FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Nov. 5, 1910. 
732 
Beaver Increasing. 
In the far country of the North, where white 
trappers, halfbreeds and Indians are continually 
at work, beaver are constantly growing fewer in 
numbers,. On the other hand there is a great 
territory in North America where these animals, 
being protected, are rapidly increasing. One such 
place is the Algonquin Park, in Canada, in which 
great territory, it is estimated, there are 100,000 
beaver; another place is the Yellowstone Na¬ 
tional Park. In both these places the dams of 
the animals cause some trouble. With protec¬ 
tion beaver may again greatly increase in the 
Glacier National Park, where formerly they were 
enormously abundant. Many States have laws 
protecting these animals, and where these laws 
are observed—as they are quite generally—the 
beaver are increasing, their natural enemies hav¬ 
ing largely been killed off. 
In the Adirondacks in New York State a few 
beaver still survived about ten years ago. Later 
the authorities introduced a number brought 
from the Yellowstone National Park by T. E. 
Hofer and donated by the United States Govern¬ 
ment. 
Under instructions of Commissioner Austin 
the game protectors have been making a census 
of the beaver, and this count appears to show 
a great increase since the first foreign beavers 
were introduced in 1904. The few native beavers 
which were still in the Adirondacks have also in¬ 
creased under protection. 
The Adirondack beaver are believed to exist 
in at least forty colonies, and these forty colonies 
may include one hundred families. They now 
cover much of the Adirondacks. 
It is known also that in Orange and Sullivan 
counties as well as in New Jersey there are not 
a few beaver, these probably having escaped from 
the preserves of the late Rutherford Stuyvesant. 
Other States where the beaver are reported as 
greatly increasing are Maine, Michigan and some 
of the Western States. 
Great Blue Heron at Sea. 
Passengers who arrived in New York on Oct. 
30 by the White Star steamship Celtic observed 
on Saturday morning something following the 
ship which looked much like the aeroplane known 
as the Antoinette, navigated by Latham. There 
was some speculation among those who observed 
it as to whether some flying machine had really 
at last crossed the ocean. At length, however, 
as the object drew nearer, it was seen to be a 
bird, which finally overtook the ship and alighted 
exhausted on its deck. It was a great heron. 
Some of the sailors at once set out to catch 
it, and while one of them grabbed at its legs, an¬ 
other tried to catch its neck. The bird was far 
too quick for the latter, and twisting its neck 
around struck him in the face with its bill, and 
he retired wiping the blood from a gash in his 
cheeks. Another sailor, with the confidence born 
of inexperience, endeavored to show his prede¬ 
cessor how it ought to be done, and received a 
cut in the forehead, which, if it had been an inch 
lower, wou’d have deprived him of one of his eyes. 
The bird was finally captured without causing 
further injury, and its legs and bill were tied up. 
It was still able to threaten with the beak, and 
the wounds it had already inflicted enforced re¬ 
spect on all hands. The bird was a great blue 
heron, and when erect stood more than four feet 
tall. The passengers were much interested in 
the exhibition given of its powers. 
After a time the bird was offered food, and 
oddly enough ate it. The following morning the 
captain decided that it had better be set free, 
and when it was released it soon rose in the air, 
and flapping its great wings took its way toward 
freedom. For some time it followed the ship, 
and then when the vessel got opposite Fire 
Island, it turned and flew toward the land. The 
point where it came aboard is about 450 miles 
from port, and the bird is supposed to have been 
blown off from shore in one of the recent hur¬ 
ricanes and to have been long without food. 
The Squirrel as a Jumper. 
The cat is a fine jumper, but I do not think 
he is in it with the squirrel. I was in the Bronx 
woods the other afternoon and witnessed a rare 
performance of the latter. He was one of the 
gray variety and in fine condition. I disturbed 
him foraging among some fallen leaves. He ran 
for the nearest tree, where he sat regarding me 
for a while. Whether it was some good natured 
demonstrations I made in his regard or not I 
do not know, but suddenly a spirit of frolic 
seemed to possess him. As if with a “Come, 
catch me!” he started off on a mad chase up 
the tree until he came to the top. Then out he 
ran on one of the slim branches and bounded on 
to the nearest tree. The distance he covered 
must have been a couple of yards, and the branch 
he lit upon was so slim that it dropped and 
swayed under him. But he held on gallantly, 
and almost immediately recovering himself , was 
on the upward bound. 
