A YOUNG FALLOW BUCK OF THE BROWN BREED.Photo by C. Reid][Wishaw, N.B.A YOUNG FALLOW BUCK OF THE BROWN BREED.The favourite park-deer of England.
Photo by C. Reid][Wishaw, N.B.A YOUNG FALLOW BUCK OF THE BROWN BREED.The favourite park-deer of England.
Photo by C. Reid][Wishaw, N.B.
A YOUNG FALLOW BUCK OF THE BROWN BREED.
The favourite park-deer of England.
TheCommon Fallow Deeris found in the wild state in Spain, Portugal, Greece, Austria, Rhodes, Sardinia, Asia Minor, and North Palestine. It is doubtful whether, as has been stated, this deer ever existed in modern times in the wild state in North Africa. This is a highly gregarious species, delighting to move in considerable herds. In some parts of Scotland fallow deer have reverted completely to the wild state, and afford excellent sport. And evenpark-deer, once they are shot at, exhibit extraordinary wariness and cunning, so much so that curious tricks and disguises have often to be resorted to when a fat buck has to be shot for venison.
The beautifulMesopotamian Fallow Deer, found in the mountains of Luristan, in Mesopotamian Persia, is somewhat larger than the common species, while its coat is much more brightly coloured. The antlers bear little resemblance to those seen in the park-deer of this country, being far less palmated and spreading, and more vertical.
The enormous horns of the extinct deer once known asIrish Elkare now considered by naturalists to be those of a gigantic species of fallow deer. By the kindness of Mr. J. G. Millais, I am enabled to give the dimensions of a pair of antlers of one of these wonderful beasts from his museum. These antlers measure in spread, from tip to tip, 9 feet 4 inches; length round inside of right horn, 6 feet; round left horn, 5 feet 8 inches,—a marvellous trophy, truly. This specimen was dug up in County Waterford. These colossal fallow deer, which roamed the wastes of Ireland in prehistoric times, must have afforded fairly exciting sport to the feebly armed human beings who then existed.
The Sambar, or Rusine Deer.
A SAMBAR STAG.Photo by Miss E. J. Beck.A SAMBAR STAG.The only Indian deer of which the fawns are unspotted.
Photo by Miss E. J. Beck.A SAMBAR STAG.The only Indian deer of which the fawns are unspotted.
Photo by Miss E. J. Beck.
A SAMBAR STAG.
The only Indian deer of which the fawns are unspotted.
Sambarmay be shortly described as large deer, having rough, shaggy coats, and big, rugged antlers of simple type, usually displaying but three tines. They belong to the group known as Typical Deer, although they are but distantly connected with the red deer. The colour of the coat is usually dark umber-brown, marked with chestnut about the rump and under-parts. The well-known sambar of India stands as much as 5 feet 4 inches at the withers, and weighs, before being cleaned, some 600 lbs. The longest pair of antlers yet recorded (Rowland Ward's "Records of Big Game") measure 48 inches in length over the outer curve. Usually to be found among jungly, wooded hills and mountains in many parts of India and Ceylon, this fine stag affords first-rate sport, and is much sought after by shikaris. It is to be met with in smalltroops of from four to a dozen, or singly, while during the rutting-season the animals rove in more considerable herds. In jungle and thickly forested regions it is a hard matter to come up with the sambar on foot, and it is there usually shot from elephant-back, by the aid of beaters. In more open hill country it affords good stalking. In Ceylon it is hunted with hounds, and yields in this way also capital sport. These animals seem to revel in heat, and love to shelter themselves in hot, stifling valleys; they drink only once in two or three days. It is a noticeable feature in connection with the antlers of the sambar that they are not invariably shed annually, as with most of the deer kind. In Ceylon, according to Sir Samuel Baker, they are shed "with great irregularity every third or fourth year."
FORMOSAN SIKA STAG.Photo by Miss E. J. Beck.FORMOSAN SIKA STAG.Like its Japanese kindred, this deer is spotted only in summer.
Photo by Miss E. J. Beck.FORMOSAN SIKA STAG.Like its Japanese kindred, this deer is spotted only in summer.
Photo by Miss E. J. Beck.
FORMOSAN SIKA STAG.
Like its Japanese kindred, this deer is spotted only in summer.
JAVAN RUSA STAG.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.JAVAN RUSA STAG.This deer is a near relative of sambur, but has a somewhat different type of antler.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.JAVAN RUSA STAG.This deer is a near relative of sambur, but has a somewhat different type of antler.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
JAVAN RUSA STAG.
This deer is a near relative of sambur, but has a somewhat different type of antler.
