KEY TO LAND MAMMALS OF NORTHEASTERN NORTH AMERICA 1 27 



SPECIES OF CANIS 



Fur white in whiter C. albus 



Fur always dark... C. occidentalis 



Canis albus Q. Sabine) Antic wolf 



1823 Canis lupus albus J. Sabine, Franklin's journal, appendix, p. 655. 



(Fort Enterprise) 

 1898 Canis albus Bangs, American naturalist. July 1898. 32 : 505. 



Fur white in winter. (This animal is very slightly known. I have seen no 

 specimens, nor can I find reliable published measurements.) (^lbus;Lat., 

 white) 



The arctic wolf inhabits the barren arctic regions of America. Within 

 our hmits it is confined to northern Labrador. 



Canis occidentalis (Richardson) American wolf 



1829 Canis lupus, occidentalis Richardson, Fauna Boreali-Americana. 



1 : 60, (Northern North America) 

 1898 Canis occidentalis Bangs, American naturalist. July 1898. 32:505. 



Back brownish or blackish mixed with tawny; belly light tawny or dirty 

 whitish. Total length, 1465 (57); tail vertebrae, 405 (L6); hind foot, 225 (9). 

 (occideut^li s; Lat., western, i. e. inhabiting the western hemisphere) 



The American v^olf is now exterminated within our limits in all but 

 the wildest and most sparsely settled regions. The exact boundaries of 

 the animal's range are unknown. 



Genus Vulpes Richardson 



1829 Vulpes Richardson, Fauna Boreali-Americana. 1:83-91. Based on 

 the American foxes. 



Teeth 42; upper front teeth not lobed ; pupil of eye elliptic; tail with a uni- 

 form coat of long hair and an abundant soft under-fur. (Vulpes; Lat., a fox) 



The genus Vulpes contains a half dozen or more species, all of 

 which are peculiar to the northern hemisphere. Four or more occur in 

 North America. Three of these are found within our limits. 



SPECIES OF VUIiPES 



Ear rounded, scarcely overtopping fur, color bluish gray in 



summer, white in winter V. lagopus 



Ear pointed, long and conspicuous ; fur normally fulvous or 

 reddish at all seasons (occasionally black or gray) 



Claws short, mostly hidden by the fur ; color dark V. fulvus 



Claws very long and conspicuous; color pale V. deletrix 



