PRONGBUCK. 



329 



of the world ' and fleeing from society. After two or three months, the young bucks 

 and does join the old does and their kids, and finally, by the first of September, all 

 are together once more in bands of hundreds or thousands. Any particular band 

 of antelopes does not leave the locality where they grow up, and never ranges more 

 than a few miles in different directions." 



At the present day prongbuck are seldom, however, met with in numbers any- 

 thing like those just mentioned. During the pairing-season the bucks are comba- 

 tive and frequently engage in fierce contests among themselves. In defence of her 

 young the female prongbuck is said to exhibit great boldness, sometimes even 

 beating off the attacks of the coyote by the vigorous use of both horns and hoofs. 

 Audubon and Backman, in describing the contests between the bucks, state that, 

 " when a male sees another approaching, or accidentally comes upon one of his rivals, 

 both parties run at each other with their heads lowered and their eyes flashing 

 angrily, and while they strike with their horns they wheel and bound with prodigious 

 rapidity, giving and receiving severe wounds ; sometimes, like fencers, getting within 

 each others' ' points,' and each hooking his antagonist with the recurved branches of 

 his horns." 



In spite of their extreme speed, prongbuck are but poor jumpers, and appear 

 unable to leap over any large object that may be in their path : this incapacity 

 being attributed to the open nature of the country which these animals generally 

 frequent. Mr. Caton states that " this inability to leap over high objects may no 

 doubt be attributable to the fact that they live upon the plains, where they rarely 

 meet with such obstructions, and so they and their ancestors for untold generations 

 have had no occasion to overleap high obstructions, and thus from disuse they do 

 not know how to do it, and never attempt it when they do meet them." The same 

 writer also states that if a prongbuck on the plains desires to cross the railroad 

 track, when alarmed by the cars, as is sometimes the case, he will strain every muscle 

 to outrun the train and cross ahead of it, as if he suspected a purpose to cut him off 

 from crossing; and thus many an exciting race has been witnessed between muscle 

 and steam. When excited during its gambols with its fellows, or by the emotions 

 of rage or fear, the appearance of the prongbuck alters considerably. On such 

 occasions, writes Mr. Caton, " the hair of the white patch on the rump rises up, and 

 assumes a more or less curved radial position from a central point on each side of 

 the vertebrre. From these points the hairs radiate in every direction, only they are 

 as nearly erect as their curved radial position will permit. It is impossible to give 

 a just idea of this appearance by words." 



The prongbuck is readily tamed when in captivity: and all who have eaten it bear 

 testimony as to the excellence of its flesh. The brittle nature of the hairs renders 

 the fur of but little value : and it does not appear that the skins arc much used as 

 leather. As might be inferred from the nature of its habit, the prongbuck is 

 exclusively a grazing animal : and in captivity avoids browsing on leaves, except 

 when no other food is available. 



There are two chief methods of hunting the prongbuck : one l>v 



Hunting. „ 1 



stalking or "still-hunting." and the other by coursing with grey- 

 hounds. In the north-western portion of its habitat, the proper season for limiting 

 embraces the months of September, October, and November: but in the south-west 



