THE MUSEUM. 



47 



«ter, and waist deep in the middle. 

 It was full of rushes, lotus plants, etc, , 

 and the air was full of large and fine 

 dragon flies of the genus Acschiia. 

 This was the home of the ducks. l->ut 

 it was more. In 1894 we founil a 

 place on the margin of the ^\\■amp 

 where the western garter snake (/■-n- 

 tana vagratis) was abundant. Six 

 were captured, put alive in the inject 

 net, swung over the shoulder, to carr\ 

 to camp. After going a mile or so we 

 beheld the last one half out, the others 

 having one at a time gone thiough a 



hole they had made. The following 

 year I made for the same spot. They 

 were there, thick as I care to see 

 snakes, and of all sizes. At first I 

 tried clubbing with my guu barrel. 

 That was too slow. So I took them 

 by their tails cracked them as one 

 would a whip, and piled them up. I 

 could see them running in every di- 

 rrciion As long as I could see snakes 

 I captured them, and in less than a 

 half hour had a dozen, large and small, 

 more than has often been collected on 

 an entire expedition. They show a 



Big-Horn or Rocky Mountain Sheep. From Life. 



wonderful^ variation. Some had just 

 shed their coats, and were very pretty 

 — for snakes. This snake is from far- 

 ther up the river, and even into Na- 

 tional Park, as I observed one between 

 Midway; and Upper Geyser Basins, 

 andjtried hard to catch it, but it es- 

 caped in the water. The altitude, 

 7,500 feet, is the highest I have ever 

 been-, where snakes were captured. 

 They are a rare thing in the National 

 Park. 



In Island Park several Idaho Devils 

 were captured. There is a Mole 

 Cricket {^Stcuopahnatiis fasciatiis) 

 mentioned by Merriam (N. A. Fauna, 

 Fo 5) and described by Comstock in 

 his manua.l. Merriam says (See Op. 

 cit.): "It is a large wingless insect, 

 with a large yellow head, powerful 

 jaws, and a banded abdomen. " '■' '•■ 

 It lives in burrows in the sage plains, 

 and its holes resemble those of the 

 small Pocket Mice {Pcrogiiathus oli- 