Lieutenant-Colonel Reginald Heber Percy thus writes concerning the sambar, or sambur: "Compared with the Kashmir stag, red deer, or wapiti, he looks an ugly, coarse, underbred brute.... As the sambur is almost entirely nocturnal in its habits, it is most commonly shot in drives, and in many places it is almost impossible to obtain sambur otherwise; but where it can be managed, stalking is, of course, far better fun. The sportsman should be on his ground just before daylight, and work slowly through the forest at the edge of the feeding-grounds, taking the bottom of the hill if there are crops on the plain below, or, failing these, the edges of the open glades in the forest. Presently, if there are any sambur about, he will hear their trumpet-like call, and, creeping on, see two or three dark forms moving among the trees. In the grey of the morning it is often very hard to distinguish a stag from a hind, and the writer has on several occasions had to wait, after viewing the herd, till there was light enough to pick his stag. Even in broad daylight it is difficult to judge the size of a stag's horns as he stands motionless in the deep gloom of the forest, and what little can be seenof them makes them look three times their real size—the beam is so massive and the tines so long. The stag, too, is such a big beast, standing nearly a hand taller than a barasingh, that if seen in the open he looks as big as our Irish elk.... All driving should be done during the heat of the day, when the animals are lying down; trying to drive when beasts are naturally on the move generally results in the game leaving the beat before the men are in their places. It may sound ridiculous for a man to get up a tree in a sambur drive, but he is far more likely to get an easy shot in this position, as the deer will neither see nor wind him; he commands more ground, and he runs no risk of heading back the wary old hind which often leads the herd, the chances being that if he is rightly posted the herd will come right under his tree. Another advantage is that, his fire being plunging, he can shoot all round without danger to the beaters. In some parts of the Himalaya native shikaris declare that they often shoot sambur by selecting a likely path and improvising a salt-lick, after the fashion of Laplanders when they want to catch their tame reindeer." The flesh of this deer is coarse and only moderately good eating.
HOG-DEER.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.HOG-DEER.The smallest Indian representative of the sambar group.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.HOG-DEER.The smallest Indian representative of the sambar group.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
HOG-DEER.
The smallest Indian representative of the sambar group.
TheMalayan Sambar, found from Assam, through Burma, to the Malay Peninsula, and in Siam, Hainan, Borneo, and perhaps Sumatra, is slightly less in size than its Indian prototype; the antlers vary somewhat, and are shorter and stouter. The longest antlers yet recorded measure 30⅞ inches over the outer curve; these come from Borneo.
TheFormosan Sambar, sometimes called Swinhoe's Deer, is, again, closely connected with the Malayan sambar, and may be looked upon as purely a local race. The antlers appear to run smaller, the best recorded examples only extending to 19¾ inches.
TheLuzon Sambar(Philippines), a small sub-species, and theSzechuan Sambar(North-west China), are also local races of the same species. This last seems thus far to occupy the most northerly habitat of this group.
TheBasilan Sambar(Philippines) is, like its congener of Luzon, a small sub-species, standing no more than from 24 to 26 inches at the shoulder, of slender build, and with the hindquarters higher than the withers. The best antlers yet recorded measure no more than 15½ inches. It is interesting to note that as the island of Basilan is the smallest of the Philippines, so is this sambar by far the smallest of its group. Its restricted habitat has no doubt conduced, during long ages, to bring about this result.
TheJavan Sambar, orRusa, is a distinct species, found, as its name implies, in the island of Java. The antlers are somewhat slender, but are, next to those of the sambar of India, the longest of the group. The best recorded pair measure 35½ inches, while another pair from Mauritius, where this animal has been introduced, measure half an inch longer. This sambar is smaller than the great sambar of India, and is about on a par with a good red deer.
FALLOW DEER.Photo by The Duchess of Bedford, Woburn Abbey.FALLOW DEER.There are two breeds of these beautiful deer in the British Isles; in the one the summer coat is fawn dappled with white; in the other the colour is dark brown at all seasons.
Photo by The Duchess of Bedford, Woburn Abbey.FALLOW DEER.There are two breeds of these beautiful deer in the British Isles; in the one the summer coat is fawn dappled with white; in the other the colour is dark brown at all seasons.
Photo by The Duchess of Bedford, Woburn Abbey.
FALLOW DEER.
There are two breeds of these beautiful deer in the British Isles; in the one the summer coat is fawn dappled with white; in the other the colour is dark brown at all seasons.
TheMoluccan Rusa, a sub-species somewhat smaller than the Javan deer, is found in Celebes and certain islands—Boru, Batchian, and Amboina—in the Moluccan group; while theTimor Rusa, a closely allied congener, is found on the islands of Timor, Semao, and Kambing. It is possible—nay, even probable—that the Malays may, in times gone by, have introduced certain of these rusine deer from one habitat to another. Such, at least, seems to be the presumption among naturalists.
