Oct. 21, 1911.3 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
619 
Rocky Mountain Mammals and 
Spotted Fever. 
In certain portions of the Northern Rocky 
Mountain region occurs a disease which is known 
as spotted fever, and this complaint is peculiar.y 
virulent in the Bitter Root Valley. It is believed 
that this disease is communicated from one ani¬ 
mal to another, and from animals to human 
beings through the medium of certain ticks which 
pass stages of life on various animals, wild or 
domestic. It appears that in the Bitter Root 
Valley this fever is restricted chiefly to the west¬ 
ern side, and this has led some of those study¬ 
ing the disease to believe that perhaps it was 
connected with some native mammals which live 
solely on the west side of the valley. It does 
not appear, however, that any species is so re¬ 
stricted. However, the two sides of the valley 
differ greatly in physical character, and in such 
a way as to greatly influence the distribution of 
the mammals. The west side of the valley has 
more precipitation than the east, and with its 
humid climate comes a growth of forest and 
underbrush which furnishes cover for small mam¬ 
mals and hence is favorable to the presence of 
ticks. On the east side there is a strip of roll¬ 
ing, treeless sage-grown bench land between the 
river and the mountains, and here the brushy 
country favorable to ticks occurs only about the 
ranches which are close to the mountains. 
The inquiry with regard to these ticks was 
carried on by the Bureau of Biological Survey 
in co-operation with the Bureau of Entomology 
and the Montana State Experiment Station. The 
report of progress now issued is by Henry W. 
Henshaw, Chief of the Biological Survey, and 
Clarence Birdseye, assistant. 
The mammals that harbor these fever ticks are 
to be divided into two groups, those which carry 
chiefly the adult forms, and those that harbor 
the younger stages. In the former class are do¬ 
mestic live stock—horses, cattle and sheep—to¬ 
gether with mountain goats, wild sheep, deer, elk 
and rabbits, while those in the second class are 
chiefly grounds squirrels, woodchucks, chipmunks, 
pine squirrels, mice and woodrats. 
The domestic animals no doubt pick up the 
ticks from the vegetation among which they 
wander, and it would perhaps be practicable to 
free them from these parasites by some method 
of dipping or spraying. The game animals and 
the larger mamma's generally are not sufficiently 
numerous to complicate the problem. Wolves 
and coyotes may be trapped and poisoned—with 
gelatine capsules—according to methods already 
advised by the Survey. It is the smaller mam¬ 
mals—the rodents—which take care of the young 
ticks, and which, because they are so numerous 
and because they are the hosts for such multi¬ 
tudes of ticks, need the greatest attention; and 
experiments are now being carried on in the 
Bitter Root Valley to discover the most prac¬ 
tical method of destroying these animals in large 
numbers. 
Woodchucks may be trapped or poisoned, and 
the Columbia ground squirrel, other small ground 
squirrels and chipmunks, mice and woodrats, 
pocket gophers and rabbits may all be poisoned, 
but care should be taken to use the poison at 
that season of the year, or under those condi¬ 
tions, which will be most effective. 
Forest and Stream has published the sub¬ 
stance of many of the Survey’s recommendations 
on this subject. Pine squirrels, which act as 
hosts for the ticks, do not readily take poison, 
so far as yet discovered, but may be shot and 
trapped. Porcupines are usually not numerous 
enough to merit special attention, but they may 
be poisoned. 
Of game animals, so far as the investigations 
have been carried, only the mule deer and the 
mountain goat are found to be afflicted with ticks, 
but the experience of most hunters is that white¬ 
tailed deer and elk also carry these pests. 
A list of mammals found in and near Bitter 
Root Valley, Montana, concludes this paper. 
New York Zoological Park. 
The executive committee of the New York 
Zoological Society has just submitted to the 
board of managers a report as to conditions of 
the society on the 1st of October. 
A census of the animals in the Zoological 
Park, taken June 1, 1911, shows that the collections 
then held 820 mammals, representing 258 species; 
3,246 birds, representing 816 species, and 1,505 
reptiles, representing 183 species; a total of 
5.571 specimens. The splendid pair of Siberian 
tigers and the little gorilla have been recently 
spoken of in Forest and Stream. 
