ZOOLOGICAL
18
in Australia and New Zealand Rabbits are at the present day so numerous as to constitute a veritable pest, yet their presence is entirely due to human agency. Only three pairs are stated to have been first turned down in the former country, while now the skins annually exported must be reckoned by millions.
The typical Hares of the genus Lepus are widely spread in both the Old and New World. Of the 94 described species 41 are Palsearctic and 28 Nearctic, 19 are Ethiopian, and the remaining half dozen Oriental. The 40 species classed together under the genus Sylvilagus are purely American, and the only South American members of the family (about a dozen in number) are placed here. The Common Rabbit is believed to have had its original home in the Spanish Peninsula and other regions in the neighbourhood of the Mediterranean. This familiar animal has been introduced into many parts of the world, and its nearest relative is a species found in South Africa, the two forming the genus Oryctolagus.
The Eritish Isles possess three representatives of the Leporidse, viz. the Common Hare (Lepus europseus), the Alpine or Mountain Hare (Lepus timidus) and the Common Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus). The first of these occurs over the whole of England and the greater part of Scotland, but is absent from Ireland. On the other hand, the Mountain Hare occurs throughout the hilly and mountainous portions of Scotland and Ireland, but in England is not indigenous. The third British species is the Common Rabbit, which is abundant in most districts.
About a dozen species of this family are represented by remains in the Miocene, Pliocene and Pleistocene beds of Europe and North America.
OCHOTONIDSE (Picas ; 23 Species). Plate 6, Map i.
These pretty little animals, called also Tailless Hares and Mouse Hares, occur principally in the elevated and desert regions of Northern and Central Asia, a single species just ranging into South-eastern Europe. Seven species occur in the New World, being found in the Rocky and other mountains from Alaska to California. The Picas are shy and active creatures, living chiefly in burrows or the crevices of rocks. Several extinct species have been described, all but one from the European Tertiary beds. Ochotona pusillus, the species inhabiting South-eastern Europe, formerly occurred in Great Britain, as evidenced by its remains found in caverns.
DASYPROCTIDJE or AGOTJTIDiE (Agouties and Pacas; 23 Species).
Plate 6, Map ii.
The few species belonging to this family are peculiar to the Neotropical region. One species only is found in the West Indies, occurring in the Lesser Antilles; six are confined to Mexico and Central America; one, known as the Paca (Agouti paca) ranges from Mexico to Southern Paraguay; while the remainder are restricted to South America. These elegant rodents are chiefly nocturnal in habit, and dwell in forests or along the banks of rivers. A single fossil species is known, from the Pleistocene of Southern Brazil.
CAVTID.ÍE (Cavíes ; 19 Species). Plate 6, Map iii.
The Cavies, of which the domesticated Guinea Pig (Guiana Pig) is the most familiar example, range over practically the whole of South America, but are absolutely unknown beyond its limits. They are pretty equally distributed over the continent, and the best-known species of the typical genus is that bearing the name of Restless Cavy (Cavia porcellus). This creature is generally supposed to be the ancestor of the domestic pet, and ranges from Guiana to the Rio de la Plata. The Patagonian Cavies (Dolichotis patagónica and magellanica) extend the range of the family southwards to beyond the 50th parallel. The Capybara (Hydrochoerus capy-bara) is noteworthy as being the largest living rodent. This giant of the Order attains a length of about four feet and is found throughout the whole of the eastern part of South America. It is entirely aquatic in its habits, possessing webbed feet, and frequenting the borders of lakes and rivers.
More than 50 extinct species of this family are recognised, the great majority of which are from the Tertiary beds of the Argentine Republic.
DINOMYIDJE (Dinomys; 1 Species). Plate 6, Map iii.
This family can be dismissed in a few words, since the only representative is the extremely rare creature known as Dinomys branickii. This strange rodent, resembling the Paca in general appearance, was first described in 1873 from an example said to have been found wandering in an orchard near a town in Peru. No other example was seen until the year 1904, when Hr. E. A. Goeldi, Director of the Goeldi Museum, Para, received a pair alive in a cage. These animals are described as being of a peaceful and phlegmatic disposition, and devouring great quantities of food, during the disposal of which they maintain an erect position on the hind feet.
CHINCHILLIDiE or VISCACIIDiE (Chinchillas and the Viscacha ;
14 Species). Plate 6, Map ii.
The members of this small family are of very limited geographical range, the species of true Chinchilla, belonging to the genera Chinchilla and Lagidium, being confined to the Higher Andes from Peru to the Argentine and Southern Chili, while the animals known as Viscachas (Viseada viseada and allies), on the contrary, inhabit the open pampas of Argentina. The Chinchillas possess long bushy tails and beautifully soft fur, for the sake of which they are much persecuted. About 30,000 skins are annually brought into the market, the finest of which realise about £5 each. These animals live in burrows in companies of twenty and upwards, and while the Viscachas are mainly nocturnal, seldom venturing out before dusk, the Chinchillas, on the other hand, are frequently met with during the daytime.
the whole of Tibet and northwards to beyond the Altai Mountains. In an easterly direction it reaches Amurland and the island of Saghalien.
