383 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



the rutting-si'asoii, aud cousequentl)' they were always sought to be removed 

 — the soouer the better. As a rule, neither of the above-mentioned 

 distortions, nor the entire absence of horns in the so-called " Flatheads," 

 should be regarded as indicating a lack of generative power, and at any 

 rate ought not to be confounded with that abnormal formation of horn 

 which inevitably results from injury or total loss of the horu in deer and 

 roe. In regard to strength and weight, the " Flatheads," in the districts 

 referred to, are seldom inferior to antlered deer of the same age, and some- 

 times even exceed them in that respect. They also enter upon the rutting- 

 season in due course, and are then extremely pugnacious. Their mode of 

 fighting is peculiar ; they stand up on their hind legs, as do also the 

 hinds, and strike savagely at their adversary with their fore legs. It is 

 remarkable that if any horned deer is attacked by a "Flathead" in this 

 way, it will instantly fight in the same manner, rearing up vertically, 

 without making use of its horns, which otherwise would be such terrible 

 weapons. It thus happens on such occasions that considerably stronger 

 animals, possessing ten or twelve points, are forced to retreat after a few 

 charges by the " Flathead," owing to the superior pluck of the latter. 

 Such a scene, drawn from nature, is depicted in an engraving in the 

 ' Illustrirte Zeitung ' of October 2nd, 1880 (p. 345). Combats of this kind, 

 where " Flatheads " exist, may be occasionally observed when a herd is 

 temporarily enclosed and surrounded in a small space — as, for example, 

 during a chase. These encounters are of a less serious character and of a 

 shorter duration, for they are only casual encounters provoked through 

 excitement. — L. Beckmann. (Translated from the ' Illustrirte Zeitung,' 

 October 2nd, 1886.) 



The Roe-deer in Cumberland. — The presence of Roe-deer in Cum- 

 berland having been doubted in some quarters, for lack of published 

 information, it becomes desirable to state tiiat a limited number are 

 established near Wigton (not Netherby), in the north of this county. The 

 graceful little deer wander through the largest of our border plantations, 

 occasionally making their appearance in new and unexpected localities. 

 Thus in 1880 a buck, which had no doubt forded the Eden, took up its 

 abode in the Cotehill Wood, where it was frequently seen for two years, as 

 reported by Mr. T. H. Horrocks aud other gentlemen. Ultimately it 

 disappeared ; no one knew exactly where, but suspicion fell upon a local 

 poacher who brought a Roe into Carlisle about the time of its supposed 

 decease. The resident Pioes (which are believed to be aboriginal, with fresh 

 importations a few years since) maintain their numbers steadily, but there 

 is no marked increase. The leaves of brambles form an important part of 

 their diet during the winter months. When visiting the haunts of the 

 Roe in Cumberland on April 23rd, 1886, Mr. Duckworth witnessed a curious 

 incident. On that day a Roe which liad been leared as a pet by the keeper's 



