THE COLUMBIA BLACK-TAILED DEER. 117 



and back are slightly darker than the rest of the body, and 

 the tail is entirely covered with hair. The color of this 

 appendage is white on the under side, and black, or very 

 dark, above. In the Rocky Mountains and headwaters of 

 th > Missouri River, the Mule Deer is frequently mistaken 

 by hunters for the Black-tail. This mistake is a very. par- 

 donable one, for the Mule Deer also sports some black on 

 his fly-disturber, if it may be so designated. One of the 

 infallible proofs of the distinctiveness of the two species, 

 is that the tail of the Mule Deer is naked on the under side, 

 while that of the Black- tail is, as I have previously men- 

 tioned, entirely clothed with hair. In color, the female is 

 almost identical with the male. 



The eyes of this Deer are probably the most beautiful of 

 those of any of the Cerridce of this country, they being 

 large and black, and possessing that soft, liquid appear- 

 ance associated with the eyes of the Jersey cow. Although 

 he can see a great distance, and has what may be gener- 

 ally termed acute vision, his great curiosity often tempts 

 him to linger long after he has discerned the hunter. In 

 mountainous and open countries, this fact is sometimes 

 taken advantage of by hunters, who lure him on to destruc- 

 tion in a manner similar to that in which Antelope are often 

 stalked; but let the Black-tail once scent the hunter, which 

 he can do at almost twice as great a distance as any other 

 Deer, and there will be but little likelihood of his getting a 

 shot at that particular Deer for some time to come. When 

 disturbed, he goes off with a bounding motion, seemingly 

 proud of his steel-spring-like legs. 



The antlers of a full-grown buck consist of two main 

 beams, which spring backward and upward from the head, 

 and from each of which spring from one to six tines, accord- 

 ing to the age of the individual. The antlers of this species 

 are not nearly as large and majestic as those of the Mule 

 Deer. When a buck is one year old he has two "spikes" 

 rising from his head; when he is two years of age these 

 spikes will each have a branch, and when he is three 

 years old there will be three pommels to each horn. After 



