24 
ORDERS OF MAMMALS— FLESH-EATERS 
ardly animal. It is not dangerous to man, and 
never was, and is bold only in the persistence 
with which it hangs upon the outskirts of civiliza- 
tion, and prowls around ranches in quest of food. 
The delicacy of the Coyote’s judgment in keep- 
ing always beyond fair gun-shot is truly wonder- 
ful. If he is not a mind-reader, his actions belie 
him. Twice in Montana, each time for two 
weeks, have I tried my utmost to shoot a Coyote ; 
but during those periods not one would offer 
more than a running shot at three hundred yards 
or more. Twice, however, — and immediately 
after the above, — when riding quite unarmed, 
have Coyotes sat down beside the trail, waited 
for me to approach within forty yards, then 
yawned in a bored manner, and slowly trotted 
off. It is my belief that those animals knew per- 
fectly well my inability to shoot. 
The food of Coyotes consists chiefly of 
prairie-" dogs,” ground-squirrels, sage grouse, 
hares and rabbits. The largest animals ever 
killed by them are deer and prong-horned ante- 
lope. From the ranchman they steal poultry, 
pigs, lambs and sheep. They “den” in “wash- 
outs,” or deep holes in the cut banks of ravines, 
and rear from five to seven puppies every 
May. 
The cry of the Coyote is a dog-like yelping, 
half howl and half bark ; whereas, the call of the 
gray wolf is a prolonged and steady deep-bass 
howl. As far as they can be heard, these wolves 
can be distinguished by their cries, and to those 
who have camped on the plains, or in the wild 
and weird “bad-lands” of the great West, the 
high-pitched, staccato cry of the Coyote as he 
announces the coming dawn, is associated with 
memories of vast stretches of open country, mag- 
nificent distances, fragrant sage-brush and free- 
dom. The specific name of this animal ( latrafis ) 
means “barking,” and was bestowed on account 
of its peculiar dog-like cry. 
The Coyote ranges from the latitude of the City 
of Mexico northward through the Great Plains and 
Rocky Mountain region to Alberta. The size of 
my best Montana specimen was 37f + 16 inches 
in length, and 20f inches in height at shoulders. 
Coyotes vary in color from the typical pepper- 
and-salt gray to yellowish gray, the latter being 
found in the Southwest. At rare intervals, 
black specimens occur. 
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GENUS. 
ENGLISH NAME. 
LATIN NAME. 
LOCALITY. 
Red Fox 
Group : 
Genus 
Vulpes. 
Gray Fox 
Group : 
Genus 
Urocyon. 
Red Fox, .... 
Cross Fox, . . 
Black Fox, 
Plains Fox, . . . 
Kadiak Fox, . . . 
Newfoundland Fox, 
Swift Fox, . . . 
Large-Eared Fox, . 
Arctic, or Blue Fox, 
Hall Island Fox, . 
Gray Fox, . . . 
Florida Gray Fox, 
Scott’s Gray Fox, . 
Texas Gray Fox, . 
Coast Gray Fox, . 
Townsend’s Gray 
Fox, . . . . . 
Vulpes fulvus (Desma- 
rest). Virginia to Alaska. 
Vulpes fulvus decussatus New York to Man- 
(Desmarest). itoba. 
Vulpes fulvus argentatus Northwest Terri- 
(Shaw). tory, Alaska. 
Vulpes macrourus (Baird). Great Plains. 
Vulpes Aammam(Merriam). Kadiak I., Alaska. 
Vulpes deletrix (Bangs). Newfoundland. 
Vulpes velox (Say). The Great Plains. 
Vulpes macrotis (Merriam). Southern California. 
V ulpes lagopus (Linnaeus). Polar regions of both 
hemispheres. 
Vulpes hallensis (Merriam). Hall Island, Bering 
Sea. 
Southeastern States. 
Florida. 
New Mexico to 
Southern Califor- 
nia. 
Texas. 
Southern California. 
Northern California. 
Urocyon cinereoargenteus 
(Schreber). 
Urocyon cinereoargenteus 
floridanus (Rhoads). 
Urocyon cinereoargenteus 
scottii (Mearns). 
Urocyon cinereoargenteus 
texensis (Mearns). 
Urocyon cinereoargenteus 
calif ornicus (Mearns). 
Urocyon cinereoargenteus 
townsendi (Merriam) . 
