Natural History in Anecdote Part 7

The Hyaena, though long treated as a member of the dog family, is now separately cla.s.sified as the Hyaenidae, a family of one genus and three species, all of which are found in Africa. The Hyaena is also found in Egypt, Arabia, Persia and other parts of Asia. He has immensely powerful teeth with which he can crush the bones of his victims, apparently eating bones and flesh with impunity. He is nocturnal in his habits, living in caves and hollows in the day time and prowling about at night in search of prey. Speaking of the Barbary hyaena Bruce says:--"He seems to be stupid or senseless in the day, or at the appearance of strong light, unless when pursued by hunters. I have locked up a goat, a kid, and a lamb, with him all day when he was fasting, and found them in the evening alive and unhurt." The principle varieties are the striped Hyaena, and the spotted Hyaena. Bruce speaking of the former says, "he is brutish, indolent, slovenly and impudent and seems to possess much the manners of the wolf. His courage appears to proceed from an insatiable appet.i.te, and has nothing of the brave or generous in it, and he dies oftener flying than fighting." The cry of the hyaena, sometimes called a laugh, begins with a moan and ends with a demoniacal shriek which has been variously described by travellers but which all agree in calling hideous and disgusting. In size he resembles a large mastiff, but the formation of his neck and jaws give him a power far beyond that of other animals of his size. Whatever fear he may have of man, he has none of other animals and will even face the lion. Bruce speaks of his special liking for the flesh of the dog and of the dog's reluctance to face him. "My greyhounds, accustomed to fasten upon the wild boar, would not venture to engage with him. On the contrary, there was not a journey I made that he did not kill several of my greyhounds, and once or twice robbed me of my whole stock: he would seek and seize them in the servants' tents where they were tied, and endeavour to carry them away before the very people that were guarding them." His coat is covered with long coa.r.s.e hairs of a dirty grey colour, which form a mane the length of his back, his sides being striped or spotted, according to the species. The hyaena for all his repulsiveness serves a useful purpose, as a scavenger, devouring all the offal which comes in its way, including the dead of his own species which no other animal will touch.

The hyaena can be tamed and taught to follow its master and to hunt other animals.

The Striped Hyaena.

Bruce tells the following story of the impudence of the striped hyaena.

"One night in Maitsha, being very intent on observation, I heard something pa.s.s behind me towards the bed, but upon looking round could perceive nothing. Having finished what I was then about, I went out of my tent, resolving directly to return, which I immediately did, when I perceived large blue eyes glaring at me in the dark. I called upon my servant with a light; and there was the hyaena standing nigh the head of the bed, with two or three large bunches of candles in his mouth. To have fired at him, I was in danger of breaking my quadrant or other furniture; and he seemed, by keeping the candles steadily in his mouth, to wish for no other prey at that time. As his mouth was full, and he had no claws to tear with, I was not afraid of him, but with a pike struck him as near the heart as I could judge. It was not till then he showed any sign. of fierceness; but, upon feeling his wound, he let drop the candles, and endeavoured to run up the shaft of the spear to arrive at me; so that, in self-defence, I was obliged to draw out a pistol from my girdle and shoot him, and nearly at the same time my servant cleft his skull with a battle-axe. In a word, the hyaena was the plague of our lives, the terror of our night-walks, the destruction of our mules and a.s.ses, which above all others are his favourite food."

The Spotted Hyaena.

The spotted hyaena belongs to South Africa and seems to possess more daring than his cousin of Abyssinia, and to show a greater preference for human food. According to Mr. Stepstone, the Mambookies build their houses in the form of a beehive from eighteen to twenty feet in diameter, placing a raised platform at the back and leaving the front-area for the accommodation of the calves at night. Thus the animals are nearest to the door, notwithstanding which the hyaena will "pa.s.s by the calves and take the children from under the mother's kaross; and this in such a gentle and cautious manner, that the poor parent is unconscious of her loss, until the cries of her little innocent have reached her from without, when it has been a close prisoner in the jaws of the monster." Many years ago, when animals were kept at the Tower of London, the den of a spotted hyaena required some repair. "The carpenter," says Mrs. Bowdich, "nailed a thick oaken plank upon the floor, about seven feet long, putting at least a dozen nails into it, each longer than his middle finger. At one end of this piece of wood there was a small projection, and not having a proper chisel with him by which he might remove it, the man returned to his shop to fetch one. While he was absent some persons came to see the animals, and the hyaena was let down by the keeper into the part of the den in which the carpenter had been at work. Directly the beast saw the projecting piece of wood he seized it with his teeth, tore the plank up, and drew out every nail with the utmost ease; which action will give a good idea of the muscular strength of this creature."

