810 Life-histories of Northern Animals 



difference between living and dying. That 50 yards margin is 

 probably the foothold on which the whole Coyote race has been 

 built up. 



These rates, it will be seen, trench on the especial realm of 

 birds: small birds make only 25 to 30 miles an hour. 



It is a well-known principle that the special development 

 of an animal is its most variable part. Thus the peculiar bell 

 in the throat of a Moose varies enormously; the bill of the Long- 

 billed Curlew, the neck-feathers of the Ruff, the spots of the 

 Ocelot, the white bands of the Skunk, the horns of the Elk, are 

 so varied that rarely two are found just alike. Speed is one of 

 the peculiarities of the Coyote as it is of the greyhound, and 

 we must, therefore, look for great variations of rate. I have 

 selected an average for my calculation, but there are occasional 

 individuals. Coyotes of rare gifts, whose speed and endurance 

 would put them very near the top of our scale. 



An individual of this description lived for three years on 

 the north slope of Turtle Mountain, near Boissevain, Man. 

 He was known as the 'Greyhound Coyote.' A. S. Barton 

 hunted him many times with first-class greyhounds, dogs which 

 ordinarily had no difficulty in catching a Coyote, and, though 

 the chase was several times over open prairies, he has always 

 left the dogs behind in a straight three-mile run, and safely 

 reached his retreat in the wooded ravines of Turtle Mountain, 

 thanks, not to any stratagem, but to his speed. It is not known 

 what his end was; he may, indeed, be living yet. 



iNci-^^ Barton relates a curious instance of a crippled Coyote 



living for the last two years near Boissevain. It is known as 

 the 'Three-legged Terror.' One of its front legs is missing, 

 probably it was lost in a trap, but in spite of this the creature 

 can outrun an ordinary dog. Greyhounds or very fast dogs 

 easily outstrip it, whereupon it finds a place to protect its 

 rear and presents such a desperate front that it has hitherto 

 escaped. 



I suspect that this is a female, which might partly account 

 for its immunity. 



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