NORTH AMERICA AND THE WEST INDIES 275 



then, apparently, the remnant of this herd has continued, wild 

 or in part under fence, in "western Kern County between 

 Tulare and Buena Vista lake basins and at times in adjacent 

 hills to westward. In 1932, about 170 individuals remained" 

 (Grinnell, 1933). "Many transplan tings of Dwarf Elk from 

 the remaining 'herd' in the Button willow district to other parts 

 of the State have been made, first to Sequoia National Park, 

 Tulare County, in 1904 and 1905, and more recently to Yosem- 

 ite Valley, to Monterey County, etc. None of these has re- 

 sulted in establishment under conditions of really wild freedom. 

 The Sequoia animals had entirely disappeared by 1926" 

 (Grinnell, 1933). With the protection now accorded them, 

 unless local requirements change, it seems likely that this 

 remnant in the Buttonwillow district may continue for a long 

 time. 



ROOSEVELT'S ELK; OLYMPIC ELK OR WAPITI 



CERVUS CANADENSIS ROOSEVELTI Merriam 



Cervus roosevelti Merriam, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, vol. 11, p. 271, Dec. 17, 1897 

 ("Mt. Elaine (on ridge between heads of Hoh, Elwah, and Soleduc rivers) near 

 Mt. Olympus, Olympic Mts., State of Washington"). 



SYNONYM: ? Cervus occidentalis Hamilton Smith, Griffith's Cuvier, Animal Kingdom, 

 vol. 4, p. 101, 1827. [Not certainly applicable to any American deer (Bailey)]. 



FIGS.: Bailey, 1936, pi. 20 (photographs of wild individual and a herd). 



This elk of the Northwest coast is perhaps the largest of the 

 races, the males with massive skull and antlers that are often 

 "cupped," that is, the three terminal tines tend to come off 

 together. The beam of the antler is relatively short and 

 straight, with the terminal prong reduced. The body color in 

 summer is a rich cinnamon-buff; head, neck, and belly dark 

 brown with much black; in winter the body is dark gray with 

 a dusky dorsal stripe and with dusky on the face, mane, and 

 belly. In the skull, the frontals are broad and much flattened, 

 and the preorbital cavity is small, as compared with the Rocky 

 Mountain race. Total length of an adult male, 2,490 mm.; 

 tail, 80; spread of antlers, 990 (3 feet 3 inches); length of left 

 beam (in type), 1,050 (41.25 inches). The length of antler 

 is about 500 mm. (20 inches) shorter than in a Rocky Mountain 

 elk of comparable development. 



The range of this race is confined to the humid forest belt 

 along the Pacific coast from northern Vancouver Island south 

 through the coast ranges of Washington, Oregon, and Cali- 



