OCR Text |
Show 1905.] ELAND OF THE BAHR EL GHAZAL. 289 to me typical horns are very straight, stout, and heavy, have the spiral ridges very strongly developed, and generally measure nearly as much between the tips as they do in length. The first specimens of this Eland killed by an Englishman (to my knowledge) were shot about two years ago by Col.-Sergt. Boardman, Egyptian Army, in the country west of Dem Zubeir- just north of the 7tli degree of N. latitude. The extreme thickness of the neck-skins proved too much for the worthy sergeant's taxidermic ability, and he managed to save only the skulls and horns. Beyond the facts that the animals were striped, that he could only just get his arms round their necks, and that he shot them in pyjamas from the door of his tent (!), I could not obtain much information from him. About a year ago the late Captain Haynes, R.A.M.C., while accompanying a punitive expedition in the Niam-Niam country, wounded a bull, but had to leave the animal owing to want of time. A few days later the gallant officer received the wound which caused his death, subsequent to which the head of his Eland was recovered and brought in by natives. In 1903 Mr. Leo Franco, an employe of the Forest Department, shot two bulls near old Wan, but also failed to preserve the thick skins; and quite recently tlnee British officers have succeeded in shooting specimens only a short distance from Wau. One of these fortunate sportsmen-Bimbashi Collins, Egyptian Army-has kindly sent me a letter containing a description and measurements of the two animals shot by him, and also their head-skins and hides to forward to England. From his letter, and from my examination of the skins, the following description (the credit for obtaining which belongs entirely to Bimbashi Collins) is drawn up :- Description of Taurotragus derbianus gigas, adult male. Height at withers 68 inches. The frontal mat of hair dark chocolate brown, merging into the* colour of the nose, which is black. Sides of the head light grey, becoming pale fawn-colour on the cheeks. From the anterior angle of each eye a narrow white stripe runs forwards and inwards, sharply defining the edges of the frontal mat. On each cheek, about 2 inches behind and rather below the eye, there is a circular white spot about an inch in diameter, surrounding two or three coarse black hairs an inch in length. The upper lip and chin are white. The ears are large and wide, externally mostly black, but with grey bases and conspicuous white tips ; inside they are black and white. The large, pendulous dewlap is whitish grey, with a narrow mane of coarse black hair running below it from the throat to the chest, where it terminates in a large tuft. The hairs in this mane are from 2 to 4 inches in length; at the centre of the dewlap there is a small mingling of white hairs. The sides 19* |