Seton, 1929, +3+: 69; Jacobi, 1931: 212-216)--I must confess that I was
always so engrossed with photography whenever the Caribou were close
at hand (up to within a dozen feet) that I had no thought of this
phenomenon and did not detect it.
_References._--Richardson, 1829: 242; A. J. Stone, 1900: 53;
Preble, 1902: 42; Seton, 1929, +3+: 105; Murie, 1939: 245;
Harper, 1949: 230; Banfield, 1951a: 19, 27.
_Food_
The ground lichens (including the various species of _Cladonia_) in the
Windy River area in 1947 did not seem, for the most part, to have a
height of more than 2 or 3 inches. The average length of several local
specimens of _Cladonia_ is approximately 51 mm. This condition was in
considerable contrast to the great spongy masses I had noted in the
Tazin River basin, between Athabaska and Great Slave lakes, in 1914.
I have no means of knowing whether the condition in Keewatin represented
severe cropping by Caribou in past years and subsequent slow recovery,
or whether it is a normal condition. According to Charles Schweder, the
growth depends upon rain, and so varies from year to year. During the
warmer months, from June to September, the local Caribou seemed to me to
be feeding very largely on the higher vegetation, such as willow, dwarf
birch, alder, and sedges. I had no definite evidence of their consuming
lichens during that period. By early October the species of _Cladonia_
seemed to have attained a somewhat fuller growth than they had exhibited
several months previously. Perez-Llano discusses (1944: 29-30) the
utilization by Reindeer of various lichens. Dix has reported (1951) on a
collection of lichens from the Windy River area.
Some miscellaneous observations along Windy and Little rivers follow:
June 16, 20 Caribou feeding apparently on patches of crowberry
(_Empetrum_) and dwarf birch (_Betula glandulosa_) on a ridge; June 29,
a Caribou feeding apparently on dwarf birches; June 30, a buck grazing
in a sedge bog; August 26, several bucks browsing on willow tops
(probably _Salix planifolia_) in a riverside thicket, and some does on
dwarf birch and perhaps tall grass or low willow; August 27, numbers
feeding largely on willow and dwarf birch; August 28 and 30, low alders,
willow, and dwarf birches nibbled off. By early October the leaves of
the three last-mentioned shrubs were no longer available, having dropped
off. During the summer they had seemed to be preferred above the
lichens. Cabot has remarked (1912: 46) on the fondness of _Rangifer
arcticus caboti_ for dwarf birch in Labrador.
Charles Schweder reported as follows on the food of Caribou. In summer
they live chiefly upon leaves, especially those of dwarf birch, and to
some extent upon "grass" (probably largely sedges). Toward the last of
June a Caribou was killed with fat an inch thick on its
haunches--perhaps the effect of recent feeding on the fresh green
vegetation. In August and September the animals also eat mushrooms and
get very fat on them; they seem to be especially fond of a certain red
kind, which Charles has found in their stomachs. The Eskimos' name for
mushrooms signifies "deer food." The Caribou feed upon dead "grass"
(perhaps mostly sedges) in the fall, but not in the winter. Charles has
seen them digging through 4 feet of snow to get at the reindeer lichens;
but for the most part their winter feeding in this region is on the tops
of the hills, which remain bare. They also eat tree lichens, especially
in the winter time.
Charles has seen Caribou chew the cud while standing as well as while
lying down. He once saw a buck thus occupied while standing on a hill
for half a day in a breeze that kept the mosquitoes down.
Among the hundreds of Caribou observed at the river crossings and
elsewhere, I do not recall seeing a single one pause to drink.
The _Influence of food supply on distribution_ of the Barren Ground
Caribou has been discussed in a previous section.
_References._--Hearne, 1795: 317; Franklin, 1823: 242;
Richardson, "1825": 329, and 1829: 243; Godman, 1831, +2+: 284;
Richardson, in Back, 1836: 498, and 1861: 275; Murray, 1858:
202; B. R. Ross, 1861: 439; Kumlien, 1879: 54; J. B. Tyrrell,
1894: 441; Russell, 1898: 226; J. W. Tyrrell, 1908 (1898): 80;
Lydekker, 1898: 49; Elliot, 1902: 276; Stone and Cram, 1904: 53;
Buchanan, 1920: 105-106, 131; Hewitt, 1921: 61; Blanchet, 1925:
33; Seton, 1929, +3+: 107-108; Kitto, 1930: 87; Jacobi, 1931:
223; Harper, 1932: 30; Sutton and Hamilton, 1932: 84; Weyer,
1932: 39; Hornby, 1934: 105; Murie, 1939: 245; Clarke, 1940:
106-107; G. M. Allen, 1942: 299; Soper, 1942: 143; Downes, 1943:
228; Porsild, 1943: 383; R. M. Anderson, 1948: 15; Manning,
1948: 26-28; Rand, 1948a: 212; Harper, 1949: 230; Banfield,
1951a: 11, 19-20, 28-29; Barnett, 1954: 106.
