362 UNGULATES. 



of the does at all seasons ; the under-parts being pale brown in winter and white 

 in summer. The fawns lose their spots at an early age. In the winter the hair is 

 coarse and very shaggy. Average-sized antlers measure about 40 inches from the 

 tip of the brow-tine along the curve to the extremity ; but one specimen of 54, 

 and another of 59 inches have been recorded. 



Eld's deer frequents low swampy grounds in Manipur, Burma, the Malay 

 Peninsula, Cambodia, and the island of Hainan. Mr. Blanford states that they 

 are " usually seen in herds of from ten to fifty or more ; but occasionally much larger 

 numbers are found associating. They may enter the fringe of the forest in places 

 for shade, during the day, but they generally keep in the open plain. In some 

 places in the Irawadi delta, and in Martaban, they are found in plains, where, 

 during the dry season, no fresh water is procurable. They are frequently seen in 

 swamps, and feed on wild rice and other plants growing in such places." The 

 period of shedding the antlers varies from June in Manipur to September in Lower 

 Burma. The hinds utter a short barking grunt, while the call of the stags is a 

 more prolonged sound of the same nature. 



David's Deer (Gervus davidianus). 



Mantchuria, or some neighbouring region in Northern China, is the habitat of 

 a remarkable deer differing from all other Old World types in the absence of a 

 brow-tine to the antlers. Instead of the brow-tine, each antler has a single very 

 long and nearly straight tine given off just above the beam, and directed backwards ; 

 above which the beam ascends for a considerable distance, and then forks. The 

 normal number of points on each antler is accordingly three, but this may be 

 increased by a splitting of each tine of the fork. It appears that the long back- 

 tine represents the hinder branch of the antler of the swamp-deer, and the terminal 

 fork the front branch of the latter. David's deer is of about the same size as the 

 swamp-deer, and is clothed with long and rather shaggy hair, while the tail is of 

 unusual length, and also thickly haired. It has been stated that the fawns are 

 uniformly coloured, but this requires confirmation. 



These deer are kept in the imperial hunting-park at Pekin, and specimens have 

 been exhibited alive in England, but we have no information as to their habits 

 in the wild state. The largest antlers on record have a length of 32f inches. 



The Fallow Deer Group {Gervus dama, etc.). 



The fallow deer is the representative of a distinct group of the genus Gervus, 

 characterised by the antlers being rounded at the base, but widening in the upper 

 part into a flattened palmate expansion. In front there is a large brow-antler, 

 forming rather more than a right angle with the beam, above which there is a 

 trez-tine given off at some distance below the commencement of the palmation ; 

 while the hinder edge of the latter carries three or four small sharp snags, of which 

 the lowest is longer and placed considerably below the others, so that it may rank 

 as a distinct back-tine. 



In height the fallow deer usually stands nearly 3 feet at the withers, and has 



