opportunity presents itself. However, in Washington I have no actual
evidence of its killing birds other than domestic fowls. At Republic,
Ferry County, a companion and I saw a weasel enter the burrow of a
ground squirrel (_Citellus columbianus_). The following day we returned
to the area. The weasel was not seen but a ground squirrel dashed into
the hole at our approach. Seemingly the ground squirrel had eluded the
weasel. At Conconully, Okanogan County, we set a number of gopher traps
in an alfalfa field. The following morning an adult male long-tailed
weasel was found in a trap but not a gopher was taken. Near Moses Lake,
Grant County, an adult male weasel was caught in a gopher trap, but no
gophers were taken. At Shelton, Mason County, 50 gopher traps were set.
At daylight the following morning the first trap visited was found to be
pulled into the burrow. When a gentle tug was given the wire fastening
the trap, a decisive jerk at the other end showed that the catch was
alive. If trapped gophers that pull the traps back into their burrows
are pulled out by main strength, their skins are often torn and damaged.
Therefore an attempt was made to reach into the burrow and pull back the
sod. An adult female long-tailed weasel promptly fastened its teeth into
my forefinger and clung on, bulldog fashion, to be lifted into the air
with the attached trap swinging. When the left hand was used to force
the animal to release its grip, it fastened onto the left thumb. With
right thumb and forefinger I forced it to release its grip, but was
unable to elude its teeth which again fastened to my right forefinger.
Only by laying it on the ground and crushing its chest with my foot
could I free myself from the vicious little beast. No gophers were taken
in traps set less than 150 feet from where the weasel was trapped. In
the three instances mentioned above, weasels had seemingly killed all
the gophers in their immediate vicinity. As regards the gophers near
Moses Lake, none was found a year later in the area where the weasel was
taken and only old, abandoned burrows were seen. T. H. Scheffer (1932:
54) records other instances of the capture of weasels in gopher burrows.
At the northern limits of the city of Seattle, steel traps were set
for mountain beavers in a rather dense colony of these mammals.
Well-used burrows indicated that approximately 10 individuals were
present. The following morning an exceptionally large male weasel was
found in a trap, but all others were empty. The traps were left out
for two additional nights but no mountain beavers were taken. A month
later the colony seemed abandoned and no evidence of recent digging
was noted. It could only be concluded that the weasel had killed the
animals comprising the colony. A large mountain beaver weighs three or
four pounds, which is 6 or 8 times as much as a weasel. Edson (1933:
76) recounts trapping 7 weasels in burrows of mountain beavers near
Bellingham, Whatcom County.
Near Forks, Clallam County, a weasel was seen pursuing a young snowshoe
rabbit (_Lepus americanus washingtonii_) along the edge of a concrete
highway. As our car approached and passed the animals, they separated,
the weasel retreating to the cover of horsetail (_Equisetum_) beside
the road. The car was stopped 50 feet ahead. As we emerged the weasel
dashed from cover to intercept the rabbit in the center of the road.
The weasel knocked the rabbit to its side and, placing its feet on the
rabbit's shoulders, bit fiercely at its neck. It then dashed back to
the cover of the horsetails. The rabbit stood up, made two hops and
died. It was approximately two weeks old.
[Illustration: FIG. 57. Distribution of the long-tailed weasel in
Washington. A. _Mustela frenata washingtoni._ B. _Mustela frenata
altifrontalis._ C. _Mustela frenata nevadensis._ D. _Mustela frenata
effera._]
The pelts of weasels bring the trapper from twenty-five cents to a
dollar and a half. Only skins in the white winter coat command the
higher price. They are usually taken in traps set for other animals.
In the western part of the state, long-tailed weasels do not turn white
in the winter; the back is slightly less reddish than in summer and the
underparts are pale yellow or white or may be both yellow and white.
From the summit of the Cascades eastward weasels become white. The
break in winter color seems to occur slightly west of the main summit
of the Cascades. Specimens taken by marten trappers at Tye and Scenic,
near Stevens Pass, were white on November 15, 1936, but specimens from
Skykomish and Baring, 18 miles to the west, were brown.
The long-tailed weasel possesses a distinctive odor. It results from
a glandular secretion and, although it has no great carrying power or
lasting quality, it does affect some persons strongly. It is a heavy,
rather sickening scent.
