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Reindeer
(Rangifer tarandus)
Reindeer are amazingly well adapted to a very difficult habitat. A tendon in the animal’s ankle rubs against a bone, making a clicking noise. Scientists
believe this helps to keep the herd together while they are migrating in sometimes white-out condition blizzards. Reindeer have two coats of fur. A thick, soft, matted undercoat keeps them warm in temperatures as cold as -50 degrees. A coarser outer coat of hollow hair traps body heat and helps keep them afloat while swimming. (They can swim at 4 mph.)
Their wide hooves grow a ridge in winter to help them keep their grip on ice and snow. In summer the pads of their toes swell, making their hoof even wider so they can walk across the muddy, soft tundra. Their antlers make excellent snow shovels to dig for vegetation during the lean winter months.
Description:
Up to 4' tall at the shoulder and 6' in length, weighing up to 250 pounds (females are smaller than males). Coloration varies from brown-and-white, black-and-white. dark brown, grayish brown to all white. Both males and females have antlers. Males (bulls) have a palmate (hand-shaped) section on the front of one antler; females (cows) do not. Males shed their antlers in mid-winter; females shed them in late spring or early summer.
Habitat:
Arctic tundra and boreal forests.
Range:
Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia.
Diet:
Leaves, shoots, bark, fungi, moss and lichen.
Lifespan:
4 - 5 years in the wild, twice that in captivity.
Family Life:
Females give birth to one calf, occasionally twins, between late April to early June after an 8-month gestation. Calves can stand within one hour from birth, walk within 2 hours and run faster than a person in just one day! Young are born with teeth and start to nibble grasses as soon as they can walk.
Status:
In Sweden in 1865, the last true wild reindeer was killed. In Finland it is believed the last wild reindeer became extinct around 1900. After this time reindeer were only found in domestic herds. Today about 2,250,000 reindeer exist in domestic herds.
<<< Striped-knee Tarantula, A.K.A. Zebra knee Tarantula | Back to the Animal list | Barn Owl >>>
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