U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
BUREAU OF BIOLOGICAL SURVEY
NORTH AMERICAN FAUNA
No. 49
[Date of publication, December, 1926]
A BIOLOGICAL SURVEY OF NORTH DAKOTA
I. PHYSIOGRAPHY AND LIFE ZONES
II. THE MAMMALS
BY
VERNON BAILEY
BIOLOGIST
DIVISION OF BIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS
BUREAU OF BIOLOGICAL SURVEY
WASHINGTON
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
1926
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE,
BUREAU OF BIOLOGICAL SURVEY,
Washington, D. C., December 11, 1925.
SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith, recommending that it be published as No. 49 in the series of the North American Fauna, a report on the biological survey of North Dakota, prepared by Vernon Bailey, biologist of this bureau. This report is in two parts, the first treating of the physiography and natural life zones of the State, accompanied, as in similar reports, by a map of the life zones; and the second, the mammalian life, consisting of notes on the distribution, abundance, and habits of the mammals of the State. Both are based on natural-history explorations conducted by the bureau and cooperating State organizations in North Dakota over many years, the work on the mammals having begun in 1887, and preliminary reports thereon having been published in the annual report of this bureau in 1888, when it was known as the Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammals, and in a circular of the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment station, in 1914, the latter being in the nature of a cooperative report of progress and an appeal for additional local detailed information. The present report comprises a valuable contribution to knowledge and will be useful to farmers, students, and others interested in the distribution, habits, and economic relations of our wild-animal life.
Respectfully,
E. W. NELSON,
Chief of Bureau.
Hon. W. M. JARDINE,
Secretary of Agriculture.
CONTENTS
Introduction . . . 1
PART I. Physiography and life zones of North Dakota . . . 3
Changing conditions . . . 3
General physiographic features . . . 3
Glacial remains . . . 3
Lowered water levels . . . 4
Drainage systems . . . 4
Elevations and the Badlands . . . 5
Prairie . . . 7
Forest . . . 7
Life zones . . . 8
Upper Austral Zone . . . 8
Mammals . . . 9
Breeding birds . . . 9
Plants . . . 10
Crop adaptations . . . 10
Transition Zone . . . 11
Mammals . . . 11
Breeding birds . . . 12
Plants . . . 13
Crop adaptations . . . 14
Canadian Zone . . . 14
Mammals . . . 15
Breeding birds . . . 15
Plants . . . 16
Crop adaptations . . . 16
PART II. The Mammals of North Dakota . . . 17
Introduction . . . 17
Present and former abundance . . . 17
Useful and harmful species . . . 18
Indian names of mammals . . . 18
Measurements and weights . . . 18
Order Artiodactyla: Hoofed animals--cattle, sheep, goats, antelope, and deer . . . 19
Family Bovidae: Cattle, sheep, and goats . . . 19
American bison, American buffalo . . . 19
Audubon mountain sheep . . . 25
Family Antilocapridae: Pronghorned antelope . . . 27
Pronghorned antelope, American antelope, pronghorn . . . 27
Family Cervidae: Moose, elk, caribou, and deer . . . 31
Moose . . . 31
Woodland caribou . . . 32
American elk, wapiti . . . 33
Plains white-tailed deer . . . 36
Mule deer . . . 41
Order Rodentia. Gnawing animals . . . 43