Dr. Guillemard, in that charming book "The Cruise of the Marchesa" (p. 357), gives some interesting information concerning Moluccan sambar in the little-known island of Batchian. The inhabitants, "living for the most part in the hills, kill and smoke the deer, and bring the meat into the villages for sale. We were fortunate enough to assist at one of their hunts, in which no other weapon than the spear is used. The side of a large ravine, which had been partially cleared, and presented a confused jumble of fallen trees and low brushwood, was assigned to us as our post, and, from the extensive view it commanded, we were able later in the day to watch one run almost from start to finish, although at first the sport appeared to be successful in every direction but our own. At length a stag broke covert about five hundred yards above us, and descended the slopes of the ravine, but shortly afterwards turned and made for the forest again. He was met by some of the hunters and driven back; but the dogs were now in full cry, and pressed him hard, the hunters meanwhile racing at their utmost speed above, in order to prevent his regaining the jungle. He now altered his direction, and turned down once more towards us; but the fallen trees were so thick that the dogs gained rapidly on him. He made one more effort for his life by doubling, but it was too late, and in another minute the dogs and hunters had fairly run him down."
YOUNG MALE SWAMP-DEER.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.YOUNG MALE SWAMP-DEER.This species is the Barasingh of the natives of India. It is by no means addicted to swampy localities.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.YOUNG MALE SWAMP-DEER.This species is the Barasingh of the natives of India. It is by no means addicted to swampy localities.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
YOUNG MALE SWAMP-DEER.
This species is the Barasingh of the natives of India. It is by no means addicted to swampy localities.
Deer were probably the earliest animals of the chase. Their bones are found in the cave-dwellings of prehistoric man, and some of the earliest efforts at drawing represent these animals.
Other Typical Deer.
So numerous are the typical deer that they are not concluded even by the long list of animals already enumerated. We proceed now to glance briefly at the remainder of this important group.
ThePhilippine Spotted Deer, orPrince Alfred's Deer, is a small but extremely handsome species, found in the islands of Samar and Leyte. The height is under 30 inches; the colour very dark brown, spotted with white, the under-parts, chin, and upper portion of the legs also white.
Another small cervine from the Philippine group is theCalamianes Deer, a darkish brown beast, found in the island of that name.
The littleBavian Deer, another island-deer, from the Bavian group, between Borneo and Java, should also be mentioned. Very little is known of the habits of these three deer, and few specimens even of their skins and horns have reached Europe.
INDIAN MUNTJAC.Photo by York & Son][Notting Hill.INDIAN MUNTJAC.Sometimes called the Barking-deer. The Indian species stands only 2 feet high.
Photo by York & Son][Notting Hill.INDIAN MUNTJAC.Sometimes called the Barking-deer. The Indian species stands only 2 feet high.
Photo by York & Son][Notting Hill.
INDIAN MUNTJAC.
Sometimes called the Barking-deer. The Indian species stands only 2 feet high.
YOUNG MALE CHINESE WATER-DEER.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford, Woburn Abbey.YOUNG MALE CHINESE WATER-DEER.One of the few deer which have no antlers.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford, Woburn Abbey.YOUNG MALE CHINESE WATER-DEER.One of the few deer which have no antlers.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford, Woburn Abbey.
YOUNG MALE CHINESE WATER-DEER.
One of the few deer which have no antlers.
TheHog-deer, allied to the last-named species, is an animal much better known, found as it is in many parts of India and Burma. This handsome little deer stands from 24 to 28 inches at the shoulder, and carries antlers which average from 10 to 15 inches, and reach occasionally as much as 21 or 22 inches—one specimen is recorded measuring 23¼ inches. It has a yellowish or reddish-brown coat, minutely speckled with white. The summer coat is paler and marked with white or palish-brown spots. This sturdy little deer is found usually in long grass, and affords excellent snap-shooting; it is also run into with dogs and speared by mounted sportsmen. Major Fitz-Herbert thus describes a chase of this kind: "He [the little stag] stood at bay, with head down and bristles raised like a miniature red deer of Landseer's, but broke away when I came up. Once he charged the bitch and knocked her over. He stood at bay two or three times, but I could never get a spear into him for fear of hurting the dogs. At last one time, as he was breaking bay, I came up, and he charged me with such force as to break one of his horns clean off against the spear. However, I struck him in the spine, and rolled him over." These little deer have quite extraordinary pluck, and have been known even to charge and wound a horse.
