Woodland Caribou 



aware of your presence in some way, and after that you might 

 as well be following the trail of a wood-nymph, as far as your 

 chances of success are concerned. 



Still hunting is the most satisfactory method of getting caribou. 

 Keeping the wind in your face you wander silently through the 

 forest and along by the edge of the open barren and by the lake's 

 margin, keenly searching the skirts of the spruce thickets and 

 birch clumps for a sight of your game. If you should chance 

 upon a trail very recently made, it is sometimes possible, if the 

 wind is in your favour, to follow it cautiously and get a shot; 

 or perhaps after following it a little way the direction of the trail 

 will tell you the caribou are in all probability heading for a certain 

 open feeding ground or lake shore that you know of, in which 

 case a cross cut will often enable you to intercept them. 



Caribou are full of inquisitiveness and not very keen sighted, 

 and in winter, when the woods are white with snow, some 

 caribou hunters make a point of wearing a white flannel hunting 

 suit and a brilliant red cap; the caribou seeing this spot of bright 

 colour moving among the trees are tempted by curiosity to approach 

 within gunshot. 



Varieties of the Woodland Caribou 



There are seven kinds of caribou in North America which appear 

 to be quite distinct and geographically separated from one another, and 

 all of them certainly different from the reindeer of Europe. They fall 

 into two groups; the larger woodland caribou and the smaller Barren 

 Ground caribou. The most striking differences between the members 

 of the former group are given below, and of the latter beyond. 



/. Woodland Caribou. Rangifer caribou (Gmelin). Description 

 and range as above. 



2. Mountain Caribou. Rangifer montanus. Seton-Thompson. 

 Uniformly darker than the preceding with the white band 

 above the hoof very narrow. Size rather larger. 

 Range. Rocky Mountains of Idaho north into Southern Alaska, 



^. Stone's Caribou. Rangifer stonei Allen. Dark like the last but 

 with a heavy white fringe of hair on the front of the neck in 

 strong contrast. 

 Range. Kenai Peninsula Alaska. 



f Newfoundland Caribou. Rangifer terrce-novce Bangs. Uni- 

 formly whiter than the woodland caribou, with a white ring 

 around the eye. Antlers very massive and widespread with 

 numerous points. 

 Range. Newfoundland. 



SI 



