I am the youngest Scottish reindeer herder. Although many people think I’m older than I really am and it happens on a regular basis. I’m either on a hill trip or doing a paddock talk and there is always someone asking me, “how did you end up being a reindeer herder?” When I give people my answer I often hear a gasp. “What, you’re still in school?!.” Yes I am, and only 2 years left then I’ll be free (Im counting down the days practically). Another question always follows this: what are you doing after school? I dunno, I’ll figure it out but I know one thing I ain’t sitting at a desk for ten hours a day. The reindeer herders have learnt that I ain’t sitting still.
Maisy feeding the herd during a snowy start to 2026.
Although most people are surprised about my age of only being 16, and are really interested in how I have such an interest in reindeer and the hills, the majority of the people I meet are supportive. But you’re always going to have a couple of people who treat you differently when they find out I’m at school still. I get a bit disappointed when people treat me differently after I tell them because all of a sudden there is a switch, “oh you do something so cool, but I still know better than you”. I do sometimes find it can be a struggle being young in a professional environment – but I enjoy this. I get a chance to show poeple my knowledge and it helps me build confidence.
Maisy and Winnie both enjoying the sunshine!
At first hanging out with the reindeer I was just an extra pair of hands carrying feed onto the hill and maybe chatting to a couple of visitors on the hill trips. I was nervous, only 13 and had no experience of talking to big groups of people with no knowledge of reindeer. Now I can easily chat to 50+ people because I now have a love for reindeer. I want to get everyone else to know all their fun facts to know why the herders are here and how important reindeer are to the Cairngorms ecosystem. However, saying this I still will not do a presentation in school! Reindeer I can talk all day about, but in other areas I’m still working on my confidence.
Dante and Disco relaxing out in the hills during this years free range season, during one of Maisy’s many long hikes out to see them.
A strong memory I have of the first time I talked in front of 20 people was in horrible weather with Joe. Joe asked me to talk about handfeeding but I did it only because I wanted to get off the hill and back to the centre as soon as possible! I’m glad for it now – sometimes you just need a little push out your comfort zone to see what you can do.
Reindeer have grown my confidence from now being able to talk to lots of people, work in the shop, give paddock talks, and even answer the phone… The thing I really don’t like is answering the phone! Mainly because you never know what you’re going to be asked on the other side. If it’s anything to do with officey things or on the computers I have no answer. There is always me handing the phone across the room when it’s ringing. If someone is busy in the shop however and only me to answer I have the dreaded task of answering. Slowly getting there but I am still not a fan.
Maisy feeding Cheer and Chai in August 2025 during a hike – Maisy always makes sure her backpack has all the neccassary gear for finding reindeer!
It is obvious that reindeer herding has boosted my confidence massively and I’m slowly gaining more responsibility and trust with the herders. At first I was just an extra person on a hill trip but now I get to help with the talks and help run them.
Amazon looking her absolute best on a morning free range mission in April!
In school they know I hang out with reindeer. This year I had the delight of giving my English teacher a 15 minute talk about The Cairngorm Reindeer Herd. Fun fact, my English teacher even taught Fiona… For my national 5 geography assignment I looked at how reindeer affect the vegetation cover and the different species of vegetation where there is a change in population of riendeer. My results showed that reindeer are creating more diversity of plant species. (If you want the results email us and I can send them over.) By doing this project it also meant I spent a few hours roaming on the hills. However it was revolting weather with no visablity whatsoever but it was still fun!
Morris helping Maisy with her studies of the vegetation growing along the top ridge of the Hill Enclosure.
A favourite memory of mine… In the summer on a Friday afternoon off the school bus, I was tying my shoelaces about to go for a run up Meall a’ Bhuachaille with Froach when Hen answers the phone from Amy saying she’s found some reindeer in Glenfeshie. Hen looked at me, “Maisy, what are you up to this afternoon?” There I was forgetting about Fraoch and my run and off we went up Glenfeshie to go find some calves and Amy. Not a bad Friday afternoon!
Lochi resting on a sunny day out in the hills. Maisy sitting with Winnie and Alba out in the hills after a free-range trip.
