Ten foxes (Vulpes melanogaster)—six males weighing 13¾ , 14, 15 16½ , 16½ , 17 lbs.; four females weighing 11, 11¾ , 13½ , 14 lbs.
Besides “small deer,” such as rats and mice, voles, moles, and dormice, to say nothing of a whole red-stag and a whole wild-boar!
[Postscript]
March 2, 1907.—Chillando this evening at the Oyillos del Tio Juan Roque, a big grey sow with numerous progeny came trotting up to within a few yards—whether to devour the supposed rabbit or merely from curiosity was not apparent. On realising the situation, she turned and dashed off with an indignant snort, followed by her striped brood, but did not go far before stopping (like Lot’s wife) to listen and look back.
Later, at the Sabinal, just upon dusk, a fox appeared about 120 yards away, down-wind. Though quite aware of our presence, both by scent and sight, he deliberately sat down on his haunches to watch; but no charm of the chillar would induce a nearer approach, and a rifle-ball whistling within an inch or two of his ears broke the spell.
On May 16, 1910, a mongoose responded with unusual alacrity to the first “call,” running up within twenty yards. This was an adult male and weighed 8½ lbs.
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We have endeavoured to rear some of these animals in captivity. The young wild-cats are by far the most intractable—perfect fiends of savage fury, quite unamenable to civilisation. The lynx at least affects a measure of subjection, but remains always unreliable and treacherous in spirit. The story of how one of our tame lynxes attacked and nearly killed a poor lavandera is told in Wild Spain, p. 447.
CHAPTER XXXV
OUR “HOME-MOUNTAINS”
THE SERRANÍA DE RONDA
I. San Cristobal and the Pinsápo Region