1936] 



MAMMALS OF OREGON 75 



mesas and mountain parks. In some places, their spring and fall 

 migrations extend over at least several hundred miles, while in others 

 they merely go back and forth over the higher and lower levels. 

 Many of the antelope of southern Oregon are reported as wintering 

 in the valleys of northern Nevada. It is not improbable that it is the 

 migratory habits which keep the species so uniform in character over 

 a wide range from Canada to Mexico and the Missouri River nearly 

 to the Pacific. The characteristics of several subspecies show but 

 slight contrasts. 



Breeding habits. In eastern Lake County, Oreg., Finley and 

 Jewett captured two small young on May 25, 1927, but probably the 

 breeding season is not very different from that in northern Nevada 

 where the fawns are dropped about the middle of May (Nelson, 19<25, 

 p. 19), or in the Yellowstone Park country where the antelope mate 

 in October and the young are born in May or June. Twins are 

 common. If protected from enemies the antelope would increase 

 very rapidly. As would be expected from their habitat in the open 

 grassland, the young are without spots or marking, their buffy- 

 brown colors blending well with the dry grasses as they flatten them- 

 selves close to the ground. 



The horns of the bucks are shed in November, soon after the Oc- 

 tober rutting season is over. A new skin begins to grow over the 

 flattened bony horn cores and pushes off the hard outer shell. This 

 new hairy, black skin grows, thickening and hardening, first at the 

 tip, then gradually downward during the winter and following 

 spring, until new solid horns are ready for the fall fighting and mat- 

 ing season. 



Food habits. The antelope is a good illustration of how little is 

 known of the habits of our native animals. Supposedly they are 

 grass feeders. Domesticated individuals may be seen picking grass 

 and other plants, but there is some evidence to show that they are 

 not mainly grass feeders. In winter, at least, they pick the tips 

 and buds from a great variety of bushes and plants that come above 

 the surface of the snow, but they also seek the warmer slopes and 

 sheltered spots where dry grass may be obtained. Too, they will 

 eat dry hay of various kinds when other food is covered by deep 

 snow. They are fond of alfalfa, dry or green, and often may be seen 

 in an alfalfa patch picking daintily among the leaves and heads. Un- 

 doubtedly, a great variety of plant flowers and seeds are included 

 in their diet, for they are dainty feeders, picking skillfully here and 

 there. Usually they are plump and in good condition, although 

 rarely showing much accumulation of fatty tissue. 



Economic status. Half a century ago the antelope was one of the 

 most abundant game animals over the western half of the continent, 

 inhabiting an immense area of country. Today, their numbers are 

 shrunken to comparatively small bands, mainly in Wyoming, Mon- 

 tana, Colorado, California, New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, Nevada, and 

 Oregon. If the decrease in their numbers continues as in the past 

 though recently they have slightly increased a few more years will 

 number them among extinct species. For ages past they furnished 

 food to native tribes, and during the exploration and settlement of 

 the country, they played an important part in supplying food to 

 explorers, pioneers, and settlers. Their destruction, however, has 



