MAMMALS OF MINNESOTA. 73 



Lynx rufus (GM. ) RAF. 



WILD CAT. 



Felis rufa GMELIN, SCHREBER, DESMAREST, F. CUVIER. 



BLATNVJLLE. GULDENSTEIN, TEMMINCK. 



LESSING. GEOFFROY ST. HILLAIRE, FISCHER. 



GERVAIS . BLYTH. 



Lynx floridiana RAFINESQUE. Am. Month. Mag.. 1817. 

 Lyncus rufus GRAY. P. Z. S., 1867. 



DEKAY. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1842. 

 Felix montana DESMABEST, LESSING, HARLAN. 



LECONTE. P. A. N, S., Phila., 1856. 

 Felis maculata YIG. AND HORSF. Zool . Journ. , 1829. 



LESSING. Comp. Buff., 1839, etc. 

 Lynx rufus RAFINESQUE. Am Month. Mag., 1817. 



AUD. AND BACH. Quad., N. A. 



MARCY. Expl. Bed R., 1852. 



NEWBERRY. Pacif. R. R., Rep. VI, 1857. 



BAIRD. Mam., N. A. 



ALLEN. Bull. M. C. Z., 1871. 



COUES AND YARROW. Surv. 100th Mer., 1875. 



MERRIAM. Mam. Adiron., 1874. 



Out of over a dozen specimens of wild cat examined, none 

 presented the characters attributed to L. canadensis. It would 

 not therefore be competent for me to discuss the validity of the 

 two species or their relations, but it may be confidently stat- 

 ed that if there are two species in Minnesota, our sportsmen 

 are much at fault. I was repeatedly shown specimens of 

 "Lynx" which uniformly proved to be L. rufus, but all hunters 

 claim that two species exist, though distinctive characters 

 apart from difference in size could never be found. 



It is preferable, however, to proceed with the description of 

 the one known variable species. 



The earliest account of the wild cat from Minnesota, seems 

 to be this from Carver's travels, p. 416. "The cat of the mount- 

 ains. This creature is in shape like a cat, only much larger. 

 The hair or fur resembles also the skin of that domestic ani- 

 mal; the color, however, differs, for the former is of a reddish 

 or orange cast, but grows lighter near the belly. The whole 

 skin is beautified with black spots of different figures, of which 

 those on the back are long, and those on the lower parts 

 round. On the ears are black stripes. The creature is nearly 

 as fierce as a leopard, but will seldom attack man." 

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