874 



Life-histories of Northern Animals 



less abundant there than in the woods to the northward and 

 eastward. 

 ENVIRON- The pecuhar environment for which it is adapted is the 

 border-land between water and woods, between Otter and 

 Weasel. Although it can live in the water and catch hsh, like 

 the Otter, it can also hunt on the land like the Weasel, following 

 its prey into cover of rushes and woods, pursuing it over logs, 

 into burrows, and occasionally even climbing up some sloping 



tree to get a better view of the situation. Nevertheless, it must 

 be admitted that on the land it is as inferior to the Long-tailed 

 Weasel as in the water it is to the Otter, and many of its meals 

 are of a kind that either of its cousins would despise, being 

 neither fish nor flesh. 



HOME- 

 RANGE 



The home-range or locality of each individual is probably 

 very large for so small an animal. Its habit seems to be that 

 of all Weasels; it hunts a given area till the game grows 

 scarce by destruction or flight, then it moves on a mile or two, 

 along stream or overland, in search of new hunting grounds. 

 In this way it will change many times during a season, but 

 always, I believe, keeping within a well-defined area that it 

 knows and considers its range. Judging from the time a Mink 



