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Canis pictus. Desm.

If the Boas furnish the most terrible examples of the tremendous powers of destruction possessed by a few of that division of the Serpent tribe, whose bite is unattended with the effusion of venom, the Rattlesnakes afford a no less remarkable instance of the dreadful malignity of the poison with which others of the tribe are so abundantly supplied. This poison is secreted by a gland of considerable size situated beneath the eye, the excretory duct of which terminates on each side at the base of a long and tubular fang in the upper jaw, which is concealed while the animal is at rest in a fold of the gum, but is capable of being instantaneously[240] erected when he is irritated, and affords at the same time the means of inflicting the wound and of insinuating into it the deadly fluid with which it is charged. In the Rattlesnakes these two fangs are the only visible teeth implanted in the upper jaw; but behind each of them are several rudiments of others by which they are from time to time replaced. Their other distinguishing characters consist in the whole of the transverse plates which cover the under surface of the body and of the tail being simple, and in the singular apparatus by which the latter is terminated, and which is formed of a series, more or less numerous according to the age of the individual, of flattened rings loosely attached one within the other in such a manner as to produce a peculiar rattling sound when the tail is moved with any degree of quickness. The number of rings commonly varies from five to twelve; but in very old specimens it is said to have been found to exceed forty.

The animal which occupies the right hand in the cut appears to be the young of the Macacus cynomolgus, Cuv., the Common Macaque; or rather perhaps, if the colour of the face is to be regarded as affording a sufficient specific distinction, of a new species lately described by M. F. Cuvier under the name of Macacus carbonarius. The Macaques are characterized by the greater elongation of their muzzles, which reduces their facial angle to 40�� or 45��; by the strong developement of their superciliary ridges; by the oblique position of their nostrils in the upper surface of their nose; and by the presence of cheek-pouches and callosities. The young animal figured is blackish brown above, and, as is very common among the Monkeys, lighter and of a bluish cast beneath; his hands and face are nearly black; the hairs which cover his forehead form a thick tuft advancing forwards; and his face is almost naked.

The Llamas congregate together in considerable herds on the sides of the Andes, and generally in the colder and more elevated regions. When the Spaniards first arrived in Peru they were the only beasts of burden employed by the natives; and even at the present day, when horses have become so excessively common, they are usually preferred for passing the mountains, on which their sureness of footing, exceeding even that of the mule, gives them a manifest superiority. Generally speaking they are quiet, docile and timid; but they occasionally exhibit much spitefulness, especially if teased or ill treated. Their mode of evincing this is very peculiar, and consists in darting their saliva through their nostrils with considerable force. Like all the other Ruminants they subsist entirely on vegetables. Those in the Tower Menagerie have a particular fondness for carrots; and if one of these is abstracted from them while they are eating, their anger is immediately roused, and they spit, as it is termed, with the greatest vehemence, covering with their saliva a surface of three or four yards in extent. One of the animals in the cut is represented in the act.