312 ANNUAL REPOET SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1923 



THE DOG FAMILY 



This interesting group of mammals includes the dog, wolf, fox, 

 jackal, and their numerous relatives. It is one of the best-known 

 families in a popular way, but the exact limits of the genera and 

 species are matters not yet thoroughly worked out by any zoologist. 



The true wolves were formerly abundant animals over much of 

 the Northern Hemisphere, and, although exterminated by man in 

 many regions, still persist in numbers in some well-inhabited areas. 

 Although long since gone from the British Islands, they are found 

 to this day in numerous parts of continental Europe and are abund- 

 ant in the less settled portions of central Asia. In North America 

 wolves formerly roamed in large packs over the great game fields 

 and were especially numerous throughout the bison country. The 

 northern " timber wolf " and the " buffalo wolf " of the great plains 

 are powerful beasts and are able to take down our largest animals. 

 The wolves of the Southern States are of less bulk and some species 

 are barely larger than the coyote. 



The wolf of the northern Rocky Mountain States (Canis rmhilus) 

 varies greatly in color, as usual with the American species. Among 

 the specimens in the park are some of the typical " gray wolves " 

 and some very dark, almost blackish examples. Many young wolves 

 of this species have been reared in the park. A specimen of the 

 timber wolf (C. occidental Is) from the upper peninsula of Michigan 

 is also shown. This is the wolf of the great forests of northern 

 United States and Canada. 



The coyote of the northern plains (Canis Jatrans) is a large 

 species approximating some of the smaller wolves in size. It ranges 

 east to Wisconsin and western Indiana, where it is frequently con- 

 founded with the timber wolf; old hunters and trappers often fail 

 to distinguish between the animals. In some localities it is called 

 the brush wolf by those who recognize the difference between it and 

 its larger and more powerf ul relative. Numerous other species and 

 subspecies of the coyote are found in the Western States and in 

 Mexico. The coyote is structurally closer to the Old World jackal 

 than to the big wolves, and takes the place of the jackal in the 

 American fauna. 



The red fox (Vnlpes fuboa) is very common in parts of the North, 

 but is rare in many of the Southern States. In the boreal regions of 

 Canada and the northern United States it takes on a splendid coat 

 and the fur is of considerable value. The cross fox and the black 

 or silver fox are color phases of this species and examples of each are 

 sometimes found in litters of red foxes. Both phases occur most fre- 

 quently in definite geographic areas, however, and in some western 

 localities the cross fox coloration is the common condition. Silver 



