1364 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



mette's serum at hand we have a similarly valu- 

 able agent for the treatment of injuries from 

 cobras^ the American coral snakes, the many 

 Australian elapines (cobra types) and the like. 

 While this arrangement is not ideal, it is prob- 

 ably as far as we will go in many years in ob- 

 taining specific anti-venomous serums. It at 

 least provides us with selections of three serums 

 obtained from immunization with venom of 

 markedly different ratios. 



ITEMS OF INTEREST. 



Our Active Beavers. — For the past year there 

 has been a marked difference of opinion be- 

 tween the men in the Forestry Department and 

 our beavers. When we constructed the beaver 

 enclosure and regulated the drainage of the 

 pond, a pipe was placed near the top of the 

 dam, where the animals so industriously work. 

 The object of this pipe was to form a sort of 

 spillway for the dam-work to be designed and 

 executed by the beavers. To prevent the pond 

 from overflowing its banks, it is quite neces- 

 sary to keep the pipe open. That necessity is 

 constantly combated by the beavers, which per- 

 sistently stuff the pipe full of twigs, leaves and 

 mud to prevent it from performing its function. 

 As it takes several days for the beaver to com- 

 pletely block the pipe, it is cleaned out at inter- 

 vals a few days apart. 



The night after the drain has been cleared 

 is a busy one for the beavers. In their first 

 rush to combat the change, and stop a wicked 

 waste of perfectly good water, they use every 

 kind of debris available. Even corn husks are 

 not scorned in the reconstruction work. To 

 give an idea of difference of opinion between 

 the men who keep the spillway open, and our 

 beaver engineers, the pile of debris that has 

 accumulated after systematic removal has been 

 photographed and is herewith published. 



An Agile Tahr Family. — There is no more 

 interesting sight in the Park than the antics of 

 the tahrs. These Himalayan goats, that are 

 quartered on Mountain Sheep Hill, have been 

 provided with a series of steps that lead to the 

 lower branches of an enormous tree — an oak, 

 with wide-spreading horizontal branches. For 

 months the gambols of these mountaineers on 

 the large branches of the oak have provided a 

 spectacular novelty. Of late the tahrs have be- 

 come more daring, and have been ascending to 

 boughs about twenty feet from the ground. 

 Their movements are so agile, yet erratic, that 

 we have at times worried about a possible fall 

 and serious injury. It appears that these ani- 

 mals have studied carefully the possibilities in 



leaping to higher branches, and from thence 

 safely descending. Anxious visitors often seek a 

 keeper to have him assist an animal in descend- 

 ing, and upon returning are usually amazed, 

 after patient watching, to observe the object of 

 their solicitude rapidly descend the tree for a 

 distance of six or eight feet, alight upon a lower 

 branch, then calmly survey his corral-mates 

 that may be frisking along the rocky ledges far 

 below. 



Reproduction of Legs in a Salamander. — We 

 have under observation in the Reptile House a 

 very interesting specimen of the Austrian 

 newt — a salamander-like creature that is repro- 

 ducing fore and hind limbs on its left side. This 

 creature was attacked by a larger specimen and 

 both limbs were bitten off close to the body. 

 The remarkable power of complete reproduc- 

 tion of the limbs among the tailed amphibians 

 is well known, but the writer has never observed 

 so interesting an example. From the rapidly 

 closing wounds on the amphibian's body sprout- 

 ed miniature appendages of perfect form except 

 for shortened digits. In the early stage of re- 

 production, the minute limbs might have be- 

 longed to a creature of one-sixth the size. When 

 the limbs were one-half the size of the normal 

 ones on the opposite side, it was apparent that 

 all muscular and tendon connections had been 

 perfectly reproduced as the newt actually walk- 

 ed, though rolled to one side in order to bring 

 the new limbs in close contact with the ground. 

 The entire reconstructive period, to the full 

 size of the new limbs, will cover a period of 

 about three months. 



Anthropoidal Temperament. — Two of the 

 chimpanzees now on exhibition in the Park are 

 radically different in disposition from any ex- 

 amples previously exhibited. Neither animal 

 will permit the keeper to handle him. With all 

 our chimpanzees of the past there was always a 

 demand on the animal's part, when ever the 

 cage was opened, to be carried in the keeper's 

 arms like a human infant. "Koko" and "Boma" 

 are different types, the former is of the black- 

 faced-species and the latter and smaller speci- 

 men represents a pale-faced species or sub- 

 species, according to the weight of opinion. The 

 black-faced chimpanzee was collected by Mr. 

 Richard L. Garner, while in quest of the gorilla. 

 "Boma" was purchased from an animal dealer. 

 It is not surprising that "Koko" is wary about 

 making friends, for Mr. Garner explains that a 

 malicious native stabbed the animal while in a 

 fit of rage. Possibly the smaller anthropoid 

 has suffered equally disagreeable experiences. 

 At any rate, all our efforts to make friends are 



