38 



MAMMALS OF AMERICA 



the teamsters shot them at will. James Capen 

 Adams used to decoy them by merely holding 

 up a handkerchief, his coat, or his hat : and he 

 records that " to lie on one's back, with the 

 feet in the air and the rifle between the legs, is 

 a favorite and verv successful mode of hunting 

 them." 



In spite of its fleetness and of its ability to 

 make, withotit apparent effort, prodigious hori- 

 zontal leaps, it seems unable to leap over an ob- 

 ject a yard in height. Dr. Caton attributes this 

 inability to the fact that, living on the plains. 

 " they and their ancestors for untold generations 

 have had no occasion to overleap high obstruc- 

 tions, and thus from disuse they do not know 

 how to do so, and never attempt it when they do 

 meet them." 



The Pronghorn is a grazing animal, a vege- 

 tarian, and a delicate feeder. When wild, it lives 

 largely on grasses, and is especiallv fond of the 

 tender green blades that come up after an area 

 has been burned over. It drinks once a day, 

 and will travel long distances to some little 

 watercourse. In captivity, it will eat apples 

 sparingly, bread and cake if fresh and good, and 

 the heads of timothy hay. It is fond of common 

 salt. 



The migratory habits of the Pronghorn vary 

 with the locality. In some parts of its range it 

 will travel in numbers for great distances each 

 spring and fall : in others the migrations are 

 quite local ; while in still other parts it does not 

 migrate at all, remaining on the great plains 

 throughout the year. 



Pairing begins in September, and from then 

 till the following March bucks, does, and fawns 

 keep together in herds from which the does 

 withdraw themselves one by one to give birth to 

 their young. There are generally two fawns at 

 a birth, and, when wild, they can run when only 

 a few days old, thenceforward accompanying 

 their mother everywhere. 



Chasing the Pronghorn has long been a 

 favorite sport. Besides its inordinate curiosity, 

 to which reference has already been made, the 

 animal has a peculiarity of which hunters are not 

 slow to take advantage : when it has decided to 

 make for a certain point, it is strongly disin- 

 clined to abandon its course. It is hunted by 

 stalking and by coursing with greyhounds. The 

 Pronghorn has wonderful vitality, and is 

 credited with being able, when wounded, to carry 

 off more lead than any other animal of its size. 

 If hit anywhere except in a vital spot. " it can 

 still outrun any ordinary horse — even on three 

 legs." Its flesh is excellent, but its coat is of 

 little value, the hair being very brittle. 



Besides the inevitable hunter, the Pronghorn 

 finds enemies in the Coyote, the Wolf, and the 

 Cougar, and eagles have been known to carry off 

 fawns. It seems tolerably certain, too, that, 

 owing to the exposed nature of many of the 

 Pronghorn's haunts, blizzards, and miduly severe 

 winters must claim a great many victims. 



The Pronghorn is readily tamed and soon 

 learns to enjoy the society of man. A neighbor 

 of Colonel Roosevelt had three fawns that had 

 been fostered by a sheep, and which followed 

 him about so closely that he had to be always 

 on the lookout to see that he did not injure them ; 

 and Dr. Caton had one which " assumed he had 

 as much right in the kitchen as any of the 

 domestics, and. if he found the doors open, he 

 enjoyed a visit to the parlor, and especially a 

 siesta on the lounge in the library." 



Mr. Merritt Cary, in "A Biological Survey of 

 Colorado," says that this most graceful game 

 animal seems doomed to early extinction in many 

 sections despite the protection aft'orded by the 

 law. The decrease of Antelope in Colorado 

 during the past few years has been great. In 

 1898 the State game warden placed the number 

 at 25,000, while in 1908 the game commissioner 

 estimated not over 2000. A conservative esti- 

 mate based on data collected by the Biological 

 Survey would be not over 1200 in this State. 



