Coney (Hastings' Dictionary)

The coney is undoubtedly Hyrnx Syriacus. It is known by the S. Arabs as thtifn, evidently the same as sfulpkdn. In Pal. it is known as wnbr, and in Lebanon as tobsun. The Arabs also call it ghanam-Beni-Israil, the sheep of the Children of Israel. It is a perissodactyl, with dentition and feet strongly resembling those of the rhinoceros. It is as larpe as a rabbit, has short ears and a very short tail.

Its colour is greyish- brown on the back and whitish on the belly, "it is declared unclean bj' the Mosaic law, because it chews the cud, but does not di%-ide the hoof (Lt ) 1', Dt 14'). It is not a ruminant, but has a motion of the jaws similar to that of the ruminants. Bruce the traveller kept a tame one, and supposed, from the motion of its jaws, that it was a ruminant. Cowper made a similar mistake in regard to hij tame hares.

The conies are among the four 'exceeding wise' animals (Pr 30", "); they are 'but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks.' 'The rocks are a refuse for the conies ' (Ps 104"). They do not burrow like rabbits, but live in clefts and holes of the rocks. They are gregarious in habit, and strictly herbivorous. They are very shy, and usually come out of their holes towards evening.

When feeding, an old male sits as sentry, and, on the approach of danger, gives a whistle or squeak as a warning to his companions, and they immedi- ately take ' refuge ' in the rocks. They are found all the way from Ras-Muhammed to Lebanon. The natives esteem their flesh a delicacy. G. E. Post.