72 
TRANSACTIONS OF THE TEXAS ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. 
tlie U. S. Department of Agriculture, in the fall of 1894, and spring and 
summer of 1895. 
In the Report of the Department of Agriculture for 1893, pp. 228, 229, 
Dr. Merriam writes as follows, except that I have substituted his later 
nomenclature of the zones (Nat. Geog. Mag., 1894): 
“The number of life zones that have been defined in this country 
north of the tropical is six. They may be grouped under two heads: 
Northern or Boreal and southern or Austral. In Eastern North Amer¬ 
ica these zones may be briefly characterized as follows, beginning at the 
north: 
“ (1) Arctic or Arctic-Alpine Zone , above the limit of tree growth; 
characterized by the arctic poppy, dwarf willow, saxifrages, gentians, 
and many other plants, and by the snow bunting, snowy owl, white 
ptarmigan, polar bear, arctic fox, and barren-ground caribou or reindeer. 
This zone is of no agricultural importance. 
“ (2) Hudsonian Zone , comprising the northern or higher parts of the 
great transcontinental coniferous forest—a forest of spruces and furs 
stretching from Labrador to Alaska. Among the numerous inhabitants 
of that zone are the wolverine, woodland caribou, moose, great northern 
shrike, pine bullfinch, crossbills, white-crowned sparrow, and fox spar¬ 
row. Like the last this zone is of no agricultural importance. 
“ (3) Canadian Zone, comprising the southern or lower part of the 
great transcontinental coniferous forest, and inhabited by the porcupine, 
varying hare, red squirrel, white-throated sparrow, yellow-rumped 
warbler, and numerous others. Counting from the north, this zone is 
the first of any agricultural consequence. Here white potatoes, turnips, 
beets, the Oldberg apple, and the more hardy cereals may be cultivated 
with moderate success. 
“ (4) Transition Zone , or belt in which the outlying Boreal and Aus¬ 
tral elements overlap. Here the oak, hickory, chestnut, and walnut of 
the south meet the maple, beech, birch, and hemlock of the north. The 
same is true of mammals and birds, for here the southern mole and cot¬ 
tontail rabbit, the oriole, bluebird, catbird, thrasher, chewink, and wood 
thrush live in or near the haunts of the hermit and Wilson’s thrushes, 
solitary vireo, bobolink, red squirrel, jumping mouse, chipmunk, and 
star-nosed mole. In this zone we enter the true agricultural part of our 
country; here the apple (Oldberg, Baldwin, Greening, Seek-no-further, 
and others), the blue plums, cherry, white potato, barley, and oats at¬ 
tain their highest perfection. 
“(5) Upper Austral Zone, where the sassafras, tulip tree, hackberry, 
sweet gum, and persimmon first make their appearance, together with 
the opossum, gray fox, fox squirrels, cardinal bird, Carolina wren, 
tufted tit, yellow-breasted chat, and gnatcatclier. In this zone the Ben 