TheChital, orIndian Spotted Deer, often called the Axis Deer, a very beautiful species, is the common jungle-stag of India. Standing about 3 feet or a little over, its lovely coat of bright reddish fawn is thickly spotted with white at all seasons of the year. The horns are somewhat of the sambar type, and measure as much as 36 or 38 inches in length in fine specimens. These exquisite deer are often found in considerable herds, and are a forest-loving species.
TheSwamp-deer, the true Barasingh of India, as distinguished from the Kashmir stag, which is often loosely called Barasingh, is a plain-loving species, found in various parts of India, and characterised by handsome antlers, bearing as many as from 10 to 16 points. This is a big, heavy deer, standing nearly 4 feet at the withers, and weighing as much as 40 stone. The summer coat is light rufous, more or less spotted with white. The winter coat is yellowish brown. A near relative to this deer isSchomburgk's Deer, found in Northern Siam. The antlers of this stag are most curiously forked and bifurcated.
MALE SIBERIAN ROE.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.MALE SIBERIAN ROE.A very huge species of roebuck, with more rugged antlers than the European-roe.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.MALE SIBERIAN ROE.A very huge species of roebuck, with more rugged antlers than the European-roe.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
MALE SIBERIAN ROE.
A very huge species of roebuck, with more rugged antlers than the European-roe.
TheThamin, orEld's Deer, sometimes called the Brow-antlered Deer, is another plains-deer, found chiefly from Manipur, through Burma, to the Malay Peninsula. It is a good-sized species, standing about 3 feet 9 inches at the shoulder, and weighing as much as 17 stone. The large antlers are simple in type, the brow-tines curving down curiously over the forehead; the tail is sharp, and the neck provided with a mane, the young being spotted. A Siamese race of Eld's deer, found in Siam and Hainan, differs somewhat from the Burmese type.
The Muntjacs.
FEMALE SIBERIAN ROE.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.FEMALE SIBERIAN ROE.The absence of a tail, characteristic of all roes, is well shown.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.FEMALE SIBERIAN ROE.The absence of a tail, characteristic of all roes, is well shown.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
FEMALE SIBERIAN ROE.
The absence of a tail, characteristic of all roes, is well shown.
TheMuntjacs, orBarking-deer, are a group of small deer found in India, Burma, and the Malay region. TheIndian Muntjacstands about 2 feet in height, and weighs some 28 lbs. The antlers, which average 5 or 6 inches in length, bear two points—brow-tine and beam; the lower portions, or pedicles, are curiously covered with hair, and the front of the face is ribbed or ridged inVfashion. The general colour is a golden bay, the face and limbs brown, and the lower parts white. The buck has sharp tusks in the upper jaw, and, at a pinch, knows how to make use of them. A shy, stealthy little creature, the muntjac loves dense cover, and the sportsman usually obtains but a quick snapshot at this active and wary little deer as it flashes across him much as does a bolting rabbit scuttling across a narrow drive. Local Indian names for the barking-deer are Jungle-sheep, Red Hog-deer, and Rib-faced Deer. Other muntjacs, varying somewhat from the Indian form, are theHairy-fronted, theTenasserim, theTibetan, and theChinese Muntjacs.
Tufted Deer.
Near relatives of the odd little muntjacs are theTufted Deer, of which two species, theTibetanandMichie's, are known to naturalists. The former, found in Eastern Tibet, is about the size of the Indian muntjac, and has a coat of dark chocolate-brown, curiously speckled on the face, neck, and fore parts; the frontal tuft is nearly black. The antlers of the bucks of both this and Michie's deer are extremely small, scarcely observable at a first glance. Both species have long curving tusks projecting from the upper jaw. Michie's tufted deer is of a greyish-black or iron-grey colour, the face and neck dark grey. This animal is found in the reed-beds bordering the Ningpo and other rivers in Eastern China.
SIBERIAN ROEBUCK.By permission of Herr Carl Hagenbeck][Hamburg.SIBERIAN ROEBUCK.Shows a magnificent pair of antlers.
By permission of Herr Carl Hagenbeck][Hamburg.SIBERIAN ROEBUCK.Shows a magnificent pair of antlers.
By permission of Herr Carl Hagenbeck][Hamburg.
SIBERIAN ROEBUCK.
Shows a magnificent pair of antlers.
Water-deer.
TheChinese Water-deeris another diminutive deer, standing no more than 20 inches at the shoulder. The body-colouring is pale rufous yellow, the head and the back of the ears being darker in hue than the rest of the body. The males carry no antlers. This tiny deer is found in North-east China, and is well known on the islands of the Yangtse-kiang River. It loves thick cover, especially reeds and long grass. So apt is it at concealment, that at Woburn Abbey, where specimens are kept in a paddock of long tussocky grass, hours may be spent without catching a glimpse of it. When disturbed, it scurries off with short, quick leaps, very much after the manner of the hare. The males of the Chinese deer, like the muntjacs, carry long curved tusks in the upper jaw.
