16 FELID^. 



which, however, is not very valuable, and the Indians eat 

 the flesh, which, though white and tender, would not, as 

 may easily be imagined in an animal of the cat kind, be at 

 all appreciated by a European. It has a very unfeline pro- 

 pensity of taking to the water, and swims remarkably 

 well, sometimes crossing rivers of more than two miles in 

 width. On land it has a singularly free bounding gait. 

 It preys on birds, squirrels, or any other small animals 

 that come in its way ; it is a deadly enemy of the so- 

 called "rabbit," and is said to be very destructive to 

 young lambs. 



The name " Carcajou" is erroneous as applied to 

 this animal. It is used chiefly in the United States, to 

 designate the glutton or wolverine,* which belongs to 

 another family, and is at the present day seldom heard of 

 in either of the Provinces, inhabiting more generally 

 the higher latitudes. 



I have only seen, in Canada, one specimen of the 

 Puma {Felis concolor), and that was shot a few miles 

 from St. Catherines by Dr. Maitland, R.C.E. 



It is a much larger animal than the lynx, though the 

 head is smaller in proportion, while the tail, which is 

 slightly tufted at the extreme point, is very long. The 

 colour of its fur is observed to change at different periods 



* Qulo Luscus. 



