October, 1919] 



The Canadian Field-Naturalist 



77 



evolute of this grex. In Canada the grex is thus 

 well represented, and only a very few American 

 species are absent. 



Considered altogether the genus Carex in Canada 

 is rich in types, some being confined to this con- 

 tinent, others being known also from Eurasia. The 

 arctic element Canada shares mostly with Europe, 

 and as stated above several species are circumpolar, 

 and it deserves attention that many of these Cana- 

 dian Carices represent alliances analogous to those 

 of the old world, exmplified by types of a corre- 

 sponding habit and general aspect. 



So far as concerns the greges we have seen that 

 Canada is the home of certain ancestral types, 

 formae hebetaiae, which are absent from Europe, 



in other words several of the greges are more amply 

 represented here by possessing these types in con- 

 nection with the centrales, and passing gradually 

 into some more or less deviating: desciscentes. 



The presence in Canada of such characteristic 

 species as those of the Lejochlaenae, mostly sylvan 

 types of rare morphological structure, and of south- 

 ern origin, indicates the enormously wide distri- 

 bution of the genus on this continent, and its ability 

 to adapt itself to the environment, far north and 

 far south. And the alpine flora with its arctic 

 species intermingled with endemic or more southern 

 types is a tangible proof of the foundation of the 

 theory relating to the history of the arctic flora 

 during the glacial epoch. 



HUNTING THE BARREN GROUND GRIZZLY ON THE 

 SHORES OF THE ARCTIC. 



By H. F. J. Lambart, Ottawa. 



One specimen of the Alaska Boundary Grizzly, 

 Ursus internationalis Merriam,'^ a new bear of 

 the Barren Grizzly group, was secured in July, 

 1912, when engaged on the survey of the 

 141st meridian. This was the year in which the 

 meridian was completed through to the shores of 

 the Arctic Ocean. Not more than two other speci- 

 mens were seen by the Canadian and American 

 parties during the summer although signs of the 

 bear were constantly met with. 



This one specimen was secured by mere chance. 

 One of our camps was situated in a sheltered valley 

 which later was found to be a favorite haunt as 

 evidenced by the quantity of hair found in the gum 

 of the small spruce against which he was accus- 

 tomed to rub. This sheltered ravine was at the 

 head of a small stream in which there was a luxur- 

 iant shrub growth, consisting of "buck brush" with 

 some small scattered spruce, and was hemmed in 

 by rolling high barren ridges. The elevation of 

 the floor of the valley was about 2,000 feet above 

 sea level and was situated just a little on the 



*Alaska Boundary Grizzly. Ursus internation- 

 allis Merriam, Proc. Biol. See. Wa.'^hington, .xxvii, 

 PI). 177-178. August 18. 1914. 



Type locality — .Maska — Yukon Boundary, about 

 50 miles south of Arctic coast (lat. 6!)° 00' 30"). 



Type Specimon— No. 176:5 ad., Ottawa Museum. 

 Killed .July 3, 1912, by Frederick Lambart, of Cana- 

 dian Boundary Survey. 



Kange — Region bordering Arctic coast along 

 international boundary, and doubtless adjacent 

 mountain.s, between the coast and the Yukon — Por- 

 cupine; limits unknown. 



Characters — Size medium or rather large: af- 

 finities doubtful. Color a peculiar pale yellowish 

 brown. Head strongly arched: muzzle and frontal 

 region broa<l. Large lower jiremolar strictly conical, 

 without heel, as in the brown bears. 



Cranial characters — Skull of medium size, mas- 

 .sive. strongly arched and ilished, highest over 



Canadian side of the boundary and inland from 

 the Arctic Ocean 45 miles. 



The immediate district may be described as be- 

 ing under the lea of the British mountains, which 

 parallel the coast at a distance of about 25 miles 

 and reach an altitude of 6000 feet at the boundary ; 

 the mountains are deeply furrowed, the ridges being 

 bare and open with little vegetation. 



The burrows of the Arctic Ground Squirrel, 

 Citellus parryi (Richardson), are sadly rooted out 

 thrcughcut the district casting suspicion on our 

 friend the bear. 



The floor of the river valleys are, generally speak- 

 ing, heavily brushed as also the sheltered sides of 

 the valley, and small patches of the small Arctic 

 spruce in these localities are frequent. 



I have definitely proved to my own satisfaction 

 that the Brown and Grizzly bears prey upon the 

 sheep (Ov'is dalli) at the southern end of the boun- 

 dary where they are found in large numbers, but 

 here at the northern end where the sheep are very 



anterior part of braincase: frontal shield broad, 

 very short pointed posteriorly sulcate medially and 

 swollen over orbits: postorbitals bluntly roundeil, 

 strongly decurved. not widely projecting: fronto- 

 nasal region strongly dished: rostrum large and 

 broad: sagittal cre.-t long liut feebly developed: 

 zygomata subtriangular. not widely outstanding, 

 and not much e.vpanded vertically: palate and post- 

 palatal shelf rather broad: notch moderate. Teetli 

 rather small for size of skull: heel of last upper 

 molar small and obli(|Uely truncate on outer side; 

 large lower premolar strictly of brown-bear type — 

 a single cone without heel, sulcus, or posterior 

 cusplets; first lower molar broad and somewhat 

 sinuous: middle lower molar narrow and short 

 posteriorly. 



Skull measurements. — Adult male (type): Basal 

 length, .'^OH: occipito-nasal length. 293, palatal 

 length, 169. zygomatic breadth, 203.5, interorbital 

 breadth, 82. 



