Hands Down Animals · Printable fact sheet
Reindeer
Rangifer
Quick facts
| Scientific name | Rangifer |
|---|---|
| Size | 1.6–2.1 meters in length, 0.8–1.4 meters tall at the shoulder |
| Weight | 60–318 kg |
| Lifespan | 8–12 years (up to 20 in captivity) |
| Diet | Mostly lichens (such as reindeer moss) in winter; grasses, sedges, and leaves in summer; mushrooms, willows… |
| Habitat | Arctic tundra, Subarctic forest tundra, Boreal forest (taiga) |
| Where it lives | Scandinavia, Siberia, Alaska, Canadian Arctic |
| IUCN status | Vulnerable |
| Population | 2,600,000 - 3,500,000 |
| Top speed | 80 km/h |
| Family | Cervidae |
About the reindeer
Reindeer, called caribou in North America, are the only deer in which both males and females grow antlers, and they live on the tundra and in the boreal forests of the Arctic and subarctic across Europe, Asia and North America. Some herds make the longest land migrations of any mammal, up to about 1,200 kilometres a year, and their wide, splayed hooves work as snowshoes and paddles; in winter they dig through snow for lichen. The species has declined by around 40% in three decades and is listed as Vulnerable.
Five things to know
- Both male and female reindeer grow antlers; this is rare among deer species.
- Reindeer undertake some of the longest terrestrial migrations of any mammal, traveling over 5,000 km per year.
- Their hooves adapt seasonally: large and spongy in summer, sharp-edged in winter for ice and snow.
- Reindeer are well-adapted to Arctic darkness, having eyes that change color seasonally from gold to blue, improving vision.
- The name 'caribou' is used in North America, while 'reindeer' is the term in Europe and Asia.
Homeschool unit: Animals homeschool guide — Habitats, adaptations and food chains as a graded unit, with the reindeer as one of its worked examples.