1000 Life-histories of Northern Animals 



ticularly dense, and the bear-trails are exceedingly numerous; 

 not only are they the best routes, they are the only possible 

 routes. If you are in search of the things those Bears sought — 

 berries, fish, water, or pleasant open hillsides, breeze-swept of 

 flies — your part of wisdom is to follow the bear-trail. It was 

 made during generations of search for these same joys of 

 life, by those who were past masters of the road and had 

 sought out all the most delectable spots in the hills. 



The bear-trail differs from the wapiti-trail in several 

 ways: first, it is deficient in head-room, unpleasantly low for a 

 man; second, it always runs alorjg a fallen trunk, if such be 

 in the line; third, it crosses a stream by a log in preference to 

 a ford. 



It is well to remember further that in a bear-trail there is 

 always danger of a bear-trap. 



sociA- The Blackbear is essentially a solitary animal. Occasion- 



BILITY 



ally a number of them have been seen together, but these 

 gatherings were either for the purpose of mating or were a 

 family of grown-up young ones with their mother. Nine out 

 of ten grown-up Bears will be found leading solitary lives. 



INTER- Xhe Blackbear has a long list of vocal sounds to express 



NicA- his feelings to others of his kind. Besides the growl of anger 

 and loud cough of menace, they have whining calls and snifl^s 

 of many sorts, also a number of bawls expressing rage or pain. 

 But a still more curious outburst of intercommunication is 

 recopded in the following extract from Audubon and Bachman:'- 

 "At one season the Bear may be seen examining the lower 

 part of the trunk of a tree for several minutes with much 

 attention, at the same time looking around and snuflmg the air. 

 It then rises on its hind-legs, approaches the trunk, embraces 

 it with the fore-legs, and scratches the bark with its teeth and 

 claws for several minutes in continuance. Its jaws clash against 

 each other until a mass of foam runs down on both sides of the 

 mouth. After this it continues its rambles." 



'^•\ud. & Bach., Quad. N. .\., Vol. Ill, p. 189. 



TION 



