50 rOI'ULAR OFFICIAL GUIDE. 



The Persian Wild Ass, (n.qiius persicus), is <i very satis- 

 factory representative of tlie wild asses generally. Its dor- 

 sal-stripe is very wide and sharply defined, but it l)ear.s no 

 shoulder-stripe, and those that are faintly indicated on its 

 legs are nothing more than oblong blotches of dark color. 

 As its name implies, it inhabits Persia, and Syria, and a 

 closely related form, the Onager, (E. onager), is found in 

 Beluehi.stan and western India. A third species, the Kiang 

 (£. hctnionns), is found on the plains of Tibet. 



The male specimen shown here was born in the Philadel- 

 phia Zoological Garden. 



THE ASIATIC AND EUROPEAN DEER, Nos. 1-3. 



In representatives of the deer, (Family Ccrindac), Asia 

 far surpasses all other countries. Her species number about 

 38, — fully double that of any other continental area, — and 

 from the great Altai wapiti to tiny musk deer, the varia- 

 tions in size and form are fairly bewildering. The entire 

 hill that rises between the Fordham Entrance and Bird 

 Valley, from Cope Lake to the Zebra Houses, is devoted 

 to the series of houses, corrals and ranges that are occupied 

 by the deer of Asia and Europe. 



It is quite certain that a number of desirable species of 

 Asiatic deer can successfully be acclimatized in the parks 

 and game preserves of America, and induced to breed. Al- 

 most without an exception they are strong and vigorous 

 feeders, and they keep fat and sleek when our own black- 

 tail, mule deer and white-tail mince like pampered epicures, 

 grow thinner and thinner, and finally die of "malnutrition." 

 There are places in the United States wherein our native 

 deer of the species named can exist in captivity, but New 

 York City is not one of them. 



Believing that the members of the group amply justify 

 the effort, the Zoological Society has been at considerable 

 pains to bring together a fine, representative collection of 

 the Old World Ccrz'idac, and prepare places for them. Al- 

 though the series proposed is not quite complete, it con- 

 tains such rarities as the Altai AVapiti, Barasinga, Burmese 

 Thameng, ^Malay and Indian Sambar, and several others. 

 They are sheltered by four houses, the largest of which 

 crowns the siimmit of the hill on the right of Osborn's 



