Overview
Caribou are large migratory deer adapted to Arctic and subarctic environments. Known for their epic seasonal migrations and importance to northern indigenous cultures.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammal
- Order
- Artiodactyla
- Family
- Cervidae
- Genus
- Rangifer
Habitat
Arctic tundra, boreal forests, mountain slopes. Requires large territories for seasonal migration.
Diet
Lichens (especially winter), grasses, sedges, leaves, twigs, fungi. Highly specialized for low-quality vegetation.
Behavior
Highly migratory with herds traveling up to 3,000 miles annually. Form large aggregations during migration.
Hunting
Important subsistence species for indigenous peoples. Sport hunting regulated by quotas in Alaska and Canada.
Conservation Status
Vulnerable to climate change. Several subspecies declining due to habitat loss and development.
Subspecies (15)
- Osborn's caribouRangifer tarandus osborni
- Siberian tundra reindeerRangifer tarandus sibiricus
- Woodland caribouRangifer tarandus caribou
- Svalbard reindeerRangifer tarandus platyrhynchus
- Barren-ground caribouRangifer tarandus groenlandicus
- Busk reindeerRangifer tarandus buskensis
- Finnish forest caribouRangifer tarandus fennicus
- Grant's caribouRangifer tarandus granti
- Kamchatkan reindeerRangifer tarandus phylarchus
- Labrador caribouRangifer tarandus caboti
- Mountain reindeerRangifer tarandus tarandus
- Newfoundland caribouRangifer tarandus terraenovae
- Novaya Zemlya reindeerRangifer tarandus pearsoni
- Peary caribouRangifer tarandus pearyi
- Siberian forest reindeerRangifer tarandus valentinae