ground-nesting game birds, and 

 occasionally domestic fowls and 

 farm animals. There is a bounty 

 on this predator, and the Fish and 

 AVildlife Service has a coyote-con- 

 trol program. 



Lynx — The shy lynx is the only 

 wild member of the cat family in 

 Alaska. It looks like an out-size 

 tabby cat, and its exceptionally soft 

 fur is light gray, streaked with 

 brown. The lynx is found rather 

 generally throughout the timbered 

 valleys of interior Alaska, and is 

 fairly numerous along the Copper 

 River and on Kenai Peninsula. Al- 

 though its staff of life is the snow- 

 shoe hare, the lynx preys heavily 

 on grouse and ptarmigan, song- 

 birds, and rodents. Abundance 

 varies with the cycles of snowshoe 

 hares. 



Other fur animals — Marmots, 

 ground squirrels, tree squirrels, 

 Arctic hares, and snowshoe hares 

 are relatively unimportant so far as 

 the dollar value of their pelts is 

 concerned. About $500 worth find 

 their way to the markets each year. 

 But these small species are an im- 

 portant source of food for other ani- 

 mals and are used locally for human 

 food and clothing. 



LEMMINGS 



The catch of predaceous fur ani- 

 mals rises and falls with the cyclic 

 abundance of small rodents on 

 which they prey. Signs of field 

 mice and lemmings, tree squirrels, 

 and snowshoe hares in spring and 

 summer have proved a reliable basis 

 for forecasting the catch of lynx, 

 marten, and fox. 



Like grouse and ptarmigan, many 

 of the rodent species go through 

 more or less regular population 

 cycles which at times bring them 

 near the vanishing point. Low pe- 

 riods are often preceded by striking 

 migrations, of which the lemming 

 marches have attracted the most 

 attention. 



These unaccountable marches fol- 

 low periods in which lemming 

 populations reach a peak. The 

 little animals start westward, fol- 

 lowed by predators of all sorts. 

 Those that survive predation con- 

 tinue their march out onto the ice 

 floes and even swim from one floe 

 to another until at last they drown. 



SEA MAMMALS 



In the waters about Alaska live 

 a surprising number and variety of 

 sea mammals. Some, like the fur 

 seal, are of great economic value; 

 others, like the playful porpoise, 

 are merely interesting. And there 

 are many whales — most massive 

 mammals of all time. 



Sea otter — Most often talked 

 about is the sea otter, whose fur is 

 unmatched in fineness, density, 

 durability, and beauty. The sea 

 otter's coat was responsible for its 

 near extermination. Its gentle and 

 trusting nature made it easy prey 

 for the Russian fur hunters, or 



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