. Animals in menageries. ay, and seize it again, as acat would play with a mouse. It had all the mannersof a cat when surprising a bird, not excepting the agi-tation of the tail; and when caressed, it purred in thesame manner. Major Smith also mentions having seena puma which was particularly tame. It was merelysecured by a chain, and lived in a waggon, under theseat of its keeper. When about to be fed, a piece ofmeat was flung into a tree, and his chain being coiled,the animal was desired to fetch his food: this task heimmediately performed with surprising ease and do-cility, by two or three
. Animals in menageries. ay, and seize it again, as acat would play with a mouse. It had all the mannersof a cat when surprising a bird, not excepting the agi-tation of the tail; and when caressed, it purred in thesame manner. Major Smith also mentions having seena puma which was particularly tame. It was merelysecured by a chain, and lived in a waggon, under theseat of its keeper. When about to be fed, a piece ofmeat was flung into a tree, and his chain being coiled,the animal was desired to fetch his food: this task heimmediately performed with surprising ease and do-cility, by two or three bounds. The same accurateobserver remarks, in drawing a comparison between thephysical powers of the jaguar and the puma of the^NewWorld, that the latter is of the most cruel and sanguin-ary disposition in a state of nature, though easy to betamed; yet it is inferior to the jaguar in bodily powers,and still more in energy and courage. * Griff. Cuv. ii. 438. 109 The Jaguar, or American Once. Felis Onca, Gmelin. (Fig. 12.). This formidable species, the most powerful of all theAmerican carnivorous quadrupeds, is but little inferiorin size to the tiger of the Asiatic continent. In itsmarking, however, it more resembles the panthers andleopards of Africa, particularly in the spots or rings; butthose towards the back of the American animal have acentral black dot, which is never seen in the two formeranimals. The tail also, in this, never reaches furtherthan to the ground; and this is considered by majorSmith as one of the best distinctions between these ani-mals. The native manners of the jaguar have been de-scribed by various writers, but more especially byAzara. It preys upon animals of the largest descrip-tion, as cows and young bulls, but horses appear to beits favourite game. It destroys these bulky quadru-peds by leaping on their back; and by placing one pawon the muzzle and one upon the head, they exert suchforce as to break the neck of their victim in a will then
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Keywords: ., bookauthorrichmondch, bookcentury1800, booksubjectanimalbehavior
