Pocock,
Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 294, J 939.

1902. Lyncus chrysomelanotis, Nehring, S.B. Ges. Nat. Fr. Berlin, pp. 124 and
147- (the Jordan).

1920. Felis chaus, Cheesman, Journ. Bomb. Nat. Hist. Soc., 27, No. 2, p. 8.

Geographical Distribution. — Southern Syria and Mesopotamia (Iraq).

Diagnosis. — Closely resembling the typical form, but distinguished 1>\
the larger teeth on the average. In three 00 and five ?$ of furax the average
length of pm* is 16 and 15 mm. respectively, the same in eight £3 and six <j>$ of
chaus being 148 and 13 -f mm. respectively. In the type of furax from Jericho
the difference in the size of the teeth is pronounced; but specimens from Iraq,
as might be expected, come nearer typical chaus in this respect, and also in the
larger size of their skulls.

Colour. — Some skins of the two races are practically indistinguishable, but
on the average furax seems to be slightly greyer with less buff in the dorsal pelage
and whiter below, with the pale patch on the ears rather less conspicuous.

The coat varies in thickness seasonally, but very little in length, the crest
hairs being 50 mm., or a little over, and the flank hairs about 35 mm.

Some features of individual skins are as follows:

The skin of the type from Jericho differs from that of the Caucasian example
of F. chaus chaus in being a trifle greyer above, with the crest more emphasised;
the ears are a little darker, with a larger black tip; the legs are a little less
ochreous and the buff of the under side is not so bright.

A (J from Baghdad (La Personne), September 25, has the coat less full and
soft than in the type, but only a trifle shorter, the hairs on the crest being about
55 mm. and on the flanks about 33 mm. The general colour is almost the same,
but the dorsal band is not quite so well defined, the head is darker, the ears
not so red, with a rather bigger black tip and a conspicuous black patch at the
base; the legs are greyer but, as in the type, the hind foot is black behind, below
the hock. The pattern is more pronounced on the outsides of the legs, there
are stripes traceable on the nape and obscure spots on the shoulders and flanks.
A $ from Baghdad, with the same date, differs in being greyer, the pale rings
in the hairs being whiter, the dorsal line fainter, the head not so dark, and the
basal ear-spot much less pronounced; the legs have less black on their soles;
the lower side is not nearly so buff, almost wholly white, and the inside of the
legs are whitish; the pattern is less distinct everywhere, faint on the under side
and none on the nape or flanks.

1 Before de Winton's paper was published in 1898, the essential character of the type of this
race was detected and described by Anderson, who, however, did not propose a name for it.

2 When Nehring described this alleged species (p. 124) he was unaware of de Winton's
description of furax, but later (p. 147) he considered the two and decided that they wrere distin-
guishable forms mainly because of the smaller teeth of chrysomelanotis. The differences in the
teeth and skulls are merely sexual and age characters.

iS6

A , from Shahroban, about 50 miles north-east of Baghdad (F. P. O'Connor,
32.2.1.77), December, has the winter coat fuller, but only a little longer than
in the Baghdad specimens, and the colour a paler, clearer grey, with the black
and white speckling in the hairs more in evidence and the spinal stripe faint, as in
the Baghdad V, but the ears browner, as in the type from Jericho.

Fig. 8.

A. — Adult rj skull of Felis chaus affinis, Kuwapany, Nepal.

B. — Adult $ skull of Fclis chaus furax, Jericho.

A ? from Mosul, 200 miles north-west of Baghdad (Captain Fitzpatrick,
21. 7. 17. 1), March 8, is very like the last in the colour, length and thickness of
the winter coat, but the dorsal band is darker, as in the type from Jericho, the
leg stripes are a little more distinct, and the back of the ear is browner, with
no bright hue below the black tip.

157

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'58

In the following tabic ol measurements in English inches those ol the J '
from Baghdad were taken in the flesh. 1 do not know whether this was the case
in Nehring's two co-types oi chrysomelanotis. The dimensions are about the
same as in F. cliaus chews.

Ml AM HI MI NTS

Se.\

Locality

Number

Head

and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

in.

in.

in.

in.

; yg. ad.

Baghdad

. 32.2.1.76

3°;.

roi

(.',

3

S yg- ad.

,,

32.2.1.75

26

10

6

3

r ad.

Jordan

(ride Nehring)

26*

0.1

55

—

. ad.

26!

98

5!

—

Skill. As stated above, the Iraq specimens assigned to this race are
intermediate between typical chaus and fiirax. This is borne out by the skulls,
which in size are about the same as chaus, whereas their teeth are more like
those of furax. The skull of the type of furax, the only 3 skull known from
Palestine, is obviously undeveloped, the temporal ridges being far apart,
defining a lyrate area 22 mm. wide in the middle of the parietals, and the
canine teeth are not fully protruded. The teeth are quite unworn and excep-
tionally large, but the immaturity of the skull gives them a deceptively large
appearance. The upper carnassial is only 1 mm. longer than that of a skull from
Ramadi, near Baghdad. Otherwise the dental dimensions of the two are very
nearly the same. It is not possible to guess what length the skull from Jericho
would have reached; but it does not seem likely that it would have attained
that of the 3 skull from Ramadi, the largest skull of F. chaus yet recorded,
or even that of the young adult $ from Baghdad which is practically lull-sized.

The same applies to the j> skulls. The three recorded from Palestine by
Nehring are a good deal shorter than Cheesman's $ skull from Iraq and their
mandibles are correspondingly shorter than that of La Personne's $ from
Baghdad; but the five skulls agree very closely in the size of their teeth. More-
over, the difference in the length between even the shortest of Nehring's skulls
and the ? skull from Iraq is a little less than the difference between the longest
and the shortest $ skulls of F. chaus chaus recorded by Ognev from Russian
Turkestan; and in his S skulls the difference amounts to n mm.

Si'n [mens in the Collection

Jericho CanonH. B.Tristram [C&P] 64.8.17.4

(type)

Mosul (Capt. L. V. Fitzpatrick)
Baghdad (V. S. La Personne)
Shahroban, 5° miles north-east of

Baghdad (Col. F. P. O'Connor)
Ramadi, Iraq (Major R. E. Chees-

man)

Bombay Xat. Hist. Soc. [P]

Sir P. Z. Cox [P]

21. 7. 17. 1

32.2.1.75-6

32.2.1.77

36.4.14.35-6

'59

Felis chaus nilotica, de W'inton

1804. Felis libycw, Olivier, Yoy. Emp. Othom., 2, 41 (not F. lybica, Meyer).
1818. Felis chaus, Geoffroy and Audouin, Descr. de l'Egypte, Hist. Nat. 2,

p. 746; ibid. ed. 8vo, Suppl. 23, p. 210, 1828; Cretzschmar, Riipp.

Atlas, Zool., p. 13, pi. 4, 1826; Temminck, Monogr. Mamm., pi. 4,

p. 121, 1824 (in part); F. Cuvier, Hist. Nat. Mamm., 1826.
1832. Felis riippelii, Brandt, Hull. Soc. Nat. Mosc, 4, p. 209 (not F. riippellii,

Schinz).
1866. Lynx riippellii, Fitzinger and Heuglin, S.B. Ak. Wiss. Wien, ^4,

P- 557-
1898. Felis chaus nilotica, de W'inton, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th ser., 2, p. 292

(Cairo).
1932. Felis chaus, S. S. Flower, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 390.

Geographical Distribution. — Egypt, principally the Delta district, but
extending westwards to Mersa Matruh, 155 miles west of Alexandria, and
southwards along the Nile to the Fayoum, Quena Province and probably Minia
Province (Flower).

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from furax by the colour being on the average
darker, owing to the presence of more black speckling in the pelage, the colouring
of the ears being about the same, and by the slightly smaller teeth.

Colour. — Individual variation in colour and length of the winter coat are
not great. An adult $ from Giza (9. 7.1. 15), dated February 2, has the coat
full, with the hairs on the flank 47 mm., on the crest 57 mm. The general colour
of the flanks is grey, speckled black and whitish, of the fore back and shoulders
buffy grey, of the spinal crest dull ochreous and black : the crown of the head
is like the flanks; the ears behind are black at the tip and base, buff in the
middle; the tail is like the back proximally, white distally with two black stripes
and a black tip; the fore legs are pale buffy grey, the hind richer buff; the lower
side is buffy with white in inguinal and axillary areas. The pattern both of the
fore and hind limbs is obscure. An adult $ from near Cairo (98.6.5.2), January
29, has the coat similarly full, but not so long, the hairs on the flank being
39 mm., on the crest 48 mm. The colour differs slightly, the flanks are not
quite so grey, showing a buffy tint; there is less black in the crest and the legs
are rather richer tinted. A young ? from near Cairo (98.6.5.3), January 17,
has the coat about the same length as in the last, but it is greyer in colour than
either of the 03 described, owing to the pale speckling of the flanks being
whiter. Other skins in winter coat call for no special comment; but an undated
skin labelled Egypt, without precise locality (42.5.3.8), appears to be in summer
coat, the hair of the flanks being 28 mm., of the crest 36 mm.; and a !j skin
from Akmin, 400 miles south of Cairo (Worthington, 92.5.22.1), March 2, is
noticeably paler, more sandy and less black in colour than the foregoing, and
has the winter coat shorter, the hairs on the flanks being 25 mm., on the crest
43 mm-

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Flesh measurements and weights are as follows:

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

Weight

in.

in.

in.

in.

lb. oz.

3 yg. ad.

Near Cairo .

98.6.5.2

3°S

"i

7

2j

14 3

cJ ad.

