John Gibson

“ In Scotland considerable herds are still to be found in the Highlands, and in several of the Western Isles, although, owing probably to the diminished extent of their feeding grounds, to the breeding in and in which takes place, and to the anxiety of deer stalkers to secure the finest heads, the species is believed to be degenerating. ”

“ The elk is a shy and timorous creature, fleeing at the sight of man This timidity, however, forsakes the male at the rutting season, and he will then attack whatever animal comes in his way. The antlers and hoofs are his principal weapons, and with a single blow from the latter he has been known to kill a wolf. In North America the moose is tormented in the hot season by mosquitoes, and it is when rendered furious by the attacks of those insects that it can be most readily approached. ”

“ DEER (Cervidce) , a family of Ruminant Artiodactyle Mammals, distinguished by the possession of deciduous branching horns or antlers, and by the presence of spots on the young. The antlers are borne by the frontal bone, and generally begin to appear towards the end of spring. At that season there is a marked determination of blood to the head, the vessels surrounding the frontal eminences become temporarily enlarged, and the budding horn grows with marvellous rapidity, the antlers of a full-grosvn stag being produced in ten weeks. ”

“ The female seldom gives birth to more than two fawns, and with these she retires into the deepest recesses of the forest, the young remaining with her till their third year. The elk ranges over the whole of Northern Europe and Asia, as far south as East Prussia, the Caucasus, and North China, and over North America from the New England States westward to British Columbia. ”

“ The wild reindeer grows to a much greater size than the tame breed, but in Northern Europe the former are being gradually reduced through the natives entrapping and domesticating them. The tame breed found in Northern Asia is much larger than the Lapland form, and is there used to ride on. ”

“ It is exceedingly shy and difficult of approach, and is hunted solely for its musk an unctuous brown secretion, posses sing a most penetrating and enduring odour, extremely disagreeable when present in large quantities, but forming a pleasant perfume when used sparingly. ”

“ Its antlers attain their full length by the fifth year, but in after years they increase in breadth and in the number of branches, until fourteen of these are produced. Although spending a large part of their lives in forests they do not appear to suffer much in convenience from the great expanse of their antlers. In making their way among trees, the horns are carried horizontally to prevent entanglement with the branches, and so skilful is the elk that " he will not break or touch a dead twig when walking quietly." ”

“ In castrated animals the antlers either^ cease to appear or are merely rudimentary, while any influence whatever which disturbs the general system seems detrimental to their growth, as was observed in a case quoted by Darwin, where the antlers of a Wapiti deer, formed during a voyage from America, were singularly stunted, although the same individual afterwards, when living under normal condi tions, produced perfect horns. Spots are common to the young of so many species of deer that their presence may fairly be regarded as a family character. ”

“ The elk, according to Lloyd, is easily domesticated, and waa at one time employed in Sweden in drawing sledges. During winter it is frequently seen alone, but in summer and autumn it may be met with in small herds. In summer also it frequents morasses and low grounds, and takes readily to the water ; in winter it retires to the shelter of the forests, where alone it can find suitable sustenance. ”

“ In going to and from their feeding grounds they invariably follow the same track, and the sportsman takes advantage of this habit to waylay them. In hunting the roe the woods are driven by beaters, and they are shot down, as they speed along the accustomed paths, by the ambushed hunter. ”

“ Dur- ing this time the males go in search of the females, and are exceedingly fierce and dangerous. The period of gestation extends a few days beyond eight months, and the hind usually produces a singb calf. The stag is remarkably shy and wary, and its sense of smell is exceedingly acute. ”