THE ANIMALS OF THE ISLANDS 193 



Catalina, so the story goes, and he began trapping 

 foxes. One or two without tails was a mere chance, 

 but several foxes without tails meant something; and 

 it is said the tailless fox of Santa Catalina Island 

 was described as a distinct species. With this awful 

 catastrophe in mind it becomes a layman to be cau- 

 tious about crediting wild cats to this island where 

 there are ordinary cats running wild on the upper 

 island, — cats left by campers and gone to the bad, 

 preying on partridge nests. 



To me the foxes of San Clemente, Santa Catalina, 

 San Miguel, and Santa Cruz look very much alike, and 

 that they bite exactly alike I can certify. That of 

 San Miguel is Urocyon littoralis, Baird. The one on 

 Santa Cruz is Urocyon littoralis, Santacruzce, according 

 to Merriam; while the beautiful little animal at Santa 

 Catalina is the Santa Catalina Island fox, Urocyon 

 catalincB, Merriam. These little animals were so tame 

 at Middle Ranch at one time that they would come 

 up to the door of the camp at night and look in, and 

 several would be caught every night. I remember 

 Chinetti, at San Clemente, told me that the foxes 

 would eat from his hands, and even come into his 

 house, — a proceeding which pales into insignificance 

 before the appearance of the gigantic wild sea-lion. 

 Big Ben, on the beach at Avalon, where I have seen 

 him on the public street, or climbing onto a float, to 

 take a fish. The fox of San Clemente is different 

 still, Urocyon clementce, Merriam. 



There are several large bats, at San Clemente, and a 

 small one. They came into my tent at Mosquito. 

 The little one is Myotis californicus. I have caught 

 them in a landing net at Avalon as we caught small 



