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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



COLLARED PECCARY, OR MUSKHOG 

 (Pecari angulatus) 



The numerous and extraordinarily varied 

 species of wild pigs of the Old World are rep- 

 resented in America by the peccaries, a special- 

 ized group containing two species of small pigs 

 peculiar to North and South America. One of 

 the many differences between them and their 

 Old World relatives is their having but two 

 young. The name muskhog, applied to them, is 

 based on their possession of a large gland, lo- 

 cated high up on the middle of the rump, which 

 emits a powerful odor. The musky odor from 

 this quickly permeates the flesh of a peccary, 

 unless it is cut out as soon as the animal is 

 killed. 



The collared peccary is the smaller of the 

 two species, usually weighing less than 75 

 pounds. It ranges from the southwestern 

 United States south to Patagonia. Within this 

 range numerous geographic races have devel- 

 oped, varying from light grizzled gray to nearly 

 black. It formerly occurred within our bor- 

 der north to the Red River of Arkansas, but is 

 now limited to the southern half of Texas and 

 the southern parts of New Mexico and Ari- 

 zona. 



In tropical America collared peccaries are 

 found in dense forests or in low jungles, but in 

 northern Mexico and the southwestern United 

 States they are equally at home among scat- 

 tered thickets of cactus and other thorny plants 

 on plains and in the foothills. They are strictly 

 gregarious and live in bands of from a few 

 individuals up to thirty or more, usually led by 

 the oldest and most powerful boar. They are 

 omnivorous, feeding on everything edible, from 

 roots, fruits, nuts, and other vegetable prod- 

 ucts to reptiles^ and any other available animals. 

 They are specially numerous in many tropical 

 forests where wild figs, nut palms, and other 

 fruit-bearing trees provide abundant food. In 

 the arid northern part of their range dense 

 thickets of cactus and mesquite afford both 

 food and shelter. Their presence in a locality 

 is often indicated by the rooted-up soil where 

 they have been feeding. 



Young peccaries become very tame and make 

 most intelligent and amusing pets. One moon- 

 light night en the coast of Guerrero two of 

 us, after a bath in the sea by a small Indian 

 village, strolled along the hard white sand to 

 enjoy the cool breeze. Suddenly a little pec- 

 cary, not weighing over eight or ten pounds, 

 came running to meet us and, after stopping at 

 our feet to have its head scratched, suddenly 

 circled about us, away and back again in whirl- 

 mg zigzags, with all the joyous frenzy of a 

 playful puppy. Continuing this performance, 

 It accompanied us for several hundred yards, 

 until we returned to the village. 



Tales of the ferocity of bands of the collared 

 peccaries and of their treeing hunters who have 

 disturbed them read well to the novice, but 

 have little foundation in fact. In reality the 

 animals are shy and retiring and fight only 

 when forced to do so for self-protection. When 

 brought to bay by dogs or other animals, they 



fight viciously, and with their sharp, knife- 

 edged tusks pan inflict serious wounds. Their 

 natural enemies are mainly the jaguar in the 

 south and bobcats and coyotes, which prey 

 upon their young, in the north. 



The increasing occupation of our Southwest 

 has already resulted in the extermination of 

 peccaries from most of their former range 

 within our border, and unless active steps are 

 taken to protect the survivors their days will 

 be few in the land. They are such unique and 

 harmless animals that it is hoped interest in 

 their behalf may be awakened in time to retain 

 them as a part of our wild life. 



ROCKY MOUNTAIN SHEEP (Ovis 

 canadensis and its relatives) 



Wild sheep inhabit mountain ranges in both 

 Old and New Worlds. Northern Africa and 

 southern Europe have representative species, 

 but Asia appears to be the true home of the 

 group. There the greatest variety of species 

 is found, in'cluding such giants as Ovis poll. 



In the New World they occur only in North 

 America, where there are two or three species, 

 with numerous geographic races. Among these 

 the sheep inhabiting the main Rocky Mountain 

 region is best known. It is a heavier animal 

 than its northern relatives of the Stikine coun- 

 try and Alaska, with larger and more mas- 

 sively proportioned horns. It occupies the 

 main range from south of Peace River and 

 Lake Babine, in British Columbia, to Colorado, 

 and possibly northern New Mexico. Closely 

 related geographic races occur elsewhere in the 

 mountains of the western United States and 

 northern Mexico. 



The usual conception of wild sheep as hab- 

 itants of tlte cold, clear upper world at tim- 

 berline and above_ is justified in the case of 

 the Rocky Mountain sheep. In early spring its 

 one or two young are born amid these rugged 

 elevations, -Where it remains until the heavy 

 winter snows drive it down, sometimes through 

 the open timber to the foothills. That wild 

 sheep thrive equally well under very different 

 conditions, however, is shown by their abun- 

 dance on the treeless mountains of our south- 

 western deserts, among cactuses, yuccas, and 

 other thorny vegetation, where water is ex- 

 tremely scarce and summer temperatures rise 

 high above 100° Fahrenheit in the .shade. 



The Rocky Mountain sheep, like other spe- 

 cies, appears to _ feed on nearly every plant 

 growing within its domain. In spring many 

 lambs are killed by bald and golden eagles, and 

 in winter, when driven down to lower levels by 

 snow, it becomes easy prey for mountain lions, 

 wolves, an4 coyotes. Owing to continuous 

 hunting, this sheep has disappeared from many 

 of its former haunts and is decreasing in most 

 of its range. When effective protection is un- 

 dertaken in time, however, as in Colorado, the 

 range is readily restocked. 



The sure-footedness with which a band of 

 these sheep will dash in full flight up or down 

 seemingly injpossible slopes, where a misstep 



