44 
ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 
SPRINGBOK 
Photograph by Elwin R. Sanborn. 
House Mrs. Roosevelt’s attention was called to 
a long and very slender black snake called the 
Mussurana. This specimen has been in the 
building more than five years. This particular 
reptile figures in one of the illustrations of the 
late Col. Roosevelt’s book “Through the Bra¬ 
zilian Wilderness.” It is shown swallowing 
a deadly “jararaca,” while Col. Roosevelt 
raises it from a table to be photographed. The 
photograph was taken in the laboratory of the 
Institute of Serum Therapy, at Sao Paulo, im¬ 
mediately before Col. Roosevelt departed on 
his trip down the now famous Itio Duvida, or 
River of Doubt, now officially called Rio 
Teodora. .Some time later Dr. Vital Brazil, 
Director of the Institute, visited the United 
States and brought the snake with him, as a 
gift to the park. Captain Kermit Roosevelt 
joined the party at the Reptile blouse, a short 
time after, and was much interested to note this 
snake, which he immediately recalled as having 
been described by Dr. Brazil as a wonderfully 
useful creature in South America, where the 
species plays an important part as a destroyer 
of a number of deadly reptiles. 
A Tame Woodchuck .—In a big collection like 
that at the Park, there are always a number of 
particularly tame specimens, which the keepers 
regard as especial pets. For the first time, 
however, we have recorded an absolutely tame 
woodchuck. This species is usually timid, and 
resents any attempt at familiarity. The tame 
specimen was acquired last October. It follows 
Keeper Landsburg like a dog, can be turned 
loose for hours without fear of wandering 
away, and more remarkable still, can be handled 
by children without the least show of impa¬ 
tience or nervousness. 
Peacocks in Winter .—Indian peacocks al¬ 
ways suffer embarrassments in winter, but ap¬ 
pear little disturbed by the difference in our 
climate from that of their radically reversed 
home environment. They develop their gor¬ 
geous trains during midwinter and it is a com¬ 
mon sight on a snowy morning to note some 
sadly embarrassed birds. These have incau¬ 
tiously roosted close to the ground, the long 
tail feathers resting thereon like a gorgeous 
mat. On these the snow falls, as on every¬ 
thing else, and when the peacock awakes it 
finds hard work ahead. We Slave often noted 
a phlegmatic bird walking sturdily with sev¬ 
eral pounds of snow resting on his tail. The 
morning may be well advanced before the 
thought occurs to jump into a low tree and, 
working upward branch by branch, to shake 
the weight from the overloaded plumage. 
The English Sparrow .—There is one wild 
bird species in the Park, and not a legitimate 
exhibit, that cares little about the winter, and 
AMERICAN ELK - IN VELVET 
Photograph by Elwin R. Sanborn. 
