OF THE POLAR SEA. 5 



hood. On the morning of the 1 0th I estimated the 

 numbers I saw during a short walk, at upwards of 

 two thousand. They form into herds of different 

 sizes, from ten to a hundred, according as their 

 fears or accident induce them to unite or separate. 

 The females being at this time more lean and 

 active, usuaQy lead the van. The haunches of 

 the males are now covered to the depth of two 

 inches or more with fat which is beginning to 

 get red and high flavoured, and is considered a 

 sure indication of the commencement of the 

 rutting season. Their horns, which in the middle 

 of August were yet tender, have now attained 

 their proper size, and are beginning to lose their 

 hairy covering which hangs from them in ragged 

 filaments. The horns of the rein-deer vary, not 

 only with its sex and age, but are otherwise so 

 uncertain in their growth, that they are never 

 alike in any two individuals. The old males 

 shed their's about the end of December; the fe- 

 males retain them until the disappearance of the 

 snow enables them to frequent the barren grounds, 

 which may be stated to be about the middle or 

 end of May, soon after which period they proceed 

 towards the sea-coast and drop their young. 

 The young males lose their horns about the same 

 time with the females or a little earlier, some of 

 them as early as April. The hair of the rein- 



