This is another member of the family, the peculiarities of which are so great as to necessitate its being placed in a separate genus. It is very different from an ordinary Dog, and has the look of a Racoon, which, as we shall see afterwards, is a member of one of the families of Arctoidea, and far removed from the Dogs. The body is covered with long brown fur; the ears are short and rounded. The back is curiously arched, almost like that of a Marten or Weasel; the legs are short and slender. The body attains a length of almost twenty-eight inches; the prettily-feathered tail is about four inches in length. The teeth equal in number those of ordinary Dogs.
THE HYÆNA-DOG.[136]
This curious animal, sometimes called the “Cape Hunting Dog,” is found over the greater part of trans-Saharal Africa, being especially abundant in the neighbourhood of Cape Colony. Of all the Cynoids it is the species which shows the greatest approximation to the Æluroid type. It is, to all intents and purposes, a Dog, but yet in some few respects shows a decided relationship with the Hyænas; for instance, the back slopes slightly towards the hinder quarter, the muzzle is black, and of that ugly snub-nosed character so characteristic of Hyænas, the ears are long and straight, and the tail scanty. It differs also from the true Dogs in having only four toes on all the feet, instead of five on the fore feet and four on the hind feet. The skull and teeth are quite Cynoid in character: the former presenting only one single slight and unimportant point in which it tends to resemble that of a Hyæna.
The Lycaon is about the size of a Wolf. Its skin varies a good deal in its markings. “White, black, and yellow ochre are its chief tints; the white predominates in some, the black in others, and forms the fundamental colours; the spots are very irregular, sometimes large, sometimes small, very varyingly disposed on the surface of the body; the white and ochreous spots are always mixed with black. The colouration of the head is the most constant; the muzzle is black up to the eyes; and black bands are prolonged between the eye and ear, along the top of the head, to the neck. The tail is usually tolerably regular in colouration: it is ochreous at the root, black in the middle, white or ochreous at the tip; the eyes are brown.”
The Hyæna-Dogs are partly diurnal, partly nocturnal in their habits. They like fresh meat, and are, at the same time, partial to carrion.
“These animals invariably hunt together in large organised packs, varying in numbers from ten to sixty, and by their extraordinary powers of endurance and mode of mutual assistance, they are enabled to run into the swiftest and overcome the largest and most powerful Antelope. Their pace is a long, never-tiring gallop, and in the chase they relieve one another, the leading Hounds falling to the rear when fatigued, when others who have been husbanding their strength come up and relieve them. Having succeeded in bringing their quarry to bay, they all surround him, and he is immediately dragged to the ground, and in a few minutes torn to pieces and consumed.
“Their voices consist of three different kinds of cry, each being used on special occasions. One of their cries is a sharp angry bark, usually uttered when they suddenly behold an object which they cannot make out. Another resembles a number of Monkeys chattering together, or conversing when their teeth are chattering violently from cold. This cry is emitted at night, when large numbers of them are together and they are excited by any particular occurrence, such as being barked at by Domestic Dogs. The third cry, and the one most commonly uttered by them, is a sort of rallying note to bring the various members of the pack together when they have been scattered in following several individuals of a troop of Antelopes. It is a peculiarly soft and melodious cry, yet, nevertheless, may be distinguished at a great distance. It very much resembles the second note uttered by the Cuckoo, which visits our island during the summer months; and when heard on a calm morning echoing through the distant woodlands, it has a very pleasing effect.”[137]
HYÆNA DOG.