222 



Roes 



Habits. — Between the years 1873 and 1883, inclusive, the Chinese 

 water-deer was represented by seven examples in the London Zoological 

 Gardens, although none have been received between the latter date and 

 1896. A female is now (1898) living in the park at Woburn Abbey. A 

 female in the possession of M. Comely bred at Tours in 1877, the number 

 of fawns produced being three ; and it appears that either three or four is 

 the usual number of young at a birth, the female having four nipples. 

 This prolific reproduction is quite unique among the Cervtda, and is one of 

 the reasons for regarding the genus as a very ancient type. 



The Chinese name of the animal at Shanghai is ke. In his original 

 description Mr. Swinhoe writes that these small deer " crouch in the reeds 

 and long grass, admitting pretty close approach, and then, rising with a 

 bound, spring away. They were generally put up singly or in twos and 

 threes. In running, they cock their ears, round their fore-legs, bend up 

 their hind-legs, hog their rumps, and scurry away with little quick leaps, 

 very much after the manner of a hare." These observations are fully 

 confirmed by the habits of the female at Woburn Abbey. This animal is 

 kept in a large paddock, where the grass is rather long and tussocky. 

 Among these tussocks it lies so completely concealed, that hours may be 

 spent without catching a glimpse of it. When disturbed, it springs off 

 with the short quick leaps mentioned by Swinhoe. After running for some 

 distance it drops among the grass with a suddenness which is almost startling. 

 The grass in its paddock being of only a moderate height, the head and 

 neck of the little deer are fully visible, and its restless eyes may be seen 

 watching the intruders. Presently the head and neck are lowered, and the 

 creature becomes completely hidden. Among its native reeds it would 

 doubtless become quite invisible from the moment of dropping. 



IX. The Roes — Genus Capreolus 



Capreolus, H. Smith, in Griffith's Animal Kingdom, vol. v. p. 313 (1827) ; 

 Gray, Cat. Ungulata Brit. Mas. p. 221 (1852), Cat. Ruminants Brit. Mus. 

 p. 80 (1872) ; Fitzinger, SB. Ak. Wien, vol. lxviii. part i. p. 352 (1873), lxx. 

 part i. p. 239 (1874) ; Brooke, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1878, p. 917; Riitimeyer, 

 Abh. s c hive iz. pal. Ges. vol. viii. p. 41 (1881). 



