December, 1918 
FOREST AND STREAM 
687 
noted that there is a scant number of large 
stags. The list at the end of this article, 
showing the number, etc., illustrates that 
the best hunting grounds on the Island are 
in the interior, but these sections may only 
• be reached in the September season, or, 
during a mild fall, in the October season; 
but if a sudden cold snap occurs, one is 
liable to be snowed in. The rivers may 
freeze up, thus blocking travel by canoes 
and causing much hardship and delay. 
The caribou from the naturalist’s stand¬ 
point is an interesting study, exhibiting 
many features of form and color not usu¬ 
ally found in animals of the deer tribe. 
He might be called a reindeer instead of a 
caribou, so nearly does he conform in struc¬ 
ture to the domesticated deer of Lapland. 
The horns of the caribou differ from 
those of other deer in that they are more 
irregular in shape and exhibit two flat brow 
tines like the shovel-shaped horns of the 
moose. The muzzle is quite cow-like and 
is covered with hair to the extreme end. 
Another peculiar feature is the presence of 
a long mane on the lower side of the neck. 
But most conspicuous of all features in 
this animal are the feet and hoofs. They are 
broad, flat, and possess a cup-shaped under 
surface which prevents the creature from 
Number of Caribou Sighted on Hinds Plains Between October 28 and 
November 16, 1917 
October 28 
“ 29 
30 
3 1 
November 1 
H 
it 
a 
a 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
ii 
it 
it 
ti 
«< 
8 
10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
Large Stags 
Young Stags, 
Does and Fawns 
5 
Remarks 
1 spike-horned stag killed for group 
1 
1 
1 doe killed for group 
1 doe killed for group 
1 medium stag 
45 
2 
Seen in herds of 5, 7, 12 and 14 
1 stag had 
shed antlers 
3 
Fawn killed for group 
9 
2 
7 
5 
17 
17 
16 
130 
2 
1 stag bought from local hunter 
1 stag killed 
slipping on the endless frozen marshes. 
The color of the caribou is also a dis¬ 
tinguishing mark. The under surfaces of 
the belly and tail are always white as in 
many other deer. Part of the hind quarters 
above the hock and on the hams are usu¬ 
ally white, although a considerable number 
of the older animals show a dark gray color 
in this region of the body. The end of the 
nose and the whole neck are white, also 
the region around the hoofs and dew-claws. 
Other parts are a brownish gray, but in 
some specimens a wide variation appears 
in the general color—many are almost 
white while others exhibit a deep brown, 
especially on the face and legs. 
In regard to the number of points that a 
large stag may grow, it appears to be a 
much disputed question. The guides talk 
of fifty-point heads. They are possible but 
not probable. What I mean by this is that 
a good, well-developed head with fifty 
points (not a freak) may still roam the bar¬ 
rens. But the hunter who obtains this type 
of stag on his first trip after caribou is 
indeed a lucky individual. 
Many sportsmen have been led to be¬ 
lieve that it is quite easy to obtain fine 
heads during a fine brief hunting trip to 
Newfoundland. This is a wrong impres¬ 
sion. It might have been easily accom¬ 
plished eighteen or twenty years ago, but 
with the great decrease in the number of 
large stags at the present time, one may 
hunt for a month and feel fortunate in 
obtaining a thirty-point head. 
Millais, Selous, and Hesketh Prichard 
probably obtained better collections of 
horns when they visited the interior of the 
Island ten years ago than have ever been 
taken since, but it must be remembered that 
these sportsmen all hunted during long pe¬ 
riods and journeyed to the Island for sev¬ 
eral years in succession. 
Photo used by permission Brooklyn Museum. 
A mounted herd of caribou designed to show the animals as they appear while migrating. The doe usually leads 
Mim, 
-.If 
