64 



The Canadian Field-Naturalist 



[Vol. XXXIV. 



Miller* remarks: "At Nipigon a trapper told 

 me that martens, wherever they occur in sufficient 

 numbers, so terrorize the red squirrels by constan' 

 persecution that the noisy rodents, learning that 

 silence is their best protection, stop chattering. 

 Hence an abundance of silent squirrels is — accord- 

 ing to my informant at least — a certain indication 

 that marten fur is plenty. According to this, there 

 are no martens at all near Ridout. 



Fisher, Maries pennanti Erxleben. 



Consensus of opinion admits this animal as com- 

 monly occuring in all the wooded country. An ex- 

 forest-ranger with whom I talked said that while 

 existing in fair numbers, they never became abun- 

 dant, according to his observations. On Oct. 18, 

 I took one in a bear trap set at the offal of a moose, 

 near the Ridout river. This was several miles north 

 of the railway and in a comparatively heavy belt 

 of spruce timber. The specimen was a well ma- 

 tured male and according to numerous published 

 measurements exceeded the usual size. Total 

 length, 36^/2 inches; tail, 14!/2 inches; foot, 5 

 inches. The ground color over all was a brown 

 of medium depth very liberally besprinkled dor- 

 sally with hoary greyish-golden guard hair; the 

 posterior portion more suggestive of gray. 



The fisher is regarded as one of the few success- 

 ful enemies of the porcupine from the frequency 

 of "porky" javelins somewhere in its anatomy, which 

 as a rule produce no bad effects. Although my 

 specimen was apparently an old adult, no evidence 

 of this was to be seen. Probably the genera) scar- 

 city of Ereihizon would account for it. 



Short-tailed Weasel, Musiela cigognanii 

 Bonaparte. 



Numerous tracks of weasels were noted especial- 

 ly during the autumn of 1917. No specimens were 

 secured, but the trails and a single medium sized 

 weasel hastily observed near the station were re- 

 ferred to this species. 



Mink, Mustela vison Schreber. 



The mink is fairly common at Ridout. The 

 lavish distribution of streamlets, rivers and lakes 

 throughout the region should prove a very con- 

 genial home for it. After a light fall of snow in 

 November, 1917, I saw signs of one along the 

 border of a small brook. A trainman saw one 

 running along the Ridout river on October 25, 1918. 



Canada Skunk, Mephitis mephitis Schreber. 



Skunks are found in varying numbers throughout 

 the region, but their distribution is governed locally 

 by favorable situations. Much of the country is 

 clothed heavily with conifers, and where this exists 



•Miller, Jr., G. S., Mamni.-ils of Ontario. Vol. 28. No. 

 1. p. 42, 1896. 



with low, damp, mossy ground the skunk could 

 scarcely be looked for. The poplar covered ridges 

 with warm southern slopes form a congenial habi- 

 tat for the species and many occur in the region. 

 In a sandy slope covered with low deciduous trees 

 north of Ridout I found two dens which I think 

 belonged to this species; both had every indication 

 of recent occupation. Mr. Visser has observed the 

 animal on but two or three occasions at Ridout but 

 informs me that its occurrence is more frequent 

 about the higher ground at Lake Pishkniogama a 

 short distance west of Ridout. The first week in 

 November, 1917, we saw one cross the rails near 

 the station and disappear in the woods. 



Canada Otter, Lutra canadensis (Schreber). 



Mr. Visser informs me that although the region 

 yields a number of skins each year, the species is 

 not very common. Where, as at Ridout, the nature 

 of the rivers are such that no alluviul material is 

 deposited along their courses, evidence is scant in 

 determining the occurence of terraqueous species 

 such as the other. Personally I observed no signs. 



After ice forms, and there is a surface of light 

 snow, the long excursions of the otter marked by 

 its conspicuous trails are commonly seen. They de- 

 light at this time in the fair open expanses of river 

 and lake and enter into long nocturnal journeys. 

 Once, on ascending the Hay river in Alberta, a 

 fresh otter trail of the night before preceded me all 

 day and was still in evidence when I camped for 

 the night, headed strong into the mountains. The 

 distance traversed by this animal before and after 

 my own day's journey of about fifteen miles, and 

 added to it would, if known afford a very inter- 

 esting and perhaps surprising figure. 



The usual mode of travel at such times is the 

 alternate jump, and slide, peculiar to the species, 

 with the latter five or six feet in length and main- 

 tained in untiring regularity by the momentum re- 

 ceived from each quasi-double bound. Each river 

 riffle on these journeys are unfailingly explored, 

 with varying success. If compensated the evi- 

 dence is plain enough — a few flecks of blood, 

 probably a fin, or a number of scales, and a yellow- 

 ish stain in the water-soaked snow at the lip of 

 the ice-hole. A corpulent male shot in November 

 while feeding on a wild duck at one of these holes, 

 was rankly "fishy" and loaded with fat. 



Canada Lynx, Lijnx canadensis Kerr. 



According to all accounts the lynx is at present 

 the commonest furbearer in Algoma, and the Indi- 

 an's specialty. The recent annual "catch" I un- 

 derstand has been large but the diminution , of 

 hares may soon cause a change of local fortune in 

 lynx skins. Lynx snares of former date were fre- 

 quently noted along the Ridout and Wakami rivers, 