C. William Beebe, the curator of birds, re¬ 
turned from his trip around the world in May 
last, and his leave of absence from duty was ex¬ 
tended to Jan. 1, 1912, in order that he may de¬ 
vote his time to the preparation of the pheas¬ 
ant monograph, which the society hopes to 
publish in 1913. The paintings for the illustra¬ 
tion are being made by Charles R. Knight and 
Louis Agassiz Fuertes in this country, and by 
Major Plenry Jones, Archibald Thorburn and 
George E. Lodge, of England. 
Work on the construction of the zebra house, 
the contract for which was let last June, is 
progressing rapidly. It is hoped the building 
will be ready for occupancy late this autumn. A 
colt has been born to the Prjevalsky horses, 
and one to the Grant zebras. The eagle and 
vulture aviary will be finished in time to shelter 
the collection of birds of prey during the com¬ 
ing winter. 
It is believed that the society has the finest 
collection of bears in the world, and ten new 
bear dens for the accommodation of its con¬ 
stantly increasing size are about completed. 
The board of estimate and apportionment last 
summer granted the society $155,000 for the 
permanent improvement of the Zoological Park. 
Plans have been made for the expenditure of 
this sum, which will greatly conduce to the 
public’s enjoyment of the park. 
The endowment fund has been increased by 
subscriptions of $5,000 from Mortimer L. Scl.iff 
and $200 from Miss Helen M. Gould. 
The board of estimate and apportionment has 
formaby approved the society’s proposal to 
extend the present Aquarium to more than 
twice the capacity of the existing building. 
The new Aquarium will cost not far from 
$1,750,000, and $200,000 has already been granted 
to begin the work. 
The city has also granted funds to begin the 
preliminary survey and work for the great 
Bronx River parkway to extend from Bronx 
Park to the new Kensico Lake, connecting 
there with the State roads northward. It is 
believed that if this work is carried out accord¬ 
ing to the plans of commission, the valley of 
the Bronx and its waters will be protected from 
pollution, and the permanence of the lake and 
river system of the Zoological Park secured. 
The New York public is to be congratulated 
on the success which is meeting the efforts of 
the executive committee of the Zoological Park. 
Birds and Fruit Trees. 
J. Warren Jacobs, of Waynesburg, Pa., sends 
out an interesting eight-page supplement to his 
“Gleanings No. 5.” Its purpose is to show 
the value of martins to fruit growers. 
He declares that, properly encouraged, birds 
will save the fruit grower the annoyance and ex¬ 
pense of spraying his trees with poisonous 
liquids. In the “Gleanings” referred to Mr. 
Jacobs spoke of the remains of small beetles 
found in the nest rooms of a martin house, 
after the young birds had taken their flight. 
Similar beetles were found last summer infest¬ 
ing the bark of a young apple tree and were 
sent to H. A. Surface, Economic Zoologist of 
Pennsylvania. He identifies them as shot hole 
borers, or bark beetles, and declares that the 
destruction of these beetles by the martins is an 
important point in behalf of bird protection 
and especially martin colonization. 
In Mr. Jacobs’ supplement are given figures 
of large fair apples and plums, uninjured by in¬ 
sects, grown on his place where all birds are 
protected, and the author believes that the 
freedom from injury of these fruits is due to 
his efforts in bird protection. 
Hot Air? 
From Hunter, N. D., comes a letter written 
from San Antonio, Texas, Sept. 20, and pub¬ 
lished in the Hunter Herald. The letter re¬ 
ports the occurrence at Seguin and Livernia, 
Texas, of great numbers of wild pigeons. 
“These are the same kind of pigeon that were so 
numerous in the wooded districts of America 
forty or fifty years ago. * * * There is no 
mistake about the pigeons appearing near 
Seguin and Livernia being the passenger pigeon 
of the old days, since many of the old settlers 
recognized them on sight.” 
It is an easy matter for any person to make 
any statement that he chooses on a subject of 
which he knows little or nothing, but such re¬ 
ports are entitled to no consideration unless ac¬ 
companied by some evidence. Very appropri¬ 
ately this letter is printed immediately above 
the For Sale advertisement of a Radiant Home 
Heater—a furnace which is, no doubt, a good 
one. 
The Forest and Stream may be obtained from 
any newsdealer on order. Ask your dealer to 
supply you regularly. 
