36 CONSERVATION OF CANADIAN WILD LIFE 



until the shrill call reaches a screaming whistle, which grad- 

 ually fades away again to a few guttural grunts as the chal- 

 lenge is echoed down the valley. The real bugle-notes are 

 only uttered by the mature bulls. 



During the winter the animals frequently congregate in 

 herds, and in Wyoming these number many thousands. 

 In the spring the cows remain banded in small herds until 

 the time for the birth of the calves approaches. They then 

 separate, and in solitude bring forth, about May or June, a 

 single calf, which remains with the mother until it is a 

 year old. The bulls drop their antlers in March or April, 

 and the growth of the new pair is rapid, usually attaining 

 full size in about three months. They are "in velvet" un- 

 til about August, when the animals hasten the shedding of 

 the velvet by rubbing their antlers against trees or bushes. 



The flesh is in the poorest condition at the end of the rut- 

 ting season, that is, in October; and, as bull wapiti are usu- 

 ally killed soon after this, the venison is often inferior in 

 quaUty. When killed at the proper season and allowed to 

 hang for a few days, the meat is much superior to most 

 forms of venison. 



Economic Value of Wapiti. — Apart from its value from 

 the point of view of the sportsman, to whom it appeals 

 more than any other species of deer, the value of the wapiti 

 as a source of wild-deer meat cannot be overestimated. As 

 already stated, it affords venison of a superior kind. By 

 its habits it is adapted to living ia wooded country not well 

 suited to cattle grazing. In Canada we have large areas 

 of such country in the former and present range of the 

 wapiti. With the preservation of those timbered areas 

 should be associated the preservation of the wapiti. Their 

 polygamous habits tend to render less difficult their preser- 

 vation and use. 



There are many wooded areas admirably adapted to 

 wapiti that might be stocked to advantage with these 



