422 YEARBOOK OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



the destruction of insect pests, and the buyer of poisons for mammals 

 has had to depend upon scattered information or personal experiment. 



One of the duties of the Biological Survey is to ascertain by experi- 

 ment the most effective and economical methods of combating noxious 

 mammals and birds. The present article aims to bring together the 

 best formulas and methods, and thus to enable farmers, ranchmen, 

 and others to save time, labor, and money. 



THE PROBLEM OF DESTROYING NOXIOUS MAMMALS. 



The destruction of noxious mammals is a more complicated prob- 

 lem than that of insect destruction. The farmer who fights these 

 higher forms deals with instincts and intelligence well adapted to 

 cope with his own in the struggle for existence. It is not enough that 

 he place poisoned food or traps in the way of the creatures he de- 

 sires to destroy; he must make the baits attractive and allay the 

 natural suspicion of the animals by ridding traps of all suggestion 

 of their real nature. He must know the traits of the animals and 

 take advantage of any habit that will enable him to circumvent and 

 destroy them. With such knowledge and the aid of plain, practical 

 directions for carrying on his offensive operations he can in most 

 cases do far more effective work with poisons than with traps, guns, 

 and similar devices. The usefulness of traps, however, should not 

 be overlooked, especially since they can be employed under condi- 

 tions which preclude the use of poisons; but when large areas are 

 involved and crops are threatened with immediate ruin, swifter 

 methods are needed. Sometimes also the trap is a useful secondary 

 agent for completing the work after the use of poisons. 



OBJECTIONS TO POISONS. 



It has been urged against poisons that their use is attended by 

 danger, not only to domestic animals but to human beings; if care- 

 lessness attends their handling, this is undoubtedly true. In Great 

 Britain the laying of poisons in the open is forbidden under heavy 

 penalties, and the use of poisons for mammals is restricted to ricks, 

 drains, and other places out of the reach of domestic animals. In 

 this country nearly all the States have statutes regulating the sale 

 of poisons, and several of them forbid the laying of poisoned baits 

 for predatory animals on lands not owned by the person who puts 

 out the poison. A few States require posting of special notices in 

 the neighborhood when poisons are laid for wolves or other wild 

 animals. The poisoning of predatory dogs is prohibited in some 

 States and specifically permitted in a few. In general, it may be 

 stated that in the West, Avhere wolves, ground squirrels, prairie dogs, 

 gophers, and similar pests abound, few laws restricting the use of 