Roe Deer.
TheEuropean Roe, one of the handsomest of all the smaller deer, is still happily found in many parts of Scotland. In England, where it had at one time become well-nigh extinct, it has been here and there reintroduced with some success. In Ireland it seems never to have been found. On the Continent its range is wide, extending from the south of Sweden, through France and Germany, to Italy, Greece, Turkey, Austria-Hungary, and Spain. Found in Southern Russia and the Caucasus, it makes its way eastward as far as North Palestine and Persia. The roe stands, in good adult specimens, 26 inches at the shoulder, and weighs about 60 lbs. The handsome and very characteristic horns measure in good specimens from 10 to 13 inches over the outer curve. The summer coat of this beautiful little deer is a bright rufous brown; in winter a darker and duller brown, with a notable white patch about the tail. The roe is always more or less a wood-loving creature. In winter, especially, it seldom cares to quit the shelter of the forest; in summer, however, the deer wander into more open localities. The fawns are born generally towards the end of May, and two young are usually produced. In the rutting-season the males fight savagely with one another.
FEMALE EUROPEAN ROE DEER.Photo by Ottomar Anschütz][Berlin.FEMALE EUROPEAN ROE DEER.Though common in the Scotch woods, these deer are rarely seen, keeping close in cover all day.
Photo by Ottomar Anschütz][Berlin.FEMALE EUROPEAN ROE DEER.Though common in the Scotch woods, these deer are rarely seen, keeping close in cover all day.
Photo by Ottomar Anschütz][Berlin.
FEMALE EUROPEAN ROE DEER.
Though common in the Scotch woods, these deer are rarely seen, keeping close in cover all day.
Mr. J. G. Millais gives an instance of a buck killed in one of these desperate battles, in which one antler of the victor, having penetrated the brain of the vanquished buck, had been broken clean off and remained embedded in the skull, firmly wedged between the ears and the antlers. "When wounded and brought to bay by a dog," says Mr. Millais, "a roebuck brings into play both head and fore legs in his defence, using his horns as described, and striking out with his legs, more as if to push off his antagonist than to cause a forcible blow, for he gives no shock, as a hind can. A doe, too, uses her fore legs and boxes with her head; and Mr. Steel, who has had wide experience in roe-shooting, tells me that he has seen a doe use her hind legs as well. The bark of the buck is loud, sharp, and deep in tone, not unlike what a single call might be from an old collie. At this season, too, the female gives an amorous call when she wishes the male to come to her. If he is within hearing, he puts his neck out straight and comes full speed to her. In Germany many roebucks are shot by alluring them in this manner, and calls exactly imitating her voice are made for the sportsman's use. One who has shot roe in this manner tells me it is most exciting sport, for the buck comes straight for the sound at full speed, and will only stop startled for a second when he discovers the fraud, and as often as not he passes right on without giving a chance."
PÈRE DAVID'S DEER.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.PÈRE DAVID'S DEER.Nineteen of these deer are at Woburn Abbey; three are at Berlin. It is believed that these are the only deer of this species in existence.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.PÈRE DAVID'S DEER.Nineteen of these deer are at Woburn Abbey; three are at Berlin. It is believed that these are the only deer of this species in existence.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
PÈRE DAVID'S DEER.
Nineteen of these deer are at Woburn Abbey; three are at Berlin. It is believed that these are the only deer of this species in existence.
