546 CERYID.E. 



Sterndale doubts this ; it certainly travels long distances to its 

 drinking-places at times. 



The rutting-season is about October and November in the 

 Peninsula of India, but, according to Hodgson, in spring in the 

 Himalayas. At that time sambar collect in larger numbers, and 

 the loud roaring call of the stags is often heard in the morning 

 and evening and sometimes late at night. The period of gestation 

 is eight months, and a single young one is generally born at a 

 time. The horns are usually dropped in March in the Peninsula, 

 and about April in the Himalayas, but all stags do not lose their 

 horns at this time. I have shot them myself in the Central Pro- 

 vinces in April and May with fully developed horns ; and Forsy th, 

 who paid particular attention to this characteristic of the sdmbar, 

 not only insists upon the fact that stags with perfect horns may 

 be found at all seasons, but declares that individual stags to his 

 knowledge retained their horns for successive years. 



The stag's call, already mentioned, is termed by McMaster a 

 " loud and somewhat metallic-sounding bellow," whilst the hind's 

 call, a sharper but fainter note, is described as a " faint grunting 

 low " by the same authority, who has given an excellent account of 

 this animal's habits in his ' Notes on Jerdon.' There is also a 

 sharp snort or cry of alarm caused by the presence of a tiger or 

 panther, or by the sight of man. 



The speed of a sambar is very moderate, and if found on ground 

 where riding is possible, a rare event, any fairly good horse with 

 a rider of moderate weight can catch either stag or hind. All 

 species of Cervus, I believe, can be ridden down without much 

 difficulty. I have heard of both spotted and hog deer being 

 speared in favourable localities. Sambar are usually driven by 

 beaters, or stalked, but in Ceylon it was at one time the practice to 

 hunt them with deer-hounds and kill them with a knife, as described 

 in Sir S. Baker's ' Eifle and Hound in Ceylon.' They are very tena- 

 cious of life, and often take several bullets before they fall. Many 

 are killed by tigers and wild dogs. The stags fight much amongst 

 themselves, the brow-antler, as in all deer, being the principal 

 weapon of offence, and the wound it inflicts has the reputation of 

 being very deadly. The flesh of the sambar is coarse, but well- 

 flavoured, the marrow-bones and tongue being usually retained by 

 sportsmen for themselves ; but as most Hindoos will eat deer with 

 antlers, the meat is seldom wasted in India, as that of wild cattle 

 and pigs often is. 



368. Cervus axis. The spotted Deer. 



Cervus axis, Erxl. Syst. Reg. An. p. 312 (1777) ; Elliot, Mad. Jour. 



L. S. x, p. 221 ; Blyth, J. A. S. . xi, p. 1202, xxii, p. 415 ; 



Brooke, P. Z. S. 1878, p. 907 : Ravemcroft, P. Z. S. 1883, p. 465 ; 



W. Sclater, Cat. p. 181. 

 Cervus nudipalpebra, Ogilby, P. Z. S. 1831, p. 136. 