Of the smaller Old-World members of the genus Felis may be mentioned the Clouded Leopard (F. nebulosa) of South-eastern Asia; the Serval (F. serval), found throughout Africa ; the Caffre or Egyptian Cat (F. caffra), an African species of special interest as being the probable ancestor of our domestic pets, and also because it was held sacred by the ancient Egyptians ; and the Wild Cat (F. catus). The last-named species is widely distributed on the continent of Europe, and in former times was a common inhabitant of our own islands. At the present day, however, it is confined to the northern mountainous districts of Scotland, where it is becoming more scarce every year.
In the New World 35 species of Felis are met with, chief of which are the Puma and the Jaguar. The Puma (F. concolor)—see map—sometimes called the Cougar, has an exceedingly wide distribution, its range ot latitude probably surpassing that of any other Mammal. From the Great Slave Lake and New England in the north, to Patagonia (and perhaps Tierra del Fuego) in the south, it is of pretty general distribution, though becoming scarcer with the march of civilisation. In North America it inhabits principally the Western States, occurring most numerously in Northern Washington. In accordance with the great latitudinal range which it covers, the Puma is subject to a wide variation of temperature, but it is equally at home tracking its prey in the snow or wandering in hot, fetid swamps. It is an expert climber, occurring in the Andes at 11,000 feet, and also lives in the open pampas and prairies. The Jaguar (F. onca)—see map—is another very wide-ranging American cat, but does not occur so far north as the Puma. It occurs from Texas and Northern Mexico to 40° S. latitude in Northern Patagonia.
The second genus of Felidse (Lynx) is that containing the Caracal and the Lynxes, the latter being the most northern representatives of the family. The former (L. caracal) is an animal inhabiting Western Asia from the Transcaspian district to the Eastern Himalayas, and also in Arabia and the greater part of Africa. The true Lynxes, eight in number, are found in the northern and temperate regions of both Old and New Worlds. Five of these are peculiar to North America, while the other three are European and Asiatic. A good deal of difference of opinion exists among zoologists as to the distinctness of all these species, some authorities contending that both Old and New World forms are mere varieties of one. The northern Lynx of the Old World (Lynx lynx) inhabits Europe and Northern Asia, from Scandinavia to the Amur district and Saghalien. It seems to have been exterminated from Central Europe, but in Asia it still extends southwards as far as the Himalayas. Its remains have been found in caverns in Britain, but there is no evidence of its occurrence within the historic period. The American species range from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the Arctic Ocean and Hudson Bay to Southern California, or even to Mexico.
The third and last genus of Felidse is that known as Cynailurus. Only one species is known (C. jubatus), which is popularly called the Cheetah or Hunting Leopard. This animal is found in Southern and Western Asia, from Syria and the Caspian region to Central and Western India, and throughout Africa from Algeria and Egypt to the Cape. In South Africa a form occurs (originally described as a distinct species) in which the body is stouter and covered with a thicker and more woolly fur.
The skins of a number of species belonging to this family are of value in commerce, notably the Lion, Tiger, Leopard, Puma, and the Lynxes. They are principally used for rugs, carriage wraps, and saddle-cloths. Of the Canadian Lynx (L. canadensis) from 20,000 to 50,000 skins are annually brought into the market.
At least 80 fossil species of Felidse have been described. Of these 50 form a separate and extinct sub-family (Machserodinse), and their distribution is mainly North American and European.
ORDER R0DENTIA (2664 Species).
The Order of Rodents, or Gnawing Mammals, is a vast assemblage of small or medium-sized animals, all characterised by the habit of gnawing, for which purpose they are provided with a pair of incisor teeth in each jaw, which grow continuously throughout life and which, by their peculiar method of wearing, are always kept chisel-shaped. In this, the largest of the Mammalian Orders, two Sub-Orders are sometimes recognised, the first of which (Dupliddentata) contains only the families Leporidse and Ochotonidse, and is characterised by the presence of two pairs of incisor teeth in the upper jaw. The second Sub-Order (Simplicidentata), whose members only possess a single pair of such teeth in each jaw, contains all the other families, and is divided into three sections which are distinguished by anatomical characters of a nature that need not be discussed here.
Rodents are cosmopolitan in their distribution, the families having the widest range being the Leporidse, Hystricidse, Sciuridse and Muridse. The last-named possesses representatives in all the regions, while the other three are only absent from the Australian region. The Ochotonidse and Jaculidse are somewhat widely distributed in both North America and the Old World, while the Octodontidse are almost exclusively Neotropical and Ethiopian and the Castoridse Nearctic and Palsearctic. The Spalacidse and Myoxidse are purely Old World inhabitants ; the Lophiomyidse, Pedetidse, Bathyergidse and Anomaluridse are confined to the Ethiopian region; the Geomyidse and Haplodontidse only occur in North and Central America; while lastly the Caviidse, Dinomyidse and Chinchillidse are entirely Neotropical in their distribution, and the Dasyproctidse mainly so.
LEPORILiE (Hares and Rabbits; 139 Species). Plate 6, Map i.
Hares and Rabbits are of extremely wide distribution, and are found truly indigenous in all the zoological regions save the Australian. Although