_Scatology_
The pellets of the Caribou are small, more or less blackish, very
irregular in shape, somewhat compressed, and generally deposited in
little piles, in which the individual components do not stand out very
distinctly, being pressed against each other. They are quite unlike the
oblong, curvilinear, comparatively symmetrical scats of the White-tailed
Deer and the Moose. I did not observe, nor learn of, any particular
seasonal variation in the shape or other characters.
_References._--Sutton and Hamilton, 1932: 81; Manning, 1943a:
50.
_Voice_
My impression of the adult Caribou is that it is a comparatively silent
animal during most of the year. At the rutting season, however, when the
bucks do their fighting with a clash of antlers, their voice is heard,
as Fred Schweder, Jr., informed me. It is about as loud as the fawn's
grunt, but a different sort of sound. Fred has also known a doe to call
when its fawn was shot.
The only vocal sound that I heard from the Caribou was the grunt or
bawling of the fawns on the fall migration, and only during the last
week of August, when the "big movement" was under way. It was uttered
chiefly at the river crossings, apparently as a result of the fawns'
anxiety lest they be separated from their mothers during the slight
uncertainty or confusion of these passages, when a considerable number
of animals were participating. It seemed to be a fair equivalent of a
human child's crying out: "Don't leave me behind!" or "Where are you,
mamma?" The grunt is very different from the bleating of a lamb or the
bawling of a domestic calf. It is a surprisingly raucous or guttural,
almost explosive, yet not very loud note, which I rendered at various
times as _gwuf_, _goff_, _gowk_, or _gorr_. Perhaps the last rendering
comes nearest to the actual sound. With one or two exceptions, I did not
identify any individual uttering one of these grunts; but the Schweder
boys, from their intimate knowledge of the species, assured me that this
was the voice of the fawn. In one case the sound came rather definitely
from a fawn that had become somewhat separated from its band in going up
the adjacent ridge after crossing Little River. But for the most part
the grunts seemed to come from swimming animals.
On August 30 another sort of sound--probably not a vocal one--seemed to
come from one of the older animals among a large band crossing Little
River. It was probably produced by a vigorous vibration of the nostrils.
It is further discussed in the section on _Shaking off moisture and
insects_.
It is rather astonishing that Seton, after seeing and studying many
Caribou at close range in Mackenzie, should say no more about their
voice than: "They snort a good deal and grunt a little" (1911: 210). In
his later monographic account he practically ignores the topic, merely
referring to the animals' "sniffing, snorting" (1929, 3: 105).
_References._--Lyon, 1824: 336; Pike, 1917 (1892): 89; Stone and
Cram, 1904: 53; Seton, 1911: 210, and 1929, +3+: 105; Hornaday,
1914, +2+: 103; Critchell-Bullock, 1930: 193; Sutton and
Hamilton, 1932: 84; Murie, 1939: 245; Downes, 1943: 226,
256-257; Harper, 1949: 230; Banfield, 1951a: 22.
_Reproduction_
By the time the rutting season arrived in mid-October, there were
comparatively few Caribou left in the Windy River area. Consequently my
information on the subject was derived mainly from Charles Schweder and
Fred Schweder, Jr. Weeks before the scheduled season, there were certain
manifestations of the sexual urge. For example, on September 5 about 20
Caribou were passing the Bear Slough. The band consisted mostly of does
and fawns, but included several middle-aged bucks (with antlers much
less than the maximum size) and possibly some younger bucks. Twice I saw
one of the animals attempt to cover another, but driving rain and the
compactness of the band prevented me from determining the sex or age of
those involved. During a trip to the Kazan River, lasting from September
17 to October 1, Fred observed a good deal of fighting among the
Caribou--obviously a prelude to the mating season. In Charles' opinion,
these early contests are not very much in earnest; the real fighting
begins about October 15. On October 8 Charles and Fred referred to
fighting that was going on among a herd of about 100 between Glacier
Pond and Lake Charles. Perhaps less than a quarter of this herd were
older bucks; the rest, younger bucks, does, and fawns.