A Narrow Escape.

Sparrman tells an amusing story of the daring and the fright of a hyaena, as follows: "One night, at a feast near the Cape, a trumpeter who had made himself drunk with liquor was carried out of doors and laid on the gra.s.s, in order that the air might both cool and sober him. The scent of the man soon attracted a spotted hyaena, which threw him on his back, and carried him away towards Table Mountain. The hyaena doubtless supposed that the senseless drunkard was a _corpse_, and consequently a fair prize. In the meantime the musician awoke, and was at once sufficiently sensible to know the danger of his situation, and to sound the alarm with his trumpet, which he fortunately carried at his side. The hyaena, as it may be imagined, was greatly frightened in its turn, and immediately ran away, leaving the trumpeter, it is to be hoped, 'a wiser man' for his extraordinary ride. It is remarkable that the soldier was not seriously injured by the hyaena, for the teeth of the animal were fortunately fastened in the coat and not in the flesh of the man."

Animals of the Dog Kind.

Animals of the dog kind, are neither so numerous, nor, in general, so ferocious as those of the panther or cat kind. The princ.i.p.al species are the wolf, the jackal, the fox, and the dog. This cla.s.s may be princ.i.p.ally distinguished by their claws, which have no sheath like those of the cat kind, but are placed at the point of each toe, without the capability of being stretched forward or drawn back. The nose, as well as the jaw, of all the dog kind, is longer than in the cat; the body in proportion more strongly made, and covered with hair instead of fur. They also far exceed the other kind in the sense of smell, the olfactory nerves being diffused upon a very extensive membrane within the skull, which accounts for their surprising acuteness in this sense.

The Wolf.

The Wolf is about three feet and a half long, and about two feet and a half high, larger than our great breed of mastiffs, which are seldom more than three feet by two. He bears a great resemblance to the dog, but is much stronger, and the length of his hair contributes still more to his robust appearance. The feature which princ.i.p.ally distinguishes the visage of the wolf from that of the dog, is the eye, which opens slantingly upwards in the same direction with the nose; whereas, in the dog, it opens more at right angles with the nose, as in man. The colour of the eyeb.a.l.l.s in the wolf, is a fiery green, giving his visage a fierce and formidable air. He generally hides by day in the thickest coverts, and only ventures out at night; when, sallying forth over the country, he keeps peering round the villages, and carries off such animals as are not under protection--attacks the sheep-fold, scratches up and undermines the thresholds of doors where the sheep are housed, enters furiously, and destroys all before he begins to fix upon and carry off his prey. The wolf has great strength, particularly in his foreparts, and the muscles of his neck and jaws. He carries off a sheep in his mouth without letting it touch the ground, and runs with it much faster than the shepherds who pursue him; so that nothing but the dogs can overtake and oblige him to quit his prey. Notwithstanding his great strength, cunning, and agility, the wolf being the declared enemy of man, is often hard pressed for subsistence; he has always a gaunt and starved appearance, and, indeed, often dies of hunger. He has been hunted down, and is now rarely to be found in civilized countries.

The Fox.

The Fox is of a much more slender make than the wolf, and not nearly so large, being little more than two feet long. The tail is longer and more bushy, the nose smaller, approaching nearer to that of the greyhound, and its hair softer. Its eyes, however, are obliquely set, like those of the wolf. The fox has long been famous for cunning; he is patient and prudent, and gains by address what is denied to his courage or strength.

