1( ;j VERTEBRATA. 



the lees settled countries, with the exception of California, where it scorns to be replaced by the 

 grizzly bear, li is occasional^ rael with in fchc mountainous parts of Maine, New Hampshire, 

 and Vermont : in the uninhabited wooded regions of NTew York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania 

 i: i- common. 



The total length of an adult of this Bpecies Beldom exceeds six feet. Its favorite food appears 

 to 1"' berries of various kinds, but when these are not to be procured, it preys upon roots, insects, 

 tuii. ud such birds or quadrupeds as il can surprise. It docs not eat animal food from 



choice, for when it lias abundance of it- favorite vegetable diet it will pass the carcass of a deer 

 without touching it. It- haunts arc in the gloomy forests, its chief happiness seeming to consist 

 in solitude. Its I is eminently savage and morose, and even when partially domesticated, it 



- not appear to have the sociable and humorous qualities of the European bear. It is a timid 

 animal, and will seldom face a man unless it is wounded, or has its retreat cut off, or is urged by 

 affection to defend its young. When residenl in the fur countries, it almost invariably hibernates, 

 and about one thousand skins are annually procured by the Hudson's Bay Company from black 

 bears destroyed in their wintei retreats. It generally selects a spot for its dm under a fallen 

 and, having scratched away a portion of the soil, retires to it at the commencement of a 

 .—'.•nil, wh.n the snow soon furnishes it with a close, warm covering. Its breath makes a 

 small opening in the den, a:.'! the quantity of hoar frost which occasionally gathers round the 

 apcrtun sen to '•■•tray its retreat t<> the hunter. 



In more southern districts, where the timber i- of a large size, these hears often shelter them- 

 •! hollow trees. The Indians remark that a bear never retires to its den for the winter 

 until it ha- acquired a thick coat of l'at ; and it is remarkable that when it comes abroad in the 

 equally l'at, though in a few days thereafter it becomes very lean. The period of the 

 retreat of the b ;ars is generally about the time when the snow- begins to lie on the ground, and 

 they do not come abroad again until the greater part of the snow is gone. At both these periods 

 they can procure many kinds <>f berries in considerable abundance. In latitude 65° their winter 

 rep. - from the beginning of October to the first or second week of May; hut on the 



northern shores of Lake Huron, the period is from two to three months shorter. In very severe 

 winter-, great numbers of hear- have been observed to enter the United States from the north- 

 ward. Like the deer and bison, they change their haunts with the season, but it is not true, 

 as has been asserted, that they generally abandon the northern districts on the approach of 

 winter; the quantity of hear— kins procured during that season in all parts of the fur countries 

 beii ! Eficienl proof to the contrary. The females bring forth about the middle of January; 



the number of cubs varies from one to five. 



During the Bpring months, this hear lives on succulent plants along- the margins of lakes and 

 ponds ; in summer, it secludes itself in the gloomy swamps, where it feeds on roots, nettles, fish, 

 and small mollusca. < >ccasionally a stray pig, calf, or cow diversifies its hill of fare. One of its 

 great pleasures i- to wallow in the mud like a hog. Sometimes it makes a foray into the cornfield-. 

 where it causes great havoc. As autumn advances, nuts, acorns, grapes, berries and mast become 

 it- food. Aboul the same time, many a he, ■-tree i> ravaged of its honey to feed this avaricious 

 and greedy brute. At this season it roams the woods alone, occasionally embracing the trunk of 

 a tree with its arms, tearing the hark with its paws, and clashing its teeth till the foam gushc* 

 from the mouth — as if to k >ep itself in training for the chase — and then goes on its way. 



Tin- young bears are not much bigger than kittens at the time of their birth. They lie care- 

 fully bidden in some cave or hollow tree till they are able t<> go forth. They arc sportive 

 ■ .il of prank-, — running, leaping, wrestling, and playing hide-and-seek, like a parcel of 

 Tic young cubs arc indeed as harmless and sportive as puppies. The hunters tell us that 

 they often go off and hide themselves, to tease their anxious mother-. After a time the undutiful 

 cubs come back grinning and leering, and seem to think it an excellent joke. If captured early, 

 these creatures may be trained t<> a certain degree of tameness, and may he taught many tricks 

 — though, a- before remarked, they are less docile than the European hears. 



I black hear, in -j.it ■ of his clumsy shape, wallops over the ground with great speed. H 

 closely pursued by >\>>^. it climbs a tree, hut d -ends and gives battle on the approach of the 



