New! Sign up for our free email newsletter.
Reference Terms
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Reindeer (Caribou)

The reindeer, known as caribou when wild in North America, is an Arctic and Subarctic-dwelling deer. About 1 million live in Alaska, and a comparable number live in northern Canada. There are an estimated 5 million reindeer in Eurasia, mainly semi-domesticated. The last remaining European herds of the genetic wild reindeer are found in central Norway. In the wild, most caribou migrate in large herds between their birthing habitat and their winter habitat. Their wide hooves help the animals move through snow and tundra; they also help propel the animal when it swims. Reindeer are ruminants, having a four-chambered stomach. They mainly eat lichens in winter, especially reindeer moss. However, they also eat the leaves of willows and birches, as well as sedges and grasses. There is some evidence to suggest that on occasion they will also feed on lemmings, arctic char and bird eggs.

Related Stories
 


Plants & Animals News

October 24, 2026

Scientists have captured virus-like particles assembling themselves step by step, revealing how a surprisingly simple process of trial and error produces complex structures with remarkable precision. The discovery uncovers a crucial molecular ...
Honeybees are aggressively pushing wild pollinators away from flowers, with scientists documenting how they chase off rivals and dominate valuable food sources. New research warns that rising temperatures and increasing honeybee populations could ...
Scientists have discovered that severely bleached corals can make a remarkable comeback simply by touching healthy, genetically identical corals. In laboratory experiments, dying corals regained their color and fully recovered within seven weeks, ...
Scientists have discovered that some forest soils are becoming surprisingly better at removing methane from the atmosphere as temperatures rise and rainfall declines. A study spanning up to 24 years found methane absorption increasing by an average ...
Stanford scientists have developed a revolutionary microscope that reveals the hidden inner workings of living cells in real time, without the fluorescent labels that can interfere with observations. The breakthrough could provide new insights into ...
Scientists have discovered a remarkable “Pac-Man enzyme” that helps bacteria devour certain types of plastic and may offer new hope in the fight against plastic pollution. Researchers found that ...
Scientists have discovered a potential new weapon against a devastating fungus that threatens rice, wheat, and barley worldwide. By engineering a special type of plant immune receptor, researchers ...
Two unusually long-legged cats have helped scientists uncover the first genetically confirmed cases of Marfan syndrome in domestic felines. Researchers at Cornell University discovered that the ...
Scientists have traced the development of a mouse embryo from its first two cells to the formation of organs, using a remarkable DNA recording system that reveals the family history of individual cells. Their findings uncover how different cell ...
Scientists may have solved a 2.3-billion-year-old mystery about how Earth maintained enough oxygen to support life. Ancient rocks reveal that phosphorus recycling in the oceans created a ...
Scientists have uncovered a surprising secret behind a mushroom disease that has frustrated growers for more than a century: It involves more than 17 species of harmful bacteria, not just one. The discovery could explain why treatments have ...
A brilliant yellow coral discovered off Costa Rica proved so unusual that scientists had to create an entirely new family to classify it. The meter-tall colonies rise from seafloors covered in brittle stars, inspiring the Tolkien-inspired name ...

Latest Headlines

updated 12:56 pm ET