Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1902-09-04


lated on having within the past few
days secured specimens of the Gao
omictl and Eyra cuts, animals of the
feline family that, until about 1892.
were unknown to science. Without
doubt they are the most remarkable
and curious of all animals of the feline
family. Thus ia, specimens of these
cats have never been exhibited in any
nf the ZOOS of this country and Europe,
and the three just received are the
first animals of the kind ever seen in
the geological gardens of the world.
Like the Kawiak bear, the okapi, the
giraffe with five horn-cores and the
pigmy hippopotamus of Sierra Leone,
these peculiar little animals have re-
NAMED hidden from the explorer and
the naturalist down to within a few
years of the twentieth century, and, in
consequence, the story of their dis
covery is well worth relating.
The Cacomictl cat differs from all
ether members of the cat tribe in hav-
ing a very long body, long neck, and
in proportion to the rest of the body, a
small weasel like head, with slightly
tapering muzzle. In height the ami
nal stands about one and one-fourth
feet at the shoulders, while the tail,
proportionately longer than in any
known member of the cat family, ex-
ceeds the length of the body by almost
foot. The legs are decidedly long,
making this cat the greyhound, so to
speak, OF the feline race. A more
graceful and active animal it would be
hard to imagine, and yet there is some
thing about the animal, something in
Its general makeup, that at once re-
minds one of an otter or mink. With
body like that Of dachshund, set in
long stilt-like legs, its long neck. small
head and long, sweeping tail all con-
tribute to make very singular ami
nal.
That which still further gives the
animal an otter-like appearance is its
small ears, which have a somewhat
backward turn. In the matter of color
the Cacomictl cat differs from the gen.
eral run of cats, in being of a rather
dark Maltese color, or, more properly
speaking, the color is pretty much the
same shade as the domestic Maltese
cat
In it's habits the Cacomictl cat diff
fers from other felines quite as much
as in color and form. The lion is the
king, not only of cats, but of beasts
in general the tiger is butcher on
a large scale; the lynx is sort of bird
collector and rabbit fancier; the SER
val is a high jumper and all-around
athlete, but Felis Cacomictl deals ex-
clusively in fish, The habitat of the
Cacomictl cat is along the bank of the
Rio Grande river, in both Mexico and
Texas, from the mouth up to about
Eagle Pass, and extends north and
south into the interior of the two
countries only a short distance.
They are nocturnal animals, hiding
away during the daytime in dens
which they make for themselves in the
dense mat of tall grass growing from
the rich soil of the river banks, but
coming out at night to fish. This
the Cacomictl cat does by prowling
along the bank and perching himself
On the trunk of tree overhanging the
water, in much the same manner that
a domestic cat watches rat hole,
waiting until some unlucky fish ap-
pears on the surface, when, with a
spring almost as quick as a bolt of
lightning, he plunges into the water,
SEXES the fish and swims ashore to de-
your his prey.
In the water the Cacomictl cat is
quite in his element. With his long,
sinuous, otter-like body, he swims
with perfect ease and grace, while his
short, close, smooth, pelage offers no
resistance to the fluid through which
he moves with such surprising rapid.
ity. In fact, he is one member of the
cat family that not only does not OBJ
ject to going into the water, but
rather prefers it to the land. Just the
same, he is none the less OF genuine
cat on that account He spits and
yowls and uses his teeth and sharp
claws just as other cats do, and is as
difficult to tame as the worst tiger
that ever lived.
From the home of the Cacomict
cat down through Mexico and South
America as far as Paraguay there are
other cats that are varieties OF varia-
lions of the Felis Cacomictl, although
none of them is quite like the former.
The chief difference is that the latter
fish less and are more cat and less OF
tel than the Rio Grande variety. OF
these one is the Eyra cat, another
very rare and recently discovered ami
nal that succeeds the Cacomictl at in
northern Mexico and ranges south
through the latter country into South
Mexico. In South America the Eyra
cat is succeeded by the Yaguarondi
cat, which ranges down into Paraguay,
but no further.
The Eyra cat is not quite so large
as the Cacomictl cat has heavier
and more catlike head and ears, short
er tail. The head, shoulders and neck
are bright olive yellow, shading into
reddish buff, and then into sort OF
reddish brindled Maifese over the back
and TANKS. The Felis Yaguarondi of