Chapter II: The Dusky Gelada. Theropithecus Obscurus

_Theropithecus obscurus_, Heuglin, Act. Acad. Leop., xxx., Nachtrag, p.
10 (1863); Schl., Mus. Pays Bas, vii., p. 107 (1876).

_? Theropithecus senex_, Schimper et Puch., Rev. Zool., 1857, p. 244.

{279}CHARACTERS.--Nearly allied to _T. gelada_, but distinguished by its darker colour, the flesh-coloured ring round the eyes, and the two naked spots on the chest at the base of the neck, surrounded by white hairs, extending to the inner side of the arm.

Face naked, the chin thinly haired, the nose-pad situated behind the blunt and broad end of the muzzle; eyes small, set close together, deep sunk beneath the prominent overhanging frontal ridges; ears small; sides of the head entirely covered with woolly hair; mane long, soft, and thick. Length of body, 53 inches; tail, 26 inches.

Face black, but with a broad flesh-coloured ring round each eye; scanty hairs on the chin white; top of head and back dark brown; mane on fore-neck and shoulders, arms, and hind part of the hands pure black; sides of head and neck, rump, and tail dirty ochre; naked spots on breast dark flesh-coloured, more vivid in passion; breast and inner side of fore-arm, and middle of chest white; rest of under surface pale brown. Callosities bluish-grey.

FEMALE AND YOUNG.--Almost uniform fulvous, but the mane less marked.

DISTRIBUTION.--North-east Africa; on the eastern boundary of Abyssinia, near the sources of the Takazze river, on the confines of the Galla country. Dr. Blanford observed it also near Magdala.

HABITS.--This large and "stately" Baboon, known to the natives as "Tokur-Sinjero" (or Black Baboon), lives in large troops in the high mountains of Abyssinia, at an altitude of from 6,000 to 10,000 feet. It is seldom seen among trees, but generally in open plains, or in inaccessible rocky cliffs, from which it hurls stones on anyone who dares to approach. {280}During the night these Baboons hide together in holes in the rocks, whence, on the return of the morning sun, they emerge and sit warming themselves, before starting on their marauding expeditions in the cultivated fields, or in the vegetation which clothes the sides of the deep valleys, where they feed largely on the leaves of the trees. Their disposition is, among themselves, harmless. As a rule two to six year old males lead with grave strides a herd of twenty to thirty females and young, the latter now playing with each other, and scampering about the troop, now carried by their mothers, and sometimes pinched and boxed on the ears by them. As soon as, but not before, the leader has assured himself of any danger, he utters a gentle bark, to which the whole troop responds and retreats back into safety among the rocks. The old males then stand on their hind-feet barking and displaying to the intruder their long white teeth. On their marauding expeditions, or when in flight, they do not usually exhibit great haste, the whole troop generally going in single file with an old Sultan bringing up the rear. Often several troops mingle together during the day, but at nightfall each returns to its own headquarters.

Their cry is a sharp bark, but that of the old males is very hoarse. One of their great enemies is the Lämmergeier or Bearded Vulture.

These observations have been extracted from the account given of this species by von Heuglin, who discovered it during his Abyssinian expedition in 1853.

THE MALAYAN BABOONS. GENUS CYNOPITHECUS.

_Cynopithecus_, Is. Geoffr., in Belanger's Voyage, p. 66 (1834).

This genus has been constituted to include the single species {281}described below; the characters of the genus being thus, perforce, the same as those of the species.

THE CELEBEAN BLACK BABOON. CYNOPITHECUS NIGER.

_Cynocephalus niger_, Desm., Mamm., p. 534 (1820).

_Macacus niger_, Bennett, Gard, and Menag. Zool. Soc., p. 189, with
figure (1830); Schl., Mus. Pays Bas, vii., p. 119 (1876).