Roe have a curious trick of chasing one another in play, and certain roe-rings in the woods near Cawdor Castle, according to Mr. Millais, demonstrate the fact that for ages the deer have been in the habit of disporting themselves in these strange circles over the same pieces of ground. The fact is very singular. "These curious circles are most used in early summer; and Sutherland, the head keeper, tells me," says Mr. Millais, "that hardly a morning passes without there being one or two roe playing in the rings, and sometimes there is quite a party of them." Roe feed chiefly on grass; they will eat also rowan (mountain-ash) berries, of which they are especially fond, as well as turnips, grain, heather tops, and various other roots and plants. Certain fungi, to which they are partial, they take much pains to dig out with their sharp hoofs. "A roebuck that I once kept," says Mr. Millais, "was a good Scotchman, though he had a beastly temper, for he liked nothing so much as oatmeal porridge." Roe make delightful pets, but the bucks are not to be trusted after the third year. One of these animals, supposedto be tame, has been known to kill a lad. In Scotland and on the Continent roe deer are usually killed by driving, and large bags are often made. Even within recent times, as many as sixty-five roebucks and thirteen hinds have been shot at Beaufort, Lord Lovat's place in Inverness-shire, during a day's driving. Shot-guns are employed for this kind of sport. Stalking the roe is not so much pursued in Scotland as it might be. It is a first-rate and most interesting form of sport, and in certain districts the rifle might very well be substituted for the shot-gun. "Roe-stalking," says Mr. Millais, "possesses many charms of its own. In the first place, you can enjoy it at a season when there is no other shooting going on; secondly, it takes you out in the early morning, when all nature is full of life and beauty, and before the heat of the day commences; and, thirdly, where the chase of the animal is systematically conducted, as with red deer, the nature of the sport is everything that can be desired. I would therefore put forward a plea that tenants and owners of part-wood, part-forest lands in Argyll, Inverness, Ross, and Aberdeen should turn their attention to stalking the roe in preference to killing them during the usual winter wood-shoots." Roe deer are exceedingly abundant in the great forest regions of Germany and Austria-Hungary. In Austria alone, not including Hungary, during the year 1892, no less than 68,110 of these beautiful little deer were shot on various estates.
GROUP OF VIRGINIAN DEER (TWO BUCKS, FOUR DOES).Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.GROUP OF VIRGINIAN DEER (TWO BUCKS, FOUR DOES).These are the common deer of the Eastern United States.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.GROUP OF VIRGINIAN DEER (TWO BUCKS, FOUR DOES).These are the common deer of the Eastern United States.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
GROUP OF VIRGINIAN DEER (TWO BUCKS, FOUR DOES).
These are the common deer of the Eastern United States.
TheSiberian Roe, found from the mountains of the Altai and Turkestan to Siberia, is a somewhat larger species than its European cousin, measuring from 28 to 34 inches at the shoulder. The antlers are also larger, extending to as much as 16 and even 18 inches in measurement. As beseems its habitat, the coat of this species is also thicker and rougher than is the case with the European roe. Mr. Lydekker gives some interesting particulars regarding this animal: "When the snows of November fall, the roe themselves commence to collect in herds, which may number from 300 to 500 head, and soon after migrate southwards into Manchuria, whence they return about the end of March or beginning of April. On the Ussuri, which they must cross, they are at this season slaughtered in thousands by the hunters, without regard to age or sex."
One other species, theManchurian Roe, found chiefly in mountainous habitats, whence it never descends, should be noted. This is a smaller deer than the Siberian roe, and approximates in size and length of horn to the European race.
Père David's Deer.
This remarkable animal, which apparently bears little or no resemblance to any of the other deer of the Old World, has been placed by some naturalists between the roe deer and the American deer. Its habitat is North China, and, strangely enough, it seems to be unrecognisedin the wild state, being apparently only known in China in the Imperial Park at Pekin. This deer approaches in size the red deer of Europe. The general colouring is greyish brown, white about the eyes, ears, rump, and under-parts; the horns, which lack the brow-tine, are very singular in shape, and measure as much as 32 inches in length; the tail is long, reaching to the hocks; the gait is "lolloping" and mule-like. This is a marsh-loving species, and at Woburn Abbey, where specimens are kept, "they may be seen wading far into the lakes and even swimming in the deeper water."
A MULE-DEER FAWN.By permission of Professor Bumpus][New York.A MULE-DEER FAWN.The large ears, from which the American species takes its name, are noticeable even in the young.
By permission of Professor Bumpus][New York.A MULE-DEER FAWN.The large ears, from which the American species takes its name, are noticeable even in the young.
By permission of Professor Bumpus][New York.
A MULE-DEER FAWN.
The large ears, from which the American species takes its name, are noticeable even in the young.
The American Deer.
Excepting always the elk, wapiti, and reindeer, which have been already described, the deer of North and South America stand quite apart from those of the Old World, and are placed in a genus of their own. Usually the tail is long, and the brow-tine is always wanting. The most familiar species is the commonAmerican Deer, of which theVirginianorWhite-tailed Deeris the type. This deer is found in varying forms in both continents, and was regularly hunted by the ancient Mexicans with trained pumas.
