36 CONSERVATION OF CANADIAN WILD LIFE 
until the shrill call reaches a screaming whistle, which grad- 
ually fades away again to a few guttural grunts as the chal- 
lenge is echoed down the valley. The real bugle-notes are 
only uttered by the mature bulls. 
During the winter the animals frequently congregate in 
herds, and in Wyoming these number many thousands. 
In the spring the cows remain banded in small herds until 
the time for the birth of the calves approaches. They then 
separate, and in solitude bring forth, about May or June, a 
single calf, which remains with the mother until it is a 
year old. The bulls drop their antlers in March or April, 
and the growth of the new pair is rapid, usually attaining 
full size in about three months. They are ‘‘in velvet” un- 
til about August, when the animals hasten the shedding of 
the velvet by rubbing their antlers against trees or bushes. 
The flesh is in the poorest condition at the end of the rut- 
ting season, that is, in October; and, as bull wapiti are usu- 
ally killed soon after this, the venison is often inferior in 
quality. When killed at the proper season and allowed to 
hang for a few days, the meat is much superior to most 
forms of venison. 
Economic Value of Wapiti.—Apart from its value from 
the point of view of the sportsman, to whom it appeals 
more than any other species of deer, the value of the wapiti 
as a source of wild-deer meat cannot be overestimated. As 
already stated, it affords venison of a superior kind. By 
its habits it is adapted to living in wooded country not well 
suited to cattle grazing. In Canada we have large areas 
of such country in the former and present range of the 
wapiti. With the preservation of those timbered areas 
should be associated the preservation of the wapiti. Their 
polygamous habits tend to render less difficult their preser- 
vation and use. 
There are many wooded areas admirably adapted to 
wapiti that might be stocked to advantage with these 
