WILD ANIMALS AT HOME

Foreword

In the early days of the West, when game abounded and when fifty yards was the extreme deadly range of the hunter's weapons, wild creatures were comparatively tame. The advent of the rifle and of the lawless skin hunter soon turned all big game into fugitives of excessive shyness and wariness. One glimpse of a man half a mile off, or a whiff of him on the breeze, was enough to make a Mountain Ram or a Wolf run for miles, though formerly these creatures would have gazed serenely from a point but a hundred yards removed.

The establishment of the Yellowstone Park in 1872 was the beginning of a new era of protection for wild life; and, by slow degrees, a different attitude in these animals toward us. In this Reservation, and nowhere else at present in the northwest, the wild things are not only abundant, but they have resumed their traditional Garden-of-Eden attitude toward man.

They come out in the daylight, they are harmless, and they are not afraid at one's approach. Truly this is ideal, a paradise for the naturalist and the camera hunter.

The region first won fame for its Canyon, its Cataracts and its Geysers, but I think its animal life has attracted more travellers than even the landscape beauties. I know it was solely the joy of being among the animals that led me to spend all one summer and part of another season in the Wonderland of the West.

My adventures in making these studies among the fourfoots have been very small adventures indeed; the thrillers are few and far between. Any one can go and have the same or better experiences to-day. But I give them as they happened, and if they furnish no ground for hair-lifting emotions, they will at least show what I was after and how I went.

I have aimed to show something of the little aspects of the creatures' lives, which are those that the ordinary traveller will see; I go with him indeed, pointing out my friends as they chance to pass, adding a few comments that should make for a better acquaintance on all sides. And I have offered glimpses, wherever possible, of the wild thing in its home, embodying in these chapters the substance of many lectures given under the same title as this book.

The cover design is by my wife, Grace Gallatin Seton. She was with me in most of the experiences narrated and had a larger share in every part of the work than might be inferred from the mere text.

Ernest Thompson Seton.