The well-knownVirginian Deer, found in Eastern North America, and believed to range as far south as Louisiana, stands a trifle over 3 feet in height, and weighs, clean, about 12 stone 7 lbs. The coloration is chestnut in summer, bluish grey in winter. The antlers are of good size, and measure as much as 27½ inches in length. As a sporting animal the white-tailed deer is not popular. Mr. Clive Phillipps-Wolley describes him as "an exasperating little beast." possessing every quality which a deer ought not to, from the sportsman's point of view. "His haunts are river-bottoms, in choking, blinding bush, and his habits are beastly. No one could ever expect to stalk a white-tail; if you want to get one, you must crawl." Mr. Selous, in 1897, bagged one of these deer somewhat curiously. "He was coming," he writes, "through the scrubby, rather open bush straight towards me in a series of great leaps, rising, I think, quite four feet from the ground at every bound. I stood absolutely still, thinking to fire at him just as he jumped the stream and passed me. However, he came so straight to me that, had he held his course, he must have jumped on to or over me. But when little more than the width of the stream separated us—when he was certainly not more than ten yards from me—he either saw or winded me, and, without a moment's halt, made a prodigious leap sideways. I fired at him when he was in the air, and I believe quite six feet above the ground." The deer, an old buck with a good head, was afterwards picked up dead. In different parts of America, as far south as Peru and Bolivia, various local races of this deer are to be found.
True's Deeris a small species, not unlike the Virginian deer, found from South Mexico to Costa Rica. The antlers are "in the form of simple spikes directed backwards," and the body-colouring is in summer light chestnut, in winter brownish grey. Little is at present known of this species.
TheMule-deer, found in most parts of North America west of the Missouri, as far southas Southern California, stands about 3 feet 3 inches at the shoulder, and weighs over 17 stone clean. It carries good antlers, measuring as much as 30 inches, and in colour is tawny red in summer, brownish grey in winter. It is a far better sporting animal than the sneaking white-tailed deer, and affords excellent stalking. These deer are still abundant in many localities. Mr. Phillipps-Wolley writes thus of them in "Big Game Shooting": "Some idea of the number of these deer in British Columbia may be gathered from the fact that in one district I have had a chance of killing seventeen separate stags in an hour's still hunt, whilst one settler in the Similkameen country fed his hogs on deer-meat through a whole winter." Four races of mule-deer—theTypical, theCalifornian, theLa Paz, and theWestern Desertrace—have been identified by naturalists.
TheBlack-tailed Deeris another well-known cervine of Western North America, closely allied to the mule-deer, but distinguished from that species by its inferior size and its much blacker tail. The antlers, as a rule, run somewhat smaller than in the case of the mule-deer. This, too, is a very abundant species, affording fairly good sport (considering its liking for timber and dense bush) and excellent venison.
In South America are to be found several kinds of marsh-deer, of which the best known is the handsomeMarsh-deer, having its range from Brazil to the forest country of the Argentine Republic. Little is known of this and other South American deer by British sportsmen. The marsh-deer is almost equal in size to the red deer of Scotland, but somewhat less stout of build; the colouring is bright chestnut in summer, brown in winter; the coat is long and coarse, as befits a swamp-loving creature; the antlers usually display ten points, and measure in fine specimens as much as 23 or 24 inches.
ThePampas-deer, a species closely allied to the marsh-deer, is of small size, standing about 2 feet 6 inches at the shoulder. The antlers, usually three-pointed, measure no more than from 12 to 14 inches in fine specimens. This deer is found from Brazil to Northern Patagonia.
VIRGINIAN DEER.By permission of Professor Bumpus][New York.VIRGINIAN DEER.This deer is the best-known representative of a species displaying extraordinary local variation in size and colour.
By permission of Professor Bumpus][New York.VIRGINIAN DEER.This deer is the best-known representative of a species displaying extraordinary local variation in size and colour.
By permission of Professor Bumpus][New York.
VIRGINIAN DEER.
This deer is the best-known representative of a species displaying extraordinary local variation in size and colour.
ThePeruvianandChilian Guemalsare small deer, found on the high Andes, and are somewhat inferior in size to the Virginian deer. The males carry simple antlers forming a single fork, and measuring about 9 inches. The coat, yellowish brown in hue, is coarse, thick,and brittle. The Chilian guemal is found also in most parts of Patagonia; unlike its congener of Peru, which delights in altitudes of from 14,000 to 16,000 feet, its habitat lies chiefly in deep valleys, thick forest, and even the adjacent plains, to which it resorts in winter.
MULE-DEER STAG.By permission of the New York Zoological Society.MULE-DEER STAG.Shows the large blackish-brown patch on the forehead, so distinctive of the species.
By permission of the New York Zoological Society.MULE-DEER STAG.Shows the large blackish-brown patch on the forehead, so distinctive of the species.
By permission of the New York Zoological Society.
MULE-DEER STAG.
Shows the large blackish-brown patch on the forehead, so distinctive of the species.
