MIGRATION. 175 



North America, is migratory, like the European 

 animal. Dr. Richardson describes two varieties, 

 the woodland caribou, and the barren-ground 

 caribou. Both have their peculiar winter 

 and summer localities. The former exceeds 

 the latter in stature ; its proper country is a 

 strip of low primitive rocks, well clothed 

 with wood, above a hundred miles wide, and 

 extending at the distance of eighty and a hun- 

 dred miles from the shore of the Hudson's 

 Bay, from Lake Athapescow to Lake Superior. 

 " Contrary to the practice of the barren-ground 

 caribou, the woodland variety travels to the south- 

 ward in the spring. They cross the Nelson and 

 Severn rivers in immense herds id the month 

 of May, pass the summer on the low and marshy 

 shores of James' Bay, and return to the north- 

 ward, and at the same time retire more inland 

 in the month of September." 



On the other hand, the herds of the barren- 

 ground caribou spend the summer on the coasts 

 of the Arctic Sea, and in winter retire to the 

 woods between 63° and 66° of latitude, where 

 they feed on the tisneee, alectariae, and other 

 lichens, as well as on the long grass of the 

 swamps. About the end of April, they make 

 excursions from the woods in order to obtain 

 the terrestrial lichens, which, now that the 

 snows are partially melted, are both soft and 

 easy to be collected. " In May, the females 

 proceed to the sea-coast, and towards the end 

 of June the males are in full inarch in the 

 same direction. At this period, the sun has 



