Identifier: animalsinactions00broo (find matches)
Title: Animals in action; studies and stories of beasts, birds and reptiles; their habits, their homes and their peculiarities
Year: 1901 (1900s)
Authors: Brooks, Elbridge S. (Elbridge Streeter), 1846-1902
Subjects:
Publisher: Boston, Lothrop pub. co
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
ne of the character-istic features of this strongly built antelope is its wide, thicknose and the snout which protrudes over the jaw. Its ears areshort, stumpy, and rounded. The horns of the buck curve overin somewhat the shape of a lyre. They stand far apart, areknotty at the base, and furrowed with rings all the way up. Atthe very tip they are thin, transparent, and of brilliant coloring.The doe, on the other hand, has no horns. The length of thefull-grown buck is about four and a half feet, and its height atthe withers is over two feet and eight inches. The ill-formed,clumsy head of this animal makes it the least graceful of allthe antelopes. Although its form is somewhat ungainly, theanimal can run with great speed through the broad, flat coun-try which is its home. The saiga is to be found all throughthe summer in troops of from twenty to eighty head, only smallportions of which are full-grown bucks. The mating time is inNovember, and by the first of May the female gives birth to
Text Appearing After Image:
Hunting the Saiga Antelope. THE SAIGA, OR ANTELOPE OF THE STEPPES. 215 one or two kids. After the mating these separate troops gatherin great herds of several thousand head, to wander throughoutthe winter in search of food; but with the beginning of springthey again break up into small herds, each of which has itswell-defined browsing ground. The hide of the saiga makes good leather, but its flesh has adisagreeable flavor, savoring strongly of the salty and coarsevegetation which forms the food of the animal. Only hungeror custom can render it palatable. In spite of this drawback,however, the Russians, Tartars, Kirghiz, and Kalmucks hunt thesaiga eagerly either by stalking it or by pursuing it on horsebackwith trained golden eagles or dogs. The Tartars and Kirghizoften ride towards a wandering herd even without dogs and,selecting a choice animal, break up the herd and seek to captureit — a scene whichis shown in our illustration. The wolves areamong the most dangerous enemies of the

Note About Images