PERE DAVIHS MILU DEER 



Antlers of Fere David's Milu Deer. From specimens at Woburn Abbey. 



PERE DAVID'S MILU DEEE (Elaphurus davidianus). 



This remarkable deer differs from all the preceding, except the 

 elk and roes, by the absence of a brow-tine to the antlers, which are 

 large and branching, the beam forking at a comparatively short 

 distance above the burr, and the front prong of the fork again 

 dividing, while the hind prong is long and straight. The bushy tail 

 is longer than in any other deer, and the neck of the male is maned. 

 There is a gland on the outer side of the upper half of the hind 

 cannon-bone, but none on the hock. In the adult the colour is 

 uniformly tawny, but spotted in the young. Height at shoulder 

 about 3 feet 9 inches. In captivity, at any rate, the antlers are shed 

 twice a year. 



Distribution. Northern China or (?) Kashgaria ; unknown in the wild 

 state, and apparently now represented only by specimens in 

 Europe, of which the great majority are at Woburn Abbey. 



