Canadian Forestry Journal, April, ipi6. 



Experiments With Reindeer 



The Story of Canada's Efforis to Introduce a X'aluable Animal to 



New Forms of Service. 



The connecton of reindeer and 

 forest conservation is not so remote 

 as first thoughts might indicate. As 

 mentioned in a recent number of the 

 Journal, Mr. Ellwood Wilson. Chief 

 Forester of the Laurentide Com- 

 pany, Grand Mere, P.O., has suc- 

 ceeded in domesticating a remnant 

 of the herd brought to Canada 

 through the efforts of Dr. Wilfrid 

 Grenfell, and these have come 

 through the past winter remarkably 

 well and will probably show an in- 

 crease. Last year the deer showed 

 their practical value in browsing off 

 the hardwood seedlings in planta- 

 tions where the forester wanted 

 evergreens only to grow. Many de- 

 vices were tried in an effort to get 

 rid of the hardwoods. The reindeer 

 finally were turned in and devoured 



the hardwoods refusing to touch 

 the conifers. That these animals 

 were to be used for logging, or for 

 winter travel in various woods op- 

 erations and forest protection, is a 

 happy theory which has not had 

 much opportunity for demonstra- 

 tion. 



The following article by Aubrey 

 Fullerton in April "Rod and Gun" 

 gives most interesting information 

 on the reindeer question : 



Five years ago a novel experiment 

 was made by the Dominion Govern- 

 ment in the way of wilderness col- 

 onization in the far Northwest. It 

 was animal colonization, rather than 

 human, but its success was likely to 

 mean a great deal to the people who 

 might settle there at some future 

 time. For these new animal colon- 

 ists were reindeer. 



