STORY OF OUR NATIONAL FOREST 149 



California National Forests have 236,060 deer, 

 with Oregon second, and Montana, Alaska, Arizona 

 and Idaho with about 51,407 each. In Oklahoma, 

 Alabama, Tennessee, and West Virginia, only, are 

 no deer found in the National Forests. 



Wyoming leads in elk with 39,008, Montana 

 following second with 10,593; Washington, Colo- 

 rado, Idaho and Oregon are closely behind. Arizona, 

 California, New Mexico, North Carolina, Okla- 

 homa, South Dakota and Utah also have elk. 



Wyoming also leads in moose with 2,145; 

 Montana with 1,185 comes second, and Minnesota a 

 close third ; Alaska and Idaho National Forests also 

 have moose. 



Mountain goats are found in the National For- 

 ests of Alaska, 9,000 in number, with Montana 

 4,248, Idaho 3,042, and Washington 2,125. Moun- 

 tain sheep are more widely distributed, Colorado 

 National Forests leading with 3,888, and Wyoming 

 second with 2,639. Colorado has 45,275 beaver, 

 Montana 16,060, and Idaho 15,110. 



Observe that, while there is no "game" in the 

 museums which we call our National Parks where 

 wild life is left in nature's care, in the National For- 

 ests the animals listed above are all so classified. 

 They are hunted in season under the laws of the 

 states where they are found, and are counted valu- 

 able in season to surrounding settlers as meat. 

 With the coming of recreation these animals acquire 

 an additional value as part of the forest spectacle. 