TheBrockets, of which seven species are found in South and Central America and Trinidad, are small deer, having spike-like antlers and tufted crowns. The largest is theRed Brocket, found in Guiana, Brazil, and Paraguay, which stands 27 inches at the shoulder. The body-colouring is brownish red. Like most of the group, this brocket is extremely shy; although fond of dense covert, it is found also on open campos. ThePygmy Brocket, a tiny dark brown deerlet, less than 19 inches in height, found in Central Brazil, is the smallest of these very small deer.
Two other diminutive deer, known asPudus, closely allied to the brockets, are found in South America. These are theChilianandEcuador Pudus, of which the former is no more than 13½ inches in height, the latter about 14 or 15 inches. Little is known of the history and life habits of these charming little creatures, one of which, the Chilian species, has occasionally been seen in the Zoological Society's Gardens.
The Musk-deer.
This brief account of the deer of the world closes with theMusk-deer, which differ from almost all others of their kind—the Chinese water-deer being the sole exception—in the absence of antlers. In place of these defensive and offensive weapons, nature has provided the musk-deer with long canine tusks, projecting downwards from the upper jaw. The musk, from which these curious deer take their name, is secreted during the rutting-season—in the male only—in a pouch or gland contained in the skin of the stomach.
The well-knownHimalayan Musk-deeris a stout, heavily made deer for its size, measuring 20 inches at the shoulder, about 2 inches higher at the rump, and having a coat of coarse, brittle hair of a dark brown colour. This musk-deer, which is nowadays by no means common, is found in the forests of the Himalaya, Tibet, Siberia, and Western China, often at altitudes of about 8,000 feet. These animals are extraordinary mountaineers, active, daring, and apparently quite unconscious of or indifferent to danger.
Another species, theKansu Musk-deer, found in the province of Kansu, China, has only been discovered within the last ten years. Concerning this deer very little is at present known. In general characteristics it resembles its more familiar congener of the Himalaya.
AWORDshould be said upon the subject of the acclimatisation of various members of the Deer Tribe in countries which are distant from their native ground, but in which they are found to thrive and breed, some with greater and some with less success. It will be seen that several of the illustrations in this chapter are taken from deer living in natural conditions at Woburn Abbey, the seat of the Duke of Bedford. Others were photographed out of doors in zoological parks or private menageries. There is a considerable degree of transferability among deer, not only among those found in temperate or northern regions, but also those which inhabit the tropical jungles of Southern India.
YOUNG MARSH-DEER.Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.YOUNG MARSH-DEER.A very elegant South American species. The main colour is a bright chestnut, with the lower part of the legs black. The insides of the ears are filled with white hair, looking like silver filigree.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.YOUNG MARSH-DEER.A very elegant South American species. The main colour is a bright chestnut, with the lower part of the legs black. The insides of the ears are filled with white hair, looking like silver filigree.
Photo by the Duchess of Bedford][Woburn Abbey.
YOUNG MARSH-DEER.
A very elegant South American species. The main colour is a bright chestnut, with the lower part of the legs black. The insides of the ears are filled with white hair, looking like silver filigree.
The Axis, or Chital Deer of India, is the most striking example. It lives in the hot jungles, where it is the usual food of the tiger. Yet it has been transferred to the forests of France and to English parks, and not only lives, but breeds and increases in numbers. It is kept in this country mainly at Woburn Abbey, and at Haggerston Castle, in Northumberland. In France and Germany herds of axis deer have been maintained long enough to observe a curious and noteworthy incident in acclimatisation. The axis deer breeds naturally in October, after the Indian rainy season. This habit, if persisted in in Europe, would expose the fawn to the rigours of the French or English winter. Gradually and after some time the herds become irregular in the time of reproduction, and later produce the fawns in June, at the time which is best suited to their survival. This is a real instance of acclimatisation.
The Japanese Deer, or Sika, was introduced into the park at Powerscourt by Viscount Powerscourt some thirty years ago. Now it is one of the commonest of recently introduced park-deer both in this country and in France. The venison is excellent, and the herds are prolific. The stags are small, but very strong, and at Powerscourt always get the better of the red deer stags, and sometimes carry off their hinds. Wapiti Deer are kept in several English parks, but so far the Sambar has proved a failure. Hog-deer and Chinese Water-deer do very well both in England and France.
But it is in New Zealand that the best results have been obtained with imported deer. The English Red Deer, some of which were originally sent out by the Prince Consort, reinforced by some of the same species bred in Australia, have become indigenous. They grow far faster and to a larger size than those on the Scotch moors, and rival the great stags of the Carpathians. The antlers also increase in size at an abnormal rate. Licences are regularly issued to stalk and shoot these deer, which, like the brown trout and the pheasant, are now among the stock of established wild fauna. Moose and a few Sambar stags and herds have also been turned out in New Zealand. The latter are said to be doing well.