Mammalia. 281 



turning over logs and stones and devouring the beetles, 

 worms, and larvae. They are, in fact, omnivorous and 

 not only in their food, but in their mode of feeding, re- 

 semble hogs. The ferocity of bears is greatly exaggerated. 

 They are extremely shy animals, usually on the lookout 

 for danger ; even when feeding they look around at short 

 intervals. One common mode of hunting them is to watch 

 a carcass of some large animal. When a bear discovers 

 such a "feast" he feeds greedily, and either stays in the 

 neighborhood or returns regularly till it is all consumed. 

 The hunter lies in wait or approaches when the bear is 

 feeding, usually at dawn or at dusk. The approach must 

 be made with the utmost care from the leeward, or the bear 

 is gone without being seen. A bear has no wish to culti- 

 vate man's acquaintance., But a wounded bear is a most 

 desperate and dangerous foe. He is quick on his feet and 

 strikes like a prize fighter, a single blow from his mighty 

 arm, with its long claws, often completely disemboweling 

 a victim. In rare instances a bear, when discovered feed- 

 ing, becomes enraged and shows fight. Aside from these 

 conditions almost the only occasion when a bear " begins 

 a fight " is when a female with cubs is met ; even then she 

 often ignominiously takes to flight. Though clumsy in 

 appearance, the bear is a swift runner. In the fall bears 

 usually become very fat. Through most of the winter they 

 hibernate, or "hole up," as the hunters say, in a cave of 

 rocks or under the roots of a big tree. North America 

 has four kinds of bears : the polar bear ; the grizzly, 

 including the silvertip ; the black bear, including the cin- 

 namon bear ; and the big brown bear of Alaska. 



The raccoon is very much like a diminutive bear, not 

 only in its plantigrade feet, but also in its food habits. 

 Coons are shrewd creatures, and make good pets. 



