Til 10 COYOTE OR I'KAJIJIK WOLF, 



j){ipors: Otterbeiii, Benton County, four killed in the winter of 

 19U5-6 by II. A. Sutton, of Montmorenci (Sportsman's Review, 

 Feb. 3, 1906), Calumet, Lake County (several apparently reliable^ 

 accounts in Chicago papers). Toleston, Lake County, Mr. A. Rump 

 wrote to the Smithsonian Institution in 1905, offering to get speci- 

 mens of wolves of two kinds from Toleston. Roselawn, Newton 

 County, one killed by I. W. Burton early in 1905. A pair were 

 chasing Mr. Burton's dogs early one morning. The dogs turned on 

 them when near the house and there w^as a fight in which the dogs 

 were cut badly. When they separated a little, Mr. Burton killed 

 one of the wolves with a charge of heavy shot. The other barrel of 

 the gun missed fire and one w^olf escaped. 



McCoysburg, Jasper County, C. W. Bussel killed or captured 10 

 in the winter of 1903-4. He also killed two May 16, 1906, which 

 are now in the National Museum at Washington, their numbers 

 being -WsW and -A-sW- I do not know how many others may 

 have been killed by Mr. Bussel. L. Darrow killed five in Laporte 

 County in 1903-4. At one time he saw eight in a pack and at an- 

 other time 20. He regards them as crosses between the coyote and 

 timber wolf. 



Near Leesburg, Kosciusko County, Mr. R. E. Grunter reports 

 five killed by John Harmon, James Hamilton, Jefferson Plummer, 

 Arthur Hoffein and Sam GrifHth. A pack of moderate size was 

 seen in the winter of 1906-7. None weighed over 45 pounds and 

 they are there regarded as prairie wolves. There have been wolves 

 reported from other localities also but I have not been able to 

 verify these reports. 



Habits. — It will be seen from the foregoing account that this 

 species has in some way been rejuvenated in Indiana in recent years. 

 I am unable to give any definite reason for this. Mr. Burton, who 

 has hunted and trapped in the Kankakee marshes for about four 

 decades, saj^s that the wolves were formerly common and were 

 hunted by men on horseback. This method was so successful that 

 their numbers were greatly reduced. In recent years the marshes 

 have been fenced for grazing land and hunting on horseback has 

 become impossible. 



I do not believe this will fully account for their increase. The 

 early settlers have little to say about the cunning of either species 

 of w^olf. At the present time the general opinion seems to be that 

 of one correspondent who says of the coyote, "he can discount 

 the fox for cunning." Members of the dog tribe have everywhere 

 and always been able to better adapt themselves to man than any 



