69 
This latter feature was not observed by the present writer. Hantzsch 
(1913, p. 145) mentions wolves but once. In an entry of June 24, 1910, 
he writes: 
"On this day a single individual seen by my people at Isoa, Nettilling, standing up 
to the body in water, while on the bank a wolf lay in wait for the deer .... The out- 
come of the wait is scarcely to be doubted: as soon as the shivering animal goes to the 
land, it will be torn to pieces by the wolf.” 
At times the caribou is very shy, as was observed at Nettilling lake 
by both Hantzsch and the writer. This is not a universal trait developed 
at certain seasons. It in many cases appears to reflect individual tem- 
peraments, though on the whole the animals seem less shy when herded 
in winter than when wandering singly or in small bands during summer. 
While gathered in large herds during late autumn and winter, they are, 
sometimes, amazingly indifferent to an approaching man. In the case of 
a large herd in Kingnait pass in March, 1925, the animals milled around 
us at a distance of only a few yards like a bunch of cattle, before taking 
fright and leisurely departing. A large herd west of Pangnirtung fiord in 
October, 1924, behaved in the same general way. Curiosity is a marked 
characteristic of the caribou. 
In summer, the animals are inclined to be shyer; the solitary bulls 
frequently are nervous and flighty, and cows with calves are markedly 
so and must, as a rule, be approached with considerable caution to get 
within dependable rifle-range. But in many cases even a solitary caribou 
will permit the close approach of a man advancing upright, in plain view, 
if he advances upwind. On May 9, 1925, the writer, making no effort at 
concealment but walking upwind, approached two bulls on Nettilling lake. 
The animals paid little attention as they were somewhat noisily approached 
on snowshoes until, after coming within close range and walking around 
them into the wind, the human scent reached them, when both leaped 
suddenly and then trotted rapidly away with long, swinging, dignified 
strides. When thus disturbed they often may be suddenly halted by a sharp 
whistle, or a loud hissing sound, when they will swing about and gaze 
motionless for several moments before again fleeing. 
If one sits motionless and if the wind is right, caribou occasionally 
will walk up to within very close range without suspecting one’s presence. 
A pair of bulls at Nettilling lake, on June 3, came in this manner within 
30 yards of the writer, and when he suddenly stood up and waved his 
arms they dashed wildly away for only a hundred yards then suddenly 
stopped, gazed intently, and came back a few steps to satisfy their curiosity 
before finally trotting away. About the same date the writer, while 
walking on Nettilling lake, approached upwind but boldly to within 200 
or 300 yards of five feeding caribou and then lay down to study their 
behaviour through glasses. Presently a stag detached himself from the 
party and started out over the ice in a direction that would take him 
very near to the prone observer. When a hundred yards away he appeared 
to notice the human, halted and seemed mystified. Plainly somewhat 
intimidated, he walked off at a slight tangent, stopping- every few yards 
to gaze in the writer’s direction. Presently, on attempting to crawl 
toward him, he stopped motionless, watched narrowly for some moments 
with the deepest curiosity, and then suddenly leaped high into the air and 
fled with long, swinging strides back to the others. This agitated the 
remaining members of the band, and all began to trot backwards and 
