Elaphine Group 



show s seven heads of his shooting, but only two of these appear to show the 

 perfect cup comparable to those of old continental examples of the typical 

 red deer, and then only on one side. One of these heads is figured at the 

 end of the present volume. 



Antlers of this race from Asia Minor and the Crimea not unfrequently 

 exhibit a great paucity of tines, with a corresponding development of the 

 beam. In the Proceedings of the Zoological Society for the year 1890 I 

 have given a figure 1 of an abnormal antler from Asia Minor doubtless 

 belonging to this race, in which there is no tine above the brow till the 

 crown, which is much expanded and bears a number of points. Another 

 antler from the Crimea, represented in the same plate, consists merely of a 

 beam with a couple of tines at the summit ; and antlers of such abnormal 

 type seem by no means uncommon in the Crimea and Asia Minor, although 

 I have seen none precisely comparable from the habitat of the typical race. 



In the summer of 1897 a ner d of red deer from some part of the 

 C aucasus or Transcaucasia was added to the collection at Woburn Abbey. 

 It comprised a sub-adult stag and several hinds, all in summer pelage. The 

 hinds were somewhat larger than ordinary red deer, and the stag had the 

 long brow and short bez-tine which seem very characteristic of this race ; 

 all showing the long, slender, maral face. The coat in both sexes was 

 distinctly red, marked with a large number of yellow spots ; so much spotted, 

 indeed, that these deer had almost the appearance of large sikas. Although 

 a few spots may be seen on the back of some typical red deer hinds in the 

 summer pelage, I have never seen any comparable in this respect to the 

 Caucasian herd, neither have I ever seen the stags so spotted. Possibly the 

 C. elaphus varius of Fitzinger is based on the Caspian race. The specimens 

 are important in showing that the summer pelage of the hinds and young 

 stags is reddish. In winter these deer turned very dark gray, becoming 

 nearly black on the shoulders, thighs, and under-parts ; they had a dark 

 stripe down the middle of the back, and a dark patch in front of the caudal 

 disk, which was bordered with black. This type of coloration, as well as 

 the spots in summer, are stated by Fitzinger to be characteristic of all 

 specimens not fully adult, but the blackness is well shown in the old stag in 

 the British Museum; and Mr. Sclater tells me that he saw a spotted herd 

 at St. Petersburg. Several of the W oburn specimens are shown in Figs. 1 



1 Plate xxx. 