The gestation period of _Mustela f. nevadensis_ has been recorded as
more than 131 days (Hall, 1938B: 250). The gestation period of the
long-tailed weasel of eastern United States has been recorded as more
than 70 days. Three to five young are born in a litter, usually four.
=Mustela frenata nevadensis= Hall
_Mustela arizonensis_ Taylor and Shaw, Occ. Pap. Chas. R. Conner
Mus., no. 2:11, December, 1929.
_Mustela washingtoni_ Taylor and Shaw, in part, Occ. Pap. Chas. R.
Conner Mus., no. 2:11, December, 1929.
_Mustela frenata nevadensis_ Hall, Carnegie Inst. Washington,
Publ. 473:91, November 20, 1936.
_Type._--Obtained 3 miles east of Baker, White Pine County, Nevada,
by E. R. Hall and W. C. Russell on May 30, 1929; type in Museum of
Vertebrate Zoölogy.
_Racial characters._--Size medium; colors pale; back near Brussels
Brown in summer, chin white and underparts yellow, rarely orange;
color in winter white with black tip on tail.
_Measurements._--A male from Neppel, Grant County, measures: total
length 412; length of tail 151; hind foot 43; ear 19. Two males
from Yakima, Yakima County, average: 379; 135; 42.5; 21; weight
176.5. A female from Ellensburg and one from 4 miles east of
Ellensburg, Kittitas County, average: 284; 98; 33; 17.
_Distribution._--From the high Cascades eastward, save for the
Blue Mountains area. Marginal occurrences are Barron (Hall, 1936:
93) and Easton (W. W. D.).
_Remarks._--Specimens from the northern Cascades are intergrades
between _nevadensis_ and the form to the west, _altifrontalis_.
Specimens from extreme northeastern Washington might be referred
to _oribasa_ Bangs as readily as to _nevadensis_.
=Mustela frenata effera= Hall
_Mustela frenata effera_ Hall, Carnegie Inst. Washington, Publ.
473:93, November 20, 1936.
_Type._--Obtained at Ironside, Malheur County, Oregon, by H. E.
Anthony on September 8, 1912; type in American Museum of Natural
History.
_Racial characters._--Similar to _nevadensis_ in color but
smaller, with smaller, lighter skull. Color in winter white with
black tip on tail.
_Measurements._--A female from Prescott, Walla Walla County,
measures: total length 310; length of tail 105; hind foot 34.
_Distribution._--Southeastern Washington, south of the Snake
River. Specimens from Walla Walla and Prescott have been examined.
=Mustela frenata washingtoni= (Merriam)
_Putorius washingtoni_ Merriam, N. Amer. Fauna, 11:18, June 30,
1896.
_Mustela washingtoni_ Miller, U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull., 79:98,
December 31, 1912.
_Mustela frenata washingtoni_ Hall, Carnegie Inst. Washington,
Publ. 473:106, November 20, 1936.
_Type._--Obtained at Trout Lake, Skamania County, Washington, by D.
N. Kaegi on December 15, 1895; type in United States National
Museum.
_Racial characters._--Color rich, dark; hind feet free of color of
underparts.
_Measurements._--A male from Spray Park, Pierce County, measures:
total length 423; length of tail 164; hind foot 52.
_Distribution._--Higher Cascades from Mt. Rainer (M. V. Z.) south
to Mt. Adams (Taylor and Shaw, 1929: 11).
=Mustela frenata altifrontalis= Hall
_Mustela saturata_ Taylor and Shaw, Occ. Papers Chas. R. Conner
Mus., no. 2:11, December, 1929.
_Mustela frenata altifrontalis_ Hall, Carnegie Inst. Washington,
Publ. 473:94, November 20, 1936.
_Type._--Obtained at Tillamook, Tillamook County, Oregon, by A.
Walker on July 10, 1928; type in Museum of Vertebrate Zoölogy.
_Racial characters._--Similar to _nevadensis_ but darker above in
summer and richer orange beneath; winter color of upper parts dark
brown, underparts pale yellow or white.
_Measurements._--Four males and 2 females from western Washington
average, respectively: total length 411.5, 267; length of tail
145, 137.5; hind foot 50, 43; ear 26, 21.5; weight 227, 136.7
grams.
_Distribution._--From the Cascade Mountains to the Pacific.
Marginal occurrences are Rockport (Hall, 1936: 95) and Tye (W. W.
