DEER FAiMILY 



21 



him to the ground. The next instant the animal 

 bounded into the air, and came down with all 

 four feet on the prostrate man. At this instant, 

 one of the party fired at the animal and killed 

 it. We had to carry the wounded man sixty 

 miles on a stretcher, and he never fully recovered 

 from his terrible experience." 



In .Maska there is a smaller form of the ani- 

 mal known as the Sitka Deer, which is less in 



stature and has smaller antlers than even the 

 Florida White-tail. 



In southern California the related species is 

 known as the Southern Black-tail. Its ears are 

 larger and broader than those of its northern 

 cousin, and its color is not so distinct. 



In New Mexico and Arizona others are found 

 of much the same marking as the southern. 

 These are known as the Crook Black-tail Deer. 



MOOSE 

 Alces americanus Jardine 



General Description.^ — Largest of the American 

 Deer. .Antlers, on male only, excessively broad and 

 heavy, palmate. Tail short. Muzzle inflated, broad 

 and pendulous. Nasal pad haired except extreme lower 

 portion. A hanging growth of skin and long hair, the 

 bell, on throat. Higher at shoulders than at rump. 

 Long pointed hoofs, well developed lateral hoofs. 

 Color black or dusky. Ears large. 



Dental Formula. — Incisors, — ; Canines, ° — ; Pre- 



4-4 0-0 



molars, '~ ; Molars 

 3-3 



= 32 



3-3 



Pelage. — Adults: Winter. Sexes similar in color. 

 General color from blackish-brown to black. Below 

 same color as above, except for pale brownish-gray on 

 lower belly. Lower legs brownish-gray. Varying 

 amounts of gray on muzzle and face. Short hair over 

 all the nasal region with the exception of a small 

 triangular naked space between nostrils. Suiiuncr. 

 Similar in pattern, but color somewhat lighter, and legs 

 tawny gray. Young : Reddish-brown, unspotted. 



Measurements. — Male, length, 8;/^ to 9 feet ; tail, 

 2i<^ inches ; height at shoulders 5V2 to 6j-i feet ; average 

 adult spread of antlers. 52 to 58 inches ; record heads, 



65 to 78 inches. Female, about three quarters the size 

 of the male. 



Range. — British America and northern United 

 States from Maine to the Rockies. Formerly south in 

 New England to Massachusetts. 



Food. — Foliage and twigs of shrubs and trees; 

 aquatic plants. 



Remarks. — The Moose of North America are forest 

 inhabiting, water-loving animals, easily distinguished 

 by their great size and peculiar characters from any 

 other of the Ccrvidac. Three species are known. 



Rel.^ted Species 



Common Moose, or American Moose. — Akes 

 americanus americanus Jardine. The typical animal 

 ranging from the northern United States east of the 

 Rockies north to Hudson' Bay. 



Shiras Moose. — Alces americanus sliirasi Nelson. 

 Smaller, with pale brown back, pale ears, and small 

 hoofs. Wyoming, in the Yellowstone Park region, 

 Montana and Idaho. 



Alaska Moose. — Alces giyas Miller. Noticeably 

 larger than the common form ; blacker. Kenai Penin- 

 sula. Alaska. 



The Moose is the giant among Deer ; the kill- 

 ing of one is the realization of the deer-hunter's 

 highest ambition ; and a head with its magnifi- 

 cent antlers is unexcelled as an interior decora- 

 tion of the home, the club, or the hall. Those 

 who have seen the animal only in our natural his- 

 tory museums or zoological parks can hardly 

 realize the imposing appearance of an adult male 

 "full of strength and purpose, striding like a four- 

 legged Colossus through the evergreen forests of 

 Canada or Alaska, or swinging away at incredi- 

 ble speed from the dangers of the chase." No 

 other species of Deer roams through so wide an 

 extent of forest country of the northern portion 

 of the North American continent. From Alaska 

 southward to Wyoming (in latitude 43°), and 

 eastward through Canada, northern Minnesota, 



Maine, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, the 

 Moose in one or other of its species is to be 

 found. In British Columbia, Washington, and 

 southern and southeastern Alaska they do not 

 approach the coast, but in the Alaska and Kenai 

 peninsulas their range is down to the sea. 



The Common Moose, which is now most 

 numerous in New Brunswick, Maine and lower 

 Canada, i:^ not so large as his brother, the Alaska 

 Moose of the Kenai Peninsula, so far as 

 antlers are concerned. One of the tallest and 

 largest moose ever killed and measured by 

 reliable hands was a Common Moose shot in 

 New Brunswick by Carl Rungius, the well-known 

 animal painter. The measurements of this ani- 

 mal were as follows : Length of head and body, 

 nine feet seven inches ; length of head alone, two 



