GREAT FIGHTERS OF THE JUNGLE

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 4323, 20 July 1937, Page 7

GREAT FIGHTERS OF THE JUNGLE

THE " HIPPO " NO MERE MOO-COW Some people regard the hippopotamus as a very gentle beast, more or less in the class of the common moocow as a fighter (writes Guy Mnrcme in the ‘ Chicago Tribune.’ Actually ho is surprisingly agile when aroused and has large, sharp tusks in his huge lower jaw with which he can slash sideways with devastating effect. Wis weight, sometimes amounting to tour tons, is a formidable factor, especially when he is in his favourite element, water. On at least one occasion the hippo is reliably reported to have upset and crushed between his jaws a native canoe. Ho has been known to ram even a river steamer, and one writer mentions a hippo that chased and overtook a man on dry land and then bit him in half. Accounts of authentic battles between the hippo and other large animals are very 7 rare, however, if they 7 exist at all. But the case of the bear is different. Clyde Beatty, the famous animal trainer, once had a Russian bear which killed a tiger—by jumping down upon him from behind. Ihe fight was hardly fair, though, for the tiger was not only taken unawares, but was not very well anyway. However, the bear has a well-respected name in the tiger’s native India, and hunters in that country say that, next to the leopard and the occasional maneating tigers, the sloth bear is the most dangerous animal in the country. , The leopards, of course, are the slyest and most ferocious of the big cats, but they are too light of weight to be a serious threat to their cousins, the lions and tigers. Their one great quality is a love of fighting, and Beatty says that in his above-mentioned act, consisting of 18 jungle brutes, _ the leopard took the part of the referee whenever a scrap began. He leaped right into the middle of the fray, no matter who or how big the combatants appeared, and bit and clawed right and loft until he was put out of business. A fighter about whom very little is known is the gorilla, but those who have seen him alive in the jungles of Central Africa have a healthy respect for his powers. His great weapon seems to be the strength of his arms and hands, and there are stories coming from Africa that he has been known to kill elephants —though this is hard to believe. There are many other kinds of bears, inhabiting virtually all parts of the globe. Probably the toughest one sf, them all is the Himalayan bear very large, with a white patch on his chest like a bib, and a sour disposition. To illustrate the calibre of this beast. Beatty once used to put on an act in which three hyenas, two polar bears, two Russian bears, two lions, two tigers, three leopards, one black leopard. two pumas, and one Himalayan bear appeared together in the same cage at the same time. And of all these snarling animals the one that dominated the cage and had the rest worried, according to Beatty, was none other than the big Himalayan bear.

Beatty does not believe, however that a bear is a real match for a lion Frank Buck, speaking on the subject savs:—

“ The boars are very powerful, particularly the big bears of the north country, but they are not as fast as members of the cat family, and 1 doubt if even the biggest bear would be able to get the better of a good big lion, tiger, or leopard in the prime of life.” As for the relative fighting abilities of such bears as the giant brown bear of Alaska, the grizzly, the black, and the polar bear, most authorities, including Herbert Bradley, say that the giant brown bear undoubtedly is the toughest fighter, due to his great weight, leaving the grizzly second, the polar third, and the smaller black bear last. Actually there are no available records of such fights taking place. If these animals did meet in a wild state they probably would be inclined to a* oi l each other’s company. The common black bear, of course, does frequently meet the grizzly, and in Yellowstone Park it is well known that he observes the greatest respect for this big ruffian, who has occasionally beaten him without much trouble.