Contents

•  PAGE
  
  
• I. The Cute Coyote 1
• An Exemplary Little Beast, My Friend the Coyote3
• The Prairie-dog Outwitted5
• The Coyote's Sense of Humour 8
• His Distinguishing Gift 11
• The Coyote's Song 13
• II. The Prairie-dog and His Kin 17
• Merry Yek-Yek and His Life of Troubles 19
• The Whistler in the Rocks 22
• The Pack-rat and His Museum 23
• A Free Trader 25
• The Upheaver—The Mole-Gopher 27
• III. Famous Fur-bearers—Fox, Marten, Beaver and Otter 29
• The Most Wonderful Fur in the World 32
• The Poacher and the Silver Fox 35
• The Villain in Velvet—The Marten 47
• The Industrious Beaver 48
• The Dam 51
• The Otter and His Slide 52
• IV. Horns and Hoofs and Legs of Speed 55
• The Bounding Blacktail 57
• The Mother Blacktail's Race for Life 59
• The Blacktail's Safety Is in the Hills 62
• The Elk or Wapiti—The Noblest of all Deer 63
• Stalking a Band of Elk 64
• The Bugling Elk 66
• Snapping a Charging Bull 69
• The Hoodoo Cow 72
• The Moose—The Biggest of all Deer 75
• My Partner's Moose-hunt 76
• The Siren Call 77
• The Biggest of Our Game—The Buffalo 80
• The Shrunken Range 81
• The Doomed Antelope and His Heliograph 83
• The Rescued Bighorn 85
• V. Bats in the Devil's Kitchen 89
• VI. The Well-meaning Skunk 95
• His Smell-gun 98
• The Cruelty of Steel Traps 99
• Friendliness of the Skunk 100
• Photographing Skunks at Short Range 101
• We Share the Shanty with the Skunks 103
• The Skunk and the Unwise Bobcat 104
• My Pet Skunks 106
• VII. Old Silver-grizzle—The Badger 111
• The Valiant Harmless Badger 112
• His Sociable Bent 115
• The Story of the Kindly Badger 116
• The Evil One 118
• The Badger that Rescued the Boy 119
• Finding the Lost One 123
• Home Again 125
• The Human Brute 129
• VIII. The Squirrel and His Jerky-tail Brothers 133
• The Cheeky Pine Squirrel 134
• Chipmunks and Ground-squirrels 137
• The Ground-squirrel that Plays Picket-pin 137
• Chink and the Picket-pins 139
• Chipmunks 141
• The Ground-squirrel that Pretends It's a Chipmunk 142
• A Four-legged Bird—The Northern Chipmunk 143
• A Striped Pigmy—The Least Chipmunk 147
• IX. The Rabbits and Their Habits 151
• Molly Cottontail—The Clever Freezer 152
• The Rabbit that Wears Snowshoes 154
• The Terror of the Mountain Trails 156
• Bunny's Ride 158
• The Rabbit Dance 160
• The Ghost Rabbit 163
• A Narrow-gauge Mule—The Prairie Hare 164
• The Bump of Moss that Squeaks 165
• The Weatherwise Coney 169
• His Safety Is in the Rocks 171
• X. Ghosts of the Campfire 175
• The Jumping Mouse 177
• The Calling Mouse 179
• XI. Sneak-cats, Big and Small 185
• The Bobcat or Mountain Wildcat 186
• Misunderstood—The Canada Lynx 187
• The Shyest Thing in the Woods 189
• The Time I Met a Lion 191
• In Peril of My Life 194
• The Dangerous Night Visitor 196
• XII. Bears of High and Low Degree 201
• The Different Kinds of Bears 202
• Bear-trees 203
• A Peep Into Bear Family Life 204
• The Day at the Garbage Pile 208
• Lonesome Johnny 210
• Further Annals of the Sanctuary 210
• The Grizzly and the Can 216
• Appendix: Mammals of Yellowstone Park 221

List of Half-tone Plates

• A Prairie-dog town Frontispiece
•  FACING PAGE
• Chink's adventures with the Coyote and the Picket-pin 8
• (a) The Whistler watching me from the rocks (b) A young Whistler 9
• Red Fox 32
• Foxes quarrelling 33
• Beaver 48
• Mule-deer 49
• Blacktail Family 60
• Blacktail mother with her twins 61
• A young investigator among the Deer at Fort Yellowstone 64
• Elk in Wyoming 65
• Elk on the Yellowstone in Winter 68
• The first shots at the Hoodoo Cow 69
• The last shots at the Hoodoo Cow 76
• Elk on the Yellowstone 77
• Moose—The Widow 80
• Buffalo groups 81
• Near Yellowstone Gate 84
• Mountain Sheep on Mt. Evarts 85
• Track record of Bobcat's adventure with a Skunk 98
• The six chapters of the Bobcat's adventure 102
• My tame Skunks 103
• Red-squirrel storing mushrooms for winter use 134
• Chink stalking the Picket-pin 135
• The Snowshoe Hare is a cross between a Rabbit and a Snowdrift 150
• The Cottontail freezing 151
• The Baby Cottontail that rode twenty miles in my hat 162
• Snowshoe Rabbits dancing in the light of the lantern 163
• Snowshoe Rabbits fascinated by the lantern 170
• The Ghost Rabbit 171
• The Coney or Calling Hare 178
• The Coney barns full of hay stored for winter use 179
• (a) Tracks of Deer escaping and (b) Tracks of Mountain Lion in pursuit 186
• The Mountain Lion sneaking around us as we sleep 187
• Sketch of the Bear Family as made on the spot 198
• Two pages from my journal in the garbage heap 199
• While I sketched the Bears, a brother camera-hunter was stalking me without my knowledge 206
• One meets the Bears at nearly every turn in the woods 207
• The shyer ones take to a tree, if one comes too near 210
• Clifford B. Harmon feeding a Bear 211
• The Bears at feeding time 218
• (a) Tom Newcomb pointing out the bear's mark, (b) E. T. Seton feeding a Bear 219
• Johnnie Bear: his sins and his troubles 222
• Johnnie happy at last 223

