603 
change that has taken place in the mammalian population since the 
coming of the white man. 
I can find no definite record of buffalo within the county. The 
early settlers often found buffalo skulls and buffalo-wallows, and 
buffalo-trails were common,—all showing the earlier abundance of 
the animals. Hornaday estimates that they left this part of [linois 
about 1810.* A number of the very earliest settlers think that 
buffalo were seen here considerably later than that, but are unable 
to give positive facts. At any rate the main herd left about 1810. 
The elk also must have left about the same time. It should be 
remembered that this part of the state was surrounded by settle- 
ments on all sides before it was itself settled, and so the larger game 
was frightened off earlier than usual in the development of the 
country. 
Beaver were seen, according to Mr. Parsons, of Homer, so late 
as 1860 in the vicinity of Broadlands. There were but few left, 
however, in 1835. The bear and the panther must certainly both 
have been occasional visitants, but I am unable to fix the date of 
their last appearance. They had disappeared by 1840, and the 
other large Carmivora had been thinned out. In consequence the 
deer were beginning to increase, and all accounts agree that there 
was a period of greatest abundance of deer about 1850. Ina 
similar manner the destruction of the wolves and wildcats was 
followed by an increase in the abundance of foxes, raccoons, opos- 
sums, and skunks, till these, in turn, were killed off by man. 
Following the diminution of the wolves and foxes there is also 
a period of greatest abundance of rabbits, and I believe that at 
present, each fall before the shooting season opens these animals 
are as abundant as they were under the conditions prevailing before 
the settlers came. The period of great abundance of squirrels, as 
indicated on the chart, was determined by various records. How 
far this abundance may have been due to the destruction of the 
large carnivores, and how far due to other agencies, I am unable to 
tell. All the rodents are subject to periodical fluctuations in 
abundance due to a combination of circumstances not fully under- 
stood. 
In the case of weasels and shrews no variation in abundance is 
indicated in the chronological table. While there can be no doubt 
ee Rep. U.S. Nat. Mus. for year ending June 30, 1887, Map (following p. 548). 
