156 WILD ANIMALS WORTH STALKING 



shedding the old horns, they become quarrelsome, 

 and by the middle of September their necks in- 

 crease in size and strength, a provision Nature has 

 made fitting them for the fierce fights about to 

 take place with their fellows for the ownership 

 and mating with the does. 



It is the finest and fittest bucks that take 

 possession of the does; one buck will often take 

 all the does in a small park and keep other bucks 

 at a distance for a time; however, as the rutting 

 season advances and his strength decreases, another 

 will probably soon take his place. So fierce are 

 the fights at this time that it is not unusual for 

 bucks to get killed by being gored to death, and 

 when one gets badly disabled he is sure to be 

 killed by others perhaps not in the first quarrel. 

 I have frequently known a buck that has been 

 killed in this w^ay to have his lungs pierced through, 

 although it is seldom that the tough hide is 

 punctured, only pushed through the vital parts by 

 the points of his adversary's horns. As the rutting 

 season advances the fine condition so rapidly 

 gained is as quickly lost, and by the end of October 

 the Deer are in their Winter coats, presenting 

 quite a different appearance to what they did six 

 weeks previous! 



The period of gestation with Fallow Deer is 

 about eight months, when one is born at a birth. 

 Although some naturalists tell us that two and 



