Characteristics and Habits 211 



where he usually goes into his winter quarters some tim.e in 

 November, or perhaps a little later, according to the 

 locality and the weather conditions. 



The den is usually in some natural cave, although 

 occasionally it may be made by the bear himself. I have 

 found a number of the winter homes of the grizzly, and 

 he usually selects a dryer and warmer shelter than does the 

 black bear. Black bears will den in almost any place, and 

 while they usually dig a hole under an upturned root, or 

 under a fallen tree, I have seen where they have used 

 natural caves, into which they have scraped a bed of 

 grass or leaves; but the grizzly seldom, if ever, takes his 

 long nap under fallen timber. He usually seeks the higher 

 altitudes along the timber line, and sometimes even goes 

 higher yet. Here, in the canons among the cliffs, natural 

 caves are found, and into these a grizzly will scrape and 

 drag anything that can be converted into a bed, and, thus 

 hidden and protected, will pass away the several months 

 of winter undisturbed by snow and storm. 



Under certain conditions they will dig large holes 

 under big rocks, in which to make their beds. I have ex- 

 amined several such places, and in two instances found 

 where the bears had dug clean through to the other side. 

 I have also seen where, the elements having in the course 

 of time caved in the earth close to the rocks, the bears had 

 pulled old logs and brush over the breaks, and thus re- 

 paired the damage. These were evidently favorite places 

 for dens, and the bears, loath to give them up, had done 

 this in order to retain their old bedrooms. My friend, 

 Mr. A. L. A. Himmelwright, of New York, found a den of 

 exactly this sort a few years ago in the mountains west of 



