434 SOME FOUR-FOOTED PESTS OF THE FARM 



who slept or endeavored to sleep on that side of the house next 

 the animals. The fox was never injured by the dogs. 



Control. Skilful methods of trapping, calling for most pains- 

 taking efforts, are the only means of defense on the part of the 

 poultry raiser. Poultry yards of modern construction reduce the 

 danger of attack. 



The Weasel. Various species of weasel occur in different 

 parts of the United States. All are wantonly destructive to animal 

 life, as many a poultry raiser will attest. An entire flock of poultry 

 may be destroyed by a weasel in a single night. Weasels also are 

 persistent robbers of birds' nests. On the other hand, they eat 

 white-footed mice and meadow mice, the latter animals being 

 pests to horticulture. Weasels are fond of rats and mice found 

 about farm buildings, and are enemies of rabbits. Northern 

 varieties turn white in winter, the tip of the tail alone remaining 

 black as in summer. 



Loose stone walls, piles of stone, stumps, hollow trunks of 

 trees or burrows formerly occupied by other animals, are favored 

 retreats for the weasel. 



About forty days are given as the period between mating and 

 the birth of the young, a litter numbering about four to eight. 



As in the case of the fox, trapping and modern buildings appear 

 to be the best methods of defense available to the poultry raiser. 



The red squirrel is, in its varied forms, widely distributed 

 over the entire United States. It is an acknowledged pest indi- 

 rectly on account of its habit of preying upon eggs and young of 

 birds, most of which are useful to the farmer and orchardist. It 

 also reduces the yield of pine seed by cutting off and burying the 

 green cones. Maples suffer in the spring from the attacks of red 

 squirrels, which gnaw holes in the upper side of larger branches 

 and drink the sap gathering therein. Trappers complain that the 

 red squirrel frequently steals bait from their traps. Evidence is 

 not lacking that the gray squirrel and its varieties are also, to 

 some extent, guilty of robbing birds' nests, yet they are not so 

 persistent in this habit, or so destructive as the red squirrel, and 

 in most localities they are much less common than the latter 

 variety. 



The Common Skunk. There are nine known species of skunks, 

 but the data given are for the most common and well-known 

 genus (Mephitis), and are practically applicable to all known 

 North American species. 



