THE OREGON SPORTSMAN 5 



THE FUR-BEARING ANIMALS OF OREGON. 



By Stanley G. Jewett. 



The dense forests of the Cascade mountains and coast regions 

 of Oregon, and the high, arid interior counties east of the Cascade 

 range present ideal conditions for harboring a great number of 

 valuable fur-bearing animals. It is the intention of this paper to 

 show the reader the importance of intelligent legislation to con- 

 serve this asset to the state and the coming generation. 



In Oregon about seventeen hundred men and boys took out 

 trappers' licenses during the winter of 1913-1914, this license 

 giving them authority to take all fur-bearers except the beaver, 

 which is protected at all times. There is a closed season on mink, 

 marten, muskrat, otter and fisher from March 1 to October 31 of 

 each year, and each trapper holding a trapper's license is required 

 by law to furnish the State Board of Fish tod Game Commis- 

 sioners a verified report in writing at the termination of the 

 trapping season, of the number and kinds of fur-bearing animals 

 caught and killed, where sold and amount derived from sale of 

 same. These reports give the members of the State Fish and 

 Game Commission accurate data on the numbers and kinds of 

 protected fur-bearers taken each year. 



There is no denying the fact that all our fur-producing mam- 

 mals are rapidly decreasing and some are on the verge of extinc- 

 tion, but by keeping records of each year's catch protection can 

 be given those that are diminishing most rapidly, thereby giving 

 these species a chance to re-establish themselves. The value of 

 protection on a certain species is well illustrated in the case of 

 beaver. Under protection they have increased wonderfully all 

 over the state of Oregon. It is clearly apparent that more atten- 

 tion must be paid to the conservation of certain species in Oregon 

 unless we want them to disappear from the face of the earth, like 

 the Labrador duck, passenger pigeon and great auk. In Oregon 

 the grizzly bear and sea otter are gone, or nearly so ; the fisher, 

 one of our finest fur-bearers, is rapidly disappearing, and, unless 

 protection is afforded it, soon will disappear forever from our 

 forests. 



The same pitiful story will be told of others of our beautiful 



