How Does a Reindeer Find Food?

Finding Food

Reindeer hooves

A reindeer is a large animal, weighing about 200 lbs., that lives in a barren area called the tundra. In some months, there is little vegetation there. The tundra is treeless for the most part. To find food, reindeer are constantly moving across the area, searching and eating as they go. This process is called grazing. In the summer they find enough to eat their fill. But in the winter, food is harder to find, as it is covered in snow. That is when the reindeer uses its nose, hooves and antlers to find food. Reindeer have powerful noses that can smell food under the snow. Once they have found the food with the sense of smell, they will then use their hooves and antlers to dig it out of the snow. The hooves are split, with two large toes that are perfect for digging. The antlers have several prongs. Between these two features, snow is not an obstacle in reaching the food.

Foods

Lichen

During the summer reindeer graze on vegetation on the tundra. Such plants include low-growing shrubs, mosses and grass. In the winter, none of these are available. The only food available in the winter beneath the snow is something called lichen. It grows with very little sunlight and is composed of algae and fungus. Without this food the reindeer would starve in the winter. As it is, lichen is digested quickly, so reindeer need to eat up to 11 pounds of it each day.

Territory

Reindeer herd

Reindeer live and move in herds in their search of food. They will migrate thousands of miles as they search. As summer approaches, they move north to take advantage of new growth of grasses. In winter, they migrate south from the tundra to areas that offer some very limited cover from snow, making lichen easier to uncover.

Global Warming's Effects

Global warming is causing concerns for the reindeer population. Higher temperatures in the tundra during the winter cause the snow to melt. When it refreezes, the tundra is covered in ice, as opposed to snow. The reindeer are unable to use their hooves to paw through the ice for food.

Resources

• Reindeer Facts and Information
• Reindeer Research Program