I

The Cute Coyote

I

The Cute Coyote

AN EXEMPLARY LITTLE BEAST, MY FRIEND THE COYOTE

If you draw a line around the region that is, or was, known as the Wild West, you will find that you have exactly outlined the kingdom of the Coyote. He is even yet found in every part of it, but, unlike his big brother the Wolf, he never frequented the region known as Eastern America.

This is one of the few wild creatures that you can see from the train. Each time I have come to the Yellowstone Park I have discovered the swift gray form of the Coyote among the Prairie-dog towns along the River flat between Livingstone and Gardiner, and in the Park itself have seen him nearly every day, and heard him every night without exception.

Coyote (pronounced Ky-o'-tay, and in some regions Ky-ute) is a native Mexican contribution to the language, and is said to mean "halfbreed," possibly suggesting that the Coyote looks like a cross between the Fox and the Wolf. Such an origin would be a very satisfactory clue to his character, for he does seem to unite in himself every possible attribute in the mental make-up of the other two that can contribute to his success in life.

He is one of the few Park animals not now protected, for the excellent reasons, first that he is so well able to protect himself, second he is even already too numerous, third he is so destructive among the creatures that he can master. He is a beast of rare cunning; some of the Indians call him God's dog or Medicine dog. Some make him the embodiment of the Devil, and some going still further, in the light of their larger experience, make the Coyote the Creator himself seeking amusement in disguise among his creatures, just as did the Sultan in the "Arabian Nights."

The naturalist finds the Coyote interesting for other reasons. When you see that sleek gray and yellow form among the mounds of the Prairie-dog, at once creating a zone of blankness and silence by his very presence as he goes, remember that he is hunting for something to eat; also, that there is another, his mate, not far away. For the Coyote is an exemplary and moral little beast who has only one wife; he loves her devotedly, and they fight the life battle together. Not only is there sure to be a mate close by, but that mate, if invisible, is likely to be playing a game, a very clever game as I have seen it played.

Furthermore, remember there is a squealing brood of little Coyotes in the home den up on a hillside a mile or two away. Father and mother must hunt continually and successfully to furnish their daily food. The dog-towns are their game preserves, but how are they to catch a Prairie-dog! Every one knows that though these little yapping Ground-squirrels will sit up and bark at an express train but twenty feet away, they scuttle down out of sight the moment a man, dog or Coyote enters into the far distant precincts of their town; and downstairs they stay in the cyclone cellar until after a long interval of quiet that probably proves the storm to be past. Then they poke their prominent eyes above the level, and, if all is still, will softly hop out and in due course, resume their feeding.

THE PRAIRIE-DOG OUTWITTED

This is how the clever Coyote utilizes these habits. He and his wife approach the dog-town unseen. One Coyote hides, then the other walks forward openly into the town. There is a great barking of all the Prairie-dogs as they see their enemy approach, but they dive down when he is amongst them. As soon as they are out of sight the second Coyote rushes forward and hides near any promising hole that happens to have some sort of cover close by. Meanwhile, Coyote number one strolls on. The Prairie-dogs that he scared below come up again. At first each puts up the top of his head merely, with his eyes on bumps, much like those of a hippopotamus, prominent and peculiarly suited for this observation work from below, as they are the first things above ground. After a brief inspection, if all be quiet, he comes out an inch more. Now he can look around, the coast is clear, so he sits up on the mound and scans his surroundings.

Yes! Ho! Ho! he sees his enemy, that hated Coyote, strolling away off beyond the possibility of doing harm. His confidence is fully restored as the Coyote gets smaller in the distance and the other Prairie-dogs coming out seem to endorse his decision and give him renewed confidence. After one or two false starts, he sets off to feed. This means go ten or twenty feet from the door of his den, for all the grass is eaten off near home.

