Exhibition of Heads of the Red Deer. 211 



came from the back part of the distorted beam, and passed 

 backwards over the head (See Proc. vol. i. p. 222) ; this stag 

 was believed to have been of great age. 



I have in my possession the head of a full-grown and 

 mature fallow deer, Cervas dama, also showing a consider- 

 able variation from the ordinary arrangement and shape of 

 the horns. They measure each about 13 inches in length ; 

 the right horn has a small brow antler 1 J inches long, a longer 

 bezantler of 5 inches, and the beam, which is only very 

 slightly expanded, is much narrower than usual, and has 

 two projecting points at its upper part ; while the left horn 

 has the brow antler represented by a small knob or point 

 projecting from the surface of the horn, another point 

 higher up may represent the second antler ; while the beam 

 is hardly expanded at all, showing merely a small point on 

 the back, and terminates above in a single point. 



In November 1857, Mr Andrew Murray exhibited a 

 curiously contorted variety of the horns of the Keindeer 

 (Proc. vol. i. p. 363, with figure), the distortion being rather 

 curiously very much alike on each of the horns. 



These varieties in the character of the horns of various 

 deer may suggest a little caution in our description of species, 

 as, had we found any such strangely branched horns in our 

 gravels, marl-beds, or peat-bogs, w T e might have been tempted 

 at least to think about the possibilities of additional species 

 of some of these genera. 



In conclusion, I may mention, that the largest head of 

 horns of any recent Scottish stag of which I have notes, was 

 a park-fed deer, the property of the late Duke of Athole, 

 which was killed by another stag about fourteen years ago. 

 It displayed no fewer than 18 points on its horns : and the 

 cast horns of the previous year were 18 lbs. avoir, in weight. 



VOL. in, 