Family Sciuridae: Squirrels, chipmunks, prairie dogs, ground squirrels, and marmots . . . 43
Pale flying squirrel . . . 43
Minnesota gray squirrel, black squirrel . . . 45
Red squirrel, chickaree . . . 46
Little northern chipmunk . . . 47
Pale chipmunk, Badlands chipmunk . . . 49
Gray chipmunk . . . 51
Striped ground squirrel, thirteen-lined ground squirrel, leopard squirrel . . . 52
Pale striped ground squirrel, pale thirteen-lined ground squirrel . . . 54
Gray ground squirrel, Franklin ground squirrel . . . 55
Richardson ground squirrel, flickertail . . . 58
Black-tailed prairie dog . . . 62
Rufescent woodchuck, groundhog . . . 67
Canada woodchuck, groundhog . . . 69
Family Muridae: Old World rats and mice . . . 70
Brown rat, house rat, wharf rat . . . 70
House mouse . . . 72
Family Cricetidae: White-footed mice, harvest mice, grasshopper mice, wood rats, and voles . . . 73
Osgood white-footed mouse . . . 73
Baird white-footed mouse . . . 76
Northern white-footed mouse, deer mouse . . . 77
Badlands white-footed mouse . . . 79
Prairie harvest mouse . . . 80
Maximilian grasshopper mouse . . . 81
Audubon grasshopper mouse . . . 83
Pale bushytailed wood rat . . . 86
Red-backed mouse . . . 88
Eastern meadow mouse . . . 90
Drummond meadow mouse . . . 92
Bean mouse, hetunka . . . 94
Western upland mouse . . . 98
Little upland mouse . . . 99
Pale mouse . . . 101
Great Plains muskrat . . . 102
Family Castoridae: Beavers . . . 105
Canada beaver . . . 105
Missouri River beaver . . . 108
Family Erethizontidae: Porcupines . . . 114
Yellow-haired porcupine, Rocky Mountain porcupine . . . 114
Black-haired porcupine, Canada porcupine . . . 116
Family Zapodidae: Jumping mice . . . 117
Prairie Jumping mouse . . . 117
Family Heteromyidae: Pocket mice, kangaroo rats . . . 119
Maximilian pocket mouse . . . 119
Dusky pocket mouse . . . 121
Kansas pocket mouse . . . 123
Richardson kangaroo rat . . . 124
Family Geoniyidae: Pocket gophers . . . 125
Mississippi Valley pocket gopher . . . 125
Dakota pocket gopher . . . 130
Sagebrush pocket gopher . . . 133
Order Lagomorpha: Rabbitlike animals . . . 134
Family Leporidae: Rabbits . . . 134
Nebraska cottontail . . . 134
Black Hills cottontail . . . 137
Wyoming cottontail . . . 137
Varying hare, white rabbit, snowshoe rabbit . . . 138
White-tailed jack rabbit . . . 141
Order Carnivora: Flesh eaters . . . 144
Family Felidae: Cats . . . 144
Mountain lion, cougar, panther . . . 144
Canada lynx . . . 146
Northern bobcat, mountain bobcat, spotted wild cat . . . 148
Eastern bobcat, wild cat . . . 149
Family Canidae: Dogs, wolves, and foxes . . . 150
Gray wolf, buffalo wolf, lobo, loafer . . . 150
Northern coyote, brush wolf . . . 156
Plains coyote, prairie wolf . . . 157
Yellow-red fox . . . 160
Kit fox, prairie fox, swift . . . 163
Family Mustelidae: Weasels, minks, martens, skunks, badgers . . . 166
Long-tailed weasel, ermine . . . 166
Bonaparte weasel, short-tailed weasel . . . 169
Least weasel . . . 170
Black-footed ferret . . . 171
Mink . . . 173
Marten, pine marten, American sable . . . 176
Fisher, pekan, black cat . . . 177
Wolverene, glutton, "Indian devil" . . . 178
Otter . . . 179
Northern skunk . . . 181
Badger . . . 184
Family Procyonidae: Raccoons . . . 187
Raccoon, "coon" . . . 187
Family Ursidae: Bears . . . 191
Black bear, cinnamon bear . . . 191
Grizzly bear, big Plains grizzly, silvertip . . . 193
