When it comes to being at home in Alaska’s winter landscape, caribou (Rangifer tarandus) are pretty chill. Alaska has 32 distinct caribou herds, and you have a chance of seeing these hooved critters in almost all of Alaska’s 16 national wildlife refuges. Bull caribou drop their antlers in November, while pregnant females keep their antlers until their calves are born in May, meaning Santa’s reindeer, which are essentially the same species, are all female! Caribou bodies are incredibly well adapt

The Sámi people of the Arctic have a timeless bond with reindeer. Not just as a source of food or clothing, but as the heart of their identity. For centuries, reindeer herding has shaped their rhythm of life, traditions, and worldview. The reindeer give them meat, hides, antlers and valuable materials for tools and clothes; they also guide seasonal migrations and connect them deeply with the land. But above all, it’s a relation built on respect and symbiosis: the Sámi take care of the reindeer,