Caribou Shed Antlers Every Year

Caribou is one of the species of North American deer that grow and shed antlers every year. Caribou is another name for the undomesticated wild reindeer that migrate across the northernmost regions of North America. Caribou or reindeer are members of the deer family which in North America includes moose, elk and whitetail deer. The males of all of these species have antlers, which are not the same as horns. Deer are unique mammals because the males shed their antlers at the beginning of winter and regrow them in the spring. Caribou are even more unusual because both males and females grow antlers but female caribou shed their antlers in the spring.

Caribou antlers are something of hybrid between elk antlers and moose antlers. Caribou antlers are long, slender and branching like elk antlers but also have wide features similar to the palmate antlers of the moose. Caribou have an additional forward piece of antler called a shovel that protrudes over the face. It is called a shovel because of its shape and the shovel looks somewhat like the wide ends of the moose antler. While moose are the largest North American deer and also have the largest antlers, the magnificent length and breadth of caribou antlers make them the largest antlers relative to body size of any deer. A single caribou antler can reach 53 inches (135 cm) in overall length and 39 inches (100 cm) at its wide top.

Caribou in North America are constantly migrating except when they spend the brief arctic summer at their northern calving grounds. As soon as the calves are sturdy enough to travel, the caribou herds begin their journey south before the severe winter weather sets in. Caribou travel more extensively than any other mammal, some 3,100 miles (5,000 km) per year. Fortunately there is a ready supply of lichens on the open tundra that caribou use as their primary source of food.

Domesticated caribou are usually called reindeer and native people in North America, Europe and Asia have been managing their reindeer herds for centuries. Domesticated reindeer provide food, shelter, clothing and transportation for native people even today. Even though modern native people may have a snowmobile for transportation, they continue to rely on the reindeer as part of their lifestyle. They even use the shed reindeer antlers as a cash crop sold to craftsmen who use them for artistic purposes.

Alan B. Stables is a freelance writer on alternative agriculture, has organized alternative agriculture events and has also been a guest speaker in Brazil, China, Egypt, Italy, Latvia and Spain, on how to market agricultural produce for maximum returns.

In addition to writing on deer farming, Alan also writes articles on alpaca farming and other alternative farming projects.

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Whitetail Deer Annually Shed Antlers

One characteristic that whitetails, moose, elk and caribou (reindeer), all species of North American deer, have in common is that the males shed their antlers in early winter when the weather first gets cold. At the proper time the antlers simply fall off the animal's head and anyone who searches for shed antlers will find them just lying on the ground. Anyone who knows American deer species can identify the species of deer simply by looking at a shed antler.

Whitetail deer, numbering some 18 million, are found throughout the continental United States except in five states where the weather or terrain is not suitable. In fact, many regions of the country are home to their own unique subspecies of deer that has adapted to local conditions. Whitetails vary greatly in size not only by subspecies but also by gender, Bucks (male whitetails) range in size from 130 pounds (60 kg) to 300 pounds (130 kg) while does (females) weigh only 90 to 200 pounds (40 to 90 kg). Even though there isn't very much meat (venison) in a small deer, hunters hunt for deer in the legal hunting season because the meat is tasty. There are many delicious regional recipes for venison.

Antlers vary in size among the subspecies of whitetail deer but each year a buck's rack (pair) of antlers will increase in size and complexity. In whitetails, the antlers are similar to branching in a tree. Each branch of the antlers ends in a pointed tip or simply point. Trophy hunters want the most elaborate rack of antlers they can find which typically occur on the most mature bucks. Hunting associations use a uniform scoring system for evaluating whitetail deer antlers that is based on the number and configuration of the points on the antlers. The best sets of antlers make the local, national and international record books.

Of course, trophy bucks are elusive. Mature bucks with trophy antlers have been crafty enough throughout their lives to elude predators, including hunters. Whitetail bucks lead solitary lives and only join the herd of does and fawns during the mating season and occasionally during the winter. The rest of the year, bucks live in relatively inaccessible locations. This means that shed whitetail antlers are difficult to find in the wild.

There are plenty of treasure hunters who spend their time in remote locations searching for shed antlers from whitetail deer. These shed antlers are used for a variety of decorative purposes.

Alan B. Stables is a freelance writer on alternative agriculture, has organized alternative agriculture events and has also been a guest speaker in Brazil, China, Egypt, Italy, Latvia and Spain, on how to market agricultural produce for maximum returns.

In addition to writing on deer farming, Alan also writes articles on alpaca farming and other alternative farming projects.

View article source