The reindeer, or caribou as they are also known, inhabit the tundra plains and surrounding boreal forest and mountains of the arctic region. They exist almost all the way around the globe above about 62° north latitude. Domesticated reindeer are common in parts of Russia and Scandinavia, while wild reindeer can be found mostly in Norway, North America, Greenland and Iceland.
Depending on the subspecies, reindeer tend to grow to between 150cm and 230cm in length and weigh between 60kg and 170kg. They predominately eat moss and lichen, which they often dig through snow to reach during the winter months.
Reindeer are a herd animal, and their herds can range in size anywhere from 20 to tens of thousands. These larger herds are common during the spring migration, when smaller herds will merge and travel slowly northwards towards the traditional calving grounds.
- Some reindeer facts:
- Reindeer are the only species of deer where both the males and females grow antlers.
- A one day old reindeer can outrun a human adult.
- The scientific name for reindeer, Rangifer tarandus, translates roughly to "wild tundra-wandering deer".
- Male reindeer have inflatable pouches of skin under their throats. When inflated, this amplifies the males' roar during the mating season.
And, of course, as mentioned at the start of this weeks' post, reindeer are probably best known for pulling Santa Claus' sleigh. Santa's flying reindeer were first named in an 1823 poem A Visit from St. Nicholas by Clement Clarke Moore. The reindeer in this poem were called Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Dunder and Blixem. Dunder was later changed to be Donder, and later still Donner. Blixem was changed to the more widely known Blitzen. Rudolph didn't appear in the original poem.
