Reindeer Majestic mammals

Today we feature an animal that plays a very important role during the Christmas season and has become a character that is loved by all! It is a reindeer just like Rudolph, Santa’s special reindeer leading the team of reindeer (Dasher Dancer, Prancer, Vixen Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen) pulling his sleigh.

The popular Christmas song ‘Rudolph the red nosed reindeer’ is known by children all over the world and it helps introduce us to one of the most majestic creatures alive today.

The reindeer Rangifer tarandus is a majestic animal that lives in the Arctic areas called the tundra. It is also called a caribou in countries like Canada and Alaska.

It is a very special animal because it can walk on thick layers of snow as well as dig in deep snow to look for food. Its hooves are wide and specially designed to help it to walk on soft sand and snow.It is also an excellent swimmer and can even swim across wide rivers if it has to.

It has a thick coat of fur that helps it swim because the fur traps the air and reduces resistance in the water.

Most of these features have come to be because it is living in the Arctic and sub Arctic regions.

Reindeer can also be found around the whole Northern Polar circle and even in Mongolia and some areas of China. Within this harsh and freezing-cold environment, reindeer live together in herds. The smallest herd may contain 20 animals, while the largest may contain thousands. The herd is almost constantly on the move.

Somewhere around the 18th century, people started to adopt reindeer and bring them up as we do with dogs.

This is still done mainly in areas like Russia, Scandinavia and Iceland. There are very few wild reindeer left in the wild today; the number is estimated to be about a few thousands. The main reason for this is thought to be the climatic changes that are happening around the world.

Scientists believe that like most other animals in the world it is affecting this species too.

Let’s check out some physical attributes of Rudolph’s cousin in the wilds.On average a reindeer is around four feet tall (1.2 metres) and six feet long (1.8 metres). The female usually weighs between 60-170 kilograms, while the male weighs between 100-318 kilograms. However this size difference changes according to the sub species in question.

One of the strangest things about this creature is it sheds its antlers every year and re-grows a new set, while all other types of deer have one pair for life. Another fact unique to this creature is that both the female and male have antlers, instead of just the male.

The antlers are divided into two separate groups of upper and lower points. The reindeer also has the largest antlers in relation to its body size. And its antlers are second in size only to the moose in this family.

Its antlers can range up to 100cm in width and 135cm in beam length. The domesticated reindeer is usually shorter legged and heavier than its wild counterpart.

A reindeer has hooves that adapt to the seasonal changes. In summer, when the tundra is soft and wet, the footpads become extra soft and provide extra traction.

In the winter, the opposite reaction happens, and the hooves become hard and tight with the top part of the hoof sticking out.

This helps it to balance on slippery ice. Such hooves also become useful to it during feeding as well, because this allows it to dig in the deep snow (cratering) to find its favourite food which is called either lichen or reindeer moss. Its knees are made in such a way that they create a clicking sound when it travels.

The reindeer has a specialised nose because it has something called a ‘nasal turbinate bone.’ This is to make the surface area dramatically increase within its nostrils. The incoming cold air that it breathes is warmed by the animals’ body heat before the air reaches its lungs.

Also the water is condensed from the air it’s about to breathe out or exhale, and is used to make the dry air moist. Scientists believe that this also enables the water to be absorbed into its blood.

The reindeer also has a double layer of fur; the undercoat is wooly and dense, while the overcoat is full of longer fur that consists of air filled hairs. This fur traps the air and so protects the reindeer from the cold, and also helps it to float in the water as we explained before.

Reindeer are herbivores (they eat only plants) and they are also ruminants and have a four chambered stomach. They are especially partial to reindeer moss/lichen, but they are also known to eat willow and birch leaves, sedges and various types of grasses.

There is evidence that they sometimes eat even bird eggs occasionally. Some domesticated reindeer are fed mushrooms, which they appear to love.

Reproduction takes place throughout the months of September and November and calves are usually born the following May or June.

Males lock antlers and compete with each other to win over a female. In this manner a particularly strong male will win as many as 5-15 mates during a season.

When it is time to give birth, the female moves out of the herd and selects a secluded spot to have her baby which is called a calf. She usually returns to the same spot each year to give birth.

The calf is born between late May and early June, when the herd is at the summer grazing grounds. It weighs 11 - 20 pounds and it can stand almost immediately after birth. It suckles until it is five to six months old.Unlike many baby deer, the reindeer calf’s coat is not marked with spots used for camouflage. Because it is born in early summer, the calf has enough time to feed and grow strong before the fall migration, when predators are most likely to attack.

The calf’s antlers begin to grow when the animal is a year old. It is around this time that the calf becomes independent of its mother.

The reindeer travels the furthest of any terrestrial mammal, walking up to 5,000 km a year, (although in Europe the animal does not migrate so far). Normally it travels about 19-55 km a day while migrating, the caribou can run at speeds of 60-80 km/h.

During the spring migration, smaller herds will group together to form larger herds of 50,000 to 500,000 animals, but during autumn migrations, the groups become smaller.

During the winter, reindeer travel to forested areas to forage (look for food) under the snow. By spring, groups leave their winter grounds to go to the calving grounds.

As reindeer can swim easily and quickly, normally at around 6.5 km/h but if necessary at a maximum speed of 10 km/h, and migrating herds will not hesitate to swim across a large lake or broad river.

The reindeer is an extremely important, valuable and even essential animal for the Nomadic tribes of the Arctic region, because it is the only deer that can be domesticated. It provides clothes, milk, butter, meat, cheese and transportation. The tough sinews on its legs can be used to make thread.

The reindeer’s range has decreased dramatically due to extensive hunting and the destruction of its natural habitat by man.The building of hydro electric power plants has caused rivers to be diverted and large dams to be constructed in Canada and Siberia. The alteration of the natural landscape obstructs reindeer migration routes and causes thousands to drown.Did you know that a new born reindeer can run faster than a fully grown man?

- Shalindri PERERA