D.).
=Mustela vison energumenos= (Bangs)
Mink
_Putorius vison energumenos_ Bangs, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist.,
27:5, March, 1896.
_Mustela vison energumenos_ Miller, U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull., 79:101,
December 31, 1912.
_Type._--Obtained at Sumas, British Columbia, by A. C. Brooks on
September 23, 1895; type in Museum of Comparative Zoölogy.
_Measurements._--A male from Seattle, King County, measures: total
length 540; length of tail 180; hind foot 66; weight 1 pound, 15
ounces.
_Distribution._--Throughout the state save for the Columbian
Plateau; recorded from Neah Bay (Taylor and Shaw, 1929: 11) in the
northwest, Ilwaco (M.V.Z.) in the southwest, Metaline (W.W.D.) in
the northeast, and the Blue Mountains (Dice, 1919: 12) in the
southeast.
[Illustration: FIG. 58. Distribution of the mink, _Mustela vison
energumenos_, in Washington.]
_Description._--Because of the value and lasting popularity of its fur,
the mink is known to all. Few persons, however, recognize the animal in
the wild. The mink possesses the long, slim body and short, rather stout
legs of a weasel but has a more bushy tail. The mink is larger than the
weasel. Large males weigh up to 3 pounds; females 1-1/2 pounds. Males
measure about 2 feet in length, of which the tail comprises eight
inches. Females measure about 20 inches and have tails 7 inches long.
The color is rich, dark reddish or chocolate brown. The underparts are
slightly paler than the back. There are usually small white markings on
the chin, chest or other part of the ventral surface. These markings
sometimes take the form of narrow white lines.
The mink ranges from the Atlantic to the Pacific and from Alaska south
to Florida, New Mexico and central California. It is active throughout
the year and is principally, though not exclusively, nocturnal. McMurry
(1940: 47) records three mink seen at 3:30 p. m. on August 8, 1939, at
Packwood Lake, Lewis County, one of which was carrying a garter snake
two feet in length. This mustelid is semiaquatic, living along rivers,
streams, lakes and salt water and spends most of its time along the
shore, on muddy or sandy beaches. In this respect it resembles the
raccoon. Whereas the raccoon spends a part of its time on the land, the
mink spends a corresponding amount of its time in the water. It is an
excellent swimmer, able to overtake and capture fish in the water.
In the San Juan Islands minks have forsaken the shoreline and roam over
the uplands, feeding on the abundant, feral domestic rabbits. I found
evidence of their presence far inland, miles from water, in grassy and
bushy wastes; along the beaches their tracks were rarely seen. Along
Puget Sound, minks spend part of their time on the beaches, feeding on
dead fish and other marine animal life. These animals, however, seem to
live along the rivers and streams flowing into the sound. Along the
ocean coast, some minks seem to live exclusively in the marine shoreline
habitat.
The mink ascends some distance into the Cascade and Olympic mountains
along the larger watercourses. There are reliable reports of minks from
Heart Lake and Lake Dorothy, King County, high in the Cascades. These
animals were seen in the summer but they may live in higher parts of the
Cascades, at least about some of the larger lakes throughout the year.
As far as is known there are no minks on the Columbian Plateau.
The food probably varies with locality. Along the ocean beaches they eat
dead sea birds, stranded fish, crustaceans, and mollusks. Along Puget
Sound their tracks are commonly seen following the caked, decaying
seaweed and debris that collects at the high tide mark. Svihla and
Svihla (1931: 22) captured a mink that was feeding on the beach of the
Olympic Peninsula. This individual, in captivity, was able to open and
feed on clams. Fur trappers report that minks feed on mountain beavers,
and that the flesh of the mountain beaver is the best bait for
attracting minks. Along streams and lakes, minks are thought to feed on
mice, birds, fish, crayfish and thin-shelled, fresh-water mussels. The
muskrat forms an important item of diet near the larger lakes and
streams. Muskrats trapped near Seattle were often attacked by minks and
either eaten or so slashed and torn that their pelts were worth but a
fraction of what they would bring in an undamaged condition.
