VI 



THE MULE-DEER 



FROM the sportsman's point of view the mule-deer 

 may be regarded as coming next to the moose 

 and elk. In size he is much smaller, being little, if any, 

 taller than the Virginia deer known as the white-tail, 

 the common deer of the Eastern, as well as Western, 

 States. Like the Virginia deer, the mule-deer vary in 

 size, but the difference is not so great in the latter. 

 Since scales are not handy in the woods but few 

 sportsmen give the weight of deer. Colonel Dodge, 

 who has had more experience with this deer than any 

 other writer, says he often weighs 250 pounds and that 

 he has heard of one that weighed 280 pounds. 



The ears of the mule-deer render it unmistakable. 

 They are twice the size of those of the common deer 

 and, of course, suggested the name. It is often called 

 black-tail deer from its tail, which is short and has a 

 tuft of black hairs at the end. The name black-tail is, 

 however, correctly applied to another deer, found only 

 in the forests and mountain ranges of the Pacific Coast, 

 which is nearer the common Virjrinia deer in size and 

 weight, and which has a black tail in shape more like 

 that of the common deer. The mule-deer is sometimes 

 called burro-deer in the Southwest. The summer coat 

 of this deer is red. At the end of summer it takes on 



95 



