DCHP-3

whistler

DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

Entry from the DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

This entry may contain outdated or offensive information, terms, and examples.

1n.

a large marmot, Marmota caligata, of the western mountains.

Quotations

1703
[We saw] little beasts called Siffleurs or Whistlers. . . .
1819
There is a small animal, found only on the Rocky Mountain, denominated, by the Natives, Quis-qui-su, or whistlers, from the noise which they frequently make, and always when surprised, strongly resembling the noise made by a person in whistling.
1866
The Redskin is the whistler's most implacable enemy; he never tires of hunting and trapping the little animal, delighting to use his jacket in the fabrication of rugs.
1953
The whistler's annual life cycle consists of an 8 months' winter sleep interrupted by 4 months of eating and basking in the summer sunshine.
1965
The name Whistler comes from their shrill whistle when frightened.
2n.

a small mammal of the genus Ochotona, found in the western mountain region.

See: pika

Quotations

1939
We found here a peculiar little animal, native to the region, called a whistler or coney.
3an.

a wild swan, Olor columbianus, which breeds in northern Canada and Alaska.

Quotations

1853
That [swan] which is best known is the "whistler". . . .
1938
Several large companies comprising seventy and eighty swans have gone over. We are sure these were the whistlers because of their distinctly higher, more whistling-like notes.
1964
The flock that winters on the North Thompson east of Kamloops have been identified as whistlers.
3bn.

See quote.

Quotations

1959
Lesser Canada Goose [is locally called] whistler (Sask.).
4n.

See quote.

Quotations

1958
It was the kind of slide oldtimers called a "dry" or "Whistler." The kind that often follows a fresh snowfall on crust, gathering force and volume with lightning speed, bending or snapping off stray trees like matchwood.