Kiang—Thibetan Wild Ass.

This member of the Equidæ is shown in Fig. 46 and there is an excellent specimen of it at South Kensington. I have chosen it because it is very unusual among others of its family in the possession of an inguinal and axillary whorl, feathering and crest. No other than the domestic horse that I have examined shows these patterns. They are nearly as well developed as in the horse, and require no special descrip­tion. It lives in high altitudes up to fourteen thousand feet, and travels often in large herds, its food being composed of the various woody plants of these dry and barren regions. Lydekker says that it “is remarkable for its fleetness and its capacity for getting over rough and stony ground at a great pace.” From these facts one can gather that a large portion of its working day would be spent in rapid locomo­tion from place to place in search of its sparse food-supplies and in avoiding enemies—two paramount objects of its existence which are pictured in the two animal pedometers displayed on its hairy coat.

Fig. 46.—Kiang. Side view showing inguinal (W F C) and axillary (W F C) patterns.