He is most destructive to poultry. When he gets into a farm-yard, he begins by levelling all the poultry without remorse, and carrying off a part of the spoil, he hides it at some convenient distance. Returning, he carries off another fowl, which he hides in like manner, but not in the same place; and this he repeats several times, until the approach of day, or the noise of the domestics, warns him to retire to his hole. He often destroys a large quant.i.ty of game, seizing the partridge and quail while sitting on their nests. He even eats rats, mice, serpents, toads, and lizards. In vain does the hedge-hog roll itself up into a ball to oppose him; he teases it until it is obliged to appear uncovered, and then devours it. Besides the common Fox (_Vulpes Vulgaris_), there are numerous varieties, of which the Tahaleb or Egyptian Fox and the Fennec (_Feneca Zaarensis_) of North Africa, the Kit Fox, the Red, the Grey and the Silver Fox of North America, and the Arctic Fox (_Leucocyon lagopus_) are the best known.

The Jackal.

The Jackal, one of the most common of wild animals in the East, is about the size of the fox, but in shape it more nearly resembles the wolf. Its colour is a bright yellow, or sorrel. Its cry is a howl, mixed with barking, and a lamentation resembling that of human distress. The jackal may be considered as the vulture of the quadruped kind; the most putrid substances that once had life, are greedily devoured. Like the hyaena, the jackals scratch up with their feet the new-made grave, and devour the contents, however decomposed. While at this dreary work, they make a mournful cry, like that of children under chastis.e.m.e.nt, and having thus dug up the body, they amicably share it. In countries, therefore, where they abound, the people are obliged to beat the earth over the grave, and mix it with thorns, to prevent the jackals from sc.r.a.ping it away.

The jackal never goes alone, but always in packs of forty or fifty together. They watch the burying-grounds, follow armies, and keep in the rear of caravans. The jackal, after having tired down its prey, is often deprived of the spoil by the lion, the panther, or the tiger, whose appet.i.tes are superior to their swiftness; these attend its call, and devour the prey which it has run down by its unceasing perseverance; and this circ.u.mstance has given rise to the erroneous opinion, that the jackal is the lion's provider. The jackal is found in some parts of Europe and abounds in most parts of Asia. Those of the warmest climates are the largest, and their colour is rather of a reddish brown than of that beautiful yellow by which the smaller jackals are distinguished.

Like the Fox it forms burrows in the earth and emits an offensive odour.

The Wolf's Mode of Attack.

"The Wolf," says Professor Duncan in "Ca.s.sell's Natural History", "usually lives in solitary places in mountains; but in Spain he is said sometimes to make his lair in corn-fields, in close proximity to inhabited dwellings. Here he lives with his wife and family, usually _cache_ during the day, and issuing forth at night to take his prey.

During the warmer periods of the year wolves, as a rule, hunt each one for himself, but in winter they often unite into great packs, and pursue their prey over the snow at a rapid pace and with indomitable perseverance. Swift and untiring must be the animal which, on an open plain, can escape from them; even the horse, perfectly constructed as he is for rapid running, is almost certain to succ.u.mb, unless he can reach a village before his pace begins to flag. They never spring upon an animal from an ambush--the nearest approach ever made to such a mode of attack being their practice of attacking sheepfolds by leaping into the midst of the flock and killing right and left; when they reach their prey, too, the first onslaught is made with their teeth, and never by a blow of the paw. Thus, a wolfs attack--like that of all members of the genus Canis--is entirely different from a cat's. The cat lies in ambush all alone, springs upon the pa.s.sing prey, which if he misses he scarcely ever pursues, and kills by a blow of the paw. The dog and wolf attack openly, sometimes alone, but oftener in company, pursue their prey with unflagging energy until it falls a victim, and give the death-wound at once with their teeth."

The Wolf's Cunning.