„ (type)

98.6.5.1

28!

to*

6f

2i

11 2

(J ad.

Giza

9-7-II5

29

Hi

7*

2*

—

S yg. ad.

Near Cairo .

98.6.5.4

24i

8s

St

2*

8 7

?yg.

98.6.5.3

205

SI

Si

2f

8 0

These dimensions agree closely with those of F. chaus furax. The skull,
also, as shown by the table opposite, is about the same size in the two, and the
dentition is very similar, the average length of pm4 in six S skulls being 15-5 mm.
and in three $ skulls 14 mm.; in the latter 1 mm. shorter than in furax. The
average condylobasal length of the skull in four adult <J<J is 118J- mm.

Specimens in the Collection

<J

Lower Egypt

Purchased

42.5.3.8

$

Akmin, 400 miles south

of Cairc

F. S. Worthington [C & P]

92.5.22.1

cJMtd.

Assouan

Dr. John Anderson [C & P]

97-3-12. 1

6"

Near Cairo

R. J. Cunningham [C & P]

98.6.5.1
(type)

<J,2 9

11 11

,, ,, .,

98.6.5.2-4

<? skull,

1 Cairo (Walter Innes)

F. Lataste [P]

19-7-7-3494-5

6"

Giza, Cairo

J. L. Bonhote [C & P]

9.7.1. 15

0 skull

Near Alexandria

Major S. S. Flower [C & P]

99.7. 15. 1

6" skull

Near Cairo ? (E. Alexander)

R. I. Pocock [P]

1937.12.11.4

$

Nag-Ayed. Tuftish Farshout

Rothschild Bequest

39.1688

Felis chaus affinis, Gray
1830. Felis affinis, Gray, Illustr. Ind. Zool., 1, pi. 3 (Gangootri, Tehri Garwhal).
1836. Felis (Lynchus) erythrotus, Hodgson, Journ. As. Soc., Beng., 5, p. 233

(Nepal).
1844. Felis jacquemonti, Geoff roy, Jacquemont's Voyage, 4, p. 58, pis. 2-3

(Kursali, near Dehra Dun).
1898. Felis chaus affinis, de Winton, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., 7th sen, 2, p. 291

(in part).
1914. Felis affinis, YVroughton, Journ. Bomb. Nat. Hist. Soc., 23, p. 290, and

subsequent papers on Himalayan collections in the same journal (in

part).
1939. Felis chaus affinis, Pocock, Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 294.

Geographical Distribution. — The Himalayas from Kashmir to Sikkim,
and probably to the Naga Hills, Assam, at altitudes ranging from about 1,000
to 7,600 ft., perhaps over.

lt>2

Diagnosis. Distinguished from typical F. chain chaus by the slightly
shorter and less woolly winter coat and by the smaller size on the average of
the skull and teeth in both sexes.

COLOUR. In the winter coat the contour hairs of the Hanks range from
about 36 to 4^ mm., of the crest from 58 to 60 mm., the average of six skins
from Kumaun, September to March, and of six from Kuwapany, in Nepal,
December to March, being 39 and 59 mm. respectively. There are two extreme,
but intergrading, colour phases, the "grey" and the "tawny". In the former
the grey ot the Hanks is paler or darker in accordance with the dominance of
the black or white speckling in the pelage; the spinal stripe is speckled black
and dull ochreous or buff; the cheeks, muzzle and legs are externally greyish,
and the under side is dominantlv white, apart from buff on the chest as a rule
and a buff band on the throat. In the tawny phase the speckling on the flanks
is black and buff or pale ochreous, of the spinal stripe black and rustv; the ears,
cheek, muzzle, and sometimes the whole of the under side, except the white
chin, are brighter or duller ochreous.

Skins of a handsome blackish variety have been collected in the United
Provinces (St. G. Burke). They differ a little individually, but the finest of
three has the head, the spinal area behind the shoulders jet-black and the legs
and tail mostly black, but the neck and sides of the body are black, thickly
spangled with silvery- white, and the under-hair is mostly ashy grey, but smoke
grey on the crest. They resemble a similar form assigned to /•'. chaus prateri
from Karachi (p. 170).

Mkasurements and Weights

Sex

locality

Number

Haul
and

Tail

Hind

Foul

Weight

Body

in.

in.

in.

1!..

j ad.

Tral, Kashmir

25.6. 10. i 2

H\

" I

6J

hi

; ad.

Dhamtal, Kangra

32.2.1.24

20;

8s

6

—

ad.

Gopalpur, Kangra

32 2.1.23

243

')-!

5

1 2

; ad.

Almora, Kumaun

14.7. 10.57

1 - :
-5 '■

1 ■ I

(, !,

12 1

j ad.

Ramnagar, Kumaun

32. 2. 1. 17

25

1 1 5

6'

[6

0 ad.

Kuwapany, Nepal

32. 2. 1. 12

2*;

13 i

6i

id

0 ad.

., .,

32.2.1. 13

26

1 1 -!

61

1 2

,° ad.

< iangtok, Sikkim

27i

13}

5 1

—

ad.

Arapul, Kashmir

32 2.1.20

- 5 •

io|

<>'.

'4

,,d.

Gopalpur, Kangra

23. 2. 1. 21

24

')

5l

ad.

Almora, Kumaun

14.7. 10.58

233

55

II J

ad.

Kuwapany, Nepal

32.2.1.T 1

245

10

6

10 '.

ad.

Hathiban, Nepal

32.2.1.3

22',

ii».

5 s

1 1

ad,

Darjeeling

32.2. 1. 15

2 5 "

10',

6

—

The average length of the ear is a trifle under 3 inches. An adult '. from
Khatmandu fOldfield). of which the skull measurements are entered in that
table, weighed 16 lb.

i63

ft,
■Ji

*o

ft.
o

■Si

2

OS

T.

'hi

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■qjoiwj

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u
c «

Kashmir
Tral, Kashmir
Dhamtal, Kangra Valle\
Dharmsala .
Garhwal

Alniora, Kumaun

Ramnagar, Kumaun
Kuwapany, Nepal
Bankalwa, Nepal .

Hathiban, ,,
Gorakpur, United Provi
Hasiniara, Bhutan Duar
Kuiva, Naga Hills

rt re
*0 rO *0 *0 *0 ^3

-6 -s
t;~~"3" Uit-d'3'3

Fo«0*o«o*o*o*o*o«o*c

164

Skull. — The first o" skull on the list is interesting on account of its large
size, all of its dimensions agreeing tolerably closely with those of typical chaus
and exceeding, for the most part, those of the other Himalayan skulls. The
length, on the contrary, of pm4 is a good ileal less than in typical chaus, and
agrees completely with that of the rest of the Himalayan 6*<J- In those respects
it is a connecting link between the two races. The average condylobasal length
in ten adult J J of affinis is 107-5 mrn- and tne average length of pm4 is 12-5 mm.,
both noticeably less than in typical chaus, and the average length of the bulla
in sixteen o skulls is 21-5 mm. The same dimensions in eight adult '.' skulls
are: 96+, 12 +, and 20+ mm.

The great difference in size between the v skull from Khatmandu (Oldtield)
and the one from the Bhaber Tract, Central Nepal (Longstaff), is interesting.
The latter, an older skull, has the bullae more inflated and is one of the smallest
'. skulls of /■'. chaus vet measured.

Specimens in the Collection

Trol, Kashmir

Arapul Valley, Kashmir

; skull Kashmir

( Jopalpur, Kangra (H. W. Wells)
Dhamtal, Kangra (H. W. Wells)
Mandi State
Dharmsala

(H. W. Wells)

1 Gangootri, Tehri Garhwal

I

Dehra Dun

4 rj skulls

Garwhal

1

1

Kumaun (Sir R. Strachey)

Khati, Kumaun (C. A. Crump)

Ramnagar, ,, ,, ,,

Dela,

•

Jerna,

'

Lohaghat, Almora ,.

3

United Provinces (black silver-

tipped variety)

i

Gorakpur, United Prov.

I

Nepal

skull

7

Skull

Bhaber Tract, Central Nepal
Hathiban, Nepal (N. A. Bap-

tista)
Kuwapany, Nepal
I Iazaria, Pathergatta, Nepal
Bankalwa, Morang, Nepal

Gangtok, Sikkim

Nimbong, Darjeeling (N. A.

Baptista)
India (Dr. Anderson)

Col. C. H. Stockley [C & P]

C. P. Radcliffe [c"& P]
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [PI

H. Whistler [C &P]

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]
Maj. -General Hardwicke

Capt. I". S. Tuker [C S: P]
B. B. Osmaston [C & P]
A. E. Osmaston [C & P]
Sec. of State for India [P]
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

R. St. George Burke
[C & P]

A. E. Osmaston [C & P]

B. H. Hodgson [P]
Mrs. M. Oklfield [P]
Dr.T.G. Longstaff [C&P]
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

25.6. 10.12
32.2.1.20

18. 2.2, 1

32. 2. 1. 21-23
32.2.1.24

25.10.2.2
25. I0.2. 1
23.g.2.I
37.6. IO.4I

co-type
26.9.4.3
26.10.8.23-26

29. 10. 19. 1
79.1 1.21.286
32.2.1. 19
32. 2. 1. 17-18
14.7.10.59
14.7.10.60
14.7.10.57-58

27.2.14.11,14,15

29. 10. 19.2

45.1.8.287
26.6.7.3
10.2.24.2
32.2. 1. 1-4

32. 2. 1. 5-13
32.2.1. 14

22. 5. id. 27
,, 22.5. 16. 28

Col. F. M. Bailey [C & P] 48.220
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P] 32. 2.1. 15

Zool So

[PI

39-675

i65

Hasimara, Bhutan Duars (N. A. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P] 32.2.1.16

Baptista)
Assam? (J. McClelland)
Khuiva, Naga Hills (J. P. Mills)

Sec. of State for India [P] 79.11.2 1.287
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P] 25.5.2.1

Felis chaus kutas, Pearson

1832. Felis kutas, Pearson, Journ. As. Soc. Beng., 1, p. 75 (Midnapore, in

Bengal, about 70 miles west of Calcutta).
1939. Felis chaus kutas, Pocock, Mamm. Brit. Ind., 1, p. 297.

