STRONG ODOUR OF BULLS 131

grunt, which somewhat resembles the sound a person
makes when in the most distressing throes of sea-sickness
and endeavouring to vomit. On a still night it can be
heard for quite a distance, possibly two miles. In the
day time, except at very early morning and late evening,
the bulls do not give loud calls, though you may often
hear them doing some low grunting. Occasionally,
when with a cow, they make quite a different sound. I
have only heard them do it once or twice: it was a
peculiar sort of crooning. The cow’s call is somewhat
similar to that of a bull, but not so loud, more plaintive,
and pitched in a higher key.!

The bulls do a tremendous amount of pawing. From
the pungent, musky odour they emit at that season, it
is often possible to tell when you are coming to where
a bull has been digging and pawing what are often deep
holes, long before you see the place, simply by the use
of your nose. In addition, if there is no wind but just
light air currents, it is occasionally possible to smell the
moose himself at a considerable distance. On several
occasions when watching for moose, whiffs of their scent
have been plainly noticeable to me, and on one occasion
the odour was to be detected at frequent intervals for
the whole of the day. Of course there were an unusual
number of beasts in the vicinity and, if my memory does
not fail me, as many as seventeen bulls and a number
of cows came under my notice, though my point of obser-
vation was not shifted all day long. Curiously enough,
while the extremely old bulls fairly reek with musk, and
their odour is so powerful that it is most unpleasant to
skin them, the flavour of the flesh is absolutely unaffected
and it is quite palatable, though it may be so tough as
to require powerful jaws to masticate it. A few years
ago I skinned a magnificent old stager that easily sur-
passed in perfume any that I have ever come across. By
the time my work was completed I was in a disgusting
state; my clothes were covered with musk and I must

1 It is said that in eastern Canada the cows call frequently and loudly,

but such is not my experience with our moose:
10

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