333 



BACKBONED ANIMALS. 



(anus). Its horns are jet black, slender, and slightly 

 curved, resembling those of the Alpine chamois (Fig. 361). 



Its hair is long 

 and white (Fig. 

 362). 



The prong- 

 horn is a char- 

 acteristic 

 American an- 

 telope, and re- 

 markably fleet. 

 They are larg- 

 er than the do- 

 mestic sheep, 

 and covered 

 with coarse, 

 brush-like hair, 

 that is yellow- 

 ish brown 

 above, the un- 

 der portion and a square patch on the rump being pure 

 white, while the horns, hoofs, and parts of the nose are 

 black. The horns bend slightly, and midway to the tip is 

 a small prong, from which they take their name. The 

 horns, though hollow, and having a persistent core, as in 

 the ox, are shed in the autumn. 



Among the gazelles, the Siberian antelope, or Saiga 

 Tartarica, is the most striking. The muzzle is bent down- 

 ward, and the horns beautifully shaped. They are found 

 in Poland and Russia, and are the most northern of the 

 family. 



Allied are the chamois of Europe (Fig. 361), the gnu, 

 the pygmy antelope, oryx, eland of Africa, etc. 



Oxen (Bovince). The domestic oxen do not present a 

 genuine species, but represent many races that have de- 

 scended from several extinct species. They are character- 



FIG. 362. Rocky Mountain goat (Aploceros mon- 

 tanus). 



