Elk

Moose, or Moose Deer, the largest of the deer family, a native of Northern Europe, Asia, and America. The American form (to which the name moose is usually given), is sometimes separated from the European, but most naturalists find no specific difference between them. The elk or moose has a short, compact body, standing about 6 feet in height at the shoulders, a thick neck, large, i head, and horns which flatten out almost from the base into a broad, palmate form with numerous snags. In color the elk is grayish brown, the limbs, sides of head, and coarse mane being, however, of a lighter hue. Their flesh resembles beef rather than venison. ’ For the mbst part they are inoffensive, and so exceedingly wary that they are approached only with difficulty. In America the Indians and half breeds are the most skillful moose hunters. The moose has a wide range in Canada, extending from the Arctic Ocean, and British Calnaibie; to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia; it is found also in Maine. It feeds largely on the shoots of trees or shrubs, such as the willow and maple, and on bark, ete. In Sweden its destruction is illegal, and in Norway there are many restrictions. ‘ Elk, Irish, a large deer found in the Pleistocene strata, and distinguished by its enormous antlers, the tips of which are sometimes 11 feet apart. Though a true deer, its antlers differ from those of living species in that the beam is flattened into a palm.