Mm as 31 d 



YOUNG GULLS WHOSE LATEK COLORING HARMONIZED WITH THE ROCKS AND GRAY 



BRUSH SO CLOSELY THAT IT REQUIRED A SKYLINE PHOTOGRAPH TO SHOW TIIExM 



See writer's opinion on protective coloration in first part nf sheep article 



the surface flow, for much of the ground 

 was hard and dry, which accounted for 

 the moose opening up a new lick near 

 the lake by tapping the springs at the 

 base of the sloping shore. 



"The number of fresh tracks and the 

 variation in size iinally convinced Tom 

 that a good many bulls were regular pa- 

 trons. The surrounding country had all 

 been burnt over many years before, and 

 this was somewhat unfavorable for day- 

 light photography, since bull moose are 

 largely nocturnal, unlike the caribou and 

 elk, especially when visiting licks or ex- 

 posed feeding places. The ones we had 

 just seen were early morning visitors, 

 and the little patch of spruce would have 

 sheltered them until afternoon or even- 

 ing but for our unexpected arrival. 



"While talking over the location of 

 the blind in reference to the position of 

 the sun at different hours and the prob- 

 ably prevailing winds — the two vital ele- 

 ments in this kind of photography — we 

 saw the big bull a mile away, tearing 

 along the top of a bare ridge leading to 

 the mountain forests. His gait showed 

 that stolidity had at last given way to a 

 belated but overpowering fear. We 

 never saw that animal again in the weeks 

 s]jent on the lowlands. When cutting 

 some brush a good-sized cow moose 

 Avalked up within a stone's throw, trot- 

 ting awav unmolested. 



"Anxious to know the number and 



course of the runways and the character 

 of the country immediately back of the 

 lake before taking up the daily vigil at 

 the blind, we went inshore half a mile to 

 the ]5ond where the moose were seen the 

 evening before. Here several acres of 

 l)ond lilies in shallow waters were un- 

 tduched — not a leaf or root had been 

 eaten or disttu-bed — in striking contrast 

 to the moose of Maine, New Brunswick, 

 central Canada, and Minnesota, which 

 always considered stich aquatic plants 

 the choicest of summer food. Yet I n(j- 

 ticed the same lack of appreciation in the 

 moose of higher altitudes in Wyoming 

 and elsewhere. Going a mile further, 

 Tom recognized a high mound as the 

 lookout for the other lick, and this was 

 examined with great care. While used to 

 some extent, it was only a brief stopping 

 place for the moose en route to the shore 

 lick — indicated by the runways, but more 

 particularly by the condition of the soil." 



Whenever the wind was favorable and 

 the weather clear I went to the blind, but 

 usually between g atid 4 the breeze came 

 from the lake, cutting off the principal 

 runwa}'s, so that in a few days a number 

 of moose suspected, though unjustly, 

 that a foe was in ambush near the lick. 



Altogether I saw some 30 moose in 

 the immediate neighborhood, many of 

 them the same animals, returning on dif- 

 ferent days. One big moose came within 

 easv rifle shot, got the scent and retired, 



445 