Geographical Distribution. — The northern part of Peninsular India from
Bengal to Cutch, and ranging in altitude from 1,500 ft. in Darbhanga, north
of the Ganges, to 150 ft. in Cutch.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from the Himalayan race affinis by being, on
the average, a little smaller, shorter in the tail, lighter in weight, and by its
shorter and less luxuriant winter coat, although seasonal differences in the coat
are well marked. In six adult examples from Hoshangabad in full winter coat
the average length of the hair on the flanks is 37 mm., on the spinal stripe
50 mm. The skull and teeth are also, on the average, a little smaller than
in affinis.

Colour. — The general colour is individually and locally variable. The type,
judging from its description, was dark-tinted. A topotype from Salbani,
Midnapore, in fresh winter coat is also very blackish speckled with buffy grey
above, with the spinal stripe rusty, the ears ochreous brown with black at the
tip and base, the lower side, except for the white fore throat, axillae and groins,
being reddish buff. Most of the specimens found west of Midnapore are not
so dark, being tawnier or greyer, and in the western portions of its range, in
Rajputana, the race intergrades with the Sind race prateri.

Measurements and Weights

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Weight

,n.

in.

in.

lb.

6"yg.

Midnapore

15.4.3.60

22|

io|

6

84

6" ad.

Chaibassa

I5-4-3-59

22|

9?

5*

1 1

6" ad.

Dhain, Hoshangabad

12. 11.29.75

25 i

ioi

6

84

a ad.

Nokania, Cutch

12.6.27.18

25 4

91

6

Ilj

6" ad.

Kishunghar

85.8.1.19

28

11

6i

124

6" ad.

Mount Abu .

13.9.18.37

23 i

10

6

13

?ad.

Hazaribagh

15.4.3.61

21J

9l

5S

6 J

Sad.

Bori. Hoshangabad.

12. ti. 29. 76

22|

94

5i

7i

ad

Bhuj, Cutch .

12.6.27. 15

23 1

10

Si

8

2 ad.

Charwa, Cutch

32.2.1.46

22

10,!

—

5i

166

ir, i/% ir.

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i67

Skull. — The skull and teeth are, on the average, a trifle smaller than in
Felts chaus affinis. In eleven adult $ skulls the average length of the condylobase
is 1035 mm., of the bulla 20 + mm., and of pm* 12+ mm. The same dimensions
in fifteen adult V skulls are: 92-5 mm., 20 mm., and 115 mm. The $ skulls
agree closely with those of the ? skulls of affinis.

As recorded in the case of affinis, one <J skull of kutas stands out from the
rest for its exceptional size. It is labelled Palanpur, Gujerat, and has the
occipital region imperfect. I estimate, however, that it would have been about
1 1 1 mm., in condylobasal length, exceeding by 3 mm. the largest recorded in
affinis, apart from the first on the list from Kashmir. Its mandible at all events
is longer than any recorded under affinis.

An interesting individual variation is shown by one of the $ skulls from
Darbhanga, in Bahgownie (32.2.1.26). The mesopterygoid fossa in the middle
of its length is 17 mm. wide, the ectopterygoid spines are 25 mm. from tip to
tip, and the presphenoid is 8-5 mm. wide. The skull is not quite so big in other
respects as the first on the list (32.2.1.29), but in the latter those three dimensions
are respectively 14, 18, and 65 mm.

1
!

;
5 i

2

9

:

Specimens in the Collection

Salbani, Midnapore, Bengal Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

(C. A. Crump)
Singar, Gaya, Behar and Orissa Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

(C. A. Crump)
Koira, Chaibassa, Orissa (C. A.

Crump)
Jagodib, Hazaribagh, Orissa (C. A

Crump)
Bahgownie, Darbhanga, Orissa

(N. A. Baptista)
Banhar, Darbhanga, Orissa

(N. A. Baptista)
Etah, United Provinces W. B. Cotton [C & P]

Jhelum, Punjab Capt. C. H. T. Whitehead

[C & P]
Toupi, North-west Punjab Col. C. H. Stockley [C & P]

Kishunghar, Rajputana (R. M. Adam) A. O. Hume [P]
Sambhar, ,, ,, ,, ,, ,,

Mt. Abu, „ (C. A. Crump) Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

Bhoria. ,, Major H. N. Dunn [C & P]

Morar, Gwalior. Central India Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

(C. M. Primrose)
Agar Malwa, Gwalior (J. R. O'Brien)
Binaganj,
Rothiai,
Sehore, Central India

Sehore, ,. ,,

Sarangpur, Hoshangabad, Central

Province
Dhain, Hoshangabad, Central Prov.

(C. A. Crump)

Capt. C. H. T. Whitehead

[C &P]
O. O. Curtis [C & P]
A. A. Dunbar Brander

[C& P]
Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

15.4.3.60
32.2.1.33

tS-4-3-59

15.4.3.61
32.2.1.32
32.2.1.25-30

32.2. 1.3 1.

7-3-22.1

5.IO.S.8

32.2.1.52
85.8.1. 19
85.8.1. 18
13.9.18.37

10. 1. 18. 32

32.2.1.50

32.2.1.47-8

32.2.1.41)
32.2.1.5 1

IO. 1 2.2. 1 3

IO. 12. 2. 14
II. 1. 16.8,9

I 2. 1 1.29-75
32.2.1.40

i6S

Bori, Hoshangabad, Central Prow Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

(C. A. Crump)
Sakok, Hoshangabad, Central Prov. ,, ,,

(C. A. Crump)
Pachmarhi, Hoshangabad, Central ,. ,,

Provinces (C. A. Crump)
Mundra, Saugor, Central Provinces ,, ,,

(C. A. Crump)
Central Provinces Marquis of Ripon

2 ?

:

26",

5
S
3
S
S

.

1

- j

3 3

Garoor. Nimar (C. A. Crump)
Asirgarh, ,,

Hewra, ,, ., ,,

Ghodasgaum, E. Khandesh (C. A.

Crump)
1 Shendurni, E. Khandesh (C. A.

Crump)
Edalabad, E. Khandesh (C. A.

Crump)
Fardapur, Ajanta, Hyderabad

(C. A. Crump)
Lunwa, Palanpur, Gujerat

(C. A. Crump)
Deesa, Palanpur, Gujerat

(C. A. Crump)
Chanva, Cutch (C. A. Crump)

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

Bhuj,

Chitrod, ,. ,, ,, ,, ,,

Nokania, ,. ,. ,, ,, ,,

Rajkot, Kathiawar (C. A. Crump) Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

Junagadh,
Near Poona

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]
G. L. McGregor [C &: P]

12. 11. 29. 76

12. 1 1.29.74

32.2.1.39

32.2.1.37

82.4.31
82.12.4.3
83.10.5.2
32. 2. 1. 41
32.21.42-3
12.6.28. 1 1-12
1 1. 12. 21. 13

11. 12. 21. 1 1-12

32. 2. 1. 71
32-2-I-45

32.2.I.38
13.9. 18.36

32.2.1.34

32.2.1.46

12. 6. 27. 17

12. 6. 27. 15

12. 6. 27. 16

12.6.27. 18
13.8.8.40
32.2.1.72

13. 8. 8. 41
10. 10. 28. 1-3

Felis chaus prateri, Pocock

1939. Felis chaus prateri, Pocock, Mamm. Brit. India, i, p. 298, and 2, Appen-
dix, p. 480 (Jacobabad, on the Upper Sind Frontier).

Geographical Distribution. — Sind, from the Upper Sind Frontier,
Larkana and Karachi in the west to Thar Parkar in the south-east.

Diagnosis. — Intergrading in Rajputana, Cutch, and other districts to the
east with typical F. chaus kutas from Bengal; but distinguished on the average
by its paler, more uniformly, sandy or tawnv hue at all seasons of the year, and
by its slightly larger skull. Distinguished also from typical chaus from Persia,
but no doubt intergrading with it, in its more tawny, less grey general colour
and by the smaller size of the skull and teeth.

Colour. — The winter coat is not nearly so full and soft as in the Himalayan
race affinis, but is about the same as in ku/as, the hair on the flanks varying
from 25 to 34 mm. and on the spinal crest from 45 to 55 mm. The general
colour varies a good deal individually from dull greyish buffy tawny to richer,

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■70

more ochreous tawny, the spinal stripe correspondingly varying from duller
ochreous to rusty ochreous. In paler specimens the black speckling in the coat
is less conspicuous. There may be a median black stripe down the tail; other-
wise the pattern is normal on the limbs and tail, the ears varying from rusty
ochreous, with the tip extensively black, to much duller. One skin from Thar
l'arkar is brighter and redder than the average, thus approaching typical kutas,
and some of the skins from Rajputana, assigned to kutas, intergrade in colour
with prateri; but typical kutas from Midnapore and other parts of Bengal is
more richly and heavily pigmented than prateri.

