Game Animals of India, etc. 



the girth above the brow-tine 7 inches. Specimens 

 measuring 46^, 4.6^, and 45^5 inches in length are 

 also recorded, one of which has a basal girth ot 

 9 inches. A stag will weigh about 600 lbs. "live 

 weight," and about 410 lbs. "butcher's weight." 



The forests of India and Ceylon, especially those in 

 hilly districts, form the habitat of the typical sambar. 

 Eastwards the limits ot its range are perhaps formed 

 in Assam by the Bramaputra, on the farther side ot 

 which the Malay race probably occurs. From its 

 smaller size, the Ceylon representative of the sambar 

 should probably be regarded as a race apart. Through- 

 out the open plains of the Punjab, Sind, and Western 

 Rajputana a forest -dwelling animal like the sambar 

 is, of course, unknown. In the outer ridges of the 

 Himalaya, where its western range does not seem to be 

 ascertaineci, sambar may be found as high as 9000 or 

 10,000 feet above sea-level, and they are commonly 

 met with on the summits of the Nilgiris and other 

 ranges in Southern India, as well as at Newera Ellia in 

 Ceylon. Although, as already mentioned, hills form 

 their favourite resorts, these deer may be met with on 

 river-flats. 



Sambar generally associate in small herds or family 

 parties, and, like all forest - dwelling animals, are 

 impatient of the rays of a tropical sun between 

 early morning and evening, seeking shelter in the 

 deepest and most sequestered parts of the forest during 

 the hottest hours. In the Siwaliks the resting-place 

 may, however, be under an isolated tree. Whenever 

 such are to be found in the vicinity of their haunts, 

 sambar select forests on the higher grounds for the 

 mid-day siesta. Whether they require water every day 

 is still a question ; but it is well known that they are 

 frequently in the habit of travelling long distances in 

 search of that element. Unlike the members of the 

 red-deer group, wild sambar do not shed their antlers 

 regularly every season ; and in many parts of India 



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