NATURAL HISTORY.— MAMMALS 



229 



root of the tongue and posterior part of the nares and pharynx. 

 The Indians consider them to belong to the same species with 

 the oestrus that deposits its ova under the skin; to us the larvae 

 of the former appeared more flattened than those of the latter." 

 This variety of caribou is found only in the Barren Ground, in 

 summer; hence it occurs only along the northern and north- 

 eastern border of this region. 



They are becoming restricted in their range east of the 

 Mackenzie, but after seeing them in their thousands in the 

 Barren Ground, it hardly seems possible that they will be ex- 

 terminated for many years to come as none are killed by white 

 men, except a few by whalers or exploring expeditions, owing 

 to the comparative inaccessibility of the territory which they 

 inhabit. The Eskimos are driving them from their hunting 

 grounds by the use of repeating rifles. The Indians are also 

 beginning to use improved weapons with disastrous effect. 



Ten specimens, seven skins and two heads at Rae; one albino 

 from Fond du Lac, Great Slave Lake. 



Alces machlis {Linn.). Moose. 



Mus-wa, C. Ten-di, D. R. Ti n -gik, L. Co-lo n , S. 



I have followed the classification of Flower and Lydekker 

 who consider the American and European elk as varieties of a 

 single species. The large size of the moose and its imposing 

 antlers has made it a favorite subject for the taxidermist, yet 

 the ordinary mounted specimen gives us but an imperfect idea 

 of the grandeur and majesty of bearing of the moose in its 

 native forest — the moss-hung conifers of sub-arctic regions. 

 The great palmated antlers without brow or bez tines, the long 

 slim legs, and the pendulous lip but add to its homeliness, 

 when removed from its natural surroundings. 



The moose when alarmed makes off at a shambling trot 

 which is said to be swift enough to soon distance a man, yet in 

 September, 1892, I ran in pursuit of a three year-old moose 

 that had been thoroughly frightened, upon which I gained a 

 hundred yards in a half a mile and which I succeeded in kill- 

 ing. Hearne states that, "Of all the large beasts in those parts 

 the buffalo is easiest to kill and the moose are the most diffi- 

 cult." 1 Having successfully stalked them in September and 



1 Journey, p. 254. 