An aberrant skin from Karachi, mostly black, but with silvery tips to the
hairs in parts, is very similar to the blackish variety of affinis from the United
Provinces (p. 162). The under-hair is everywhere clear whitish grey, but the
contour hairs are jet-black on the backs of the ears, the crown, part of the spinal
area, most of the tail, the backs of the legs and the feet, but the black of the
cheeks, forehead, neck, shoulders, flanks, lower side, root of the tail, and front
of the forelegs is relieyed by conspicuous silvery speckling.

Measurements and Weights

Locality

Number

Head
and

Tad

Hind

Wei<;ht

'

"

Body

toot

in.

in.

in.

lb.

ad.

facobabad

to

pe)

.12.2.1.67

29

10

6

20

j ad.

,,

1 5 1 1 . 1 .67

27 \

12-

6

—

; ad.

37.3.24.18

27'

IO.!

.1;

'4

ad.

Larkana

15.11.1 .68

23

IO!

5§

—

ye-

Gholam

32.2. 1 .69

33

9;

51

—

Skull. — The skull shows no peculiarities. It is a little larger than in kutas,
the average condylobasal length in nine adult j ', being 106 mm. It is 103 mm.
in eight adult Jet of kutas ranging from Bengal to Rajputana, but in approxi-
mately topotvpical examples from Bengal the average is only 101J mm. The
teeth are the same size in the two races, the average length of pm* being alike,
12?, mm. The skull is smaller, on the other hand, than that of cltaus from Persia,
in which the average condylobasal length in one adult and two subadult J ,' 1-
1 1 1 mm. The teeth, too, are smaller, the average length of />/«' in four J J of
chain being 14J mm. Similar differences occur in skulls.

Jacobadad, Upper Sind

(S. H. Prater)
Jacobadad, Upper Sind

(S. H. Prater)

Naundero, Larkana. Sind
(S. H. Prater)

Specimens in the Collection

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

32.2.1.07
(type)

15. 11. 1. 67

32.2.1.6S

37.3-24-I8

15. 1 1. 1. 68

32.2.1.70

Gholam, Sind (C. McCann) Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P] 32.2.1.69

1 Karachi (melanistic variety) ,, ,, 99. 11. 1 0.1

;,"..! , Umarkot, Thar Parkar Dist., Sir J. Ellerman [P] 43.67-71
Sind (W. J. C. Frost)

2^,4 Umarkot, Thar Parkar Dist.,

skulls Sind (W. J. C. Frost)

4 o skulls Chachro, Thar Parkar Dist..

Sind (W. J. C. Frost)
2 ( Pano Aquil, Thar Parkar

Dist., Sind (W.J. C.Frost)
2 ', 1 Thar Parkar Dist., Sind

(W. J. C. Frost)
19 skins Thar Parker Dist., Sind

(W. J. C. Frost)

43-72-7
43.98-101

43- '02-3
43.104-f.
43 78-97

Felis chaus kelaarti, Pocock

1852. Felis chaus, Kelaart, Prodr. Faun. Zeyl., p. 48 (Cheddikulam, N.P.,

Ceylon).
1935. Felis affinis, Phillips, Man. Mamm. Ceylon, p. 160 (not of Gray).
1939. Felis chaus kelaarti, Pocock, Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 300.

Geographical Distribution. — Ceylon and South India, south of the Kistna
River, up to about 5,000 ft.

Diagnosis. — Distinguished from kutas and affinis by the coat at its best
being shorter and less luxuriant and exhibiting very little seasonal difference in
thickness and length. In seven adult skins collected between December and
March the average length of the hairs on the flanks and crest is about 10 mm.
less than the average in kutas in the same months. The general tint is also
slightly different owing to the finer speckling on the shorter hairs.

Colour. — In a large series of Indian skins from widely separated localities,
taken at different altitudes and collected at different times of the year, the colour
of the upper side is very uniform, grey owing to the blend of black and nearly
white speckling, with the spinal stripe largely ochreous; the backs of the ears
are mainly rusty or ochreous, with a very variable amount of black at the tip
and base; the legs are typically rich ochreous and the under side has a varying
amount of buff on the chest. The pattern is just traceable high up on the flanks,
stronger lower down ; there are blackish or buff spots on the chest and the legs
are normally striped. Rather exceptional in colouring are a skin from Dharwar
(Shortridge), October, which has a buff cast and is not so grey, one from Haleri,
North Coorg (Shortridge), which is the darkest grey of all and has most black
on the ears, and two from Kurnool (Baptista), which have the legs greyish buff.

There are two skins only from Ceylon. The type from Cheddikulam, N.P.
(E. W. Mayor, 32.2.1.66), is a young adult 3 closely resembling typical Indian
skins, with the general colour darkish ashy grey on the flanks, the well-defined
spinal crest black and ochreous, the crown blacker than the flanks, the ears
reddish ochreous with some black at the base and a considerable amount at
the tip, the fore legs rich buff externally, the hind paler, the metatarsus rufous
behind almost to the plantar pad, the upper lip, chin and fore throat white,

I 72

th<_- hind throat hurt, the chest and belly faintly hurt and the axillae and groin
white. The pattern is represented by the usual stripes on the tail, strong stripes
on the hind legs above the hocks outside, and fairly strong on the fore legs with
two well-developed brachials, faint spots on the belly and some just traceable
on the flanks.

The second specimen from the low country between Colombo and Randy
(Whyte, 77.1 1. 1. 2), an adult J, is very different, the general colour, being much
darker, brownish grey, the dorsal area being extensively black, with faint buff
speckling, and the spinal stripe hardly defined; the ears reddish with black tip
and base; the hind throat and chest much more richly buff, and hardly any
white on the axillae, groin and inner side of the legs; the limbs are strongly
striped externally and internally in the upper part, the belly is strongly spotted,
and there are conspicuous short vertical stripes all down the flanks and especially
strong just behind the shoulders. But apart from the greater distinctness of the
pattern, the general colour is only a shade darker than in the skin from North
Coorg, above referred to, and in one from the Nilgiri Hills (Phythian Adams).

From the differences between this skin and the other examples assigned to
kelaarti, especially in the distinctness of the pattern on the flanks, and from
Phillips's remark that the Jungle Cat in Ceylon is confined to the northern dry
zone, I suggested [Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 304, 1939) that this skin collected
by Whyte might be a hybrid between F. chaus and a feral domestic cat; but
the large size of the skull and teeth hardly supports this idea.

The dimensions of the adult examples in this table show close agreement
with those of the more northern race F. chaus kutas. The last two on the list.

Measurements and Weights

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and

Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

Weight

in.

in.

in.

lb.

j ad.

Kurnool

32.2.1.5.S

25J

io>

6.1

2'

12

J ad.

32.2.1.59

-4:

ios

5'

2 ',

1 1 '

0 yg. ad.

Vontimitta Range

32.2.1.60

24?.

10J

6

zl

1 1

S ad.

Kanara

32.2.1.63

24?

12!

6

~> }

■3

; yg. ad.

Dharwar .

12.6.29.42

24S

11J

6

2*

—

tad.

,, ...

12.6.29.43

= 4

to J

5!

2*

—

9 yg. ad.

,, ...

32.2.1.62

22 §

9l

5 '

2-:

—

ad.

North Coorg

32.2.1.65

25

9

—

2ii

—

', ."1.

Palni Hills

32.2.1.64

245

10

5l

3 I

S

9 > g.

Salem

30.5.24.1 10

[6§

7?,

4^

2l

3-5

1 , r

Travancore

32.2.1.74

12

6?

.1 !

zl

—

J g. ad.

Chcddikulam, Ceylon

(type)

32.2.1.66

23

7"

5',

2 I

8

The t.til is entered as 183 mm., which is exceptionally short. On the skin, as made up, it
is inchi >; bat the head and body are about 23 inches and the hind foot 5 A inches, and since
ri :■ 1 \irv closely with the flesh measurements, it does not seem probable that the tail has

bull appreciably stretched.

173

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Between Colombo and
Kurnool

Dharwar

Vontimitta Range

Kanara

Kurnool

Palni Hills .

Nilgiri Hills

Dharwar

North Coorg
Travancore .
South-west Mysore

03

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both quite young, show that the c.ir .mains its full length at a comparatively
early age and is therefore relatively larger than in the adult. The older of the
two from Salem has acquired the coloration of the adult and lost its juvenile
stripes on the flanks; but the vounger, a half-grown kitten, from Travancore,
still retains on the flanks a well-defined pattern of vertical stripes, particularly
well pronounced just behind the shoulder.

Ski'll. — The upper part of the young skull of the type from Cheddikulam,
N.P., is not available, but the mandible is 66 mm. long and has the unworn ml
10 mm. The adult skull of Whvte's specimen is a little longer than the longest
adult j skulls from Kurnool, on the mainland, and differs from the skulls of
.ill the races of F. chaus in the height of the crown, which has the frontal sinuses
much more strongly inflated than usual. Also, the mesopterygoid fossa is
exceptionally narrow, onlv 13 mm., 2 mm. narrower than in the young adult j
from Dharwar (12.6.29.42), which is 9 mm. shorter in condylobasal length, and
} mm. narrower than in the larger of the two ,_> skulls from Kurnool, which is

4 mm. shorter in total length. The palate is correspondingly narrower. These
deviations from the normal are difficult to explain on the hypothesis that this
cat is a hybrid between F. chaus kelaarti and a feral example of the striped
variety of F. catus. which has a much shorter and relatively broader skull than
/•'. chaus. If it is such a hybrid the cranial and dental characters of F. chaus
are dominant. The Indian skulls of kelaarti do not differ appreciably from
those of the more northern race hulas. It may be noted that the degree of
inflation of the bullae differs a good deal in the two 5 skulls from Kurnool.
In the first the length is 21 mm., in the second 23 mm., and the height differs
accordingly.

