498 



CARNIVORES. 



the Alleghanies, Southern Florida, and possibly in the sparsely-settled parts of the 

 interior States south of the Ohio. It is only abundant in the remote districts of 

 Maine. West of the Mississippi its numbers are very small in comparison with its 

 former abundance, while over vast areas it has been wholly extirpated. 



Wolves inhabit both open country and forests ; and although generally found 

 in pairs, or solitary, they at times, and more especially in winter, associate in 

 large numbers. They wander abroad both in the daytime and at night. 

 Although usually cowardly, the wolf becomes bolder and more daring, stealing its 

 prey by night, when driven by hunger, or when hunting together. Stories of 

 the attacks of wolves, when in packs, upon travellers in Russia are so numerous, and 

 have been so frequently quoted that it will be unnecessary to repeat any of them 

 here; but it may be mentioned that in the year 1875 no less than 161 persons fell 

 victims to these animals in Kussia. Writing of the wolf of the Adirondack region, 

 Dr. Merriam observes that during the deep snows a small pack of wolves will 

 sometimes kill hundreds of deer, taking here and there a bite, but leaving the 

 greater number untouched. In the earlier days of American farming, a couple 

 of these marauders have been known to kill fifteen or sixteen sheep in a single 

 night, simply tearing open their throats without otherwise damaging the carcases. 

 When the bison existed in countless thousands on the prairies of North America, 

 wolves were in the habit of prowling around the herds for the purpose of 

 preying on sick or wounded individuals and such calves as strayed from the pro- 

 tection of their elders. Frequently, it is stated, wolves might be seen wandering 

 in the midst of a herd of bull bison without attracting the least attention. In 

 general almost any kind of prey is acceptable to the wolf, which does not by any 

 means disdain a meal of carrion. The larger mammals, such as cattle, horses, 

 and the bigger kinds of deer, are generally only attacked when several wolves are 

 associated together ; but it is stated that in Canada a single wolf will kill the 

 largest male reindeer. Birds always form an acceptable portion of the wolf's 

 diet. When hard pressed by hunger, wolves will eat almost anything they 

 come across, down to mice and frogs, and, it is said, even buds of trees and 

 lichens. 



The lair of the wolf is formed either in a rocky cavern, within the hollow of a 

 fallen trunk, beneath the roots of an overthrown tree, or more rarely in holes in 

 the ground; such burrows being sometimes dug by the animal itself. A dense 

 thicket will also not unfrequently serve as a hiding-place. In these lairs the cubs 

 are born, the number in a litter generally varying from six to ten. The cubs, 

 which are born in the spring, usually remain with their parents till the end of 

 November or December, but may sometimes continue with them for a much longer 

 period. The ordinary cry of the wolf is a loud and prolonged howl. The amount 

 of noise, writes Dr. Merriam, that a single wolf is capable of producing is simply 

 astonishing ; and many amusing episodes of camp lore owe their origin to this fact. 

 More than one lone traveller has hastily taken to a tree, and remained in the in- 

 hospitable shelter of its branches for an entire night, believing himself surrounded 

 by a pack of at least fifty fierce and hungry wolves, when in reality there was but 

 one, and (as its tracks afterwards proved) that was on the further side of a lake, a 

 couple of miles away. By association with domestic dogs, wolves will soon learn to 



