FALLOW DEER. 3fcil 



The word fallow describes the prevailing- colour of the 

 animal, being the Anglo-Saxon fealo, allied to the Ger- 

 man fall), the Sclavonic ^?/rty, yellow, the Latin palidus, 

 pale, and the Sanscrit jjulita, grey. Thus in the early 

 English writers " to falow " mecuis to grow pale, to fade. 

 " Buck" is probably from the Teutonic bocken, to strike, 

 and is therefore an animal which strikes or butts with its 

 head ; hence it has become the general name of the male 

 of the beasts of chase, even including those which have 

 no horns, as the Hare and Rabbit. " Doe " is the Anglo- 

 Saxon da, probably from the same root as the Latin dama, 

 a deer, and the Sanscrit dam, to tame ; thus the Doe 

 would mean the tame or harmless animal. " Fawn " is 

 from the French faon, feon, which, say some, is derived 

 from the Latin infans, or, more probably, through the old 

 ^oira fedon, from fcatus, an offspring. 



The Buck usually stands about three feet, or rather 

 less, at the shoulder, and measures about five feet in total 

 length, of which the tail occupies nearly seven and a half 

 inches. The head is small, the tear-pits well developed, 

 the muzzle tapered, and the eye large and lustrous. The 

 ears are long and pointed, exceeding half the length of 

 the head. The antlers have only two anterior tines, the 

 presence of a third being a very rare abnormity, but the 

 hinder margin of the flattened portion of the beam is 

 notched out, so as to form an indefinite number of points. 

 The tail is longer than the ear. 



In colour the Fallow Deer of our parks vary much. 

 The normal tint is a fawn or yellowish red-brown, spotted 

 with white, and becoming more grey in winter. The 

 dark brown variety has already been mentioned, and Deer 

 may be seen of every shade from pure white to almost 

 coal black. 



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