DEER. 237 



covers them becomes dry and is rubbed off, and the bone, 

 being deprived of its covering, dies like any other bone 

 when the periosteum is removed. This growth and fall 

 of the horns take place every year, but each year the 

 new growth becomes larger and gains new branches, so 

 that it is possible to tell the age of a deer by the develop- 

 ment of its antlers. Figure 170 shows the growth of the 

 antlers in successive years. 



FIG. 170. 



ANTLER OF STAG, showing increase in number of prongs from first to sixth 



year. 



The wapiti of the Northwestern United States and 

 Canada is closely allied to the red-deer of Europe ; it is 

 frequently, but improperly, called the elk. The fallow- 

 deer is a native of the Mediterranean coasts, and has 

 been semi-domesticated in Europe, where it is found in 

 many parks. The horns, which are possessed by the 

 male only, are cylindrical at the base, but flattened and 

 serrated externally in the remainder of their length. 

 This deer is reddish brown in color, with white spots. 



The roe-deer or roebuck is a small species of European 

 deer, its horns being not largely developed. 



The cariacou, or Virginia deer, is the common deer of 



