File:The continent we live on (1961) (20675675042).jpg

Title: The continent we live on
Identifier: continentweliveo00sandrich (find matches)
Year: 1961 (1960s)
Authors: Sanderson, Ivan Terence, 1911-1973
Subjects: Physical geography; Natural history
Publisher: New York : Random House
Contributing Library: New College of California
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
often than not indulge in rather preposterous contests ihouKh very few animals, if any. ever "fight" to the death as men mav Jo Even their battles at mating time are more in the nature of contests which end as soon as one or the other is down or simply viuits Bighorns, however, go at it for hours and seem to enjoy the clash The unbelievable thing is how any of them manage to surNive. because these tests entail a pair of three-hundred-pound animals backing away from each other for a dozen yards or so and then charging head down at full speed, which is possibly as much as forty miles per hour The resulting impact—at twice that speed—results in a considerable "explosion." But the animals just shake their heads, back off. and charge again. Why it does not break their necks or curdle their brains I do not know On one occasion I was present when a captive bighorn ram was being led through a zoo to its new pen. which necessitated passing that of another ram. The latter became annoyed at the presence and charged the gate, which was of four-by-two pine timbers set between cedar posts four inches in diameter, sunk three feet into the ground, and attached to heavy-mesh wire on either side. To our horror the animal came right through, smashing the cross members of the gate and tearing it and one of the posts right out of the ground. Mountain sheep are not easy to see. and not only because of their neat protective coloration. They are altogether more elusive than mountain goats, and they have a habit of lying down in secluded spots by day. when they are extremely difficult to spot even with a telescope. CIRQUES AND ICE CORBELS Searching for these animals is. however, probably the best way to see this magnificent country. Many parts of it, not only in the three great national parks, are positively breath-taking. The mountains here are aggressively steep and for the most part well vegetated. In the valleys are usually beautiful blue lakes, while above the tree line there is lush montane tundra and a profusion of alpine foliage. On the highest peaks are many little incipient glaciers. Most of these are really no more than what are called cirques, or bowl-shaped hanging valleys filled with ice. Never- theless they display many interesting glacial features—notably those of slow death. High in these mountains in summer, the snow remains till fall in great pancake-shaped blobs in the better-shaded parts of steep slopes. These melting patches of snow display some odd features due to a rather exceptional circumstance. In most places where snow lies on the ground all year, be it polar or mountain, the air is clear and clean. Here there is often a lot of dust, due to the province being surrounded on three sides by appallingly dry prairie, scrub, and desert areas. This fine dust settles on the snow but tends to concentrate along any sharp edges. Now. as compacted snow melts on steep slopes, the meltwater tends to form tunnels underneath, and into these you can walk or crawl from the downward side. They often lead into a maze of ice caves and passages, all of which have domed ceilings. The strange thing is that these ceilings are not smooth but are evenly pitted with large, shallow hexagonal indentations like a vastly magni- fied .section of honeycomb This is a common phenomenon in The northern Rockies are almost infested wtth black bears They have poor eyesight and look rather stupid but car move -with surprising rapidity and have more cunning thai the fabled fox.
Text Appearing After Image:
'

Note About Images