Elk and antelope, as well as bighorn sheep, are hunted by special licenses only, since their numbers do not warrant a general open season. These special licenses are much sought after and are ordinarily made available by application and a public drawing in the fall. The javelina, confined to our southwestern counties, is also hunted by special license. It is noteworthy that although New Mexico had protected them for many years, the javelina did not increase its numbers. As a matter of fact, the natural losses applied against any game species are going to be in effect no matter whether hunting is permitted or not, the hunting being merely subtracted from what would be lost to nature anyhow. Our state mammal, the black bear, is found throughout the wooded areas of the state and occasionally wanders out into the plains or down into the desert mountains of the south. Bears are hunted avidly in the fall by sportsmen with dog packs before the regular big game seasons begin, when the use of dogs is prohibited. They are again hunted during the big game seasons by anyone bearing the proper license, but no packs of dogs are allowed. This is to prohibit the possibility of dogs being used to pursue elk, deer, or wild turkey, an illegal act in New Mexico. New Mexico is fortunate in having a tremendous diversity of both upland game and waterfowl, and big game and small game for her people. Importantly, the game resources are spread out through every county in the state. The state’s richness of bird life is varied and extensive. New Mexico ranks among the first five in the total number of birds found within its boundaries. More than 400 species of birds live within the state. These range all the way from the tiny mites of the bird kingdom, the hummingbirds, weighing less than an ounce, to the great white whistling swan, weighing up to 25 pounds, or the Merriam turkey, which may weigh close to 30. Of the six species of quail found in the United States, New Mexico has four and may possess the fifth, since the mountain quail of the western coast have been introduced into this state and still occur on the west slopes of the Sacramento Mountains near Tularosa. Five species of doves found throughout the state from the highest coniferous forest down into the scorching heat of the creosote desert are the Inca dove, ground dove, mourning dove, white-winged dove, and the bandtail pigeon, all of them close relatives. Of these, only two, the mourning dove and the white-winged dove, are commonly hunted as game species.