NOTES ON THE MAMMALS OF LAKE MAXTNKUCKEE 29 



Mr. Anton Meyer of Plymouth, Indiana, already quoted, informs 

 us that he usually gets a few small prairie wolf pelts each winter, 

 chiefly from Starke and Jasper counties. As the prairie of this 

 portion of the state reaches Lake Maxinkuckee it is quite probable 

 that this wolf occurs there. Dr. Hahn expresses the belief that the 

 Coyote has doubtless increased greatly in numbers in recent years 

 in the northwestern portion of the state and that its range is grad- 

 ually extending eastward. 



23. Lutra canadensis lataxina F. Cuvier. 

 Otter. 



The Otter was formerly not uncommon in this region, but it 

 is now very rare. One was caught on the Tippecanoe River just 

 below Belong about 1895. Mr. Anton Meyer, a fur buyer of 

 Plymouth, Ind., tells us that he gets 10 or 12 Otter skins each 

 year, chiefly from the Tippecanoe and Yellow rivers. 



24. Mephitis mesomelas avia Bangs. 

 Skunk. 



The Skunk or Pole Cat is not common in this region but it is 

 apparently becoming more frequent. We saw none in 1899 and 

 1900, but that the country was not wholly deprived of this interest- 

 ing animal was on several occasions made evident by the presence 

 of the well-known diagnostic odor. 



On September 16, 1906, the mangled remains of one were found 

 on the railroad track near the gravel pit; it had evidently been run 

 over by a passing train. On September 20, 1907, a freshly skinned 

 skunk was seen in the possession of a hunter at Culver. The skin 

 was 22 inches long, and the tail 10 inches. The roots of the hairs 

 show through the skin so that the skin looks black under the black 

 parts and white under the white dorsal stripe. 



The price of prime skunk pelts in this region has ranged from $1.00 

 to $1.75 during the last few years. 



