Antler magic, mystical horns

JEROME - Horns or antlers, do you know which? To give you a clue antlers are found in the deer family or in scientific turns, the Family Cervidae. Members of the deer family in Idaho, include mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, moose and woodland caribou. Horns grow on animals in the Family Bovidae, they include antelopes, bighorn sheep and mountain goats. There are also many domestic animals with horns, cattle, bison, goats and sheep. Horns grow the way fingernails do, almost. To make a horn, first a bony core initially develops within the skin and then becomes fused to the skull of the animal. As the bone grows it is covered in a shell of keratin, this is the same material that makes fingernails. In some species, both males and females may have horns, while in others horns are found only in males. This is also true with antlers; both sexes of caribou have them. The major difference between horns and antlers is antlers fall off and grow again every year, where horns remain with the animal throughout life. After mating season in early winter antlers are shed. The minerals in the bone at the base of the antlers are absorbed into the bloodstream and the antler becomes weak at this point and breaks off. The animal retains a small group of living cells that will make the new pair of antlers in the next season.