In the earlier descriptions, the prairie wolves were usually said to hunt in packs. Lewis and Clark, Say. Richardson, and others so reported, but the Prince of Wied met them only singly. It is probable that they hunt in numbers only when the quarry is large, as in the ease of deer and antelope; but as many as three have been known to pursue a single jack rabbit. FOOD HABITS OF COYOTES. The food of coyotes has been a subject of investigation by the field naturalists of the Biological Survey, whenever opportunity offered. A number of stomach examinations have been made in the field: but trapped animals are often found with empty stomachs. In the case of a number of the species nothing definite is known of the food. The stomachs examined contained mainly animal matter, but in two cases vegetable remains were found. One examined by Vernon Bailey contained a quantity of ripe cultivated plums: and William Lloyd found a coyote that had eaten mesquite beans. In northern Arizona Doctor Merriam saw a coyote eating a watermelon, and a correspondent al Russell, Kans., says that they sometimes cat ripe melons. In California they cat peaches, apricots, grapes, and other fruits. They cat also juniper berries, manzanita berries, and the fruit of the prickly pear (_Opuntia_). Only one case of insect-eating has been observed by the Biological Survey. The same animal that had eaten plums had in its stomach the remains of a large cricket (_Stenopelmatus fasciatus_). Coyotes feed greedily upon all kinds of animal food. This ranges from the larger hoofed mammals to the smallest rodents, and includes also birds, reptiles, fish, and crustaceans. Three horned toads (_Phrynosoma_) were found in the stomach of a specimen killed June 3, 1898, in Big Smoky Valley. Nevada, by Vernon Bailey. On the low tropical coast of eastern Mexico and Texas members of the Biological Survey have often seen coyotes searching the beach for crabs, fish, and turtle eggs. BENEFICIAL HABITS.