BOARS IN THE WII.D.
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BOARS IN T H E WILD. To
THE H O N .
EDITOR.
MY dear Sir.—It may interest our Members to know that ray latest expedition was to study animal ]ife in the Forest of Compiegne in north-east France. This is magnificent solid woodland with a ränge of steep hills, also densely wooded, and forms part of a vast network of forests covering that part of France and Belgium. My main quest was the Wild Boars (.Sus scrofa, Linn) but this is a very nomadic beast and, with the unusual dryness of the forest, they had mostly cleared off elsewhere. However, I found la trace and rootings in places, some quite fresh and large, showing that there were a few well-grown Boars about: but they are scarcely ever seen, except when hunted,. as they are purelv nocturnal, exceedingly wary, and apt to slide off unnoticed when disturbed. So it was no wonder that I did not obtain a view. I was out time after time before dawn in late August and early September, going through their chief haunts, watching passages across rides, &c. ; and my main compensation for disappointment was the Red Deer that abounds. Also I saw Roe, and many tracks and earths of Badger, along with two Foxes, which are rare there, as they like the Boar are animaux nuisibles in France, to be shot by all possessing a gun-licence I was pleased to find a resort of the Edible Frog (Rana esculenta, ''•)> a n d the Common Lizard (Lacerta vivipara, Wagl.) was numerous. Buzzards (Buteo vulgaris, Lch.), also, abound. 1 remember seeing upon one occasion lots of a common kind of Dung Beetle (Geotrypes sp.\ which I did not trouble to collect; but Mosquitoes, in spite of the dry season, were much too prevalent. No Snakes were observed, though plenty of Red Squirrels, who were always chattering just overhead when 1 most wanted to keep silent! I was out all one morning and afternoon with the man who does the harbouring for the Baron James de Kothschild's stag-hounds. Of course, he is a master of woodcraft and I learned a great deal more than I already knew about tracking, . • 1 m a d e some other interesting acquaintances connected with the hunting world on one side and art world on the other ; and had ample scope to practise my French. 90 Guildhall Street, Bury ; 6 August
2
D
1937.
Yours, H E N R Y ANDREWS.