4 i 6 RECORDS OF BIG GAME 



Head of Musk-Ox. 



The MUSK-OX (Ovibos moschatus). 



In spite of its name, this Arctic ruminant has no near affinity with 

 the members of the ox tribe, the cheek-teeth being more like those of 

 the sheep and goats, the muzzle, except for a small strip between the 

 nostrils, hairy, and the tail reduced to a mere stump 'concealed among 

 the long hair of the hind-quarters. On the other hand, the resemblance 

 to the sheep is by no means close, the horns, which in old males nearly 

 meet in the middle line of the forehead, being of a totally different form 

 and structure, and the skull likewise very distinct. Possibly the genus 

 should be placed in the neighbourhood of the takin (p. 349). In the 

 males the horns are much flattened and expanded at the bases, after which 

 they are bent suddenly down behind the eyes, to curve upwards again at 

 the tips. In the females they are much smaller, less expanded, and 

 not approximated at their bases. In both sexes their texture is coarse 

 and fibrous, and the colour yellow. The long coat of dark brown 

 hair depending from the back and sides like a mantle affords an 

 adequate protection against the rigors of an Arctic winter ; and the 

 broad spreading hoofs, with hair on their under surface, give a firm 

 foothold on snow and ice. Two races are known the typical Canadian, 

 and the Greenland (O. moscJiatus wardi). The latter is characterised 

 by the presence of a certain amount of white on the forehead and the 