_Cynopithecus niger_, Is. Geoffr., in Bélanger's Voyage, p. 66 (1834);
Lesson, Quadrum., p. 101 (1840); Gray, Cat. Monkeys Brit. Mus., p. 33
(1870).

_Papio niger_ et _P. nigrescens_, Temm., Possess. Néerl. Ind., iii., p.
111 (1847).

_Cynopithecus niger_, vel _nigrescens_, Wagner in Schreb., Säugeth.
Suppl., v., p. 61, tab. 6 (1855).

_Cynopithecus nigrescens_, Wallace, Malay Arch., i., p. 432 (1869).

CHARACTERS.--About the size of a Spaniel; head oblong; face very elongated, naked; neck, hands, and feet also naked; nose triangular, the sides erect, flattened behind nearly to the eyes, not extending to the end of the muzzle, but leaving a broad upper lip; nostrils, with a long and broad partition between them, directed downwards and outwards--a character seen in the genus _Macacus_, and distinguishing this genus from the true Baboons (_Cynocephalus_); cheek-swellings parallel to the nose, distinct, but not conspicuously large; supra-orbital ridges very conspicuous; cheek-pouches large; tail rudimentary, reduced to a fleshy tubercle, one inch long, and hardly visible. Length, 24 inches.

Fur long and woolly over the body; especially long on the top of the head, forming a crest; hair of the limbs shorter.

{282}Face, neck, hands, and feet black; fur all over the body and limbs jet-black; callosities bright flesh-colour.

In the skull the maxillary bones are developed into strong lateral ridges corresponding in structure to those of the most typical Baboons.

DISTRIBUTION.--This species is found far away from the habitat of the true Baboons, whose home is in the Ethiopian Region. The Black Baboon is an inhabitant of Celebes, one of the islands of the eastern portion of the Malay Archipelago. It is found, however, also in the neighbouring island of Batchian, further to the east--indeed the most easterly range of the Quadrumana--as well as in some of the Philippine Islands to the west. In both of these regions it is supposed to have been accidentally introduced by the Malays. In Batchian, Mr. Wallace remarks, "it seems so much out of place that it is difficult to imagine how it could have reached the island by any natural means of dispersal, and yet not have passed by the same means over the narrow strait to Gilolo--so that it seems more likely to have originated from some individuals which had escaped from confinement, these and similar animals being often kept as pets by the Malays and carried about in their praus." Analogous to the distribution of this animal in the Philippines and Celebes is that of a genus of Parrots--_Prioniturus_--with racquet-shaped tails. The species of the latter genus are divided between Celebes and its small adjacent islands and the Philippines and the small islands adjacent to that archipelago, and present a curious case of the restricted range of a well-marked group.

HABITS.--This interesting animal, geographically so isolated, lives in the luxuriant forests in small companies, and feeds chiefly on the abundant fruits which these forests provide. In its {283}disposition it appears to be more amiable and docile than the African Baboons. Some kinds of Monkeys, as Mr. Darwin observes, which have moveable ears, and fight with their teeth, draw back their ears when irritated just like Dogs, and then they have a very spiteful appearance.... Other kinds--and this is a great anomaly in comparison with most other animals--retract their ears, "and utter a slight jabbering noise when they are pleased by being caressed. I observed this in the _Cynopithecus niger_.... With the _Cynopithecus_ the corners of the mouth are at the same time drawn backwards and upwards, so that the teeth are exposed. Hence this expression would never be recognised by a stranger as one of pleasure. The crest of long hairs on the forehead is depressed, and apparently the whole skin of the head is drawn backwards. The eyebrows are thus raised a little, and the eyes assume a staring appearance. The lower eyelids also become slightly wrinkled; but this wrinkling is not conspicuous, owing to the permanent transverse furrows on the face." When enraged, the _Cynopithecus niger_ depresses the crest of hair on its forehead, and shows its teeth; "so that," as Mr. Darwin continues, "the movements of the features from anger are nearly the same as those from pleasure; and the two expressions can be distinguished only by those familiar with the animal." See the figures in Mr. Darwin's "Emotions in Man," &c., p. 136.

