Since the fawning takes place far to the north of the Nueltin Lake
region, practically no local information concerning it was obtained.
Charles Schweder stated that in the spring migration the pregnant does
pass to an undetermined distance north of the upper Kazan River (below
Ennadai Lake). Although the migration at Nueltin Lake continues
throughout June, the rearguard is composed largely of bucks, and the
comparatively few does accompanying them toward the last may be barren.
Fisher (1821: 199) and Parry (1821: 183) report a small fawn of _R.
pearyi_ on Melville Island on June 2. Richardson states (“1825”: 329)
that the young are born in May and June. There is evidently some
geographical and individual variation in the time of birth (_cf._
Jacobi, 1931: 232). Apparently the gestation period in the Caribou
covers approximately eight months or a little less. In the domesticated
Reindeer it is 231 to 242 days, according to Jacobi (1931: 234); in the
White-tailed Deer, 205 to 212 days, according to Seton (1929, +3+: 258).
Fred Schweder, Jr., stated that he had never found more than a single
unborn fawn in any one of the animals he had secured; yet he has seen as
many as four fawns following a doe. Of course there is no proof that
this individual was the actual mother of so many fawns; a stray or
bereaved youngster might well endeavor to attach itself to a foster
mother. On August 28, at Little River, I saw a doe being followed by two
fawns. On September 16 Fred reported seeing three old does without
fawns. Presumably most of the does do not bear young until they are two
years old (_cf._ Jacobi, 1931: 235); thus many yearling does without
family cares should be observed during the summer.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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