The tracks of a mink noted in freshly fallen snow about a garbage dump
on the shore of Lake Washington, Seattle, indicated that the animal had
been hunting house rats, which were numerous there. Minks are not
uncommon in the marshes along Lake Washington near the University of
Washington campus, Seattle, where I discovered evidence of their preying
on ducks and coots. The ducks included mallards and green-winged teal,
species most apt to alight in small pools in the rushes where a mink
might find cover. I found the fresh tracks of one mink about a
half-eaten golden tench 8 inches long. The tench is a fish of the sucker
tribe, introduced into the lake. Tracks of minks are not uncommonly seen
along rivers and streams under conditions that indicate they were
hunting crayfish.
The raw pelt of the mink sells usually at from 10 to 20 dollars. The fur
is in constant demand and fluctuates in price less than most furs. The
average trapper takes a few minks each year along with his catch of
muskrats, raccoons, and skunks but some trappers have taken as many as
100 minks in a winter in areas where the animal is especially numerous.
=Gulo luscus luteus= Elliot
Wolverine
_Gulo luteus_ Elliot, Field Columb. Mus., Publ. 87, zoöl. ser.
3:260, December, 1903.
_Gulo luscus luteus_ Grinnell, Dixon, and Linsdale, Fur-bearing
Mamm. California, Univ. California Press, Berkeley, p. 251, July
22, 1937.
_Type._--Obtained on Mt. Whitney, Tulare County, California, by E.
Heller; type in Field Museum of Natural History.
_Measurements._--The dried skin of a wolverine taken 3 miles south
of Riverside, Okanogan County, was 4 feet in length. The animal
weighed 40 pounds (Scheffer, 1941: 37).
_Distribution._--Timber-line region of the Cascades Mountains.
From Robinson Creek (Scheffer, 1938: 8) south to Mount Rainier
(Taylor and Shaw, 1929: 12).
_Remarks._--Specimens from Washington are intermediate in
character between _luteus_ and the race inhabiting British
Columbia, although available skulls are closer to _luteus_.
[Illustration: FIG. 59. Wolverine (_Gulo luscus_), mounted specimen,
male, trapped by Billy Robinson about 1902 on Billy Robinson Creek,
Okanogan County, Washington. (Fish and Wildlife Service photo by
Victor B. Scheffer, No. 76.)]
_Description._--Large males measure more than three feet in length, of
which the tail makes up 10 inches; they weigh as much as 50 pounds
(Grinnell, Dixon and Linsdale, 1937: 253). The body is wide and stocky;
the tail is short; the legs, especially the forelegs, are short, thick
and powerful; the feet are large and are armed with long, curved claws;
the head is wide; the jaws are powerful with heavy teeth. The pelage is
long and rather shaggy. Face, legs, back and terminal portion of the
tail are dark, blackish brown but the forehead is grayish, contrasting
with the dark color of face and top of the head. Two broad,
yellowish-brown bands begin on the side of the shoulders and pass back,
low on the sides, to the hips where they join across the back and base
of the tail.
The wolverines, nominally of several species, form a compact group that
ranges over the boreal regions of the Old and New world. In North
America they range southward from the Arctic to California and Colorado.
[Illustration: FIG. 60. Wolverine (_Gulo luscus_), male, trapped by
Reuben R. Lamb, March 22, 1941, three miles south of Riverside,
Washington; reported to weigh 40 pounds; dried pelt 3 × 4 feet.
(Reuben R. Lamb photo.)]
[Illustration: FIG. 61. Distribution of the wolverine, _Gulo luscus
luteus_, in Washington.]
The wolverine is adapted to boreal conditions and is most abundant in
the arctic. In the Cascades it occurs only at or near timber-line.
Except the wolf and the possibly extinct grizzly bear, the wolverine is
the rarest carnivore in Washington. Probably it has been rare since the
retreat of the continental glaciers, for suitable habitat for wolverines
is not abundant and each animal requires a large area over which to
range. An unusual record, possibly of a wandering animal, is given by
Scheffer (1941: 37). This is of an adult male taken in the Okanogan
Valley 3 miles south of Riverside, Okanogan County, on March 22, 1941.
=Lutra canadensis= (Schreber)
River otter
_Description._--The otter has the long body of many mustelids, but is
specialized for aquatic life. Males are slightly larger than females.
Large adults measure more than 3-1/2 feet in length, of which the tail
comprises 18 inches. The largest adults may weigh as much as 25 pounds.
