THE CERVIDJE, OR DEER. 161 



genus Antilocapra is related to the Dicrocerus by 

 its pronged horns and the hairy covering of skin 

 which constitutes the immature stage of the horn- 

 sheath.' The Procervulus mentioned above was a 

 widely distributed genus in the Miocene period, as 

 is proved by the discoveries in New Mexico and 

 Nebraska. The genus Cervulus, which is dis- 

 tributed over both the Old and the New World in 

 about eleven different species, must be regarded as 

 a diluvial remnant of the genus Procervulus, by 

 the side of the more modern family of the Deer, 

 which show a further advance in the development 

 of their antlers. The best known representative of 

 the genus is the Muntjak (Cervulus muntjac) in 

 India and the Sunda Islands. 



In the Deer, as in the case of most of the living 

 pair-toed animals, the two metatarsals which sup- 

 port the two fully developed toes have coalesced 

 into the so-called cannon-bone. Their limit is 

 indicated by a more or less distinct longitudinal 

 furrow on the front side, frequently also by a 

 deeper indentation in the lower joint. We never 

 meet with complete metatarsal bones for the two 

 outer toes that are removed from the ground. The 

 modifications which prevail in this respect, within 

 the group, appear of very little importance and 



M 



