Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1886-11-25
ALASKAN DEER.
They Are Not the Same as the Rein
deer of siberia,

Iney are NOT the same as the Re1n-
deer of siberia.
In many official reports. newspaper
contributions, and various articles
bearing upon the territory of Alaska,
reference is made, says writer in The
San Francisco Chronicle, to the ex-
istence of reindeer throughout the vast
country. The perusal of an artical en-
titled Caribou Hunting" in Serb
ner's Magazine for December, 1878.
combined with the experience of hunt
in north latitude 60 degrees 81 min
utes, induces me to partially combat
the statement that reindeer are to be
found in the territory, at least in its
northern portion. The characteristics
of the animals found here are exactly
similar to those of the barren-ground
caribou while they in no way resemble
the reindeer of the Siberian or Europ-
can variety. The prevailing color of
these deer during the winter is light
grey, darker toward the backbone, with
white under the belly and white tips
above the hoofs while in the summer,
from May to September, the long win
ter hairs fall out, and the covering is
then found to be dark brown, APP
preaching black, with white points I'M
der the belly and about the feet.
Occasionally specimen may be seen
spots or blotches on the dark brown
skin. The heads and antlers of these
deer are diverse in shape, the antlers
especially so. There is before me the
head of buck with palmated horns
measuring forty ght inches from base
to tip, with brow antlers eighteen
inches long. Measurements taken of
thirty deer shot in the space of four
days are so varied that to obtain
mean is almost impossible. Some of
the antlers, those of the doe especially,
are small, hardly foot in length.
The young bucks, presumably or g.
year Odds, measure two feet, while the
fawns of the previous summer have
small projections hardly three inches
! long. The does, three in number, shot
by the party, were understood in com
parison with the males, and their ant
lers were covered from the tips to
within an inch of the base with soft,
hairy, gelatinouS matter.
The conformation of the head in these
animals caused me at first sight to inn
agine that there were two species in
the herds, some of the deer having
clean-cut features, others again pos
sessing heavy jaws and short necks,
appearing at distance like young
colts This dssimilitude is heightened
by the towering and palmated antlers
of the larger bucks. The natives in
form me that in the ''big cold month"
-January-the bucks shed their
horns, the females retaining their short
protuberances which they use against
the males, and also to defend their
fawns.
In height these deer measure from
four to five feet from foot to shoulder.
They have well-shaped legs. termina-
ting in n broad spreading hoof with
sharp and shell-like edges. The mus
cular tissues and matter under the
hoof-termed the frog-is flat, and the
center hoof is admirably designed to
enable the animal to traverse deep
snow and frozen crusts. Though mi
gratory in their habits, their wander
ings as herds seem to be confined to
districts. This is established by the
fact that the meat and fat of the deer
found in the country between Kotzebue
and Norton sound excels in weight and
flavor that of the animals shot north
of the limits before mentioned. This
may be accounted for by the luxuriant
feed in the southern lands, the bar
rem valleys and hillsides of northwest
ern Alas ka yielding but a scant crop
of Caledonia rangeerina, or lichens.