528 THE BREEDING OF THE ARCTIC FOX. 



hidden stores be. which nobody had ever seen i One da}' Mr. New- 

 ton came across a heap of shells of fresh-water mussels, 3fi/a truncata^ 

 in the moraine of a glacier^ and it occurred to him that it might be 

 the IjdJtX'enmoddlng of some fox, the leavings of his winter meals. 

 He thought that foxes might very likely store up in sunnner some 

 provisions, mussels for instance, which they would use in winter. 



This hypothesis has been amply confirmed, at least in certain 

 respects. It is evident that if the arctic fox made sufficient pro- 

 visions, he would not have to migrate in winter. But, on the other 

 hand, it is certain that he gathers enough to last him for some time. 

 H. W. Feildeii put this l^eyond doubt in 1875, during the Narcs expe- 

 dition. Having shot a fox, he noticed that little lemmings came out 

 of their holes all about, and began nibbling loaves and blades of grass. 

 But there were also quantities of dead lemmings, and these had died 

 violent deaths, namely, from a fox's bite in the skull. Looking 

 nearer, adds FeildiMi. he was surprised to rind numerous accuinu- 

 lations of dead lenunings; in a c-orner, a little way oft' under a 

 rock, he found a pile of more than oo of them. Caches of 20 

 to 30 carcasses eai-h were lunnerous; and th(> giound was pierced 

 with man}' holes, each containing several carcasses of lenunings 

 covered with a little earth. One hole he found to be stufted with 

 the greater i)art of a hare. Here is an interesting case of reciprocal 

 action. For where the caches of lemmings were numerous the ground 

 wa^, of course, richer in fertilizing matter, so that the vegetation was 

 more abundant, and this relative exuberance of vegetation, of course, 

 attracted mon* lemmings. Thus, the behavior of the foxes favored 

 the multiplication of lemmings about their burrows; and they could 

 not have contrived anything more ingenious if they had acted delib- 

 erately. 



The arctic fox is not astute. In this respect he is markedly inferior 

 to his cousin of the temperate zone. He can ))e caught in the same 

 trap where he had been made prisoner only a few hours before. He 

 does not fear man, with whom, it is true, he has but an imperfect 

 acquaintance, which partially explains his freedom from timidity. On 

 seeing a man, he retires to a little distance, stops, and scrutinizes the 

 newcomer long before he finally takes his leave. He is easily domes- 

 ticated, is not rancorous nor malicious, and is gentle and confiding. 

 He is free from the odor of the fox. He is most cleanly, extremely 

 careful of his person, and will not foul his lair. 



Captain Lyon, who, in the eighteenth century, during two winters 

 passed on Melville Peninsula, observed the arctic fox at close quarters, 

 relates that when this fox is given anything to eat, his first impulse is to 

 hide it as soon as he can, no matter how hungry he may be, even if he 

 \s alone and has no companions in captivity of whose probity he might 



