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  1. Home
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  3. Reindeer
Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)

Mammals · Artiodactyla · Cervidae

Reindeer

Rangifer tarandus

Vulnerable

At high risk of extinction in the wild over the medium term.

Spotted something wrong?

It is the only deer in which both sexes grow antlers. It makes one of the longest land migrations on the planet.

Weight

60 kg – 300 kg

Size

1.6 m – 2 m

Life expectancy

17 years

Diet

Herbivore

Feeds mainly on plants.

Activity

Irregular activity

Active at irregular times, by day or night depending on circumstances.

Social structure

Herd

Lives in large groups as a strategy against predators.

Tundra
9countries16parks23same family1natural phenomena2featured routes

AI-generated images: illustrations, not photographs.

Fun facts

  • It is the only deer in which both sexes grow antlers.
  • Some North American populations migrate as much as 5,000 km a year.
  • It feeds mainly on lichen, especially through the winter.
  • fisiologíaIt is the only deer in which both males and females can grow antlers, and the reflective layer in its eyes changes colour between seasons to cope with the polar light.
  • comportamientoIn some domesticated populations in northern Europe, herders still move whole herds along seasonal migration routes that have been kept up for generations.

Life cycle and biology

Skeleton type
Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)
Habitat and environment
Arctic tundra and boreal forest of Eurasia and North America (where the wild animal is called the caribou)
Birth weight
6 - 6.5 kg
Size at birth
Suckling within minutes of birth and following the herd within days
Sexual maturity
Female: 18 months | Male: 3 years to breed effectively, because of social competition
Gestation / incubation
225-235 days (~7.5 months)
Litter / clutch size
1 young (twins rare)
Life expectancy in captivity
Documented record of 21.8 years in captivity

Sources consulted: DinoAnimals.com · AnAge (genomics.senescence.info) · IUCN Global Invasive Species Database · Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game · Britannica · Animal Diversity Web · Cool Antarctica

Where to find it

Loading map…

The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.

Where to see it

Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented — showing 10 of 16.

Related species

Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Reindeer — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.

Same taxonomic family
Same taxonomic family
Same taxonomic family
Same taxonomic family
Shares a park
Shares a park

How to help

The reindeer is classified as vulnerable. Organisations such as the IUCN, WWF and the Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programmes is a good starting point if you want to get involved.

It's documented in 10 protected areas — one reason why protecting these places matters for its conservation.

Keep exploring

Based on what we already know about reindeer.

Share an experience, a fun fact or a tip for seeing the reindeer.
See full glossary
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See its range on the interactive map→
SarekSweden
PadjelantaSweden
JotunheimenNorway
HardangerviddaNorway
VatnajökullIceland
Urho KekkonenFinland
CairngormsUnited Kingdom
Volcanoes of KamchatkaRussia
Wrangel IslandRussia
RondaneNorway
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CountriesNorway
ParksSarekSweden
TagsHerbivore
Herbivore
Variable activity
In herds
Vulnerable
Tundra
Mammal

Europe5

North America3

Asia1

Norway
Russia
Sweden
Finland
Iceland
Canada
Denmark
Finland
Iceland
Norway
Sweden
Canada
Greenland
United States
Russia