In former years, while living at the "Old Post" on Red River, Charles
used to go out and watch the fighting on a big open muskeg, about a mile
square, where the Caribou would congregate practically every year at the
rutting season, up to a thousand strong. They would stay for three or
four days, then disappear. Nothing on the same scale had come to his
notice in the vicinity of the Windy River post. At this season, when the
animals are in large herds, the bucks utter their calls, as mentioned in
the section on _Voice_. According to Fred, one sees in October a good
many bucks with an antler broken off in the fighting. The break
generally occurs at about the middle of the antler. On September 29
Charles reported a buck with a broken antler, which he interpreted as
evidence of the beginning of the fighting season. During the rutting
season he once shot a buck with a broken jaw, and another with an eye
gone. The possible inference was that these injuries had been sustained
in fighting. A buck secured on October 16 had apparently been wounded in
fighting; there was pus in its neck, and it was considered unfit for
eating. I heard nothing as to the possible use of hoofs in contests
between bucks, as reported by Jacobi (1931: 233) for the Reindeer.
During the rutting season the herd is likely to be a large one, and to
do little traveling. It is composed of fawns as well as adults. The
bucks pursue the does, and sometimes chase each other. Charles thinks
the young bucks keep away from the does at this time, being unable to
fight the older bucks with larger antlers. Fred reports a proportion of
about 10 bucks to 50 does in these herds--a probable indication of
polygamy. He expressed the opinion that the bucks do not mate until 8-10
years old, and the does not until about four years old. However, he was
basing his estimate of the age on the total number of points on the
antlers--one point for each year; and on this basis the age was probably
much overestimated. Earlier sexual maturity on the part of the doe might
be another indication of polygamy in the species.
At the onset of this season, the bucks neglect their feeding to some
extent; consequently those killed have stomachs only partly filled,
instead of completely filled, as at other times. By mid-October their
fat becomes tinted with reddish, and the whole flesh becomes so rank and
musky that it is disdained not only by human beings but even by the
Wolves. This condition seems to be considerably more pronounced in the
Caribou than in the White-tailed Deer. The hunters forego eating the old
bucks for a period of several weeks. Meanwhile the younger bucks, not
engaged in mating, remain fit to eat. Hearne (1795: 69) reported the
flesh of bucks as still unpalatable as late as December 30.
The rutting season is said to continue through October into November.
The end of the period is uncertain, but it may coincide with the
shedding of the antlers of the old bucks.
_References._--Hearne, 1795: 72, 198-199; Richardson, "1825":
327-328, 1829: 243, and 1861: 274; Pike, 1917 (1892): 48, 90;
J. W. Tyrrell, 1908 (1898): 80; Hanbury, 1904: 73; Stone and
Cram, 1904: 52; Blanchet, 1925: 33; Birket-Smith, 1929 (1): 51,
56; Seton, 1929, +3+: 124-125; Jacobi, 1931: 232; Sutton and
Hamilton, 1932: 81, 84-86; Weyer, 1932: 40; Ingstad, 1933: 158;
Hornby, 1934: 105; Murie, 1939: 244; Manning, 1943a: 52;
Banfield, 1951a: 10, 26, 31.
_Fawns_
Since the fawning takes place far to the north of the Nueltin Lake
region, practically no local information concerning it was obtained.
Charles Schweder stated that in the spring migration the pregnant does
pass to an undetermined distance north of the upper Kazan River (below
Ennadai Lake). Although the migration at Nueltin Lake continues
throughout June, the rearguard is composed largely of bucks, and the
comparatively few does accompanying them toward the last may be barren.
Fisher (1821: 199) and Parry (1821: 183) report a small fawn of _R.
pearyi_ on Melville Island on June 2. Richardson states ("1825": 329)
that the young are born in May and June. There is evidently some
geographical and individual variation in the time of birth (_cf._
Jacobi, 1931: 232). Apparently the gestation period in the Caribou
covers approximately eight months or a little less. In the domesticated
Reindeer it is 231 to 242 days, according to Jacobi (1931: 234); in the
White-tailed Deer, 205 to 212 days, according to Seton (1929, +3+: 258).
Fred Schweder, Jr., stated that he had never found more than a single
unborn fawn in any one of the animals he had secured; yet he has seen as
many as four fawns following a doe. Of course there is no proof that
this individual was the actual mother of so many fawns; a stray or
bereaved youngster might well endeavor to attach itself to a foster
mother. On August 28, at Little River, I saw a doe being followed by two
fawns. On September 16 Fred reported seeing three old does without
fawns. Presumably most of the does do not bear young until they are two
years old (_cf._ Jacobi, 1931: 235); thus many yearling does without
family cares should be observed during the summer.
