cies which occurs
in the lake at Mount Abu in Rajputana, and also in Sindh and in the
Indus."

NO. 198. LUTRA AUROBRUNNEA.

HABITAT.--Nepal.

DESCRIPTION.--Fur of a rich ferruginous brown colour, the upper
surface of the head being a deeper brown than the back; the nose is
bare; the ears are small and pointed posteriorily. All the strong
bristles of the moustache, eyes, cheeks, and chin, are dark brown;
claws as in _Lutra_ (_Anderson_). Hodgson says it has a more
vermiform body than the rest of Indian otters; tail less than two
thirds of the body; nails and toes feebly developed (whence it is
classed by Gray in the next genus); fur long and rough, rich
chestnut-brown above, golden red below and on the extremities.

SIZE.--Head and body, 20 to 22 inches; tail, 12 to 13 inches.

_GENUS AONYX--CLAWLESS OTTERS_.

Muzzle bald, oblong; skull broad, depressed, shorter and more
globose than in _Lutra_; the molars larger than in the last genus;
flesh tooth larger, and with a large internal lobe; first upper
premolar generally absent; feet oblong, elongate; toes slender and
tapering; claws rudimentary.

NO. 199. AONYX LEPTONYX.
_The Clawless Otter_ (_Jerdon's No. 102_).

NATIVE NAMES.--_Chusam_, Bhotia; _Suriam_, Lepcha.

HABITAT.--Throughout the Himalayas, also in Lower Bengal and in
Burmah.

DESCRIPTION.--"Above earthy brown or chestnut brown; lips, sides of
head, chin, throat, and upper part of breast white, tinged with
yellowish-grey. In young individuals the white of the lower parts
is less distinct, sometimes very pale brownish."--_Jerdon_.

SIZE.--Head and body, 24 Inches; tail, 13.

Mason speaks of this species as common in Burmah, and McMaster
mentions his having seen in the Sitang River a colony of
white-throated otters smaller than _L. nair_, though larger than _L.
aurobrunnea_, but he did not secure specimens.

AELUROIDEA.

This section includes the Cat family (_Felidae_); the Hyaenas
(_Hyaenidae_); two families unknown in India, viz. the
_Cryptoproctidae_ and the _Protelidae_; and the Civet family
(_Viverridae_).

_FELIDAE--THE CAT FAMILY_.

This family contains the typical carnivores. There is in them
combined the greatest power of destruction, accompanied by the
simplest mechanism for producing it. All complications of dentition
and digestion disappear. Here are the few scissor-like teeth with
the enormous canines, the latter for holding and piercing the life
out of their prey, th