CHARACTERS OF VERTEBRATE ANIMALS 



2. The Deer Family includes a large number of species, widely 

 distributed throughout both hemispheres, though absent from 

 Africa south of the Sahara. There are four toes to each foot, 

 all being provided with hoofs, but the supporting bones of the 

 extremities are rather more specialized than in the Chevrotains. 

 The leading characteristic of the family is undoubtedly the 



possession of antlers 

 by the male in nearly 

 all cases. These struc- 

 tures are essentially 

 bony outgrowths from 

 the skull, which are 

 annually shed, and in 

 many cases become 

 more complex in 

 shape each successive 

 year so as to be an 

 indication of age. 

 The young antlers 

 are composed of liv- 

 ing bone and are 

 covered by a continu- 

 ation of the skin ("the 

 velvet"). When their 

 full size is attained 

 the base of the antler 

 grows out into a ring- 

 like projection (the 

 " burr "), cutting off 

 the blood-supply from the skin, which consequendy peels off from 

 the underlying bone, causing this to become dead and hard. A 

 further characteristic of deer is the presence of a pit in front of 

 each eye, within which certain glands open. 



It is convenient to first mention the Musk Deer [Moschus 

 moschiferus, because it differs considerably in structure from all 

 other members of the group, having, e.g., a less complex brain, 

 and possessing a gall-bladder, which organ is absent in other 

 deer. There are no antlers, and the upper canines of the male 

 resemble those present in Chevrotains. Most of the musk of 

 commerce is obtained from a pouch situated pretty far back on 



Fig. 75. — The Kanchil [Tragulus Javanicus] 



