Tundra loomad (0)

Tundra animals
Reindeer Reindeer were first domesticated in Norway and northern Asia. When it was seen how valuable they were, they were brought to Alaska in 1887 and later to parts of Canada . These North American reindeer became known as caribou. Although they are called by different names , they are both considered to be a single species . Unlike deer, both the male and female have antlers. The antlers of the male are long, branched and massive , and they are a little flattened at the ends. The antlers of the female are much shorter, simpler and more slender and irregular . Their large, spreading hooves support the animal in snow in the winter and marshy tundra in the summer . Reindeer are also great swimmers and use their feet as paddles. They can also lower their metabolic rate and go into a semi-hibernation when conditions get very harsh. When it looks like there is nothing to eat on the winter tundra, reindeer will scrape the snow away with their wide feet or antlers and eat lichens, dried sedges and small shrubs. In the summer they the will eat leaves of willows, sedges, flowering plants , mushrooms. Reindeer are social animals and live in huge herds, which will often have several thousand animals in it. Males are often loners, until its time to mate. They will migrate more than 650-800 kilometres to reach winter or summer feeding grounds , and can travel up to 80 kilometres a day. Their leg tendons make crackling sounds while walking, which would make a migrating herd a noisy bunch indeed. Females will give birth to a single calf. Most females don't breed until they are 28 months old, and will give birth every year . Newborns can walk within an hour and in a few days can run with the herd. Still, wolves, grizzly bears, and golden eagles kill a large number of newborn calves. Although some people are moving into their habitat, they seem to have adapted. Reindeer is not endangered , thanks to its ability to tolerate climates people would rather not deal with.
Snowshoe rabbit It is larger than other rabbits. It has large rear feet and the toes can spread out to act like snowshoes. Their feet also have fur on the bottom , which protects them from the cold and gives them traction in the snow. In the summer its fur is rusty, greyish brown but is turns pure white in the winter, except for its eyelids and the tips of their ears . They have three to four litters a year with one to eight in each litter . The snowshoe rabbit can run up to 27 mph and jump 10 feet in one hop. Since they are herbivores they are mainly prey. They are experts at escaping predators like the wolf , bobcat, or lynx . When a predator chases it, the rabbit will quickly change direction. They are also good swimmers and will jump in the water to make an escape . Polar bear Polar bear is the largest carnivore on land . The polar bear's fur is clear , not white. Light reflects off the fur and makes it look white. Their teeth and claws are very sharp so they can catch their prey easily. They hunt and eat seals, whale and walrus carcasses. In the summer they also eat lemmings, arctic foxes, ducks and some plants. They live for 15 to 20 years and spend most of their time on drifting packs of ice, eating and resting. The bears reach sexual maturity 3 to 5 years after birth. Each year pregnant polar bears dig a den in the snow of southern facing slopes, where they give birth. The females give birth to one or two cubs. Cubs are naked , blind and deaf when they are born. They learn how to hunt with their mothers for about two and a half years. Polar bears live alone, except for mothers who live with their cubs. Polar bears adapt very well to the cold. They have a layer of blubber around 11,4 centimetres thick. That and the hollow shafts of their hair provide them with excellent insulation . Their ears and tail are very short so they don't lose any heat through them. Their necks are longer than other bears to keep their head above the water when they swim . They have strong legs and partially webbed front feet to help them swim. The polar bear is listed as an endangered species. In the past people hunted polar bears for their fur, today there are conservation projects to restrict hunting in the countries they exist . The polar bears aren 't safe yet because chemicals are polluting their food stock. The ice packs in the North Pole are melting sooner in the spring , and cutting their time to hunt seals. The major cause of death for young polar bears is starvation.
Musk ox It looks like a huge dust mop on hooves, their long hair reaching almost to the ground . The musk ox gets its name from the odour produced by glands beneath its eyes . The male has thick horns that almost meet on top of its head in what is called a "boss". The horns curve down besides its face and out at the ends. The female has smaller horns, without a boss. Instead the top of her head is covered with whitish hair. In the summer the musk ox herd has about 10 members . They will use the almost constant daylight to stuff themselves on plants. They need to put on enough fat to get them through the long winter. In winter the herd can have about 15 to 20 members. Each herd has a dominant male, or bull , which will try to keep other bulls from mating with the females. The female will give birth to one calf. The lifespan of a musk ox is about 24 years. Polar bears can sometimes kill weak or injured oxen. The arctic wolf is the only serious predator. Musk ox forms a defensive formation when threatened. They will first run to a higher location, then turn and stand shoulder -to-shoulder in a circle . With their heads lowered, they form an impenetrable wall. The young are protected in the centre of the circle. Global warming has had ominous effects on their breeding. In the past few years, the coastal plains used as calving grounds have had more snow, and a later thaw. Musk oxen have moved to the foothills to find forage and often give birth there, making them and their calves more vulnerable to grizzly bears.