







10 | BULLETIN NO, VIL. — 
Any clear understanding of the present fauna implies a study . 
of the record of its development as supplied by paleontology. — ‘ & 
It is also desirable to learn what influences have acted to cause, | reye, 
the extinction of some animals, to change the habitats of oth- 
ers, and to modify the form and habits of still others. An 4 
obvious duty is the study of the habits of our mammals, such © 
especially as relate to the food and economic relations. Some 
animals rank among the most important enemies of the farmer 
and poultryman, while others are either indifferent or are — oh 
worthy of preservation for the contributions they make to the — 
resources of parts of the state. There are regions which nature ip s 
seems to have designed as natural game preserves and suitable 
legislation might long continue to us the opportunity for health- — hy 
ful sport, and pleasant variety in the food supply. The facts — 
relating to the fur trade are also legitimate to this work and | 4 
some account of the methods pursued in collecting the furs, so- : ¥ 
necessary an adjunct to winter clothing, would certainly not be — 
out of place. If any incidents could be intermingled which > 
would either reflect light on the habits or excite popular4aweeil : 
est in a-neglected branch of science these certainly are admis- 
sible. A scientific study of our mammals would involve much 
more than this. Aside from intricate questions which arise as é 
to the actual limits of species and relative value of varietal 
characters the anatomy and physiology of each mammal fur- ~ 
nishes a field for exhaustive study. An adequate knowledge of 
the relationships existing between the various living as well as — 
fossil animals, must be founded upon an intimate familiarity — 
with the points of similarity and dissimilarity in their internal A 
structure. The complete study of the anatomy of a single ani- Py 
mal is the work of years, so that here is a field which one per- Me 
gs aie 
son would scarcely hope to cursorily examine, much less to ~_ 
exhaust. a s 
In a state as large as Minnesota there are abundant oppor- 
tunities for the study of the influence of environment upon the oF 
anatomical and physiological peculiarities of thefauna. Prob- hs ee 
ably no other state in the Union is so favorably situated for ie 
this study. In the northeastern part of the state is an area 4 
with an annual rainfall almost as large as anywhere in the _ 
Union. The western portion borders upon the great prairie ~ 
region of the interior. The northern portion of the state con- — Br 
tains a large invasion of the boreal fauna, while the southern — a 
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receives waifs from the south-central states. Moreover, the — 
distribution of forest and plain is such as to introduce diversity — 
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