DEER FAMILY 



15 



MULE DEER 

 Odocoileus hemionus (Rafinesque) 



General Description. — A moderate sized deer, with 

 robust antlers and large ears. Tail covered with short 

 hairs, naked on underside and with a black terminal 

 tuft. Metatarsal gland unusually large. Body color 

 yellowish-brown to reddish-brown. High bounding 

 gait. Antlers never developing as many tines as with 

 the White-tailed Deer, but dividing on each beam into 

 two characteristic Y's. 



Dental Formula.— Same as given for White-tailed 

 Deer. 



Pelage. — Adults: Suiiuiicr. Yellowish-brown vary- 

 ing to reddish-brown above. Below blackish. A large 

 patch on rump and surrounding tail dull white. Tail 

 light color of the rump above, terminal one-third black 

 above and below, the hairs forming a tuft or pencil. 

 Inner ear grayish-white, externally same color as head 

 and body. IViiitcr. Dark gray above, otherwise about 

 as in summer. Young : General color brownish-yellow 

 irregularly spotted with dull white. 



Measurements. — Length, male, 5 feet, 3 inches ; tail, 

 7'4 inches ; hind foot, iS'/i inches. Height of ear 

 above crown, g' 2 inches. Length of female, 4 feet, 

 9 inches. Weight of average buck, 150 to 200 pounds. 



Range. — Northern Arizona to British Columbia in 

 the mountains, foothills and plains. 



Food. — Twigs and foliage of shrubs, grass, fruits 

 and plants, and in southern part of range, acorns. 



Remarks.— A very different sort of an animal from 

 the Virginia Deer both in appearance and habits. The 

 ranges of these two animals overlap in the Great Plains 

 and in the Rockies as well as in the southern United 

 States, but on the whole they inhabit widely separate 

 areas. The Mule Deer varies in a few characters such 

 as coloration and size, to produce several closely related 

 forms. 



Related Species 



Mule Deer. — Odocoileus hemionus hemionus 

 (Rafinesque). The most widely spread form. Found 

 throughout the Great Plains and the adjacent Rockies. 



California Mule Deer. — Odocoileus hemionus cali- 

 f amicus (Caton). Considerably smaller and more 

 tawny. A dark stripe from back along upper surface 

 of tail. Southern California and northern Lower 

 California. 



Mexican Mule Deer. — Odocoileus hemionus canus 

 Merriam. Smaller, paler and grayer. Texas, New 

 Mexico and Arizona from the deserts up into the 

 mountains. 



Burro Deer, or Desert Mule Deer. — Odocoileus 

 hemionus eremicus (Mearns.) Very pale, large, with 

 heavy horns. Western Desert Tract of the United 

 States. 



Next to the Wapiti and Moose, the Mule 

 Deer is the largest of our American Cer- 

 vidae. Its limbs are larger and coarser than 

 those of the White-tailed Deer, and it is less 

 agile and elastic in its movements ; also less 

 graceful in form. The large disproportioned 

 ears very probably suggested the name of Mule 

 Deer. The most striking difference between the 

 White-tailed Deer and the Mule Deer is found in 

 the antlers. With the Mule Deer the tines from 

 the main beam divide to form two Y's on each 

 beam, whereas in the White-tailed Deer, the tines 

 from the main beam seldom divide. 



The Mule Deer was first discovered by Lewis 

 and Clark on September 18, 1804, in latitude 

 42°, on the Missouri river. They then called it 

 the Black-tailed Deer. On May 31, 1805, they 

 discovered the true Black-tailed Deer, on the 

 Columbia river. 



The Mule Deer is considered one of the most 

 imposing of the Cervidae in appearance. It 

 holds its head and neck erect, while its antlers 

 are much wider than those of its white-tailed 

 cousin. In winter its color is a sober gray, 

 changing in summer to soft brown, thus ena- 

 bling it to blend in with the landscape to a 

 remarkable degree. 



This animal is at home in the wildest, roughest 

 and most mountainous country. It frequents 

 both the deep ravines and the mountain heights. 

 " It is a proud-spirited, high-headed animal," 

 says Dr. Hornaday. " a bold traveler, and, hke 

 the Mountain Sheep, is often found where the 

 scenery is wild and picturesque. In this respect 

 it dilTers from the White-tailed Deer, which pre- 

 fers low ground, and either brush or timber in 

 which to hide.'" 



A large Mule Deer buck, shot by Dr. Horna- 

 day on Snow Creek, Montana, measured forty- 

 two inches high at the shoulders and sixty-two 

 and six-tenths inches in length. A large pair of 

 antlers showed a beam length of twenty-seven 

 and one-quarter inches, spread twenty-nine 

 inches, and had fourteen points. In the United 

 States the present scarcity of really large antlers 

 in the possession of taxidermists is a sure sign 

 of the approaching end of this species. 



In 1903, Mr. A. G. Wallihan, a photographer 

 of wild animals, made the following prediction 

 regarding the extermination of the Mule Deer 

 in Colorado, its centre of abundance in the 

 United States : " Unless we have a close season 

 on Deer, five years will see the finish of these 

 animals. Five years would give them a good 



