MAMMALS. 



243 



VuLPES FULVUS AEGENTATUS (Shaw). Black or Silver Fox (Esk. Kd-bvt-^ikchW-cMTc'- 

 pditl; or A-<Jihiug'ul;U-tok). 



This beautiful auitnal is much less commou tliau the Cross Fox, iuto which it grades. Although 

 Black Foxes are takeu wherever the Eed Fox is found iu the north, yet they are of extreme rarity 

 except in a few districts. The Hudson Bay Company obtains many of their finest Black Fox skins 

 from the Lower Mackenzie River country, and the adjacent district iu Alaska, on the headwaters 

 of the Yukon and Kuskoquim Rivers, is the most productive ground for this animal, both in num- 

 ber and quality. It is also numerous to the south of this district, and particularly on Kadiak 

 Island and the adjacent shore. Except in the districts named, not more than one Black Fox is 

 takeu to every five hundred of the red kind, although occasional Black Foxes occur north to the 

 70th degree of latitude, and west to the vicinity o^ Bering Straits and on most of the Aleutian 

 Islands. In trade, a Black Fox skin brings from two to eight or ten times the value of a Red Fox 

 skin, according to its quality. As mentioned before, the district about the headwaters of the 

 Yukon, where the Black Foxes are most numerous, is also most productive of Black Wolf skins. 



When the skin of a fox is removed by an Eskimo he makes a short incantation and dismisses 

 the animal's spirit, hoping thereby to remove any ill will it may bear him for capturing it. 



MUSTELIDiE. 



MUSTELA AMERICANA Turton. American Sable (Esk. Kafclii-clmul:). 



Two skins of this species were obtained. They represent very nearly the extremes of varia- 

 tion in color. One skin, Xo. 13S79 (131), from Nulato, is of the usual snuff color ciouded with 

 blackish brown, which latter color becomes dominant on the tail aud feet. The second skin, on the 

 contrary, is of a light orange tint, the extremity of the tail alone (the feet are wanting) being of a 

 dark brown color. This specimen, No. 13271 (149), is a hunter's skin from Anvik. 



Among the skulls obtained, the largest (No. 21395), from Shaktolik, has a length of 88™'" and a 

 width of 53""". It is impossible to say, however, whether it is a male or female. There are in the 

 collection of the National Museum a female skull from Peel River (C087) which has a length of 89"°" 

 and a width of 46""", and two male skulls from Y"ukon having a length of 88'""' and a width of 46'°". 



List of specimens and measurements. 



SKINS. 



SKULLS. 



21381 

 2 

 3 

 4 

 5 

 6 



21387 

 8 

 9 



21390 

 1 

 2 

 3 

 4 

 5 

 6 

 7 



i: 



139 

 140 

 141 

 171 

 172 

 173 

 174 

 17.1 

 170 

 177 

 178 

 179 

 200 

 222 

 259 

 260 



I 



Niilato February, 1880 



Mouth of Tanana Kiver do ." 



do do 



do I do 



Mission ' do 



do 



do _-. 



do 



do 



do 



do 



do 



do 



Andraenoiski 



Shaktolik 



Taniina Kiver 



do 



do 



do 



do 



, do 



do 



do 



do 



do 



do 



Winter, I879-'80. 



Spring, 1860 



do 



41 



