102 THE DEER OF AMERICA. 



range, we find several more or less distinctly marked varieties of 

 this species, all of which have well defined indicia which deter- 

 mine their specific identity. This branch of our subject will be 

 considered in another place. 



From its wide distribution and great numbers it is quite famil- 

 iar to nearly all Americans, and is almost the only one known to 

 most of them. 



In form and action it is the most graceful of all, and has been 

 more frequently domesticated than any other, yet rarely have 

 persistent attempts been made to reduce it to complete and per- 

 manent domestication. When young it is a pretty pet around 

 the premises, but in a few years it becomes dangerous, and so is 

 generally got rid of. In its markings it is less stable than either 

 of the other species. In shades of color there are wide differences 

 among individuals in the same neighborhood, while fugitive mark- 

 ings are frequently observed, which are present only for a sin- 

 gle year, and some individuals have permanent markings which 

 are wanting on others. In summer pelage a large majority are 

 of a bay red, but with a great diversity in shade, while others of 

 the same herd will be of a light buff yellow ; between these ex- 

 tremes almost every shade may be seen. 



In a given neighborhood there is a great difference in the size 

 of individuals, but there is a permanent difference in size in dif- 

 ferent localities ; the smallest being found in the southern part 

 of the range, bordering the Gulf of Mexico and in Northern 

 Mexico, the westerly ones being the smallest of all, where they 

 have been classed by naturalists as a separate species, under the 

 name of Cervus Mexicanus. In their northern range and in the 

 mountainous regions of the west, the white portions cover a 

 larger surface of the body than in other regions, where they have 

 been ranked by many naturalists as a separate species under the 

 name of Cervus lucurus. By hunters these have been called 

 the long-tailed, or white-tailed deer, the latter name having 

 been used by Lewis and Clark, while in truth their tails are no 

 longer than those found in other regions. From the larger ex- 

 tent of white frequently if not generally found on them, we 

 might possibly be justified in assigning them the distinction of a 

 variety, though this peculiarity is by no means universal, for 

 many individuals cannot be distinguished from those found in 

 Illinois or Wisconsin. I have one specimen from northwestern 

 Minnesota, with all the legs entirely white, to several inches 

 above the hocks and knees, with occasionally a tawny hair in- 



