432 THE VOYAGE OF THE VEGA. [chap. 



standing the large number of hungry dogs which wander about 

 there. 



" The Arctic foxes ( Vulpcs lagoptis, L.) are very numerous. 

 The common fox ( Vulpcs vulgaris, Gray) appears also to be 

 common. A red fox, which Lieutenant Brusewitz shot from the 

 vessel in October, differed considerably from the common fox, 

 and approached the mountain fox. The food of the fox appears 

 in winter to consist of hares, ptarmigan, and lemmings. I have 

 twice seen holes in the snow about a metre deep and at the 

 mouth not more than thirty centimetres wide, which the 

 Chukches said were excavated by foxes searching for lemmings. 



" Of the lennning I have seen three varieties, viz. My odes 

 ohensis, M. torqiiatus, and Arvicola ohscurus. There is found 

 here, also, according to the statements of the Chukches, a little 

 mouse, in all probability a Sorex. Myodcs torquatus were got 

 the first time on the 12th January, Myodcs ohensis on the 13th 

 February. Both species were afterwards frequently brought on 

 board by Chukches, and during the winter lemmings were seen 

 not unfrequently running on the snow. Myodcs ohensis appeared 

 to be more numerous than the other species. It is singular that 

 all the nine specimens of Myodcs torqiiatus I obtained during the 

 winter were males. Differing from both these species, Arvicola 

 ohscurus does not appear to show itself above the snow during 

 winter. Of the latter I got eight specimens from the village 

 Tjapka, lying between Yinretlen and Behring's Straits. I after- 

 wards got another from the village Irgunnuk, situated five 

 English miles east of Yinretlen. 



" The more uncommon land mammals wintering in these 

 regions are the %volf and the wild reindeer. Footprints of the 

 latter were seen on the 23rd March, in the mountain region, 

 fifteen to twenty miles south of Yinretlen. According to the 

 Chukches' account some few reindeer remain on the hills along 

 the coast, while the greater number migrate southwards towards 

 winter. Besides these, two other mammals live here during 

 winter, though they are only seen during summer and autumn, 

 because they hibernate the rest of the time. These are the 

 land hear and the marmot (Arctomys sj).). We saw no land 

 bear, but on the 8th October Lieutenant Hovgaard and I found 

 traces of this animal two or three English miles from the coast. 

 The Chukches say that the land bear is not uncommon in 

 summer. The marmot occurs in large numbers. It was brought 

 on board for the first time by a Chukch, and the following day 

 I myself saw it sitting on the top of a little hill, where it had 

 its dwellinof. 



" Besides the animals enumerated above the natives talked of 

 another, which is called by them ncnnet, and is said to live by 

 the banks of rivers. According to their description it appears 



