Moose 167 



the renewed mating instinct that springs from physical prepar- 

 ations for a new family. We can find even this paralleled in 

 mankind, by the widow or widower who realizes that an already 

 acquired family is an obstacle in the way of a new match. 



The cow Moose may still be accompanied by her calf of young 

 the last year, but the instinct to be alone, when her time comes, 

 leads the mother to sneak away for the final scene. This takes 

 place in some remote swamp thicket during late May. As 

 with most of our Deer she produces but i calf the first time, 

 but afterward, 2, and in rare cases, 3. Though, as J. G. 

 Lockhart says,^® **No one ever saw a cow Moose followed by 

 3 sucklings or yearlings." These are dull reddish brown, 

 without any of the lighter spots that characterize the rest of the 

 Deer family in America. The small Deer hide the fawn for 

 weeks; the Elk and Moose, for a few days only. 



The young have all the family instincts for hiding at this 

 age. William E. Bemis sends me a curious instance that he 

 learned with satisfactory proof. Near his summer camp in Que- 

 bec, north of Deux Rivieres, his guide chanced on two Moose 

 calves in an open place. The little things ran here and there, 

 looking for cover, then sought a shaggy fringe of short brush 

 and disappeared over a low bank by a lake. There seemed to 

 be no place for them to hide in; yet they had disappeared. A 

 thorough search showed them to be in the water, completely 

 submerged, except the tips of their noses. The mother was 

 circling about in the neighbourhood, too much alarmed to 

 come near, but frequently uttering a warning squeal that the 

 little ones seemed to understand. 



She never goes far afield while the calves are in hiding; 

 and at proper times (probably two or three times a day) she 

 comes to suckle them. As soon as they are strong enough they 

 follow her about — exactly at what age, I cannot say. 



On June 4, 1892, at Beausejour, in Manitoba, I saw two 

 Moose calves that were able to run alone and were probably 

 a fortnight old. They stood between 30 and 36 inches at the 



'" Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., Vol. XIII, No. 827, p. 305. 



