ANIMAL LIFE IN THE ARCTIC REGION 217 



sense of smell, which enables him to track his prey and detect the 

 scent of the seal about the small breathing holes they break in 

 the ice. 



The strength of the bear is very great and the paws, armed 

 with strong claws, are such powerful weapons that the huge walrus 

 often falls a victim to this formidable animal. 



The manner in which the bear attacks his victim is very sing- 

 ular. Creeping cautiously up to the walrus as it lies sleeping on 

 the shore, the agile beast leaps suddenly on its back and begins to 

 rain a shower of mighty blows upon its head. The terrified walrus, 

 finding that it cannot shake off its foe, at once makes for the sea, 

 knowing that if it can but dive under the water the bear must soon 

 release its hold and rise to the surface to breathe. It is not often, 

 however, that the walrus succeeds in this, for the strokes of the 

 claw-tipped paws are so heavy that his skull is generally crushed in. 



Another well-known animal of this region is the reindeer 

 indeed, so important a part does it play in the social economy of 

 the Laplanders that more has been written of its habits than of any 

 other species of deer. It is found distributed through the Arctic 

 regions of Europe, Asia and America. In Spitzbergen, Finland 

 and Lapland it attains the largest size, being inferior in strength 

 and stature in parts of Norway and Sweden. In Iceland it has been 

 introduced and thrives, and the domesticated reindeer of Lapland 

 has recently been introduced in Alaska and Labrador. 



The caribou is the name by which the wild form is known in 

 the New World, in which it extends through Greenland, Canada 

 and Newfoundland. The horns of the American varietv differ 







from the horns of those of the Old World so much that it is difficult 

 to recognize their origin ; nevertheless the attempts which have been 

 made to establish a specific difference between the two forms have 

 not found much favor with naturalists generally. 



This animal, with a characteristic deer-like form, is power- 

 fully built, with short legs and heavy neck. The feet have the out- 



