68 



STTBKINGDOM VEETEBRATA. 



Fig. 100. 



Ovis aries, Sheep. 



chisel-like incisors and cleft upper lip enable it to bite closer 



than the Ox, and thus procure sustenance where that animal 



would starve. The 

 Goat, in defending 

 itself, rears upon its 

 hind legs, and comes 

 down head first upon 

 its opponent with 

 the weight of its 

 body; the Sheep runs 

 forward and butts 

 with the combined 

 force of its weight 

 and impetus. 

 Antilocapridse.— The Proncj-horn Antelope is allied both 



to the Antelope and the Goat. Like the former, its horns 



contain an osseous core, but 



unlike it they are deciduous, 



and have a prong about mid- 

 way. The hair on the body 



stands out straight, and, 



being hollow like a bird's 



feather, when bent will not 



resume its form. 



Cervidse. — The Deer 



Family have solid, deciduous 



liorns, which are east an- 

 nually, and at each renewal 



grow larger and more branch- 



i n g . Two cartilaginous 



prominences first appear on '■ 



the forehead. These ossify 



and form the horns, which 



are still covered with velvety skin. 



Fig. 101. 



AntUocapra anwricdna. Prong-horn. 5V. 



Soon a ring of bone 



which the shepherds support with a board set on wheels. In Angola is a variety 

 called the goitred sheep from its having two lobes of fat beneath tlie throat, whlcb, 

 like the hump of the Dromedary, serve It for food during the dry season. 



