286 The Caribou 



from tip of nose to root of tail — do not ex- 

 ceed and in some instances may not equal the 

 dimensions of Woodland caribou from the East. 

 The describer, Mr. Thompson Seton, states that 

 the "antlers are not noticeably different from 

 those of the Woodland species, but in general are 

 distinguished by their great number of points." 



It will be noticed that the differences from 

 other forms claimed for this one are of the 

 slightest value, and it would seem that it will be 

 necessary to find more important ones before it 

 can be satisfactorily established as a species dis- 

 tinct from the eastern animal. When we con- 

 sider the endless variation that exists among 

 caribou, both in color and in the shape and size 

 of the antlers, even among animals belonging in 

 the same herd, the difficulty of finding a recog- 

 nizable permanent character to separate those of 

 one district from those of another becomes ap- 

 parent; and it cannot be said that this has yet 

 been successfully accomplished, at least as regards 

 the animals belonging to the two divisions, Wood- 

 land and Barren-Ground. Between the deer of 

 the Arctic regions, including Greenland and those 

 of the forest lands to the south, distinctions appear 

 recognizable in the lighter beam and fewer points 

 of the antlers, and possibly in the smaller size of 

 the northern animal, which is claimed to be very 

 noticeable ; indeed, Richardson states that he has 