Among the herbage he sits up high to take a final look around, then burying his nose in the fodder, he begins his meal. This is the chance that the waiting, watching, she-Coyote counted on. There is a flash of gray fur from behind that little grease bush; in three hops she is upon him. He takes alarm at the first sound and tries to reach the haven hole, but she snaps him up. With a shake she ends his troubles. He hardly knows the pain of death, then she bounds away on her back track to the home den on the distant hillside. She does not come near it openly and rashly. There is always the possibility of such an approach betraying the family to some strong enemy on watch. She circles around a little, scrutinizes the landscape, studies the tracks and the wind, then comes to the door by more or less devious hidden ways. The sound of a foot outside is enough to make the little ones cower in absolute silence, but mother reassures them with a whining call much like that of a dog mother. They rush out, tumbling over each other in their glee, six or seven in number usually, but sometimes as high as ten or twelve. Eagerly they come, and that fat Prairie-dog lasts perhaps three minutes, at the end of which time nothing is left but the larger bones with a little Coyote busy polishing each of them. Strewn about the door of the den are many other kindred souvenirs, the bones of Ground-squirrels, Chipmunks, Rabbits, Grouse, Sheep, and Fawns, with many kinds of feathers, fur, and hair, to show the great diversity of Coyote diet.

THE COYOTE'S SENSE OF HUMOUR

To understand the Coyote fully one must remember that he is simply a wild dog, getting his living by his wits, and saving his life by the tireless serviceability of his legs; so has developed both these gifts to an admirable pitch of perfection. He is blessed further with a gift of music and a sense of humour.

When I lived at Yancey's, on the Yellowstone, in 1897, I had a good example of the latter, and had it daily for a time. The dog attached to the camp on the inner circle was a conceited, irrepressible little puppy named Chink. He was so full of energy, enthusiasm, and courage that there was no room left in him for dog-sense. But it came after a vast number of humiliating experiences.

A Coyote also had attached himself to the camp, but on the outer circle. At first he came out by night to feed on the garbage pile, but realizing the peace of the Park he became bolder and called occasionally by day. Later he was there every day, and was often seen sitting on a ridge a couple of hundred yards away.

One day he was sitting much nearer and grinning in Coyote fashion, when one of the campers in a spirit of mischief said to the dog, "Chink, you see that Coyote out there grinning at you. Go and chase him out of that."

Burning to distinguish himself, that pup set off at full speed, and every time he struck the ground he let off a war-whoop. Away went the Coyote and it looked like a good race to us, and to the Picket-pin Ground-squirrels that sat up high on their mounds to rejoice in the spectacle of these, their enemies, warring against each other.

The Coyote has a way of slouching along, his tail dangling and tangling with his legs, and his legs loose-jointed, mixing with his tail. He doesn't seem to work hard but oh! how he does cover the prairie! And very soon it was clear that in spite of his magnificent bounds and whoops of glory, Chink was losing ground. A little later the Coyote obviously had to slack up to keep from running away altogether. It had seemed a good race for a quarter of a mile, but it was nothing to the race which began when the Coyote turned on Chink. Uttering a gurgling growl, a bark, and a couple of screeches, he closed in with all the combined fury of conscious might and right, pitted against unfair unprovoked attack.

And Chink had a rude awakening; his war-whoops gave place to yelps of dire distress, as he wheeled and made for home. But the Coyote could run all around him, and nipped him, here and there, and when he would, and seemed to be cracking a series of good jokes at Chink's expense, nor ever stopped till the ambitious one of boundless indiscretion was hidden under his master's bed.

This seemed very funny at the time, and I am afraid Chink did not get the sympathy he was entitled to, for after all he was merely carrying out orders. But he made up his mind that from that time on, orders or no orders, he would let Coyotes very much alone. They were not so easy as they looked.