86 University of California Publications in Zoology [Vol.10 



receive in the forests below. The does were usually lower down, 

 and I came across several spotted fawns, some apparently but a 

 few days old. in thickets along the streams. But one adult was 

 killed at this point, on July 1, and this one, together with many 

 others seen at close enough range to distinguish details of their 

 condition, was shedding the winter coat so as to be nearly naked 

 in spots, while but little of the summer coat had as yet grown in. 

 The deer in the lower valleys were already in the red summer 

 pelage. 



At Nootka Sound deer were remarkably scarce. I saw fresh 

 tracks of a single animal at the edge of the lagoon near Friendly 

 Cove, and Despard saw a little fresh sign at the Tahsis Canal, but 

 no deer were encountered at any time. Toward the end of our 

 stay the Indians brought in one that they had killed on an island 

 in the sound. 



Deer were also extremely scarce at the head of Central Lake, 

 but at the other end, between the lake and Alberni. I saw an 

 abundance of fresh sign. 



During September, in the vicinity of Erringtmi. we saw some 

 almost daily. They came into the grain fields in the neighbor- 

 hood of our camp every night, and I frequently saw tracks about 

 the barns and outhouses. Seven specimens were collected here, 

 between August 30 and September 16. These were just begin- 

 ning to lose the summer coat, patches of gray hair appearing on 

 various parts of the body; the bucks still had strips of dried 

 "velvet" adhering to their horns. 



The effect of the weather on the habits of the deer was quite 

 noticeable here. On bright, sunny days there were none to be 

 seen, though from the numerous fresh tracks it was evident that 

 there were many in the vicinity, but if there was even a light 

 shower one was sure to encounter deer in the woods before going 

 very far. All the bucks that were seen here were small, or of 

 medium size, but on Mount Arrowsmith, September 6 to 8, 

 several large bucks were observed, and from the track's seen it 

 was apparent that there was a much greater proportion of large- 

 sized animals at this altitude than in the lowlands. 



It was noticeable throughout the summer that deer were most 

 abundant in the regions that had been partially settled and 



