974 



THE UNGULATES, OR HOOFED MAMMALS 



accordingly be most convenient to commence our notice of these deer with those in 

 which the antlers are simple, and finish with those in which they are most complex. 

 Before proceeding to the various species, it may, however, be added that all the 

 American deer are uniformly colored above in the adult condition, and that they all 

 have narrow and naked muzzles. The length of the tail is subject to a great amount 

 of specific variation. In addition to the peculiar feature already noticed as distin- 

 guishing the hinder aperture of the nasal passage, the skulls of the American deer 

 are characterized by the large dimensions of the unossified space in front of the eye, 

 and the small size of the pit for the reception of the gland. 



The first group of the American deer is represented by several small 

 species known as brockets, which are confined to the southern half of 

 the continent, and are distinguished by their unbranched spike-like antlers, and by 



Brockets 



THE RED BROCKET. 



(One-tenth natural size.) 



the hair on the middle line of the face radiating in all directions from two points, 

 one of which is situated on the crown of the head, and the other just below the eyes. 

 They are further characterized by the large extent of the naked portion of the muz- 

 zle, which completely surrounds the nostrils, and likewise by the spotted coat of the 

 fawns. The tail is of medium length, and the upper jaw may or may not carry 

 tusks. The best-known species is the common brocket (C. rufus) the one repre- 

 sented in our illustration of Northeastern Brazil and Guiana, where it ranges 

 from Surinam to Pernambuco. It is a rather clumsily-built animal, standing 

 twenty-seven inches in height at the withers, and of a uniform reddish-brown color. 

 The nearly allied Brazilian brocket (C. simplidcornis} is a rather smaller species, 

 standing only twenty-one inches in height, and distinguished by its lighter and more 



