ACEOSS THE SUB-AECTICS OF CANADA 



cular burr is formed at the base of the horn. This has the 

 effect of cutting off the blood-vessels, thus causing the velvet 

 to dry and shrivel and ultimately peel off. -The peeling of 

 the velvet is also hastened by the deer rubbing their antlers 

 upon rocks and trees. With each successive year the antlers 

 are supplemented by one additional prong, so that the number 

 of prongs or tines is a positive indication of the age of the 

 deer. I have counted as many as twenty-two prongs on one 

 horn, or twice that number on the pair. Unlike every other 

 variety of deer, the caribou is antlered in both sexes, the only 

 difference being that in th& case of the females the horns are 

 rather smaller, and more slender and delicate iu their 

 formation, than those of the males. 



The hoofs of the reindeer are very large in proportion to 

 other parts of the body, and, being cloven, they spread greatly 

 in walking. This characteristic peculiarly fits them for 

 travelling upon the crusted snow, through which other deer 

 would break and flounder ii^ a hopeless manner. 



Concerning the habits of the reindeer, they are both gre- 

 garious and migratory. During the summer season their 

 resort is the open plain or the sea-coast, where to some extent 

 they escape from their tormentors, the mosquitos and black 

 flies, and find abundance of food in the tender grasses, the 

 ground birch, or the willow buds. In the autumn they turn 

 their steps toward the woodlands or more sheltered districts, 

 where they spend the long, severe winter, subsisting on tree- 

 buds, moss or lichens. 



The breeding season occurs in the early spring, before 

 winter quarters are vacated ; and the number of f av^ns borne 

 by a doe at one time ranges from one to three. 



Prom an economic or commercial point of view, the rein- 

 deer is highly prized. By the Laplanders and other people 

 it is domesticated, and takes the place of the horse, the dog, 

 the cow or the goat of other countries. As a traveller it is 

 swift and enduring, being capable of hauling from two to 



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