MAMMALS 



Although most of the larger indigenous mammals of Nottingham- 

 shire are now extinct there is no doubt that up to a few centuries ago 

 the forest of Sherwood, which covered a considerable part of the county, 

 afforded shelter to most of the British species. The red deer was abun- 

 dant, the wolf, pine marten, polecat, badger and otter were all probably 

 common, and we have evidence of the existence of the wild boar, roe 

 deer and wild cat. Of these, descendants of the red deer still exist in a 

 semi-domesticated state, the marten and polecat have been captured in 

 the county within recent years, and the badger and otter are by no means 

 very rare even now. 



From very early times up to at least the reigns of James I. and 

 Charles I. Sherwood Forest was a favourite hunting ground of our 

 English monarchs, being tenanted by numerous herds of red deer which, 

 though of course quite wild, were strictly protected by the harsh and 

 oppressive forest laws which regarded the unauthorized killing of a deer 

 as a crime more heinous than homicide. Camden, writing in the time 

 of James I., tells us that the forest still supported ' an infinite number of 

 deer and branchy-headed stags.' From a survey taken in 1635 it appears 

 that the number of red deer in the forest was 1,367, and as late as the 

 reign of Queen Anne a yearly grant of 1,000 was made for the preser- 

 vation of the deer and maintenance of a hunting establishment. At this 

 time they were so abundant as to cause great loss to the surrounding 

 landowners by feeding upon their crops, and many were the complaints 

 made against ' the intolerable burden of the Queen's deer.' The subse- 

 quent gradual disafForestation and enclosure of the district resulted in the 

 reduction of the herds and their confinement within the limits of the 

 parks formed out of the ancient forest. 



That the forest was in early times infested with wolves is proved by 

 the fact that as late as 1433 an official existed who held certain land in 

 Mansfield Woodhouse, called ' wolf hunt land,' by service of winding a 

 horn and chasing or frightening the wolves in the forest of Sherwood. 



In an inland county it is not to be expected that any of the Cetacea 

 should often occur, and indeed the only member of the order which has 

 been certainly known to ascend the Trent into Nottinghamshire is the 

 porpoise. This species occurs frequently, and a single individual was 

 quite recently shot in the river close to Newark. 



Of our remaining mammals the fallow deer, which forms so grace- 

 ful an ornament of many of our parks, the all too common brown rat and 

 the ubiquitous rabbit are introductions within historic times. Among 



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