Specimens in the Collection

; Malakondapenta, Kurnool, Madras
Pres. (N. A. Baptista)
Diguvametta, Kurnool, Madras Pres
(N. A. Baptista)
; Madhavaram, Vontimitta Range
(N. A. Baptista)
Tirthamalai, Salem. Madras I'res.

(N. A. Raptista)
Shevaroy Hills (Daly)
2t?2? Dharwar, Madras Pres. ((;. C.
Shortridge)
II11lck.1l, North Kanara (G, C.
Shortridge)
J Jhelum, South-west Mysore

2 Nilgiri Hills

5 Snow don, Nilgiri Hills
Haleri, N Coorg (J. C. Graham)
Perumal, Palm Hills (C. McCann)
Bheemanagari, Travancore (R. S.

Pillay)
Trivandrum? — died in Zool. (idns. 32.3.3.:

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

32.2.1.5s

,.

32.2.1.59

,,

32.2.1 .60

,.

30.5.24. 1 10

W. T. Blanford [P]

1)1.10.7.13

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P]

1 2.6.29.42 4

32.2.1.61-2

..

32.2.1.63

5.10.8.8

Major l'l,\ thian Adams

57.1.10.4 5

[C & P]

W. Davison [C & P]

88.2.5.18

Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [PI

32.2.1.65

,, ,,

32.2. 1.64

..

32.2.1.74

•75

Cheddikulam, N.P., Ceylon (E. W. Uombay Nat. Hist. Soc. [P] 32.2.1.66
Mayor) (type)

j" Between Colombo and Kandy ? A. Whyte [C & P] 77.11. 1.2

hybrid with domestic cat [vide
Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 304, 1939]

Felis chaus ftilvidina, Thomas

1928. Felis affinis ftilvidina, Thomas, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 834 (Kampong Tomb,

Annam).
1939. Felis chaus ftilvidina, Pocock, Mamm. Brit. India, I, p. 303.

Geographical Distribution. — Annam and probably Burma, up to 5,000 ft.
in the Chin Hills.

Diagnosis. — According to the skin of the type, the only certainly known
representative of the race, fulvidina is distinguished from the previously
described races of F. chaus by its more uniformly brightly ochreous colour
above and below, and by the absence of contrast in tint between the backs of
the ears, which are duller and have a very small black tip, and the rest of the
upper side.

Colour. — The mid-winter coat (December 15) has the hairs of the flanks
about 35 mm., of the crest about 50 mm., and the under-vvool is not abundant.
The colour is as described above, the contour hairs of the flanks lacking almost
all the trace of the grey speckling observable in many skins of the other races,
and the under side is rather more buffy, the hairs of the axillary and inguinal
regions being whitish only at the base. The legs are whitish internally, the lips,
chin and fore throat are normally white and the distal end of the tail is, as
always in the species, banded black and grey. Otherwise the pattern is practi-
cally suppressed apart from faint trace of bands on the legs and the uniform
blackness of the hind foot from the sole to the hock behind.

When Thomas described this race he was clearly quite unacquainted with
the range in variation of colour exhibited in the same locality by the previously
described races of Felis chaus, there being in most cases a grey phase and a
fulvous phase. In reality the type of fulvidina can be matched very closelv in
general hue with skins from as far west as Sind.

To this race are provisionally assigned some dozen specimens from various
localities in Burma and Siam. All in good coat differ from the type of fu/vidiua
by being noticeably greyer in general hue, without its rich ochreous tint, and
all, with one exception, in having the backs of the ears bright and contrasted
with the head and neck. But scarcely any two of the skins are exactly alike in
the colour either of the ears or body, differing noticeably in the extent to which
the buff of the contour hairs is bleached to greyish white. The coat, too, varies
seasonally, the contour hairs and crests in August and October being about
25 and 45 mm. respectively, and in November and December from about 35 to
50 mm., or a little over, as in the type of fulvidina.

Three out of four skins from Toungoo (J. M. D. Mackenzie), August and
October, have short, good coats, varying from clearer to buffier grey above,

1 76

from buff to whitish buff below, with the pattern on the legs and belly obsolete
or weak; but the fourth (32.2.1.73), September, is moulting and entirely lacks
the conspicuous greyness of the flanks, which are pale brown, and the ochreous
hue of the spinal area, which is darker brown; the ears are much duller and have
more black at the base and tips; the coat is shorter, the contour hairs of the
Hanks, which are hardly longer than the wool, being only 17 mm., those of the
crest about 25 mm., and both only very finely speckled; the pattern is strong
on the limbs and lower side, although the skin is mature. Skins from Lower
Chindwin, the Chin Hills and Mount Popa generally resemble the first three
from Toungoo, the younger of the two from Mount Popa having the pattern
more conspicuous everywhere than the older. A skin from Koh Lak, in Siam
1 Malcolm Smith), closelv resembles in general colour those from Burma, but
has the ears much duller, more uniformly tinted, and less contrasted with the
head, as in the tvpe of fulvidina.

Measurements and Weights

Sex

Locality

Number

Head

'Dill

Body

Tail

Hind
Foot

Ear

Weight

in.

in.

in.

in.

lb.

3 ad.

Toungoo

32-2.I-S3

261

io|

6t

1 ■•

—

3 ad.

,,

322.1.73

238

10

S*

zl

—

3 yg. ad.

'.Mount Popa

14. 7. 19. 86

29 r.

lOf

61

3

13

3 yg. ad.

,, ,, ■

32.2.1.55

23!

11-;

St

zt

8

- ad.

Toungoo .

37-3-24-J7

23!

■oi

St

2l

—

V ad. ?

32.2.1.54

20

Hi

St

2 J

—

Skull.2 — The only skulls available for examination are the few belonging
to the Burmese and Siamese skins above referred to. Neither in size nor in
other characters does there seem to be any difference between them and the
skulls of the Himalayan race affinis, but the average length of pm4 in four <J

'The length of the head and body in this skin is entered as 735 mm.; but this, I expect, is
an error for 635, which would make that dimension 255 inches. At all events the skull of this
specimen is 6 mm. shorter than the skull of the specimen from Toungoo (No. 32.2.1.53) in
which the head and body are 26^ inches, 3 inches shorter than the measurement entered for the
Mount Popa skin, which, according to the entry, rivalled in size the largest skins of the western
races chaus, furax, and nilotica.

- The skull of the type is unknown. According to Thomas the skull bearing the same
collector's number as the skin of the type belonged to a Leopard-Cat (Prionailurus bengalensts).
I have been unable to verify this determination because the skull has disappeared. But the
differences in size and other characters between the skulls of the two species are so manifest
that it is impossible to suppose Thomas was mistaken; and the measurements he gave of the
skull, namely, total length 93 mm., condylobasal length 825 mm., and zygomatic width 66 mm.,
agree with adult examples of P. bengalensis, but are much too small for adult examples of F. chaus.
There are no flesh measurements of the type skin of fulvidina, but, as made up, it is as large as
adult examples of Indian and Burmese specimens of F. chaus. Very unfortunately Thomas added
that if the skull in question belonged to the skin, fulvidina would have to rank as a distinct
species from F. chaus. No one acquainted with the skulls of the Felidae could admit that the
skin of the type of fulvidina, manifestly an example of F. chaus, could have carried a skull like
that of P. betiaalensis.

177

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178

skulls is i v.i nun. . i mm. longer than the average in affinis. In the adult j from
Toungoo (32.2.1.53) this tooth is 15 mm., 2 mm. longer than the longest
recorded in affinis, and about the same as the average length in the typical
western race Felts cheats chaus. In the skull from Yin the length of the crown
has been estimated From that of the socket of the tooth.

Specimens in the Collection

Toungoo, Lower Burma Bombaj NTat. Hisl Soc. [P] 32.2.1.73

(J. M. I). Mackenzie)
Mt. I'opa. Myingyan, Burma .. ,, 14.7. 19.86

(G. C. Shortridgc ) 32.2.1.55

1 Lenakut. Chin Hills. Burma ,. ,, 32.2.1.78

Yin, Lower Chindwin (G. W. ,, ,, 32.2.1.56

Dawson)
Tegyigin, Lower Chindwin (G. W. ,, 32.2.1.57

Dawson)
1 ,'. 2 Toungoo, Lower Burma (J. M. I). ,, ,, 32.2.1.53-54

Mackenzie) 37.3.24.17

1 Burma Zoological Society [1'J 39"74

Koh Lak, Siam Dr. Malcolm Smith [C & F] 15.5.10.2

East Siam, i3°45'N. 990 25'E. K. Gairdner [C & P] 14. 8. 22. 17

1 Kampong Tomb, Annam (W. P. J Delacour [I1] 28.7.1.36

Lowe) (type)

The Burmese and Siamese specimens entered above are of doubtful identity and are
merely tentatively referred to F. fulvida.

Genus OTOCOLOliUS, Brandt

1N42. Otocolobus, Brandt, Bull. Acad. Sci. St. Petersb., 9, pp. 37-9, 1841;
Severtzow, Rev. Mag. Zool. (2), 10, pp. 286 90, 1858; Pocock, Proc.
Zool. Soc, 1907, p. 299, tigs.; Birula, Ann. Mus. Zool., St. Petersb., 21,
p. 155, 1916; Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 78, 1930, and Mamm. of
U.S.S.R., etc., 3, p. 174, 1935; Pocock, Mamm. Brit. Ind., 1, p. 315.
1939; Ileptner and Dementiev, Mammalia., 1, pp. 234-40, 1937 (in part).

