Tuesday, June 23, 2009

CAN ANYONE IDENTIFY THIS DEER?

OK, it's a deer, and it is a museum specimen in fairly poor condition. Like other things we have shown you this week, it is from the collection of our old friend Lionel Beer's late father.

He was a remarkable man who travelled widely, and had a voracious appetite for collecting stuff, but over the years the documentation for the collection, if indeed there ever was proper documentation for the collection, has disappeared.

So we are having to make it up as we go along.
Is this a fawn? Or a an adult of a small African or Asian species? You decide....





at

2 comments:

  1. Retrieverman8:33 PM

    After doing some research, I think I might be willing the conjecture.

    Here goes:

    My best guess is that it is an oribi (Ourebia ourebi).

    http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Ourebia_ourebi_cropped.jpg

    That's my absolute best guess, because the oribi is a small antelope with ears and coat very similar to this one.

    http://rockjumper.co.za/upload/images/mam-13-Oribi.jpg

    ReplyDelete
  2. Retrieverman9:15 PM

    It could also be a female Steenbok.

    Whatever it is, it's a small antelope.

    http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/75/Raphicerus_campestris.jpg

    I'm now leaning toward Steenbok, rather than oribi.

    ReplyDelete