Absaroka grizzly . . . 198
Order Insectivora, Insect-eating mammals . . . 199
Family Talpidae: Moles . . . 199
Missouri Valley mole . . . 199
Star-nosed mole . . . 200
Family Boricidae: Shrews . . . 200
Hayden masked shrew . . . 200
Merriam shrew . . . 202
Richardson shrew, black-backed shrew, saddle-backed shrew . . . 203
Water shrew, marsh shrew . . . 203
Pigmy shrew . . . 204
Short-tailed shrew, mole shrew . . . 205
Order Chiroptera: Winged mammals . . . 207
Family Vespertilionidae: Common bats . . . 207
Hoary bat, great gray bat . . . 207
Red bat, New York bat . . . 209
Large brown bat . . . 210
Silver-haired bat, silvery bat, black bat . . . 212
Little brown bat . . . 213
Yellowstone bat . . . 215
Say bat . . . 216
Little long-eared bat . . . 216
Bibliography . . . 217
Index . . . 221
ILLUSTRATIONS
PLATES
PLATE 1. Map of North Dakota, showing life zones
PLATE 2. Fig. 1. Short grass prairie of western North Dakota. Fig. 2. Prairie slough and glacial ridge of central North Dakota
PLATE 3. Fig. 1. Yellow pines on buttes south of Medora. Fig. 2. Badlands and sagebrush at Medora
PLATE 4. Fig. 1. Typical lake of the Turtle Mountains. Fig. 2. Typical aspen forest of the Turtle Mountains
PLATE 5. Fig. 1. Red River with its forested shores, near Fargo. Fig. 2. Type of forest along the Red River, near Fargo
PLATE 6. Cottonwood timber along the Missouri River bottoms, near Mandan
PLATE 7. Buck antelope
PLATE 8. Heads of moose, northern white-tailed deer, and mule deer
PLATE 9. Fig. 1. Two bull elk. Fig. 2. Plains white-tailed deer
PLATE 10. Skins of pale, little northern, and gray chipmunks
PLATE 11. Fig. 1. Osgood white-footed mice in captivity. Fig. 2. Bean mouse. Fig. 3.Richardson kangaroo rat
PLATE 12. Kansas pocket mouse, prairie jumping mouse, and prairie harvest mouse
PLATE 13. Fig. 1. Grasshopper mouse. Fig. 2. Pale bushytailed wood rat 84
PLATE 14. Pale mouse, little upland mouse, western upland mouse, Drummond mouse, bean mouse, and eastern meadow mouse
PLATE 15. Fig. 1. Dusky pocket mouse. Fig. 2. Badger
PLATE 16. Mississippi Valley pocket gopher
PLATE 17. Fig. 1. Yellow-red fox. Fig. 2.Blackfooted ferret. Fig. 3. Varying hare, or snowshoe rabbit
PLATE 18. Fig. 1. Plains coyote. Fig. 2.Otters
PLATE 19. Fig. 1. Common mole. Fig. 2. Star-nosed mole
PLATE 20. Short-tailed, Richardson, Hayden, and pigmy shrews
PLATE 21. Fig. l. Hoary and silver-haired bats. Fig. 2. Say bat
TEXT FIGURES
FIG. 1. Map showing records of three species of chipmunks in North Dakota: Gray chipmunk, little northern chipmunk, and pale chipmunk
FIG. 2. Map showing distribution of the thirteen-lined ground squirrel
and its pale western form in North Dakota
FIG. 3. Map showing records of Franklin ground squirrel in North Dakota
FIG. 4. Map showing records of Richardson ground squirrel in North
Dakota
FIG. 5. Map showing distribution of prairie-dog towns in North Dakota
FIG. 6. Map showing localities where woodchucks are known in North
Dakota
FIG. 7. Map showing records of pocket gophers in North Dakota: The
Mississippi Valley pocket gopher and the Dakota pocket gopher
FIG. 8. Map showing records of three species of cottontail rabbit in North
Dakota The Nebraska cottontail, the Black Hills cottontail, and the Wyoming cottontail
Scanned and formatted by Kathryn Thomas
North Dakota State University Libraries
July 2, 2002