1905. Trichaelurus,1 Satunin, Annu. Mus. Zool., Acad., St. Petersb., 9, p. 1 ;
Pocock, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (8), 20, pp. 335 and 349, 1917.

Type and only species of the genus, Felis manul, Pallas.

Geographical Distribution.— Central Asia, Mongolia, Kansu, Trans-
caspia, Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Kashmir, and Tibet.

CHARACTERS.— Distinguished principally from Felis in external characters by
having the ears shorter, more rounded at the tip, very widely separated and set
lower down on the sides of the head, so that, when normally expanded and not
depressed, their inner edges scarcely rise above the level of the unusually wide
lure head.2 There are also differences in the pattern, the vertical stripes on the

1 Satunin, misled by Palmer {Index Gen. Mamm., 1, p. 4S7, 0104). introduced this name
under the impression that Otocolobus was preoccupied by Brandt tor a ground squirrel (Citellus).
Brandt in 1X44 accidentally substituted Otocolobus for Colobotis, which he had applied to the
rodent in question.

J This feature, which imparts a very characteristic aspect to the face of Otocolobus, was
pointed out in my paper above quoted (1*107) and was substantiated by the first published
photograph of the living animal. It is not so apparent on dried skins and was ignored or over-

1/9

body being restricted, when visible, to the posterior half of the back and loins;
there are spots on the head, no stripes on the nape or shoulders, no spinal
stripe and the stripes on the tail form thin rings and are widely spaced, with
those at the posterior end wider below than above and coalescing so that the
under side of the organ is almost wholly black terminally. Under a strong light
the pupil of the eye contracts to a minute black spot, not to a vertical slit.

Skull. — The skull in its general form is an exaggeration of that of Felis,
being broader and higher in relation to its length and, when adult, further
differs in the following particulars: the upper edges of the larger orbits are
slightly raised, so that the forehead between them is flat mesially, slightly
concave laterally and the frontal postorbital processes are more pointed; the
inferior edge of the orbit is thin throughout, showing no trace of the thickening
adjoining the infraorbital foramen; the nasal branch of the premaxilla is not
expanded at its junction with the nasals; there is no posterior sagittal crest on
the interparietals and the coronoid process of the mandible is more hooked at
the summit, its upper anterior edge being strongly convex and its posterior
edge strongly concave above the condyle.

The bulla has the divisional line between its ectotympanic and entotympanic
elements better defined superficially than in Felis; and, as I pointed out in 1916
(Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (8), 18, p. 328, fig. 2), it adaptively resembles that of
some other species of the Felidae, which frequent open country as opposed to
forest or jungle, in being considerably inflated with the outer chamber enlarged
and approximately equalling the inner in capacity, the two being separated by
a high partition.1

The dentition is characterised by the complete suppression of ptn1, which
is present, if small and early deciduous, in Felis; also the inner lobe of pin * is
greatly reduced, although in this respect Otocolobus adaptively resembles Felis
nigripes.

Otocolobus manul, Pallas
(Synonymy under subspecies)

Distribution as under the genus.

Characters. — About the size of the medium-sized species of Felis. The
winter coat is luxuriant, with abundance of wool; but there is no dorsal crest.
The general colour of the upper side and tail is very variable, sometimes domi-
nantly silvery grey, rarely darkish grey with no buff, ochreous or rufous tint;
but the wool at least is usually suffused with one of those tints which is exposed,
especially in the winter coat, in patches when the contour hairs are parted;
sometimes the reddish ochreous tint is dominant, but the contour hairs at all
events of the back and sides of the body always have extensive whitish ends

looked by Heptner and Dementiev when in 1937 they assigned F. margarita to Otocolobus on
the evidence of some cranial resemblances. The difference between F. margarita thinobius and
O. manul in this feature is very clearly shown by Ognev's plates of the two species which
completely confirm my observation.

1 Since a similar modification of the bulla occurs in such obviously unrelated species as
f 'nc in uncia, Lynchailurus pajeros, as stated on p. 334 of the above quoted paper, its occurrence
in O. manul and F. margarita cannot be claimed as evidence of affinity between them as Heptner
and Dementiev thought. In the expansion of the bulla F. margarita surpasses O. manul.

[So

which give a silvery or grey cast to the pelage. The backs of the ears are
uniformly tinted, with no pale patch, generally matching the crown of the head.
The colour of the face in the "grey phase" is broken up, its prevailing tint
being grey with some buff below and at the sides of the nose; the eyes are
surrounded with greyish white set off by a narrow black line giving a "spec-
tacled" aspect to the face; the buff close to the rhinarium is also set off by a
blackish patch, whence arise some black mystacial vibrissae, the rest of these
\ibnssae being mainly white and rising from blackish lines on the white of the
upper lip; on the cheeks are two conspicuous black stripes, set off by greyish
white, the upper rising, as in Felts, at the outer angle of the eye and the lower
below that organ, the two descending obliquely and fusing with the sooty brown
area, with white-tipped contour hairs, on the hind throat and chest.

The distinctive features of the pattern, often obscure in the winter coat,
were described above under the diagnosis of the genus; but there are, in addition,
more or less well-pronounced stripes on the bases of the legs and some black
patches near the pads; but the limbs elsewhere are whitish or buffy, the back
of the hind leg below the hock being ochreous or buff, never black. In the
"red phase" the pattern may be black and conspicuous or red and inconspicuous
from matching the hue of the rest of the pelage.

Skull. — The skulls vary considerably in shape. In an adult -] from Ladakh
{Mamm. Brit. India, I, pp. 316-17, 1939), the skull is comparatively low in
relation to its length, the jaws are long as compared with the cranial portion,
the upper facial profile seen from the side is not very steeply sloped and the
posterior half of the zygomatic arch is shortish and arcuate. In one from Tibet
(Proc. Zool. Soc, 1907, pp. 304-5), a younger skull, judging from the incomplete
postorbital bar and much more widely spaced temporal ridges, the height is
greater in relation to the length, the jaws are shorter; the facial profile much
more steeply sloped and the posterior half of the zygomatic arch longer and
nearly straight. An immature skull from the Kirghiz Steppes, with complete
dentition, differs principally from the last by having the postorbital bar widely
incomplete, an age character, and the posterior part of the zygomatic bar arcuate
nearly as in the Ladakh skull. A still younger skull, from Yamdok Lake, Tibet,
with the second teeth just erupting, is similar to the one from Ladakh in the
slope of the facial line and the shape of the zygomatic bar. A skull figured by
Ognev, although it has the postorbital bar widely incomplete, appears to be
nearly as old as the Ladakh skull, judging from the width of the area between
the temporal ridges; in the slope of the upper facial profile and the curvature
of the zygomatic bar it seems to be nearly intermediate between the skulls from
Ladakh and Tibet, described above, but the upper edge of the orbit is not so
elevated as in either. Finally, a young skull figured by Heptner and Dementiev,
with very short postorbital processes, has the same facial slope as Ognev's skull,
but the posterior half of the zygomatic bar is elongated and nearly straight, as
in the Tibetan skull I figured in 1907.

Of the above-described characters, the striking difference in the slope of
the upper facial profile, in the curvature of the crown and the shape of the
zygomatic arch, so marked in the adult skulls from Ladakh and Tibet described

i8i

above, appear to be independent of age; but the explanation of these and other
differences must await the examination of the many more skulls than are at
present available.

Some cranial characters, which have been used for systematic purposes, are
mentioned in the descriptions of the subspecies entered below.

Birula admitted two local races of O. manul, namely the more northern
typical form O. manul manul and a southern Tibetan form O. manul nigripectus,
distinguishing them, as Satunin had previously done, mainly by the shape of
the nasals and of the presphenoid. In this he was followed by Ognev, who
added a third erythristic local race, O. manul ferrugineus, occurring to the
south-west of the area occupied by typical O. m. manul, and to the west of that
occupied by O. m. nigripectus. I provisionally adopt these conclusions, although
the cranial characters relied on do not hold good for the skulls I have seen and
there is complete overlap in the colour of the skins available for examination.
I also follow Ognev in adding mongolicus to the synonymy of typical manul.

Otocolobus manul manul, Pallas

1776. Felts manul, Pallas, Reise, etc., Russ. Reichs, 3, p. 692 (Dschida River,
south of Lake Baikal); id. Zoogr. Ross. As., 1, p. 20, 1831; Milne-
Edwards, Rech. Mamm., p. 225, pi. 31c, 1871.

1841. Felis (Otocolobus) manul, Brandt, Bull. Acad. Sci. St. Petersb., 9, p. 37.

1905. Trichaelurus manul and T. manul mongolicus, Satunin, Annu. Mus. Zool.
Acad. St. Petersb., 9, pp. 2 and 7 (Kjachta).

1916. Otocolobus manul manul, Birula, Ann. Mus. Zool., St. Petersb., 21, p. 153,
Ognev, Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 83, 1930; Pocock, Mamm. Brit. Ind.,
1, p. 318, 1939.

Geographical Distribution. — Kansu, Mongolia, Turkestan, the Southern
Urals.

Colour. — A skin from the Kirghiz Steppes, referred for geographical
reasons to this race, has the coat luxuriant and about 57 mm. long, excluding
a number of exceptionally long, scattered contour hairs; the general colour of
the upper side is a mixture of whitish, some black and ochreous, the last tint
being due to the upper portion of the long wool showing between the white
ends of the normal contour hairs, the basal part of the wool on the back being
greyish or purplish brown, but paler on the flanks, where the ochreous is also
rather paler than dorsally; the fore part of the back has the ochreous more in
evidence than the hind part, which is blacker; the under-hair of the head is
brownish black, showing as dusky patches between the white tips of the contour
hairs, the upper lip, chin and fore throat are white, and there are no black
mystacial lines on the upper lip; the two cheek-stripes are blackish; the chest
is pale purplish brown, extensively overcast with white, the rest of the under
side being whitish; the stripes on the back are indistinct, merely showing as
blackish patches; there are about six stripes on the tail, rather faint dorsally,
and the wool of the tail is greyish without the bright hue of that of the back.