{285}APPENDIX.

While this volume was passing through the press, a valuable paper by Messrs. Oldfield Thomas and Ernst Hartert has appeared in the Hon. Walter Rothschild's Journal "Novitates Zoologicæ." It deals with the Mammalia collected in the Natuna Islands by Mr. Alfred Everett, and the following additional notes must be recorded.

p. 20. TARSIUS TARSIUS.

_Tarsius spectrum_, Oldfield Thomas and Hartert, Nov. Zool., i., p. 655
(1894).

Mr. Everett says that on Banguran Island he could hear nothing of the existence of the Tarsier, but on Sirhassen Island the Malays described it to him unmistakably under the name of "Imbing."

p. 33. NYCTICEBUS TARDIGRADUS.

Mr. Everett procured specimens of the Javan Slow-Loris on the island of Banguran, where, he says, it is probably not rare, though not often captured; the native name is "Kukáng." The natives of Banguran did not appear to know the animal.

p. 100 _et sequent._ PROPITHECUS MAJORI.

_Propithecus majori_, Rothschild, Nov. Zool., i., p. 666, pi. xiv.
(1894).

{286}ADULT.--Head and neck black. Face, snout, and ears naked, and of a blackish colour, encircled by a broad band of long white hairs, joining under the throat, slightly mixed with darker hairs. Rest of fur, including the tail, white on the upper surface; back and upper rump dark brown. The large white patch on and between the shoulders much grizzled with brown hairs. Under side of hind-limbs, to just below the knees, blackish-brown. Inside of hind-limbs down to the heel also brown, joining the colour of the upper surface, thus forming a continuous dark stripe along the legs. Inner and upper surface of arms, thumb, and two following fingers, deep blackish-brown; throat, chest, and greater part of abdomen, deep brown. Size perceptibly larger than that of _Propithecus verreauxi_, with the tail longer.

This species of _Propithecus_ is nearest to the typical _P. verreauxi_ of Grandidier, which is white, with the top of the head black, and the lower back and rump greyish-brown, but is no doubt an entirely different species. (_Rothschild_, _l.c._)

DISTRIBUTION.--Antimosy country, S.W. Madagascar.

END OF VOL. I.

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Notes.

[1] [Greek: anthrôpos]--Man.

[2] [Greek: heteros], different, [Greek: odous], a tooth.

[3] [Greek: homos], the same, [Greek: odous], a tooth.

[4] [Greek: diphuês], double, [Greek: odous], a tooth.

[5] N.B.--These descriptions of new species have been kindly supplied by
Dr. Forsyth Major from his MSS., and I am much indebted to him for
allowing them to be first published in the present work.

[6] N.B.--The white feet should have been more pronounced in the plate.

[7] [Greek: Kata], down; [Greek: rhis, rhinos], nose.

[8] [Greek: platys], flat; [Greek: rhis, rhinos], nose.

[9] Vide anteà, p. 145.

[10] "Red-footed Night-Monkey," on plate.

[11] See the figures in Flower and Lydekker, Mammals, p. 711.

[12] This curious custom, of women suckling animals, was also observed by
the present writer in New Guinea, where the native women suckle
puppies and young pigs.

[13] Humboldt and Stedman both state that these Monkeys _threw_ pieces of
branches towards them.

[14] [Greek: kata], down; [Greek: rhis, rhinos], nose or nostril.

* * * * *

Corrections made to printed text

P. 15. 'long vacuity between incisors and pre-molar' corrected from '... canines and pre-molar' (canines are absent!)

P. 147 (ears) 'exposed' corrected from 'ex-exposed' (line break).

P. 182 'Jacchus [Hapale] bicolor' corrected from 'facchus...'

P. 262 'terminating' (in a tuft of hairs) corrected from 'teminating'.