Antlers of the mule deer are unlike those of any other large game species inhabiting their range. They are impressively large as a rule and, because of the high angle at which they rise from the head, often look larger. The spread is wide in proportion to the height; thus it is not unusual for a well-antlered buck to be mistaken for an elk, especially at a distance. The antlers are unique in having a beam that forks equally to form the points. Thus a typical head might have five points, these being: the basal snag, a small tine rising from the beam near the head; and four points, two from the forking of each division of the beam. The western manner of counting the points consists of numbering those of one antler only; the method often used in the East counts all of the points of both. The number of points does not necessarily denote the age of a deer. Under normal conditions the antlers will increase in size and points with every new pair until maturity is attained. They will then grow to approximately the same size for several years. In old age, the antler development will usually dwindle with each succeeding year until, in senility, they may be as small as those of a young deer. The condition of teeth and hooves is a more accurate indication of age even though this method lacks prestige of the time-honored system of points. It would seem, from the ease with which this big deer can be established in varying types of habitat, that it is in little danger of extinction. It is probable that the various subspecies will disappear before long because their range is rapidly being taken up by agriculture or lumbering. Given some protection, the species will endure in the higher mountains for many years to come. White-tailed deer _Odocoileus virginianus_ (Greek: odous, tooth and koilus, hollow. Latin: of Virginia) [Illustration: white-tailed deer] Range: Mostly east of the Continental Divide in the United States, north into southern Canada, and most of Mexico except Baja California. [Illustration: Habitat map] Habitat: Brushy and wooded country. Description: A deer with a large, white tail, held aloft and wagged from side to side as it runs away through the underbrush. In the Southwest, two geographic variants occur, the subspecies _virginianus_ and the subspecies _couesi_; the latter known locally as Sonora fantail, and seen in the United States only in a limited range along the border. _Odocoileus virginianus_ of the Southwest is a large deer. It usually weighs between 150 and 250 pounds, and sometimes up to 300. The average adult animal will measure around 6 feet in total length. Tail about 10 inches. Color is reddish in summer, changing to gray with the winter coat. Belly, insides of legs, and undersurface of tail are white. Ears are small. Antlers have upright tines from a single beam.