ON THE MOULTING OF THE ARCTIC FOX. 55 



season, tlie animal becoming then de facto closed to shooting for 

 the rest of the open season. 



This is where the shoe pinches the heel of the military man 

 very hard, as also, of course, that of his civil brother when 

 shooting on areas outside of his jurisdiction. To remedy a state 

 of affairs which is undoubtedly a real grievance, I suggest that 

 the number of individuals to be shot in a particular block or 

 area in any one year should be allotted in a fixed proportion 

 througho^it each month of the close season for that animal, say 

 2 or 3 or 4 per month, according to the tofcxl number notified as 

 shootable during that season, any balance remaining from any one 

 or more months being, of course, carried forward and distributed 

 throughout the remaining months of that shooting-season. 



This would give the hot-weather military sportsman, who in 

 pursuit of his favourite pastime is ready to put up with many and 

 decided discomforts, an equal chance with his civil brother, who 

 is not so tied during the cold weather. The suggestion is made 

 simply with the idea of giving a fair chance to all. 



But I would suggest a further step. I would allot a certain 

 propoi'tion of the head of a particular species to be shot in an area 

 to the local District officials, the balance going to the outside 

 sportsman. The District officials could be left to make their own 

 arrangements as to when their proportion of head was to be shot, 

 but I think that in the case of the outside sportsmen the 

 number to be shot should be allotted throughout the shooting 

 months, so as to give an equal chance to all the block-holders. 



No reflection is intended on the District officials by any of these 

 suggestions. They are made only in the interests of that 

 particular quality all Englishmen pride themselves in possessing 

 —Fair Play. 



4. On the Moultino- of an Arctic Fox ( Vidpes lagopus) in the 

 Society's Gardens. By R. I. Pocock, F.R.S., F.L.S., 

 F.Z.S., Superintendent of the Gardens. 



[Received October 24, 1911 : Read November 7, 1911.1 



(Text-figures 6-13.) 



The following account of the seasonal change of colour and the 

 phases in the moult of an Arctic Fox {Vulpes lagopus), which had 

 been living in the Society's Gardens since 1904, is based on 

 observations made during the summer of 1906. 



The white winter coat was retained unchanged until the middle 

 of May. In the latter half of that month it began to come off" on 

 the outside of the fore and hind legs, on the back of the ears, on 

 the muzzle, and on the sacral region in front of the root of the tail. 

 By the end of May the sacral patch had extended as a narrow sti'ip 

 down the thigh, joining the moulted ai'ea on the outer side of 

 the lower portion of the leg. The hair was thinning on the back 

 of the head, and as the white coat parted with the movements of 



