94 ANIMAL LIFE OF CARLSBAD CAVERN 



as traps where large game could be cornered and cap- 

 tured. It would seem an easy matter for them to 

 catch mountain sheep in the cave in Slaughter Canyon, 

 but with a fair start from their rocky bed-ground the 

 sheep would have a good chance to escape through the 

 great cave door, out onto rough slopes where they 

 would be safe. 



The gray mountain Hon is merely a pale desert form, 

 less deeply tawny than that of the Rocky Mountain 

 region. 



MOUNTAIN BOBCAT 



Lynx rufus uinta 



No bobcats were seen near the cavern, and they seem 

 to be scarce at the present time, although they have 

 been one of the commonest of fur bearers in past years 

 in all the canyons, cliffs, and caves of the region. The 

 foreman of Washington's ranch, four miles south of the 

 cave, told me that they had killed seven during the 

 winter, hunting them with dogs. Traps and poison 

 have also helped to thin their numbers. Jim White 

 has seen them in the west opening of the big cave, where 

 they might find ideal homes among the rocks of the 

 entrance as well as in the dark tunnel below. I found 

 no trace of them inside the cavern and doubt if they 

 ever followed it for any considerable distance. 



The bobcat is a short-tailed, long-whiskered, tassel- 

 eared cat, that sometimes reaches a weight of twenty- 

 five or thirty pounds. It is yellowish gray, much 

 spotted with black on sides, throat, legs, and belly. 