This impressed me, but was nothing to what 
was coming. Our furry friend proceeded to 
career about the new free and finally reached the 
top as before. Now the distance, which sepa¬ 
rated him from the next tree, was four or five 
yards at least, but he never hesitated a moment 
but bounded into the air like a ball and lit with 
unerring accuracy upon the nearest branch. I 
held my breath as I saw this snap and I thought 
I should behold the little adventurer hurled to 
death. Not him! With a somersault like an 
acrobat he threw himself in line with a lower 
branch upon which he safely landed. It was 
really very remarkable. Undaunted by this ex¬ 
perience the playful creature continued on until 
he had made an excursion half around the wood. 
No doubt it was all done in play, and I was very 
glad that there were some boys there to see it, 
for it was just such an exhibition as appeals 
especia'ly to them. Frank Moonan. 
An Expedition to the Congo. 
The number of the American M<useum Jour¬ 
nal for October, 1910, gives a long interesting 
and finely illustrated account of the Museum’s 
Congo expedition, which is under the charge of 
Herbert Lang, with James Chapin as assistant. 
Though the expedition is not very far distant 
from the coast, means of communication are 
difficult and slow, and it takes a long time to 
communicate with New York. For example a 
cable from New York to a point 500 miles in¬ 
land in British East Africa will be answered in 
about eighteen hours, while one from New York 
to Boma, or Matadi, in the Congo, will not reach 
its destination for from ten to fifteen days. 
Up to last January the expedition had been 
engaged chiefly in collecting birds, small mam¬ 
mals and invertebrates of one sort and another. 
The collecting of larger mammals had not yet 
begun. Mr. Lang early began to train his native 
porters to do collecting work, and at last re¬ 
ports he said that six of them were able to pre¬ 
pare small mammals, four could prepare birds, 
all knew how to set traps for small mammals 
and to catch reptiles and batrachians. Some of 
them took a special interest in capturing inverte¬ 
brates, others are fishermen, and all handle 
canoes with skill. The expedition then expected 
to get into the country of the okapi and has 
since done so. Already there are with the ex¬ 
pedition some of the pygmies, and when the 
country of these strange little people is reached, 
they will undoubtedly be of the utmost value in 
gathering the animals of the forest. 
The last word from the expedition comes from 
the Congo camp at Medje, north of Avakubi. It 
reports the collections so far to be 1,200 mam¬ 
mals, 1,500 birds, a considerable collection in eth¬ 
nology, a series of okapi, including male, female 
and young, with material from the country in¬ 
habited by the animals, so that before very long 
we may see in the Museum a group of these 
strange creatures with a bit of the Congo forest 
that they inhabit. 
Wildfowl Rearing. 
So many shooting-men are now rearing wild 
ducks each season that in the course of a few 
years the stock of wildfowl in Great Britain 
ought to be showing some signs of increase. 
The Shooting Times says that it is a well-known 
fact that a certain percentage of the birds 
reared by any one do not get killed, and, al¬ 
though some of these may come to a bad end, 
it is only reasonable to suppose that others es¬ 
cape being killed altogether. * * * 
Hand-reared birds that escape being killed each 
season must leave their mark and go to aug¬ 
ment the wild stock. Wild ducks reared in 
private waters require rather careful handling 
just now, for this is the time when they are apt 
to stray from home if they are not carefully 
looked after or are too much disturbed. On the 
one hand, however, feeding is very necessary 
to keep the birds at home, while on the other 
the danger of overfeeding is to be guarded 
against. Keepers, in their anxiety to prevent 
their birds from'Starving, are often only too 
liable to give them more food than is good for 
them, with the result that the birds become 
sluggish from too much fatness and refuse to 
fly when they are wanted to. Wild ducks should 
be made to work for their living to some ex¬ 
tent, and this is best achieved by making them 
accustomed to be fed in turn in two or three 
different places on the property, so that they 
are continually flying from one place to the 
other in search of food. Maize must be given 
very sparingly, barley being the best staple food 
just now, though any old rubbish from the 
rickyard thrown down about the banks and 
margins of pond or stream will keep the birds 
busy and go a long way toward feeding them. 
The longer shooting can be put off, the better, 
so far as sport in concerned, as the birds do 
not attain their full wing-power till the middle 
of October or a little later. Shooting should 
not be permitted more than once a week, and 
at other times no one but the keeper should 
go near the birds. 