182

This skin seems to agree tolerably well with one described by Satunin from
Ferghana and with one described bv Ognev; but it is darker than one from the
borders of China and Mongolia figured bv Milne- Edwards which, judging from
the illustration, is much more uniformly ochreous, with well-defined pattern,
and evidently differs a good deal from the type of mongolicus from Kjachta,
which was racially separated from typical manul on account of its darker hue.
The variation in colour is evidently considerable.

Skull.- In its skull this race was claimed by the Russian authors to be
distinguished by the shape of the nasals, which were said to have their sides
straight and gradually convergent from before backwards, and of the pres-
phenoid, which was claimed to be rhombically expanded in front, as shown in
Birula's figures, copied bv Ognev. But in the skull of the specimen from
Kirghiz Steppes, the nasals are wide close to the nares, then narrower and
parallel-sided for nearly half their length, the sides only noticeably converging
between the frontal processes; and Milne-Edwards described the nasals in his
specimen as very narrow in their posterior two-thirds and abruptly expanded
in front. Moreover, the presphenoid in the skull from the Kirghiz Steppes is
narrower, asymmetrically widened in front, somewhat spear-headed, but
emphatically not rhombically expanded.

Specimen in the Collection

Kirghiz Steppes (Brandt I Purchased 45.4.21.1

Otocolobus inanul nigripectus, Hodgson
1842. Felis nigripectus, Hodgson, Journ. As. Soc. Bengal., n, p. 27O (Tibet),
igov Trichaelurus nigripectus, Satunin, Annu. Mus. Zool. Acad., St. Petersb., 9,

P- 9-

1907. Otocolobus manul nigripectus, Pocock, Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 302; Birula,

Ann. Mus. Zool., St. Petersb., 21, p. 133, 1916; Ognev, Zeitschr. Sauget.,
5, p. 84, 1930; id. Mamm. of U.S.S.R., etc., 3, pp. 179-81, 1935;
Pocock, Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 319, 1939.

Geographical Distribution. — Tibet and Kashmir.

Characters. — Distinguished, according to Birula, from the typical, more
northern race by the winter coat being silvery-grey, with more black in it, the
wool paler, the head thickly spotted with black, and the stripes on the back and
tail more conspicuous. Also by certain cranial features, accepted by Ognev,
which are referred to below.

1 am unable to confirm the claim of the Russian authors regarding the
validity of this race, but provisionally admit it on the grounds of the likelihood
of Tibetan specimens proving distinct at least in the luxuriance of the winter coat.

Colour. — Skins in the British Museum attest great variation in colour,
seasonal and otherwise, the extremes being darkish grey with no bright tint in
the wool and lighter grew with the wool extensively ochreous on the upper
side, except in the centre of the back, where it is mainly deep brown or blackish
with at most a trace of the brighter tint at its summit.

«83

A perfect skin from Yamdok Lake has the coat (September 28), about
40 mm. long and not thickly woolly. The dominant colour ot the back
is silvery-grey, a mixture ot black and white speckling, the comparatively sleek,
white-ended contour hairs mostly concealing the underlying ochreous wool
which, however, is more manifest on the flanks than on the back; on the back
the wool is purplish brown at the base, but this tint gradually fades to pale
grey on the flanks, the brighter tint of the wool is also paler on the flanks and
disappears on the under side, which is mainly white, except for the sooty grey
hue of the chest; the head is darker grey than the nape and shoulders and has
numerous black spots; the muzzle is rusty and the chin and throat white; on
the hind back there are about five black stripes, one, as usual, being more
pronounced than the rest; the tail is paler than the back, its wool being creamy
and less concealed by the white ends of the contour hairs, and it has eight,
mostly conspicuous, black stripes as well as a black tip. This skin seems to
resemble very closelv the one I described in 1907, which is not available for
re-examination.

Verv different in general appearance, owing to the development of the coat,
is a skin from Ladakh. The winter coat is about 50 mm. long, excluding a
number of large scattered contour hairs, and its wool is exceedingly thick, with
the result that it pushes apart the white-ended, normal contour hairs so that
its ochreous hue is everywhere displayed, giving a much yellower aspect to the
pelage than in the autumn skin from Yamdok Lake, with its silvery contour
hairs mostly concealing the wool; the pattern on the head, hind back and tail
is also much less pronounced. There is no reason to doubt that the difference
in colour and pattern between these two skins is purely seasonal. The one
from Ladakh very closely resembles the winter skin assigned to O. manul manul
from the Kirghiz Steppes, and differs considerably from the skin of O. manul
nigripectus, from Kam in East Tibet, figured by Birula (he. cit., pi. 7, fig. 3),
and alleged to be in winter coat. This skin, which formed the basis of his
conception of the pattern and colour of O. manul nigripectus in winter, very
closely matches the autumn skin from Yamdok Lake in the distinctness of its
pattern, and apparently in the texture and colour of its coat. The suggestion
that it was an early winter skin may explain its profound difference from the
skin from Ladakh, probably in late winter coat.

There are two native Tibetan skins in Hodgson's collection. One is very
like the skin from Yamdok Lake, having the coat about 35 mm. and only
moderatelv woolly, but the wool is rather paler. The other, only about half-
grown, differs from all the previously described skins of the species in having
the wool grey without any buff or ochreous tint.

Skull. — According to the Russian authors the lateral edges of the nasals
in nigripectus are mesially constricted in front of the points of the frontal bones,
the area between these bones being comparatively broad, with convex edges
and a rounded posterior end, thus differing markedly from the nasals, claimed
to be characteristic of typical manul with their straightish, evenly convergent
sides ending in a narrow point at their posterior ends. But in the skulls of
nigripectus from Ladakh and the Yamdok Lake, the nasals are not as described

1 84

and figured by Iiirula tor this race. They are much less noticeably constricted
and the interfrontal portion is not so wide, its sides being straightish and its
point narrower, especially in the Ladakh skull. The bones are not quite alike
in the two skulls, but in neither case do they differ in any important respects
trom those of the skull of typical manul from the Kirghiz Steppes.

A

Fig. q.

Otocolobus manul nigripectus, Ladakh.
A. — Upper view of skull. B. — Side view of skull.
C. — Pm. '. D. — Pm.4, Felis coiistantia ornata.

The differences claimed to exist in the shape of the presphenoid between
typical manul and nigripectus similarly fail in the skull in the British Museum.
In the young skull of nigripectus from the Yamdok Lake the exposed part of
the bone is sagittiform or "spear-headed" in shape, very much as in Birula's
photograph of the adult $ skull of typical manul from Semipalatinsk {loc. cit.,
pi. 8, fig. 4), although a little narrower, and differing from the much narrower

i8S

presphenoid, with its very small process on the left side of Birula's q skull of
nigripectus (luc. cit., pi. 8, fig. 5). In the skull of nigripectus from Ladakh the
bone differs from all the preceding. It is wider than in the skull from Yamdok
Lake, asymmetrically expanded, with two angular projections on the left side,
and one larger angular projection behind and a smaller rounded projection in
front on the right side. In none of the skulls of O. mamd that I have seen is
the presphenoid "narrow and lineate" or "wide and rhombic", as depicted in
Birula's drawings of this bone in his specimens of nigripectus and typical manul
respectively.

Specimens in the Collection

o?, imtd. Tibet B. H. Hodgson [P] 58.6.24.112

45.1.8.209
<J Yamdok Lake, Tibet, 15,000 ft. Col. L. A. Waddell [P] 5.4.5.1

(Major Iggulden)
1 Ladakh, Kashmir (Sir R. Strachey) Secretary of State for India 79. 11. 21. 540

Otocolobus manul ferrugineus, Ognev

1889. Felts manul, Radde and Walter, Zool. Jahrb., 4, p. 1013 (Askhabad).

1928. Otocolobus manul Jerrugineus, Ognev, C.R. Acad. Sci., U.S.S.R., p. 308;
id. Zeitschr. Saugetierk, 5, p. 84, 1930; id. Mamm. of U.S.S.R., etc., 3,
p. 186, 1935; Pocock, Mamm. Brit. India, 1, p. 319, 1939.

Geographical Distribution. — Transcaspia, Kopet Dagh, North Persia,
Afghanistan and Baluchistan.

Characters. — Intergrading with typical O. manul, but distinguished by the
dominance of red all over the upper side, and especially on the dorsal area
where the wool is rich rusty ochreous to the base, although the distal ends of
the contour hairs are silvery, giving a grey cast to the pelage. The pattern may
be visible and black or inconspicuous and red.

Skins vary individually in grades of erythrism. One from the Toba Plateau,
Afghanistan (26.3.5.1), has the wool on the flanks ashy grey, the chin and throat
white, the chest ashy grey and the rest of the under side white; the legs are
fawn, with the area from the heel downwards rusty; the pattern is represented
by scattered black spots on the head, black stripes on the cheeks, faint traces
on the hind back and proximal half of the tail, but stronger on its distal half
above, well developed below and confluent with the conspicuous black tip.
A skin from Meshed, Persia (13. 6.10. 1), is much more rufescent, the under
hair of the flanks being richer, darker ochreous, and there is no black anywhere
in the pelage, the spots on the head, stripes on the cheek and on the end of the
tail being rufous, and the whole of the under side is tinted, the chin, belly and
groins with pale buff, the chest with richer ochreous. A third, headless skin
(35.8.26.1), without locality, tolerably closely resembles the one from the Toba
Plateau, but has the pattern more prominent.

