52 NATURAL HISTORY. 



The colour of the animal is a deep blackish-brown ; the neck is short and thick, with a peculiar 

 bob-shaped, pendulous, and hair-covered lap of skin hanging down from its middle, just behind the 

 angles of the jaw. The limbs, especially the front ones, are long ; the tail is rudimentary. The 

 coat is formed of close-set harsh angular hair, which breaks when bent, produced into a niaiie upon 

 the neck and shoulders. Sir John Richardson gives the following account of the habits and food of the 

 Elk, with the mode of hunting it : " In the more northern parts the Moose Deer is quite a solitary 

 animal, more than one being very seldom seen at a time, unless during the rutting season or when 

 the female is accompanied by her fawns. It has the sense of hearing in very great perfection, and 

 is the most shy and wary of all the Deer species, and on this account the art of Moose-hunting is 

 looked upon as the greatest of an Indian's acquirements, particularly by the Crees, who take to them- 

 selves the credit of being able to instruct the hunters of every other tribe. The skill of a Moose 

 hunter is most tried in the early part of the winter ; for during the summer the Moose, as well as 

 other animals, are so much tormented by Mosquitoes that they become regardless of the approach of 

 man. In the winter the hunter tracks the Moose by its footmarks in the snow, and it is necessary 

 that he should keep constantly to leeward of the chase, and make his advance with the utmost caution, 

 for the rustling of a withered leaf or the cracking ot a rotten twig is sufficient to alarm the watchful 

 beast. The difficulty of approach is increased by a habit which the Moose Deer has of making daily 

 a sharp turn in its route, and choosing a place of repose so near some part of its path that it can 

 hear the least noise made by one that attempts to track it. To avoid this, the judicious hunter, 

 instead of walking in the animal's footsteps, forms his judgment from the appearance of the country 

 of the direction it is likely to have taken, and makes a circuit to leeward until he again finds the 

 track. This manoauvre is repeated until he discovers by the softness of the snow, in the footmarks 

 and other signs, that he is very near the chase. He then disencumbers himself of everything that 

 might embarrass his motions, and makes his approach in the most cautious manner. If he gets close 

 to the animal's lair without being seen, it is usiial for him to break a small twig, which, alarming the 

 Moose, it instantly starts up, but not fully aware of the danger, squats on. its hams and waits a minute 

 before setting oft'. In this posture it presents the fairest mark, and the hunter's shot seldom fails 

 to take effect in a mortal part. In the rutting season the bucks lay aside their timidity, and attack 

 every animal that comes in their way, and even conquer their fear of man himself. The hunter 

 then brings them within gunshot by scraping on the blade-bone of a Deer, and by whistling, which, 

 deceiving the male, he blindly hastens to the spot to assail his supposed rival. If the hunter fails 

 in giving it a mortal wound as it approaches, he shelters himself from its fury behind a tree, and 

 I have heard of several instances in which the enraged animal has completely stripped the bark from 

 the trunk of a large tree by striking with its foi'e-feet. In the spring time, when the snow is very 

 deep, the hunters frequently run down the Moose on snow-shoes, which give them immense advantage, 

 because the slender legs of the animal sink into the snow for their whole length each step they take, 

 which makes their progress very slow." 



The usual pace of the Moose is a high shambling trot, and its strides are immense. On account 

 of their necks being short at the same time that their legs are long, they browse upon the bushes 

 rather than on the ground, which they find difficulty in reaching with their mouths. 



THE ELAPHINE DEER.* 



This group is characterised by the presence of a bez-tyne in all its members except that 

 under the influence of protracted bad nutrition individuals resident in barren pai-ts may lose 

 it whilst the tres-tyne is small, and the third main branch of the antler splits up into several 

 snags, sometimes arranged in the form of a cup. The deep brown coat is varied by a conspicuous 

 light, almost white patch upon the rump, in which the uncovered rudiment of a tail is included. 

 All the species are large, the best known to us being 



THE RED DEER, f 

 This species is a native of the British Isles and many parts of Europe. Northern specimens 



* The restricted genus Cervus. t Ccrrus claph us. 



