Fun facts about the world's tiniest reindeer: they're shorter, fatter, and hairier.

Fun facts about the world's tiniest reindeer: they're shorter, fatter, and hairier.

Svalbard reindeer (Rangifer tarandus platyrhynchus) aren't going to be pulling Santa's sleigh any time soon, but they could win a North Pole cuteness competition, in all honesty. This subspecies of reindeer is only found on the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. It is about half the size of other reindeer and measures about five feet long by three feet tall. In actuality, they differ greatly from other reindeer in their morphology. Popular Science quotes Samantha Paige Dwinnell, an ecologist who researches this rare subspecies in Svalbard, as saying, "They're shorter, fatter, and hairier." "They are the fattest deer family in the world, and their hair is twice as long."

For five millennia, Svalbard reindeer have inhabited this group of islands. They have remained largely isolated from other reindeer populations on the European mainland during that time. Dwinnell claims that they have no true natural predators and that they evolved in an environment devoid of actual predators. Occasionally, polar bears will kill any reindeer. However, because polar bears are classified as marine mammals, their spatial overlap is typically quite small. Despite individual differences, many reindeer are quite docile when people approach them, and they can even be seen wandering around Svalbard's towns. Some Svalbard reindeer may allow Dwinnell and her team to approach within 100 feet or less, whilst other deer are infamously hesitant.

Similar to other caribou and reindeer, they have adapted to their constantly changing environment. In actuality, they reside in a region known as the high arctic desert, which is extremely cold despite having little thick snow. The normal summer temperature is just in the mid-40s Fahrenheit. "Their core body temperature remains constant, but their hooves can practically be at zero degrees Celsius," Dwinnell says. For them to see more of the low lighting in the winter and cope with nearly constant sunlight in the summer, the cell structure in their eyes likewise changes from winter to summer.

In order to keep heat from escaping, their legs are likewise shorter and closer to their bodies. It all comes down to reproduction when it comes to their extra weight. "The fat is the currency that all caribou and reindeer use for reproduction and survival," Dwinnell explains. This area has low-growing vegetation, yet these animals somehow manage to be exceptionally plump. They essentially use their fat reserves to get through the lengthy winters here. Their hair, which is twice as long as that of other reindeer, also fulfills the same function.

The majority of reindeer and caribou consume lichen, which is a hybrid of algae or cyanobacteria that grows on bark, wood, mosses, rock, soil, peat, glass, and even man-made materials like cloth, metal, and plastic. “There isn’t a whole lot of lichen available to them here,” says Dwinnell, “so Svalbard reindeer are a bit unique in their diet, in that they largely eat grasses.” Because Svalbard reindeer are highly adaptive to their environment, they are also quick to adjust to changes in their food sources. For instance, during rain-upon-snow events, when the vegetation is frozen under ice, they will shift their feeding location and keep an eye out for more seasonal changes.

All of the plant nutrients go into the roots when autumn sets in and the plants begin to die, "During these warmer years, we discovered that Svalbard reindeer actually visit these locations where they can burrow into the ground and then consume the plant roots."Dwinnell and her crew did not see any reindeer searching for nutrients when the tundra froze in mid-September but there was still a lot of green vegetation above ground because the nutrients were frozen into the plant above ground. "They can gather information about the location of nutrient-dense food, even if it's not visible on the landscape."

Despite their general docility, some of them will respond if a human or something it considers a threat approaches. "Svalbard reindeer kind of go up and try to kick, but they're usually so fat that they barely leave the ground," Dwinnell explains. Unfortunately, the fact that they can fly with their front legs disproves the notion held by many readers that reindeer can fly. It's simply this flashy and amusing.

Compact Build In order to stay warm in the icy Arctic climate, Svalbard reindeer, the smallest subspecies of reindeer, have stockier bodies and shorter legs. Their exceptionally thick and woolly coat gives them a fluffier, more robust appearance than other reindeer. When it comes to protecting against the , this thick fur excels. Their faces are rounder and shorter than those of other reindeer, which means that less of their body is exposed to the cold. Survival Specialists: During the long, hard winters when food is limited, they rely on moss and lichens as scant vegetation to survive.

Because their habitat is restricted to the islands, Svalbard reindeer are slow-moving and do not migrate like their mainland relatives do. Low Predation Risk: Because there are no large predators in the Svalbard, these reindeer do not require speed or agility, which contributes to their distinctive body shape and behavior.