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Measurements

187

Sex

Locality

Number

Head
and
Body

Tail

Html
Fool

Toba Plateau, Afghan-Baluchi

Border .....

Meshed .....

• ?

26.3.5.1
13. 6. 10. 1
35.8.26.1

in.
as
25-5

25 ±

in.
12
12
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in.

45

Skull. — According to Ognev the skull resembles that of the typical form.

Specimens in the Collection

9 Meshed Sir P. R. Sykes [C & P] 13.6.10.1

1 Tnba Plateau, Afghan-Baluchi Border Col. J. N. Wilson [P] 26.3.5.1

1 ? Messrs. P. R. Poland & Son [P] 35.8.26.1

INDEX

(Main references in blucl; type)

Acinonychinae, 4
Acinonyx, 2, 4

Aeluroidca, 1
affinis, Felis, 17'
agrius, F. ocreata, 6
airensis, F. marganta. 141
algiricus, Felis, 53
angorensis, F. catus, 6
antiquorum, Felis, 7
antiquorum, F. domestica, b
\rctoidea, I
aureus, F. catus, b

bengaiensis, Pnonailurus, 17b
bieti, Felis, 133
bieti, F. bieti, 133
bieti, Felis (Poliailurus), 133, '3°
Booted Lynx, 7°
bouvieri, Felis, 6
brevicaudata, Felis, b, 7
brockmani, F. lybica, 81
bubastis, Felis, be}, 72
bubastis, F. lybica, 72

caeruleus, F. catus, b, 7

, affra, Felis, 102

caffra, F. ocreata, 103

cafra, Felis, 102, 103

cafra, F. lybica, loz

caligata, Felis, bo, 102

Caracal, 4

Catolynx, 4

catolynx, Felis, 151

Catus, 4

catus, Felis, 6, 32

catus, F. domestica, 138

caucasica, F. silvestris, 47

caucasicus, F. catus, 47

caucasicus, F. silvestris, 47

caudata, Felis, 124

caudata, F. (Chaus), 124

caudata, F. constantina, 124

caudata, F. lybica, 124

caudata, F. omata, 124

caudatus, Chaus, 124

Chaus, 4

chaus, Catolvnx, 151

chaus, Felis, 150. 151. '55, '59, 171

chaus, F. chaus, 151

chaus, Felis (Chaus) chaus, 151

chrysomelanotis, Lyncus, 155

chutuchta, Felis, 13°

chutuchta, F. bieti, 13b

chutuchta, Poliailurus pallida, 13b

Colobotis, 178

constantina, Felis, 53

constantina, F. lybica, 53
constantinensis, Felis, 53
cristata, Felis, 62
Cryptoprocta, 3, 4
cumana, Felis, b, 7
cyrenarum, F. lybica, 53

daemon. Felis, 6
domestica, Felis, 14
domesticus, F. catus, b, 7
dongolana, Felis, b2

Eremaelurus, 4
euxina, F. silvestris, 4b

Felidae, I, 3, 4

Felinae, 4

Felis, 4

ferox, Catus, 32

ferrugineus, Otocolobus manul, 1S5

ferus, Catus, 32

ferus, F". catus, 45

ferus, (Felis catus), 32

foxi, F. lybica, 79

fulvidina, F. affinis, 175

fulvidina, F. chaus, 175

furax, F. chaus, 155

grampia, Felis, 3b
grampia, F. silvestris, 36
griselda, F. lybica, 109
griselda, F. ocreata, iog
griseo-flava, Felis, 124
guttata, Felis, bo

haussa, Felis, 73, 78
haussa, F. lybica, 78
haussa, F. ocreata, 78
hispanicus, F. catus, b, 7
huttoni, Felis, b

inconspicua, Felis, b
iraki, F. lybica, 117
iraki, F. ocreata, 117
issikulensis, F. lybica, 130
issikulensis, F. ornata, 130

japonica, F. domestica, b
jordansi, F. catus, 53
jubatus, Acinonyx, 4
jubatus, Acinonyx jubatus, 7

kelaarti, F. chaus, 171
koslovi, Felis (Felis), 131
koslowi, Felis (Felis), 131
koslowi, F. lybica, 131

188

.89

i. Mt. i ., Felis, 165
kutas, F. chaus, 165

leo, Panthera, 4
Leptailurus, 53
libyca, Felis, 52, 61
libycus, Felis, 159
longiceps, F. catus, 6, 7
longipilis, Felis, 124
lowei, F. lybica, 76
lybica, Felis, 50, 52, 61, 62, 69
lybica? Felis, 68
lybica, F. lybica, 62
lybica, F. ocreata, 62
lybica, Felis subsp., 129
lybica, F. subspecies, 74
lybicus, Felis, 52
lybiensis, F. lynx, 61
lynesi, F. lybica, 73
Lynx, Booted, 69

madagascariensis, F. catus, 6
maniculata, Felis, 62
maniculata, F. ocreata, 69
manul, Felis, 181, 185
manul, F. (Otocolobus), 181
manul, Otocolobus, 179
manul, Otocolobus manul, 181
manul, Trichaelurus, 181
margarita, Felis, 139, 141
margarita, F. libyca var., 61
margarita, F. margarita, 139, 140
margarita, Otocolobus margarita, 140
margaritae, F. caligata, 139
margaritae, F. ocreata, 139
marginata, Felis, 139
margueritei, F. libyca, 139
marguerittei, F. ocreata, 139
matschiei, Felis, 129
matschiei, F. lybica, 129
matschiei, F. ornata, 129
mauritana, Felis, 58
mauritana, F. ocreata, 52
mediterranea, Felis, 52
megalotis, Felis, 6
meinertzhageni, F. margarita, 140
mellandi, F. lybica, 96
mellandi, F. ocreata, 96
Microfelis, 4
molisana, Felis, 44
molisana, F. silvestris, 44
mongolicus, Trichaelurus manul, 181
morea, F. catus, 45
morea, F. silvestris, 45
murgabensis, Felis, 129
murgabensis, F. lybica, 129
murgabensis, F. ornata, 129

namaquana, F. ocreata, 103, 109
nandae, F. ocreata, 87
Neofelis, 2
nesterovi, F. constantina, 123

nesterovi, F. lybica, 123
nesterovi, F. ocreata, 123

nesterovi, F. ornata, 123

nigripectus, Felis, 182

nigripectus, Otocolobus manul, 182

nigripectus, Trichaelurus, 182

nigripes, Felis, 145, 146

nigripes, Felis (Microfelis) nigripes, 146

nigripes, F. nigripes, 146

nigripes, Microfelis, 146

nilotica, F. chaus, 159

nubiensis, F. Lynx, 69

obscura, F. lybica, 102

ocreata, Felis, 62, 69, 73, 76, 81, 114

ocreata, F. lybica, 69

ocreata, F. ocreata, 62, 69

onca, Panthera, 4

ornata, Felis, 1 18

ornata, F. constantina, 118

ornata, F. lybica, 118

Otailurus, 4

Otocolobus, 178

Pajeros, 17

pajeros, Lynchaiturus, 179

pallida, Felis, 133

pallida, F. chaus, 133

pallida, Felis (Poliailurus), 133

Panthera, 4

Pantherinae, 3

pardus, Panthera, 4

Poliailurus, 4

prateri, F. chaus, 168

Prionodon, 3

Prionodontinae, 2, 3

pulchella, Felis, 6

pyrrhus, F. lybica, 101

rex, Acinonyx, 7
reyi, Felis, 53
ruber, F. catus, 6
rubida, F. lybica, 84
rubida, F. ocreata, 84
riippelii, Felis, 62, 159
riippellii, Felis, 62, 159
riippellii, Lynx, 159
rusticana, F. ocreata, 103, 105

sarda, Felis, 52
sarda, F. libyca var., 52
sarda, F. lybica, 52, 53
sarda, F. ocreata, 52
schnitnikowi, F. caudata, 124
servalina, Felis, 118, 124
shawiana, Felis, 129, 151
shawiana, F. ornata, 129
siamensis, F. libyca, 6, 7
silvestris, Felis, 29, 32
silvestris, F. (catus), 29
silvestris, F. silvestris, 32, 44, 45
sinensis, F. catus, 6, 7

11)0

striatus, I . catus, 6,
subpallida, F. palli
i, Felis, 114
I constantina, 1 i-t
svriaca, F. domestica, 6

laitac, F. lybica, 92
laitae, 1 ocn ata, 92
tartessia, Kelis, 30, 41
tartessia, F. silvestris, 41
thinobius, Eremaelurus, 143

■I mis. Felis, 143
thinobius, F. marganta, 143
thinobius, Otocolobus marganta, 143
thomasi. Felis (Microfelis) menpes, 150
thomasi, F. nigripes, 150
tiLTis, Panthera, 4
torquata, Felis, 6, 11S

tralatitia, I . domestica, 6, 7
trapezia, Felis, 49, 50
trapezia, F. silvestris, 47
Trichaelurus, 178
tristrami, F. lybica, 1 14
typica, F. chaus, 1 ii
typicus, Catolynx chaus, 15]

ligandae, F. lybica, 87
ugandae, F. ocrc.it.-.. N7
uncia, I'ncia, 4

vellerosa, F. bieti, 138
vernayi, F. ocreata, 100
vulgaris, F. domestica, 6, 7

xanthc Ha, F ocreata, iO'i

*X>