80 



CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 



FUR FARMING IN BRITISH COLUMBIA. 



That fur farming is becoming a well 

 established industry in British Columbia 

 is evidenced by the following, which ap- 

 peared in the eleventh report of the pro- 

 vincial game warden, 1915 : 



The reports received from the fox- 

 farming companies that are operating in 

 this province have been extremely satis- 

 factory, some of the operators having 

 gone to a great deal of trouble in giving 

 a lot of information as to their methods. 

 A most comprehensive report of the oper- 

 ations of the companies at Telegraph 

 Creek was also received from the govern- 

 ment agent of that district. Great pains 

 were evidently taken in getting up this 

 report, and it is most valuable, as it gave 

 most detailed information on everything 

 that could possibly be of interest. It is 

 hoped that before long it will be possible 

 to embody this and the other reports into 

 an article that will be of use to those 

 who are either engaged or about to engage 

 in the industry. 



Until this year no records were received 

 at this office of any foxes bred in captiv- 

 ity, but this year eleven different farms 

 have sent in such records. In all, fifty- 

 six foxes were bred this year, and, as 

 far as is known, these are all still alive. 

 In addition, one or two litters of red 

 foxes were born, but destroyed as not 

 being worth raising. The company oper- 

 ating at Bella Coola reports that several 

 litters were born, but that heavy blasting 

 on a road close to the farm caused the par- 

 ent foxes to destroy all their young. The 

 Telegraph Creek companies had no suc- 

 cess at all ; most pups born were killed 

 by their parents ; one litter that might 

 have been raised was destroyed, as they 

 were only of the red variety. 



The most successful operators were 

 those located at Atlin, Pouce Coupe, and 

 Francois Lake. 



There was a fairly heavy loss of foxes 

 during the year; some escaped from the 

 pens, others got killed in fighting, but 

 the principal loss was through "worms." 

 All such losses can easily be done away 

 with if the foxes are in the hands of a 

 man who has requisite knowledge of his 

 work. 



The recent collapse of the boom in 

 fox-farm shares will eventually result in 

 just as much good as the collapse of the 

 real estate boom. The industry will now 

 come down to a proper business footing. 

 Prices of live foxes having fallen, nothing 

 like the capital hitherto required will be 

 necessary, and many people will go into 

 it on a small basis who were not able 

 to do so before, and it is the small oper- 

 ators that are likely to meet with the 

 most success. 



Even with the price of fox pelts 50 

 per cent lower than it is at present, a 

 good profit could be made in breeding 

 foxes, as it costs very little more to raise 

 foxes on a small scale than it does to raise 



small dogs. There is no reason why all 

 the farmers' sons should not have a pair 

 or two as pets, in the same way that 

 boys in England keep rabbits, pigeons, 

 etc., and often make good profits. It is 

 likely that far more money would be 

 brought into the country in this way 

 than by a few big companies. 



Every encouragement should therefore 

 be given to those living in the country 

 to make a start. It would be best to 

 begin with red foxes, which are easily 

 obtained and of little value. 



THE CONSERVATION OF NATIVE 

 FAUNA. 



The October number of The Scientific 

 Monthly contains an interesting article 

 entitled "The conservation of native 

 fauna," by Walter P. Taylor of the Mu- 

 seum of Vertebrate Zoology, University 

 of California. 



Dr. Taylor traces the history of the 

 gradual reduction in numbers of all of 

 the larger game mammals of California 

 from the time when, in the early history 

 of this state, they were abundant, down to 

 their present depleted state, which in at 

 least two cases, the grizzly bear and the 

 sea elephant, amounts to total extinction. 



The mammals whose histories are given 

 are the otter, the beaver, the sea ele- 

 phant, the sea otter, the deer, both black- 

 tailed and mule, the Roosevelt and valley 

 elk, the mountain and desert sheep, the 

 prong-horned antelope, the black bear and 

 the six different species of grizzly bear. 



Some very interesting data are given 

 regarding the traffic in furs in the early 

 history of California, when large num- 

 bers of skins were exported. The in- 

 creased scarcity of sea otter skins is 

 indicated by the increase of price, which in 

 1880 was .$80 and in 1910 was $1,703.33. 

 Elk and deer were so abundant in early 

 days that three thousand were exported 

 from San Francisco in 1842, at prices 

 ranging from fifty cents to a dollar per 

 head. 



The grizzly bear, once so distinctly a 

 part of California as to suggest the name 

 "Bear State," and to become the totem 

 on the first flag of California, has disap- 

 peared completely. The last known sur- 

 vivor of the largest species, found in 

 southern California, was killed in the 

 Santa Ana Mountains in August, 1900 or 

 1901. 



The concluding paragraphs of Dr. Tay- 

 lor's paper point out the fact that not 



