VIRGINIA DEER 

 Odocoileus virginianus. 



East of the Rockies this is one of the most abundant of the 

 family. Adult specimens are a trifle over three feet in height at 

 the shoulders and weigh from one hundred and twenty-five to two 

 hundred pounds. Their antlers vary greatly in size and shape, some 

 spreading very wide and the points curving inward until they some- 

 times nearly meet, while others are more straight and stand much 

 higher above the head. They also vary very much in the number 

 of points on the antlers, some having only one, when it is called a 

 spike horn, others having as many as twenty. Four points on either 

 side is the usual number. During our cold winter weather the hair 

 is of a more grayish color than in the summer months, and is much 

 longer and more brittle. These animals become very tame in cap- 



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