THE BUFFALO OR BISON 131 
with irregular open patches of prairie, a few hundred yards 
in length and breadth. On the northern range and in the 
valley of the Salt River there are areas of several square 
miles of prairie or meadow-land. All are grass-covered, 
except near the salt springs, where clay flats occur, and 
cover about thirty square miles of the salt plain. The 
timber is mainly white poplar, which often reaches two 
feet in diameter. On the sandy ridges jack-pines are found, 
and in the lower, wetter portions there are belts of good 
spruce, with trees up to two feet in diameter. Grass grows 
everywhere, both in the prairie openings and throughout 
the woods, affording excellent pasturage. A collection of 
grasses was made and identified by Mr. J. M. Macoun; 
among them were found the following: feather, slough, reed- 
canary, meadow, manna, bromus (introduced), blue-joint 
and squirrel-tail grasses, wheat and wild rye. Wild vetch, 
wild pea, and larkspur (Delphiniwm glaucum), which is 
poisonous to domestic cattle, were also found. 
From various sources Mr. Camsell gathered the follow- 
ing information regarding the habits of the buffalo: In the 
southern range they spend the early part of the summer in 
the northern part of the range, near the Little Buffalo 
River. During the greater part of the year they occur in 
small bands of ten or twelve individuals, but in July and 
- August, when the animals are mating, herds of twenty, 
thirty, or forty animals have been seen. An Indian in- 
“ormed Mr. Camsell that he had seen a single herd of about 
one hundred head. In August the buffalo of the southern 
herd begin to migrate southward, and they spend the win- 
ter not far north of Peace River, between Peace Point and 
Point Providence. In their migration from one part of the 
range to another they appear to follow the same route 
every year. This route is marked out by numerous deep 
trails through the woods, similar to the well-known trails 
in the prairies made by the plains buffalo. The route is 
also marked by many wallows on the sides of hills and in 
