102 



POPULAR OFFICIAL GUIDE. 



i* **. 



mw 





SWIFT OR KIT FOX. 



fair condition, its coat of thick, silvery gray fur is as smooth 

 and even as if recently trimmed by a barber. 



On the western plains, Avhere it once had for companions 

 the buffalo and prong-horn, the Swift is becoming rare. Its 

 worst enemy is the deadly strychnine bottle of the ranch- 

 man. This species does not thrive in the Fox Dens, and it 

 will be found in the Burrowing Animal's Quarters, where it 

 seems pleased to consider itself at home. 



In the Small-Mammal House is shown a new species, 

 closely allied to the above, from Phoenix, Arizona, recently 

 described by Dr. C. H. Merriam as Vulpes macrotis, or the 

 Large-Eared Swift. 



The Gray Fox, (Ufocyon virginianus), is the fox of the 

 South, even though it does range northward well into the 

 territory of the red fox. This species is distinctly smaller 

 and more lightly built than the red, its hair is not so luxu- 

 riant, it is more shy and retiring, and its colors change very 

 little. When hotly pursued by dogs it often climbs trees 

 that are quite perpendicular, to a height of twenty feet or 

 more. In captivity Gray Foxes are forever trying to escape 

 by climbing, instead of by burrowing, as would naturally 

 be expected. In temper, they are treacherous to their 

 keepers, and also to each other, and as "pets" are anything 

 but desirable. 



