The book of antelopes, vol. 3 (of 4)Sclater, Philip Lutley
Science
The book of antelopes, vol. 3 (of 4)
Sclater, Philip Lutley
Antelopes
The Saiga has occasionally, but not often, been brought alive to the
menageries of Western Europe. In 1864 and 1865 young male specimens of
this Antelope were first received from Moscow by the Zoological Society
of London. In November 1866 a pair of Saigas was deposited in the
Zoological Society’s Gardens, and subsequently purchased, after living
for several months in the Regent’s Park Gardens. An excellent coloured
figure of these strange animals was made by Mr. J. Wolf in 1867, and
published in the Society’s ‘Proceedings,’ and after their death Dr.
Murie, then Prosector to the Society, based upon them an elaborate
account of their structure and anatomy, which will be found in the
volume of the same publication for the year 1870. By the kindness of
the Zoological Society we are enabled to reproduce here an excellent
figure of the head of the adult male Saiga in its winter coat, taken
from a drawing made by Mr. Berjeau under Dr. Murie’s supervision. We
cannot do better than refer those who are interested in the structure
and anatomy of the Saiga to Dr. Murie’s excellent article, from which,
however, we venture to borrow his account of the cutaneous glands of
this curious form, which appear to be not less than ten in number.
[Illustration: Fig. 51.
Head of male Saiga in its winter dress.
(P. Z. S. 1870, p. 495.)]
“In the Saiga there are two small suborbital glandular sacs, the
so-called crumen, lachrymal sinus, or tearpit of some authors,
which yield a thick whitish or pale yellow exudation. These are
situated in front of the orbit, and slightly below the median
transverse line of the eye. In the younger female the small
external openings of these were placed ¾ of an inch, and in the
male 1½ inch, in advance of the orbital ring; but the sinuses
or sacs themselves lay in the broadish and moderately excavated
infraorbital fossæ.
“Each foot, as in the sheep, possesses an interdigital sac about
1½ inch in depth, and opening by a narrow constricted aperture
at its front and upper part. The orifice is hidden by very short
closely placed yellowish hairs, whilst below these the sac is
superficially covered by a tuft of much stronger and longer
hairs. The secretion derived from these interdigital bags is
yellow and of a hardish ceruminous character.
“On the anterior aspect, but slightly to the inner side, of
each fore knee is a small dermal gland, or a thickening of the
cutaneous tissues, covered by a brownish patch of firm hairs.
“In the inguinal regions of both sexes bare oblong or
lozenge-shaped spaces exist; each of these is 5 inches or more
in extreme long diameter. Upon these inner edges in the female
the imperfectly developed udders and four teats are situated.”
(P. Z. S. 1870, p. 500.)
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