Facts

We love sharing our reindeer and local knowledge with you. You could join one of our reindeer herders on a hill trip and find out everything you need to know about reindeer or maybe join us while we are travelling around the country at Christmas time. Did you know that reindeer don’t melt the snow they lie on because of their big warm winter coats, or that the Cairngorms (where our reindeer live) boast the highest, coldest and snowiest plateau in the British Isles?

It does not stop there either – Tilly Smith, co-owner of the Cairngorm Reindeer has written “The Real Rudolph”. Following on from her first book “Velvet Antlers, Velvet Noses”, “The Real Rudolph” explores everything reindeer related, including an account of a very special trip she made to Mongolia in 2005 to visit reindeer herding people. “Hoofprints” was put together by Emily Singleton to celebrate our 60th anniversary , and documents the story of the herd from its inception to the present day. It is a fantastic in-depth resource which will delight everyone with an interest in reindeer.

We also have a DVD “4 Seasons”. Produced by Alex Smith, narrated by Emily Singleton and filmed by reindeer herders working here over a duration of 3 years, it follows the Cairngorm Herd throughout the year, covering the changes the reindeer undergo throughout this time and how we are involved with them on the hill.

FAMILY : Deer (Cervidae).

SPECIES : Rangifer Tarandus
SIZE : Approx 1 Metre at the Shoulder
BEHAVIOUR : Highly gregarious, generally found in a herd

  • R eindeer and Caribou are the same species
  • E very reindeer regardless of sex or age grows a new set of antlers every year.
  • I ce and snow are no problem. Reindeer have thick Winter coats for Arctic life.
  • N omadic tribes throughout Arctic Scandinavia and Russia have domesticated reindeer.
  • D uring May and June the calves are born. Very precocious, they grow quickly.
  • E dible mushrooms, lichens and Arctic vegetation are the favourite food of reindeer.
  • E xtra wide, splayed hooves enable reindeer to spread weight on soft snow to prevent them sinking.
  • R eindeer have a short, dark Summer coat and thick, lighter coloured Winter coat.

Want to know more?  We have produced two brochures:

One is a “Student’s Pack” which contains a variety of information intended for both educational and fun purposes. And the other is a 16 page “Reindeer Booklet”. Both of these are available, free of charge.

  • Student Pack
  • Reindeer Info Booklet

The Student Information Pack contains a variety of information intended for both educational and fun purposes. Each section starts with a header page telling you what the following pages are about. Any teachers amongst you may find its format useful in the classroom. If you feel that any changes would be helpful to make the pack fall in line with particular aspects of the National Curriculum, please let us know.

If you’d like a copy of these, please drop us an email and we can send them over to you.

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