The body is elongate but rather plump. The forelimbs are small and
laterally placed. The hind legs are the heavier, and are situated
posteriorly. The feet are large and webbed for swimming. The tail is
long, thick at the base and gradually tapering to a narrow tip. The head
is small and rounded. The ears are tiny and the eyes are of moderate
size. The upper lips are large, somewhat spaniel-like, and support a
mustache of stiff vibrissae. The fur is short, dense and soft. The tail
is sleek with short, posteriorly-directed fur, and is not bushy. The fur
is rich, dark chocolate brown in color, slightly paler on the animal's
underparts than on its upper parts.
Otters range over Eurasia, North America and South America. Those
occurring in North America north of Mexico are thought to belong to a
single species, _canadensis_. Several species from tropical America may
eventually be shown to also be races of _canadensis_.
The aquatic habits of the otter allow it to exist in several life-zones,
in both marine and fresh-water habitats. The principal environment is
the streams, rivers and lakes of the Transition Life-zone, but along the
larger rivers, otters range up into the Canadian Life-zone and along the
Snake and Columbia rivers they enter the Upper Sonoran Life-zone. They
are active throughout the year. As we have observed them, they are
principally nocturnal.
Otters are extremely powerful swimmers. Tracks along the North Fork of
the Tolt River, King County, showed where otters had entered water that
flowed over a stony bottom at the velocity of rapids. Their occurrence
in the Tolt, Skykomish and Snoqualmie rivers where these are swift
mountain streams indicates exceptional swimming ability. After emerging
from the water, an otter often follows along the shore, sometimes for
miles.
In the San Juan Islands the otters have taken to a marine existence. In
the summer of 1938, abundant opportunity offered to observe the otters
at Thatcher Bay, Blakely Island. Here, in the evening, bats were shot as
they flew over the calm water of the bay. Specimens killed were
retrieved by rowing out to them with a dory. For the first two nights
bats were collected and retrieved without incident. On the third night,
several of the bats vanished between the time they were killed and the
time that the boat was launched from the rocky beach. The presence of a
shark or other large fish was at first suspected, but observation showed
a group of three or possibly four otters to be the thieves. On
succeeding nights the animals became bolder. A dead bat became the
object of a race between otters and collector. They completely ignored
shouts, dodged stones hurled at them, and stole almost all the bats
shot. Only a sense of humor and desire to study the animals saved them
from a load of fine shot. Bat collecting was given up in disgust.
These otters were remarkably seallike in many actions. In swimming their
heads, shoulders and part of their back were exposed. In resting in the
water, only the round head remained above the surface. They were never
seen to float prone on the surface or rest on their backs, as does the
sea otter. They were noisy swimmers, splashing with paws or heads as
they dived. Their eyesight was remarkable. Stones the size of a walnut
were hurled at them from distances as short as 25 feet. All were dodged
with little effort. In this connection the experience of two trappers
who caught an otter in the Samamish River near Woodinville, King County,
is interesting. The trap holding the otter had been attached by a wire 6
feet long to a pole on the bank. The wire was detached from the pole;
while one trapper held the wire, the other tried to strike the otter
with an oar as the boat drifted over deep water. The otter was free to
swim and dive for the length of the wire and trap chain. It detected,
and evaded by dodging or diving, every blow directed at it and not until
the animal tired, a half hour later, could it be killed. The trappers
then noted that the splashing of oars and otter had nearly filled the
boat with water. The trappers were exhausted.
The otters of Blakely Island were not unique in occupying a marine
habitat. At Strawberry Bay, Cypress Island, on July 5, 1938, fishermen
brought in a "strange animal" caught by them at Black Rock, a tiny bare
and isolated islet 5 miles to the west. The heavy box holding the animal
was opened, disclosing a very frightened young otter. Questioned, the
fishermen stated that four young and one adult had been seen in the
surf. They had thought the animals a species of seal, and were somewhat
surprised at being successful in their attempts to catch one. The otter
was too young to fare for itself and was kept in camp in the hope that
it might be reared and released. It ate a few fresh herring and
candlefish and drank some condensed milk. It refused whole salmon and
sea bass but ate some skinned and boned strips of these fish. It died a
week after it was captured. This young otter made a ticking sound,
almost a chirp. A variety of crying and whimpering sounds were also
made, and when petted it grunted in satisfaction. If surprised or when
first picked up it gave a deep harsh growl, unexpectedly vicious in
sound, for such a small animal.