Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
The opportunity was irresistible, and I followed the broad trail, complete with tail-drag marks, for
two or three hundred yards. There the trail ended at a hemlock of modest proportions. Gazing up into
the tree, I searched and searched for the track maker, which, unless it had sprouted wings, was surely in
the tree.
Finally, after looking futilely for some time, I happened to glance at a spot far down the tree, where
I was startled to see the porky on a branch barely above my reach. This was a wonderful chance to ob-
serve a porcupine at close range, so I stood there and watched.
The porky seemed totally unfazed by my presence. It was nipping off the tips of hemlock twigs and
masticating them in slow but purposeful fashion, and it seemed to have no intention of interrupting that
useful activity. From time to time it paused for a few seconds to gaze incuriously at me with its dull
shoe-button eyes—then resumed its munching.
For quite some time I stood there, talking softly to the porky, which of course paid not the slightest
attention to my meaningless sounds. Finally, with considerable reluctance, I went on my way, leaving
the porcupine to continue its contented feeding. The experience brightened my day greatly, though it's
doubtful that it made any great impression on the porky.
Although porcupines have often been regarded as intolerable nuisances, it hasn't always been thus.
For example, at one time—either by law or custom—it was considered bad form to kill a porcupine in
areas of extensive, trackless forests. The theory behind this was that the porcupine was the only anim-
al that a lost and unarmed person could easily kill for food in order to survive. In fact, a porcupine is
easy to kill: a sharp blow on the end of the nose with a club or stout stick will dispatch one with ease.
It's unknown how many lost souls were actually saved from starvation in this fashion—probably very
few—but the theory at least sounded good!
Native Americans had an even better opinion of the porcupine, and held it in high esteem. In some
of their legends, the porcupine is something of a hero, and indeed, they found the porcupine to be a
most useful creature. It was easy to kill, and its meat was deemed a delicacy, an opinion confirmed by
a number of people in recent times. Further, its quills, often dyed, were widely used to make handsome
decorative designs on such things as baskets and canoes, as well as a form of jewelry for personal ad-
ornment.
Our own perception of the porcupine is changing, too, especially now that porkies are no longer
present in excessive numbers. True, a dog may occasionally run afoul of the quill-bearing rodent, or a
porky may cause damage by gnawing on anything from a tree to a tool handle. Nonetheless, more and
more we're recognizing the plodding, seemingly imperturbable porcupine as an important component
of the forest ecosystem; more significant, we're perhaps beginning to fully appreciate the unique qual-
ities of this mammalian curiosity.
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