Popular Official Guide to the New York Zoological Park (September 1915): Thirteenth EditionHornaday, William T. (William Temple)
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Popular Official Guide to the New York Zoological Park (September 1915): Thirteenth Edition
Hornaday, William T. (William Temple)
New York Zoological Park
The Arctic Fox, (_Vulpes lagopus_).—This creature of the polar world is
a striking example of climatic influence on a species, and also of the
danger that lies in describing a species from a single specimen. In the
far north, the Arctic Fox is snow-white all the year round. Farther
south it is white in winter, but in summer is bluish-brown. In the
southern part of its range, the Aleutian Archipelago for example, except
for an occasional white individual, it is dark all the year round, and
is known only as the Blue Fox. At first it may seem difficult to believe
that these two widely-different extremes are only color-phases of the
same species; but it is quite true. The dark-colored animal is not even
accorded subspecific rank.
On various islands along the Alaska coast, especially in the Aleutian
Archipelago, about forty commercial companies are engaged in breeding
Blue Foxes for their fur, some of them with satisfactory success. The
foxes are fed daily, on cooked corn meal and dried fish. They come up to
be fed, and when the time comes to handle and sort them previous to
killing the annual allotment, they greatly facilitate matters by the
readiness with which they enter box traps.
The great decrease in the annual supply of good fur has caused many
persons to hope that fox-breeding may be developed into a remunerative
industry. Except in Alaska, no extensive experiments in that line have
been made. It is quite desirable that fox-breeding in the United States
should be taken up under state or national auspices, and worked out to a
successful issue. There is good reason to hope and believe that it might
be developed into an important industry.
From Argentina, South America, have come two fine specimens of the Azara
Dog, (_Canis azarae_), which, but for their half dog-like tails might
pass anywhere as rather odd-looking gray foxes. But they are a visible
reminder of the fact that the pampas of South America contain an
extensive series of foxes and wild dogs, which thus far is practically
unknown everywhere north of the Amazon.
The Dingo, or Australian Wild Dog, (_Canis dingo_), is represented by
two specimens which look like ordinary yellow dogs. By many persons it
is believed that this animal was not indigenous to Australia, and was
planted there by man, but the evidence in support of that supposition is
by no means conclusive.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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