522 



the points are not more than 7 inches apart, in others as much as 

 20, irrespective of length ; the turns of the spiral in adults vary 

 from less than 3 to 5. Horned females are occasionally, but very 

 rarely, met with ; I once saw one, near Nagpur. In these the 

 horns curve back, more or less, from the head. 



Colour of does and young bucks yellowish-fawn above and on 

 the outside of the limbs, lower parts white, the two colours sharply 

 divided; a distinct pale lateral band a little above the line of 

 division. Old bucks are blackish brown above, becoming almost 

 black in very old animals, except on the nape, which remains 

 brownish rufous, whilst the sides and front of the neck, and also 

 the face except a white area round each eye, are blackish brown. 

 The pale lateral band disappears in old males. 



Dimensions. Height at shoulder about 32 inches ; length of head 

 and body 4 feet, tail 7 inches, weight about 90 Ib. Basal length 

 of a male skull 8'6 ; breadth across orbits 4-1. Horns of adults 

 are usually 16 to 20 inches long, measured in front straight from 

 base to tip ; in the Peninsula they rarely exceed 22 inches. The 

 longest horns are met with in Bajputana and Hurriana, where 

 28-75 inches has been recorded. Largest observed girth at base 

 6-25. 



Distribution. India from the base of the Himalayas to the neigh- 

 bourhood of Cape Comorin (the southernmost locality known to me 

 is Point Calimere), and from the Punjab to Lower Assam, in open 

 plains, not in Ceylon nor east of the Bay of Bengal. Not found 

 on hills nor in thickly wooded tracts, and wanting throughout the 

 Malabar coast south of the neighbourhood of Surat. The state- 

 ment that this antelope is not found in Lower Bengal is not quite 

 correct ; none are found in the swampy Gangetic delta, but many 

 exist on the plains near the coast in Midnapore (I have shot them 

 near Contai), as they also do in Orissa. Antelopes are most 

 abundant in the North-west Provinces, Eajputana, and parts of 

 the Deccan, but are locally distributed and keep to particular 

 tracts. 



Habits. Open plains of short grass, level or undulating, and 

 cultivated land are the usual haunts of the Indian antelope, which 

 is generally found in herds ; these are sometimes extremely 

 numerous, and comprise occasionally several thousand animals of 

 both sexes and all ages ; but more often small herds of does, 

 generally 10 to 30 in number, but sometimes as many as 50, are 

 met with, attended by a single black buck, which does not always 

 accompany the females. Very often two or three younger bucks 

 coloured like the does remain with the latter ; but these young 

 males are sometimes driven away by older bucks, and form separate 

 herds. This antelope never enters forest nor high grass, and is 

 but rarely seen amongst bushes. Where not much pursued or 

 fired at, it will often allow men to come in the open within about 

 1 50 yards, sometimes nearer. Of country-carts, bullocks, or coolies 

 carrying loads, it often takes but little notice at half that 

 distance. 



