Badger 1007 



In the November of 1884, as noted above, I followed a 

 Badger's tracks in the fresh snow to learn that the night before 

 he had sunk a number of burrows to the depth of five or six 

 feet. In each case he had reached the winter den of a Richard- 

 son Ground-squirrel and doubtless had devoured the sleeper, 

 for its nest lining and its grain stores were scattered about. 



Alexander Henry gives the following curious note in his 

 Journal on Red River, 1799, p. 158: (Coues. ed. 1897). 



"This afternoon I saw an extraordinary race — a Badger 

 in pursuit of a Skunk. I wished to see what would be the conse- 

 quence, but one of my men killed both with a club before I 

 thought of preventing him." 



Many of our quadrupeds are known to form curious, ap- friend- 

 parently platonic, friendships with totally different creatures. 

 The British Badger has frequently been found living in good- 

 fellowship with a Fox, and, on several occasions, our own 

 comfortable species has been accredited with a similar partner- 

 ship, which shows that he is much the same all-round good 

 fellow as his British cousin twice removed. The first cases 

 were friendships with Coyotes and were recorded by A. H. 

 Hawkins, the surveyor. 



"During the progress of my survey," he says,^ "in south- 

 ern Alberta I noticed on two occasions a Badger and a Coyote 

 travelling in company. The same thing was observed and 

 reported by the men who did my mounding on three different 

 occasions, all of which were in different localities. 



"The men reported having seen the animals travelling in 

 company in Township i. Range 13, West of 4th Principal 

 Meridian. The first time that I saw them together was in 

 Tp. 6, R. 17, and the second time in Tp. 7, R. 17, W. 4th. 

 This last time I had the best view. Seated one day eating our 

 noon lunch, I noticed two animals coming towards us and drew 

 the attention of my men to the fact. We remained perfectly 

 quiet, so that they came within 20 to 30 feet of us before seeing 

 that we were so near. The Coyote travelled ahead, and the 



' Ottawa Nat., May, 1907, p. 37. 



