FOREWORD xv 



color of the snowy owl assists it in getting its prey, 

 or that its color hampers the raven. The northern 

 weasels and northern hares of America both turn 

 white in winter. Thru most of their range the 

 various species of these weasels and hares exist side 

 by side with the close kinsmen of the weasel, the 

 mink and the sable, and at the southern boundary 

 of their range side by side with the small gray 

 rabbits ; none of which change their color any 

 more than the lynx and fox do, and yet in the 

 struggle for life seem to be put to no disadvantage 

 thereby. The Arctic hare changes color as does 

 the ptarmigan. The ordinary snow-shoe rabbits 

 and jack-rabbits of the woods and plains south of 

 the Arctic hare region also change their color ; 

 but the grouse which inhabit the same woods or 

 open plains, such as the ruffed, the sharp- tailed 

 and the spruce, unlike their northern kinsman, the 

 ptarmigan, undergo no seasonal change. Around 

 my ranch on the Little Missouri, the jack-rabbits 

 all turned white in winter ; the little cotton-tail 

 rabbits did not ; yet as far as I could see both 

 species were equally at home and fared equally well. 



When a boy, shooting on the edges of the desert 

 in Egypt, I was imprest with the fact that the 

 sand grouse, rosy bullfinches, sand larks and sand 

 chats all in the coloration of their upper parts 

 harmonized strikingly with the surroundings, while 

 the bold black and white chats were peculiarly 

 noticeable, and yet as far as I could see held their 

 own as well in the struggle for existence. But as 

 regards the first-named birds it seemed to me at the 

 time that their coloration was probably protective, 

 for in the breeding season the males of some of 

 them showed striking colors, but always under- 

 neath, where they would not attract the attention 

 of foes. 



Mr. Selous also shows that the "signal" or 



o 



