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ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



a cage containing two very young mcerkats or 

 suricates, which are not only carnivorous animals, 

 but belong to a family whose members are notorious 

 for their depredations among the smaller rodents 

 and among snakes — in fact the Family Viverridcc, 

 containing the quarrelsome mongoose, to which 

 the suricate is closely related. In the company 

 with the two suricates, however, this ground squir- 

 rel grew and attained maturity, as was also the 

 case with its flesh-eating associates. However, the 

 three live in perfect harmony, rodent and carniv- 



.ALBINO GRAY SQUIRREL. 



ores. At feeding time, the keeper introduces 

 meat to the suricates and vegetables and nuts to 

 the squirrel. 



On one occasion this strange combination was 

 broken up. The squirrel was placed in a separate 

 cage, but, according to the animal-man's vernacu- 

 lar, all three of the animals were "thrown off their 

 feed." The squirrel refused to eat, and the viver- 

 rines merely nosed over their meat and passed it 

 by, searching every corner and squealing uneasily. 

 On the following day the squirrel was again placed 

 in the cage with its friends, and met a hearty re- 

 ception, the suricates running about it in circles 

 and linally hcking it in cat-like fashion. All three 

 animals at once began feeding with their usual 

 appetites. 



Among the North American squirrels on exhibi- 

 tion in the Zoological Park, the black squirrels 

 (Sciurus carolinensis) — black phase — are specially 

 attractive. In general conformation they are much 

 like the gray squirrel {Sciurus carolinensis) . Both 

 of these animals are to occupy cages of the burrow- 

 ing rodents' series during the summer months. 



Perhaps the most interesting of all our scjuirrels 

 is a very perfect and pure-white albino gray squirrel, 

 from western Kansas, the gift of Mr. G. O. Shields, 



editor of Shields' Magazine. For nearly three 

 years 'Tnkey," as this beautiful creature is called, 

 lived in the editorial sanctum of its donor, enjoying 

 the freedom of the entire suite of offices, and its 

 escape from death by accident was really remark- 

 able. Once, indeed, it fell down a stair shaft and 

 was much injured, but eventually recovered. 



In outside enclosures will be quartered the large 

 fox squirrel (Sciurus ludovicianus), and the com- 

 mon red squirrel (Sciurus hudsonius), a species 

 common in the Zoological Park. Following the 

 cages of the larger squirrels, in the series of burrow- 

 ing rodents' enclosures, are the colonies of chip- 

 munks, representing the western and eastern species 

 and the dainty thirteen-lined spermophile (Sper- 

 mophilus tridecemlineatus), a very showy species 

 inhabiting the dry prairies of the Central and 

 Western States. r. l. d. 



THE INLAND WHITE BEAR 



A LTHOUGH we have not yet secured any 

 •'^ living specimens of the new inland white 

 bear (Ursus kermodei), collectors are on the look- 

 out for them, and we hope to secure some ere long. 

 Mr. Francis Kermode, Curator of the Victoria 

 Museum, visited the habitat of the species last 

 April, but was too early to find bears afoot. The 

 Indians said they had not yet left their winter 

 dens. Regarding the local reputation of the species 

 Mr. Kermode writes as follows: 



"These white bears are well known to the Indians 

 and traders, and they all seem to agree that most 

 of them are killed on Gribble Island, Princess 

 Royal Island, and most of the other large islands 

 in that coast district; also on the mainland side 

 from Kiyimaat to Rivers Inlet; but they seem con- 

 fident that most of them are killed on the islands. 

 The reason of this is that the Indians when 

 they hunt Ijear never leave their canoes until they 

 see the bears come out on the bare patches in the 

 mountains, and as there are no white goats on these 

 islands (they being quite common on the mountains 

 on the mainland), anything white attracts their 

 eye. 



"Mr. George Robinson, a store-keeper at Kitimaal 

 and a trader, tells me that he has been them every 

 year for about twenty years, but that the Indians 

 get most of them on the islands. Mr. Clayton, 

 from Bella Coola, tells me the same, and both these 

 gentlemen have promised to endeavor to get the 

 Indians to get me some good specimens. I called 

 a short time ago to see Mr. Findlay, of Vancouver, 