That the wolf sometimes employs cunning as well as savagery in seeking his prey is shown by the following story from "Broke's Travels in the North of Sweden": "I observed, on setting out from Sormjole, the last post, that the peasant who drove my sledge was armed with a cutla.s.s; and, on inquiring the reason, was told that, the day preceding, while he was pa.s.sing in his sledge the part of the forest we were then in, he had encountered a wolf, which was so daring, that it actually sprang over the hinder part of the sledge he was driving, and attempted to carry off a small dog which was sitting behind him. During my journey from Tornea to Stockholm, I heard everywhere of the ravages committed by wolves, not upon the human species or the cattle, but chiefly upon the peasants' dogs, considerable numbers of which had been devoured. I was told that these were the favourite prey of this animal; and that, in order to seize upon them with the greater ease, it puts itself into a crouching posture, and begins to play several antic tricks, to attract the attention of the poor dog, which, caught by these seeming demonstrations of friends.h.i.+p, and fancying it to be one of his own species, from the similarity, advances towards it to join in the gambols, and is carried off by its treacherous enemy. Several peasants that I conversed with mentioned their having been eye-witnesses of this circ.u.mstance."

The Wolf's Cowardice.

Mr. Lloyd in his "Field Sports in the North of Europe" gives a remarkable ill.u.s.tration of the cowardice of the wolf when caught in a trap. "A peasant near St. Petersburg," says Mr. Lloyd, "when one day in his sledge, was pursued by eleven of these ferocious animals. At this time he was only about two miles from home, towards which he urged his horse at the very top of his speed. At the entrance to his residence was a gate, which happened to be closed at the time; but the horse dashed this open, and thus himself and his master found refuge within the court-yard. They were followed, however, by nine out of the eleven wolves; but, very fortunately, at the instant these had entered the enclosure, the gate swung back on its hinges, and thus they were caught as in a trap. From being the most voracious of animals, the nature of these beasts--now that they found escape impossible--became completely changed: so far, indeed, from offering molestation to any one, they slunk into holes and corners, and allowed themselves to be slaughtered almost without making resistance."

[Ill.u.s.tration: Hunted by Wolves]

Hunted by Wolves.

Many terrible stories are told of the depredations caused by packs of wolves, especially in Russia, and of the desperate adventures travellers have met with when attacked by them. The story of the Russian peasant, who, to save his master's family, leaped out of the sledge and faced the pack alone, thus delaying the wolves by his own self-sacrifice, while the sledge proceeded on its journey, is one of these. In contrast to this is the story of the Russian woman, given by Mr. Lloyd in the work already quoted.

A Terrible Alternative.

A woman, accompanied by three of her children, was one day in a sledge, when they were pursued by a number of wolves. She put the horse into a gallop, and drove towards her home with the utmost speed. She was not far from it; but the ferocious animals gained upon her, and were on the point of rus.h.i.+ng on to the sledge. For the preservation of her own life and that of the remaining children, the poor, frantic creature cast one of them to her bloodthirsty pursuers. This stopped their career for a moment; but, after devouring the poor child, they renewed the pursuit, and a second time came up with the vehicle. The mother, driven to desperation, resorted to the same horrible expedient, and threw another of her offspring to her ferocious a.s.sailants. The third child was also sacrificed in the same way, and soon after the wretched being reached her home in safety. Here she related what had happened, and endeavoured to palliate her own conduct by describing the dreadful alternative to which she had been, reduced. A peasant, however, who was among the bystanders, and heard the recital, took up an axe, and with one blow cleft her skull in two, saying at the same time, "that a mother who could thus sacrifice her children for the preservation of her own life, was no longer fit to live." The man was committed to prison, but the Emperor subsequently granted him a pardon.

A Marvellous Escape.

Equally terrible and more marvellous is the story of the adventure of a Russian family which took place as recently as the winter of 1894-5. A peasant was riding in a sleigh in company with his wife and child, when he became aware that they were being pursued by wolves. He urged the horses to their utmost speed but it soon became evident that the wolves would overtake them before they could reach a place of safety. Urged to desperation, the peasant ordered his wife to throw the child to the wolves, hoping thereby to gain time and thus escape. The wife refused to part with her little one, whereupon an altercation ensued, during which the peasant tried to drag the child from her arms with a view to throwing it to the wolves himself. In the struggle both mother and child fell from the vehicle, and with a lightened load the horses dashed forward at an even greater speed. For some apparently unaccountable reason, however, the wolves took no notice of the mother and child and continued to pursue the sleigh, possibly antic.i.p.ating the larger meal that the horses would supply. In this they were not disappointed, for they succeeded in overtaking the sleigh, and the peasant and the horses fell victims to their ravage. In the meantime the mother and child found their way to a farm house where they were sheltered until danger was past.

