WOLF 



of human occupation, he may merely change his habits and 

 mode of Hfe and remain, in spite of conditions which drive out 

 the less adaptive mammals. Under these circumstances the 

 Coyote will be seldom seen, skulking under cover in the day- 

 time and coming out at night. In wilder areas where he has 

 not been so impressed with the necessity of avoiding man, this 

 little Wolf may be seen trotting through the sagebrush or 

 watching from some slight eminence. 



The Coyote bears enough resemblance to a tawny Shepherd 

 Dog to be easily mistaken for one at a little distance. He 

 can run much faster than the ordinary Dog, however, and only 

 the specialized strains of running Dogs can hope to overtake a 

 Coyote in fair chase. And once caught, he is more than a 

 match for any Dog which is near his own size or weight. 



In various parts of the West individual Coyotes have 

 apparently contracted rabies and then has followed a season 

 of "Coyote scare." As might be expected, such animals 

 behave abnormally, show no fear of man, enter ranch en- 

 closures, and become dangerous. Normally the Coyote is 

 absolutely harmless, fleeing at the first suspicion of danger, and 

 much less to be feared than the average stray Dog. 



Coyotes are prolific and have about five to seven young in a 

 litter. The number may vary from three to ten. The den 

 is generally a hole in a bank or a hole back- in the rocks, and 

 the young are born early in April. Only one family is raised in 

 a season. 



Subgenus Canis. Wolves 



The true Wolves of North America are all closely related 

 and there are no sharp dividing lines to be drawn between 

 them. Many names have been used and there is a great need 

 for a revision of the Wolves. They should probably all stand 

 as subspecies of mexicanus, the earliest-named North Ameri- 

 can Wolf. 



Gray Wolf; Timber Wolf; Lobo; Loafer; Buffalo Wolf.— 



Canis nubilus Say, and related species. Plate XIV. 



Displaying all the characters of the genus Canis as shown in 

 the Coyotes, but much larger, heavier, and more powerful. 



Color. — The same in both sexes and not varying much with 

 the seasons, although varying much with the individual. 

 Usual color pattern gray sprinkled with black or dusky on 



153 



