FEB., 1912. MAMMALS OF ILLINOIS AND WISCONSIN CORY. 333 



Cray-fish. When unable to procure these in sufficient quantity, it 

 devours frogs, and is said to depopulate the poultry yard, and even 

 prey upon young lambs. It can dive and swim under water with such 

 speed and agility, that it can overtake and secure, with great ease and 

 certainty, almost any of our fresh water fishes." * 



"Otter slides," about which much has been written, are smooth, 

 worn pathways on the sides of banks of streams, which are used by these 

 animals. Many writers claim to have seen them amusing themselves 

 sliding down these places much as a boy enjoys sliding down hill in 

 winter. Audubon and Bachman state that they once saw a pair of 

 these animals sliding down a bank and say, "We counted each one 

 making twenty-two slides before we disturbed their sportive 

 occupation." f 



Kennicott says: "This curious habit seems to be indulged in by the 

 Otter at all times, when a suitable place can be found, though more in 

 the love season than any other. It climbs to the top of some steep 

 bank, made slippery by the mud and water from its own body, or, in 

 winter, by snow and ice, and lying down with its fore-feet bent under, 

 slides headlong to the bottom. Trappers inform me that they have 

 often seen the Otter thus engaged for an hour or more, scrambling 

 eagerly to the top after each descent and greatly enjoying the sport." 

 (/. c., pp. 247-248.) 



The Otter makes a home in a burrow in the bank of some stream or 

 pond. The young, which number from two to three, are usually born 

 in April and when first born their eyes are closed. When taken very 

 young they become very tame and often affectionate, but if not cap- 

 tured until six or eight weeks old they rarely become gentle and are 

 usually treacherous. I have owned a number of young Otters at 

 various times and all of them would readily eat raw meat, but they 

 preferred fish. They often uttered a low tremulous cry resembling 

 that of a fretful baby. One, which we "brought up on a bottle," 

 would follow my wife about the garden and into the house and seemed 

 to take great delight in being petted. 



The skins of these animals are quite valuable and in much demand, 

 as they make handsome and durable furs. Although much less com- 

 mon than formerly, great numbers of these animals are still trapped in 

 Canada. From 1895 to 1905 the Hudson Bay Company secured 

 between 85,000 and 90,000 skins, or an average of nearly 9,000 skins 

 per year.J 



* Mamm. Adirondack Reg., 1886, pp. 87-88. 



t Quadrupeds of North Amer., II, 1851, p. 8. 



J Up to the year 1906, from 200 to 300 Otter skins were annually secured by 

 local dealers from the Indians in southeastern Florida, but I am informed that since 

 then the number has decidedly decreased. 



