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| SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION |
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| COMMON NAME: |
caribou, reindeer |
| KINGDOM: |
Animalia |
| PHYLUM: |
Chordata |
| CLASS: |
Mammalia |
| ORDER: |
Artiodactyla |
| FAMILY: |
Cervidae |
| GENUS SPECIES: |
Rangifer tarandus |
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| DESCRIPTION: |
A heavy coat of woolly underfur and stiff guardhairs protects caribou from harsh climates. Color varies but most individuals are brown or gray above and white below.
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| Both males and females have antlers. Although shape may vary, they are usually long and sweeping with projecting brow tines. |
| They have broad, flat, deeply cleft hooves to aid in walking on soft ground and snow. |
| MALE |
Antler length is 52-130 cm (20.5-51.2 in.) |
| FEMALE |
Antler length is 23-50 cm (9.0-19.7 in.) |
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| SIZE: |
shoulder height = 0.87-1.4 m (2.85-4.6 ft.) |
| head and body length = 1.2-2.2 m (3.9-7.2 ft.) |
| tail length = 7-21 cm (2.75-8.27 in.) |
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| WEIGHT: |
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| MALE |
110 kg (242.5 lb.) |
| FEMALE |
81 kg (178.6 lb.) |
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| DIET: |
A variety of plants |
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| GESTATION: |
227-229 days |
| NURSING DURATION |
At least one month |
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| SEXUAL MATURITY: |
Between 17 and 41 months |
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| LIFE SPAN: |
Average 4.5 years, maximum 15 years |
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| RANGE: |
Northern regions of North America, Greenland, Europe, and Asia. |
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| HABITAT: |
Arctic tundra habitat and surrounding boreal forest. |
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| POPULATION: |
GLOBAL |
unknown |
| REGIONAL |
North America = 2.3-3 million individuals |
| Canadian Arctic Archipelago = 3,300-3,600 individuals |
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| STATUS: |
IUCN |
Lower Risk/least concern; R.t. pearyi (Canada) listed as Endangered. |
| CITES |
Not listed |
| USFWS |
The Selkirk Mountain herd is listed as Endangered. |
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| 1. |
When caribou walk, a clicking noise is produced by a tendon slipping over a bone in the foot. |
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| 2. |
Caribou are also called reindeer. Caribou is the North American term and reindeer is the European term. |
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| 3. |
Most caribou exhibit seasonal shifts in range. Southern caribou may move to lower elevations for winter or to areas with a better food supply. Northern populations of caribou make extensive spring and summer migrations, traveling more than 1,000 km (621 mi.) between the tundra and the wintering grounds in forested areas. |
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| 4. |
Caribou are highly social. Caribou in a given region of the world are divided into separate populations, or herds. These herds move as a single unit with the same general range and migration route. They do not mix with other herds. 100 herds have been identified in North America. Herds can have between 50,000 and 500,000 individuals. |
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| 5. |
Caribou were domesticated about 3,000 years ago. Currently, there is about 3 million domesticated caribou, most of which are in Russia. |
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| Caribou are hunted by humans for their meat, skin, antlers, and other parts. Uncontrolled hunting in the earlier 20th century caused large population declines in the southern parts of their range. Herds may be affected by oil and gas exploitation, blockage of migratory routes, and global climate change. Excessive and unregulated hunting is still problematic. |
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| Nowak, Ronald M. (ed.). Walker's Mammals of the World. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2003. |
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| Parker, S. (ed.). Grizmek's Encyclopedia of Mammals. Vol. IV. New York: McGraw-Hill Publishing Co., 1990. |
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