14 NOTES ON SOME OF OUR BRITISH MAMMALS. 
wild over Needwood Forest, and so late as 1788 Dickenson 
writing of the Fallow Deer (Cervus dama) says, ‘‘ Vast herds 
wander at liberty over Needwood Forest, their number 
being supposed to exceed 3,000. Many deer on the forest 
and on Cannock Chase are of the deep brown kind, intro- 
duced from Norway by James I.” Dickenson is probably 
in error as to the origin of these Needwood Forest Fallow 
Deer, for Mr. J. E. Harting has shewn, that dark- 
coloured deer existed in Britain, long before the time of the 
pedantic monarch who generally gets credit for their intro- 
duction. The largest herd of Red Deer (Cevvus elaphus) in 
this district is at Chartley where there are 150, but the 
individuals appear to be of rather small size compared with 
those of Calke Abbey, where a stag has been known to 
turn the scale at 280 pounds. Judging from the size of 
antlers found in river gravels, the red deer must formerly 
have attained a stature far exceeding that reached at present, 
and nearly approaching that of its giant relative the Wapiti 
(Cerous Canadensis), known to the trapper as the ‘‘ American 
Elk.” Several specimens of this magnificent animal have 
been imported into Derbyshire, at Osmaston Manor, by 
Sir Peter Walker. 
The beautiful little Roe Deer (Capreolus caprea) owes its 
inclusion in our list to the discovery of its cast antlers in 
Needwood Forest, by Sir Oswald Mosley, where it 
undoubtedly lived when the Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) whetted 
his curved tusks on the trunks of the oaks, and possibly 
long after he was exterminated. Tusks of the Wild Boar 
have, as is mentioned by Mr. Brown, been found on several 
occasions near Burton, but it is also interesting to find 
historical evidence as to his existence in this neighbourhood. 
Thus, Erdeswick in his survey of Staffordshire, about 1593, 
says, speaking of Chartley, ‘“‘The park is very large, and 
hath therein red deer, fallow deer, wild beasts (.e. wild 
cattle, and swine.)” We even find so late as 1683 the 
Steward of the Manor of Chartley making the following 
entry in his account book: ‘‘1683—Febr. Pd. the cooper 
for a paile for ye wild swine—o—2—0.” 
