Waterbury Democrat., 1900-12-29
ANIMALS IN CENTRAL PARK.
How They Conduct Themselves at
 Night rs

globe before finding better opportuni- ties to study the fierce creatures of jungle and prairie than right here in the heart of New York. It might be argued in defence of the dangers courted by the naturalist who seeks the wild animals in their natural haunts that the creatures are never the same in captivity, and the data derived from close observations of mena2erie of animals would hardly apply to the wild creatures in their natural habitat; but the study of the anmals i'll captivity furnishes great deal of information.
 When night falls, the inhabitants of the woods and jungles undergo change. The great night providers yawn and stretch their limbs, and emit howls and screeches that startle the echoes of the forest. The shy, timid creatures huddle closer together on the tree limbs or burrOW in their holes in the ground or rotten tree trunk to hide from their natural enc mics. They know from natural in stinct and experience that the great animal hunters are abroad, and from the intense darkness of the woods Il great hullling form may at any mo ment dart forth upon them. So these timid little animals and birds hudd1e together and sleep with one eye wide open. It would be c0urting danger to SlumDer otherwise. and scarcely can a twig snap or d leaf fall from the tree without attracting their attention. In captivity these peculiar charac- | teristicS of the wild animals and birds are not entirely lost. In fact, some of them are so fixed in the very nature of the creatures that they are handed down for several generations to those | born in captivity. It is undoubtedly | true that continued captivity gradual l ly bluntS and dull the keen instincts and hunting and fighting intelligence | of the wild forests inhabitants. The | power with with the creatures resist | this lcvclling influence of captivity 1 is much greater in some cases than in | others. and it would seem as if they | would never grow accustomed to their new kind of life. or lose the keen senses gave to them.
 This difference in the animals is l particularly noticeable ill the creatures l of the Central Park menagcre or at | the Bronx Geological Garden. Because of the more confined quarters of the former there is better opportunity to study the animals at night. Then it 1 is that primal instincts assert them selves. Oftentimes the new captive
 W IICII ltIiltlllttl tl(lll anu tOIllIdlIl
 through the quiet hours of the day will rouse itself and become as bold,
 daring and crafty in the dark. The
 staring crowds of visitors through the l long day intimidatcd it, but now. under | the Sheltering darkness of night, it | becomes again the ferociOuS beast of | prey. and with the Odor of other ami
 malS filling the lnCnageric it's hunting | spirit becomes dominant. For q long
 time it may lay stretched on the bot 1 tom of the cage. with ears and eyes
 alert watching and listening eagerly
 for strange sounds or noises. Many
 times q new occupant of the menagerie
 has m,,de the nights hideous for weeks
 at a time by it's outcries and restless
 walking up and down.
 Great cara is taken both at the Zoo
 and the park mena gerie not to frighten
 the animals after dark and all spec
 tators are turned away before sun
 down. Then tine animals are given
 their evening meal. and this induces
 them to go to sleep peacefully. Just
 now while in their winter quarters
 the animals retire early. 1t is dark in
 the menagerie houses by half past ,,
 and by 6 most of the creatures have
 finished their evehing meals, and are
 spread out for their nights rest. All
 is quiet in the great cages. The lions
 and tigers stretch themselves out fiat
 on their cage floors, showing the same
 indifference to danger that they do in
 the jungle, and their slumbers are usu-
 ally heavy and peaceful. Recently
 an attempt was made to take fash
 light pictures of the Sleeping animals
 in the menagerie, and q sudden flash
 of light so disturbed them that in q
 few moments half of them were roar
 ing or screeching in their cages. The
 lions and tigers alone seemed to slcep
 through the tumult. apparently un-
 mindful or unconscious of the whole
 noise. There is nothing odd or pecu-
 liar about the sleep of the tigers or
 lions, and even in the day time they
 may frequently be found slumbering in
 their cages.
 The bears are also heavy sleepers
 but they are less disposed to seel;
 SlumDer in the day time. although oc.
 casiOnally they will curl up and rest
 The big grizzly bears in the outside
 cages in the park invariably curl III
 under the rocks which supply them
 with the only resemblance to a cave
 Sometimes they crawl up to the very
 top of the rocks. and with front paws
 spread around the iron cage-bars gC to sleep in what seems an uncomfort able and perilouS position. But bears , never relax their muscular grasp ol
 any object when asleep. The black l bears will curl up among the branches l of tree when they have the oppor tunity. and go to sleep in this pc culiar position. In their native haunt> { this is d common habit with the black bears. The big white polar bears o1 l the park simply curl themselves up CT ' the rocky bottom of their outdoor cage ? and go to sleep without thought o1 fear. They show a peculiarity in the Q selection of their sleeping-p place char ! acteristic of nearly all the captive ani ] mals. They select one particular cornel I of the cage for sleeping, and invaria : ply they seek this out for every night. l rest This corner seems more like
 home to them, and they sniff around
 the whole cage before they are tinall, , satisfied that it is the right place fol :. their nights rest.
 n The high-strung, nervous animals
 are the most interesting to watch q n night time.v They usually belong t, :, the hunted tribes, whose lives are il <. constant danger ill the forest, and the, n possess such q highly developed ner <, yous system that they really sleel 6 with one eye open. They never seen !. to lose themselves in slumber so tha e an enemy could steal upon them un