NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL PARS. 43 



decidedly inimieal. This densely humid and extremely sii- 

 Jine atmosphere is about as deadly to the black-tail, mule 

 deer, white-tailed deer, caribou ami moose as it is to the 

 Eskimo ; and thus far we have found it an absolute im- 

 possibility to maintain satisfactory herds of those species in 

 the ranges available for them. In great tracts of forests, 

 some of them might become acclimatized; but, be that as it 

 may, all experiments made thus far both here and in two 

 of the great game preserves of New England, prove con- 

 clusively that black-tail deer, mule deer, caribou, moose, and 

 also prong-horned antelope, are among the most difficult of 

 all ruminants to acclimatize anywhere in the United States 

 eastAvard of the great plains. 



Although the Zoological Societj^ will continue its experi- 

 ments wth some of these preserve species, and will always 

 strive to exhibit some of them, our original hopes regarding 

 them have been abandoned. We are certain that the diffi- 

 culty lies not in the food, but in climate conditions, that are 

 be,yond our control, and especially our very salty atmosphere. 



The American Elk, or Wapiti, {Ccrvus canadensis). — Of 

 all the numerous members of the Deer Family, this animal is 

 second in size to the moose only ; and in the autumn, when 

 its pelage is bright and luxuriant, its sides well rounded, its 

 massive antlers clean and held conspicuously aloft, the elk 

 may .iustly be called the king of the Ccrvidae. It is well 

 that in the Yellowstone Park we have an unfailing supply 

 of Elk. which bids fair to perpetuate this handsome species 

 for another century. 



Our Elk Range might well stand for a mountain park, in 

 which is set a natural lakelet of real value. In October, 

 when the splendid groves of beech, oak, and maple along 

 the eastern ridge put on all the glorious tints of autumn, 

 and the big thicket of sumacs, ash, and haw on the northern 

 hill fairly blaze with scarlet — then are the elk also at their 

 best. There is no finer picture in animate nature than a 

 herd of elk in October, with such a setting of greensward, 

 tree-trunk, and foliage. 



The maximum shoulder height of the Elk is 5 feet 4 

 inches, or thereabouts, and the heaviest weight noted thus 

 far is 927 pounds. 



The calves are born from May to July, and are spotted 

 during the first six months. During the first year the ant- 

 lers are merely two straight spikes, called "dag antlers." 

 As in all members of the Deer Family, the antlers are shed 