Tame Wolves.

Notwithstanding his natural fierceness, the wolf becomes tame under kindly treatment, and shows much affection for those who cherish him.

Instances are common in which wolves have remembered their benefactors, after years of absence, and have shown every demonstration of joy on recognition. They have even been harnessed and taught to draw carriages and to fulfil other useful offices. With wolves, as with many other animals, hunger and thirst are apparently the princ.i.p.al causes of savagery and the struggle for existence the main cause of rapacity and cruelty.

The Cunning of the Fox.

The cunning of the fox is proverbial and if only one half of the stories told about him are true, there are quite sufficient to invest him with a degree of artfulness which is apparently unique. The extraordinary way in which he will feign himself dead, whether when hunting or being hunted, is a proof of this, as are also the various tricks he will resort to, to throw his pursuers off the scent. Captain Brown tells a story of a fox who leapt a high wall and crouched under it on the further side until the hounds had pa.s.sed over, and then quietly returned, giving them the slip. Another fox who suddenly baffled two blood hounds who were in hot pursuit, was discovered lying full length upon a log of wood from which at first it was difficult to distinguish him. When feigning death he is said sometimes to hold his breath and hang out his tongue. He will sometimes baffle his pursuers by hanging on to a branch of a tree.

The Fox as a Hunter.

Mr. St. John tells the following story of the fox as a hunter:--"Just after it was daylight I saw a large fox come very quietly along the edge of the plantation. He looked with great care over the turf wall into the field, and seemed to long very much to get hold of some of the hares that were feeding in it, but apparently knew that he had no chance of catching one by dint of running. After considering a short time, he seemed to have formed his plans, examined the different gaps in the wall, fixed upon one which appeared to be most frequented, and laid himself down close to it in an att.i.tude like that of a cat at a mouse hole. In the meantime I watched all his plans. He then with great care and silence sc.r.a.ped a small hollow in the ground, throwing up the sand as a kind of screen. Every now and then, however, he stopped to listen, and sometimes to take a most cautious peep into the field. When he had done this, he laid himself down in a convenient posture for springing on his prey, and remained perfectly motionless, with the exception of an occasional reconnoitre of the feeding hares. When the sun began to rise, they came, one by one, from the field to the plantation: three had already come without pa.s.sing by his ambush, one within twenty yards of him; but he made no movement beyond crouching still more flatly to the ground. Presently two came directly towards him, and though he did not venture to look up, I saw, by an involuntary motion of his ear, that those quick organs had already warned him of their approach. The two hares came through the gap together and the fox, springing with the quickness of lightning, caught one and killed her immediately; he then lifted up his booty and was carrying it off, when my rifle-ball stopped his course."

A Fox Hunt.

Captain Brown tells an amusing story of the resource shown by a fox who was hard pressed near Tamary, Ireland, which is as follows. "After a short chase, Reynard disappeared, having cunningly mounted a turf stack, on the top of which he lay down flat. Finding himself, at last, perceived by one of the hounds, he left his retreat, closely pursued by the pack, ran up a stone wall, from which he sprang on the roof of an adjoining cabin, and mounted to the chimney-top. From that elevated situation he looked all around him, as if carefully reconnoitring the coming enemy. A cunning old hound approached, and, having gained the summit of the roof, had already seized the fox in imagination, when, lo!

Reynard dropped down the chimney, like a fallen star into a draw-well.

The dog looked wistfully down the dark opening, but dared not pursue the fugitive. Meantime, whilst the hound was eagerly inspecting the smoky orifice of the chimney, Reynard, half enrobed in soot, had fallen into the lap of an old woman, who, surrounded by a number of children, was gravely smoking her pipe, not at all expecting the entrance of this abrupt visitor. 'Emiladh deouil!' said the affrighted female, as she threw from her the black and red quadruped: Reynard grinned, growled, and showed his fangs; and when the sportsmen, who had secured the door, entered, they found him in possession of the kitchen, the old woman and the children having retired, in terror of the invader, to a corner of the room. The fox was taken alive."

The Arctic Fox.