THE DEER FAMILY. 339 



to take care of themselves much earlier. The pairing sea- 

 son begins in October and the period of gestation is about 

 eight months. The calf at birth is white spotted like a fal- 

 low deer, and remains so for the first three or four months ; 

 after that the spots gradually disappear and the true color 

 of the Red Deer asserts itself. 



The male sheds his antlers in March, and the new ones 

 begin to grow in April ; as is the case with all deers he eats 

 freely while they are developing, and by the time new 

 antlers are complete and hardened in September he is very 

 sleek and fat. He does not long continue so, for during 

 the rutting season when many fierce combats occur be- 

 tween the males he does not eat and becomes very thin. 



Until the stag is full grown, which is in ten years, the 

 points on the autlers increase year by year. 



The skins of Red Deer make excellent leather, and the 

 antlers are used in the manufacture of knife handles, 

 etc. In ancient times the antlers were used as picks and 

 hammers. 



