SPOTTED DEER 



ending in a resumption of their grazing or browsing opera- 

 tions, enabling you to quietly " efface " yourself. 



The best shooting times are, of course, early morning 

 and late evening, but it is curious to note how the harry- 

 ing interference of man has altered the natural habits of 

 the deer in different parts of the country. In many places, 

 though deer may be fairly plentiful, not one will be seen in 

 the open before dusk or after daybreak, but in such places 

 they often contract the habit of coming out to feed at 

 midday for an hour or two. In very secluded " parks," only 

 visited by sportsmen or natives at long intervals, the deer 

 will remain out feeding, or lying down in the grass, up to a 

 very late hour, nine or ten o' clock A.M., and will commence 

 to return to the open at about four P.M. Where com- 

 paratively unmolested a deer will have a good look at 

 you before bolting away, giving you plenty of time to 

 shoot, and in bolting across an open space they will fre- 

 quently stop for another look before disappearing into the 

 jungle. The modern small-bore rifles have made stalking 

 in Ceylon almost unnecessary, except at times to get into 

 a good position, owing to the fact that our open spaces, 

 parks or plains, are so limited in extent, or are so inter- 

 spersed with trees and clumps of trees or bushes, as to 

 render it almost impossible to see 200 yards in any direc- 

 tion, except in the case of open tanks. This at any rate 

 is the case everywhere in the Northern Province or North- 

 Central Province. 



The distances at which shots are generally obtained vary 

 from 40 yards to about 1 30 yards, the latter being quite 

 far enough as, owing to the peculiar conditions of light 

 and surroundings, a deer at 130 yards looks a very small 

 object. As a matter of fact they have comparatively small 

 bodies, and at 130 yards your fine bead foresight seems 



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