Page:Across the sub-Arctics of Canada (1897).djvu/102

 gradually they increase in size until they reach maturity the following autumn. During growth the antlers remain comparatively soft, and are covered with skin and fine short hair, known as the "velvet." At maturity a circular burr is formed at the base of the horn. This has the effect of cutting off the blood-vessels, and causing the velvet to dry and shrivel and ultimately peel off. The peeling of the velvet is also hastened by the deer rubbing its antlers upon rocks and trees. With each successive year the antlers are supplemented by one additional prong, so that the number of prongs or tines is a positive indication of the age of the deer. I have counted as many as twenty-two prongs on one horn, or twice that number on the pair. Unlike every other variety of deer, the caribou is antlered in both sexes, the only difference being that in the case of the females the horns are rather smaller, and are more slender and delicate in their formation than those of the males.

The hoofs of the reindeer are very large in proportion to other parts of the body, and, being cloven, they spread greatly in walking. This characteristic peculiarly fits them for travelling upon the crusted snow, through which other deer would break and flounder in a hopeless manner.

Concerning the habits of the reindeer, they are both gregarious and migratory. During the summer season their resort is the open plain or the sea-coast, where, to some extent, they escape from their tormentors, the mosquitos and black flies, and find abundance of food in the tender grasses, the ground birch, or the willow buds. In the autumn they turn their steps toward the woodlands or more sheltered districts, where they spend