On September 12 Charles Schweder stated that the does would soon be
losing their milk; yet on occasion he has found them with milk as late
as November (_cf._ Jacobi, 1931: 235). On September 21, when he secured
a doe (fig. 21) that was accompanied by a fawn, I asked if he thought
the latter was still nursing. By way of answer, he squeezed a couple of
the doe's mammae, and some milk exuded. Thus the mammary glands were
still functioning at that date; they appeared well developed. By August
27, at an age of perhaps two and a half months, the fawns were browsing
on their own account, and their teeth were well developed. Fred
Schweder, Jr., then spoke of having seen fawns nursing four times during
that month, the last occasion having been on the 25th. On the 27th I had
the rare privilege of witnessing such a nursery rite across the mouth of
Little River. The wilderness baby was so large that it was obliged to
lower its forequarters very decidedly in order to reach the maternal
font (from a lateral position). This attitude left its hind quarters
thrust high and ludicrously into the air. I did not notice that it
wriggled its tail as a bovine calf might have; but Charles Schweder
spoke of having seen a fawn hold its tail erect while nursing. He also
said that the bigger fawns kneel down with their front legs while so
engaged. In his opinion, when a doe is killed in the autumn, its fawn
does not go and join other Caribou, but lingers near the fatal spot
until a Wolf or some other enemy overcomes it. For this reason it is his
practice to secure the fawn also, if possible, when he takes the mother.
On September 13 a fawn remained by its dead mother, permitting one of
the hunters to approach within 30 feet and to throw rocks at it three
times, finally taking it by that means. After a doe was killed on
September 21, its fawn lingered in the vicinity for a day or two.
_References._--Franklin, 1823: 242; Richardson, "1825": 329;
John Ross, 1835a: 432; Simpson, 1843: 277, 281, 381; J.
McLean, 1932 (1849): 359; Armstrong, 1857: 477-478; Murray,
1858: 202; Osborn, 1865: 227; Nourse, 1884: 264-265; Pike, 1917
(1892): 204, 209; Dowling, 1893: 107: Russell, 1895: 51; R. M.
Anderson, 1913b: 504-505; Hewitt, 1921: 62; Blanchet, 1926b: 47;
Seton, 1929, +3+: 124-125; Blanchet, 1930: 49, 53;
Critchell-Bullock, 1930: 192, 193; Sutton and Hamilton, 1932:
86; Ingstad, 1933: 161; Clarke, 1940: 88-90; Gavin, 1945: 228;
Banfield, 1951a: 26, 27; Scott, 1951: 179, 180; Barnett, 1954:
96.
_Growth_
During late August and early September the fawns probably averaged about
50 lb. in weight. (For the measurements of two specimens, see the
section on _Measurements_.) Yet they varied so much in size that some
appeared nearly twice as big as others. On September 7 an exceptionally
small fawn was secured (estimated weight, 35 lb.) (fig. 23). Its coat
was soft and woolly, representing an earlier stage than that seen in any
of the other fawns of that season. It was molting into the next pelage,
and its hide was unprime. It must have been born at an unusually late
date. Fred Schweder, Jr., remarked that he sometimes sees this stage in
the growth of fawns when the Caribou come down early from the north
(about the first of August), but it seems remarkable that it should have
been found in a September fawn. The present specimen has actually
smaller measurements than one secured on August 2 at Artillery Lake
(Seton, 1929, +3+: 97). The collector reported that the parent doe
appeared of ordinary size--not a particularly small or young one. The
yearlings noted on the spring migration in May (south of Churchill) and
in June (at Nueltin Lake) appeared roughly half the size of the adults.
Evidently several years are required for the attainment of full growth.
The younger adult bucks, with smaller antlers, are appreciably inferior
in body size to the older bucks, with better developed antlers.
_References._--Seton, 1929, +3+: 97, 98; Banfield, 1951a: 30.
_Antlers_
In late August and early September antlers were already in evidence on
the fawns, at an age of less than three months. They consisted of bony
knobs, covered with skin, and were an inch or two long. I obtained no
information as to when the fawns may shed the velvet or the antlers
themselves. By analogy with the Reindeer (_cf._ Jacobi, 1931: 237), the
fawns might be expected to drop their antlers in late winter.
When the adult Caribou return from the north in August, the antlers of
all are still in the velvet. However, completely hornless does are not
particularly uncommon at this season; in Charles Schweder's opinion,
some remain permanently in that condition. Hornless does are reported in
various forms of Caribou or Reindeer in both hemispheres (Jacobi, 1931:
48). I saw also a few one-horned does on the autumn migration. In a
single group of three adult does photographed at close range on August
28, one was hornless and another one-horned (fig. 11). A considerable
proportion of my other photographs of Caribou groups at this season show
one or more animals with a single antler or none. The hornless condition
appears to be astonishingly more common in Keewatin than in regions
farther west. Stefánsson, whose field operations were chiefly in
northern Mackenzie and southwestern Franklin, remarks (1913b: 151) on
having found, at any season when Caribou are normally horned, just three
hornless animals among a thousand at whose killing he had been present.
Murie (1935: 20) speaks of having observed only one hornless doe in
Alaska, in September.
By late August the bucks' antlers have attained nearly their full
growth, though still in the velvet. The largest head of the season was
obtained on August 22. Its measurements were: right antler, in straight
line from base to tip of longest prong, 995; left antler, 980; distance
between main tips of the two antlers, 620; brow tine, from base to upper
tip, 335; to lower tip, 290. For the older bucks, the principal period
for shedding the velvet is September 10 to 20, although Charles Schweder
once observed a buck that had completed the process by September 1, and
Fred secured one in that condition on September 6, 1947. In Alaska old
bucks shed the velvet more or less regularly in September (Murie, 1935:
26). Sick or wounded animals are said to retain the velvet for an
indefinite period. For example, a buck secured on September 29 had some
velvet hanging in shreds from the tips of its antlers, and it was found
to have been shot in the mouth sometime previously. The younger bucks
and the does lose their velvet somewhat later than the older bucks (say
toward the end of September). In a doe of September 21 (fig. 21) the
antlers were covered with velvet and still had soft tips. A young buck
of October 2 was just shedding the velvet.
Charles Schweder spoke of noting as many as 30-33 points on the antlers
of old bucks. (He probably included the brow and the bez tines in this
count.) He also referred to an exceptional set of antlers at Simons'
Lake with about 40 points; he had first noted it about 10 years
previously, and it had doubtless been there for years before that. He
had never been able to secure its equal. When I saw and photographed it
in October (fig. 25), some of the points were broken off, so that an
accurate count was impossible; but there must have been close to 40
originally, even without the brow tines, which were missing. The
palmation was much broader than I have seen in any other Caribou.
The prong projecting backward at the angle of the main beam is by no
means so uncommon in the animals of this region as a Chipewyan hunter
seemed to indicate to Downes (1943: 227-228).
Charles Schweder found a pair of locked antlers about 1940 near Josie's
Bay. This was the only case of which he had any knowledge. An instance
of locked antlers in _Rangifer pearyi_ is mentioned by Peary (1907: 84).
There is marked variation in the dates of shedding the antlers,
according to sex, age, and physiological condition of the individual.
This has resulted in various conflicting statements in the literature.
In the present region, the old bucks with 25 or more points are said to
shed their antlers about the end of October or in November, at the close
of the rutting season. (Fred Schweder, Jr., encountered a hornless buck
as early as November 7, 1947.) The younger bucks, with 15 to 20 points,
and the does retain their antlers till late May or June of the following
year. A doe of June 3 and another of June 16 were still horned. In
Alaska "the young bucks may carry their old antlers until late in April,
while does carry theirs until the middle of May, some of them until
June" (Murie, 1935: 26).
John Ingebrigtsen reported having seen two or three shallow lakes,
between Churchill and (South?) Knife Lake, whose bottoms were fairly
covered with caribou antlers. They were visible through clear ice. It
appears probable that these lakes, while ice-covered, were favored
resorts of large numbers of Caribou for their midday or nocturnal rests
at a period when they were shedding their antlers (November for the old
bucks, May or June for the does and young bucks).
It is natural that the season at which the new antlers of the Barren
Ground Caribou begin to grow should vary greatly according to sex and
age, just as the shedding of the antlers does; probably also, for the
various forms of _Rangifer_, according to locality (_cf._ Jacobi, 1931:
237). On Southampton Island "the new antlers begin to appear in the
males in March and April" (Sutton and Hamilton, 1932: 85). In Alaska
Murie (1935: 24) "has found old bucks late in April with velvet knobs
well begun." Seton's account (1929, +3+: 102-103) of the seasonal change
of antlers is not only meager but largely at variance with the
information I assembled in Keewatin. Recently gathered information is
supplied by Banfield (1951a: 17-18).