It took me a while to get used to being comfortable around the reindeer just because they are animals and I was still unsure of what their next steps were going to be. However now a few years down the line I’m comfortable with having reindeer brush up against me and try to calm a situation. From working with the reindeer my confidence has boosted and people in my life outside of reindeer can see that. This year was my first proper calving with working a lot more often during the weekend and my study leave. The calves are such sweeeties!
One of the first calves I met this year and my jaw dropped when I saw this guy. This is Texels calf and is just the sweetest little thing.
I think young people should get the chance to work outside with animals and in the outdoors more as so many young people are not getting opportunities to try many varied environments of work. I have found my own self confidence and knowing many young people struggle with this, it would benefit many. Working with reindeer has made me realize that I’m never going to want to get an inside office job mainly because I would probably explode if I were to sit still for 8 hours a day! I know there are lots of young people just like me that are meant for outdoor jobs and volunteering and working with animals gives you a chance to explore that. I’m also grateful for the resposibility and to find a group of people with interests just like mine. Sometimes you just find the right place where you belong!
Cameron, Sheena, Lotti, Daisy, Echo, Amy, and Maisy – Christmas Fun Crew, 2025!
Daisy: It was morning briefing in mid April and we were contacted to inform us the reindeer had moved right up onto the mountain plateau not too far from Ptarmigan Station. This was going to be a pretty long walk for us to make it up to the reindeer, find them in some pretty interesting conditions, and then herd them down off the mountains to one of our free range visit spots. Thankfully, Cairngorm Mountain staff came to the rescue!
Andi: A quick phone call to Cairngorm Mountain and they were happy to help us with a ride up on the shiny Funicular Railway – a unique scenic ride which is a destination in itself. For us, this would save us around an hour of uphill walking in blizzard conditions, and made the difference between needing to abandon our Hill Trip plans (with lots of hopeful visitors already booked) and hopefully managing to retrieve our reindeer in time for everyone to enjoy meeting them.
Thank you so much to the Cairngorm Mountain staff who let us hitch a ride on the Funicular to the top of the mountain!
Daisy: It certainly felt like setting off on an expedition that morning with Andi. We had all our gear on, map and compass in our bags alongside lots of reindeer food, and jumped on the mountain railway. A really cool way to start off a herding trip for the day! I actually had never riden the train up the mountain before so we grabbed a front spot and watched the snow get deeper and the visibility worse.
Andi: Travelling from Glenmore, where it felt like spring, to the ski car park, where it was cold and wintry with a little snow, it felt like we were going to a different world as the train took us into the cloud and the weather closed in. Definitely a day where knowing that you have a storm shelter in the bag is reassuring!
Daisy: As soon as we stepped out of Ptarmigan, we were hit by a pleasant enough breeze carrying some of the snow down the mountain. I pulled my microspikes onto my boots and my ski goggles over my eyes, and followed Andi along a snow fence and up away from the restaurant and Cairngorm summit. A few patches of deeper snow to stumble through, and a lot of frozen ground and sheets of ice that made for nice walking with the spikes on. We crossed past the final lift before the plateau and set off into a frozen, snowy, rocky landscape with little to no visibility. It’s funny to think how many people wander the plateau and hike these beautiful mountains throughout the year, because in that moment it was like we were the first people to explore what felt like a different planet.
Andi: Whilst I’m pretty familiar with our local mountains, having pottered around after reindeer for the past 15 years, it is a whole different ball-game in a blizzard. Visibility was between 10 and 30 metres, and it is so easy to see how people get completely disorientated. It takes a lesson in trust to believe the compass bearing when your brain can play tricks on you, making you think you’re heading in the opposite direction.
All smiles navigating to the reindeer in white out conditions on the Cairngorm Plateau.
Daisy: We used a combination of a good old trusty compass and Google Maps to navigate through the white out. Despite the freezing temperatures and snow that was blowing up off the ground, we were actually nice and toasty in very excited high spirits the entire time. Looking at the satellite imagery on Google Maps of roughly where we knew they were, I made up names for all the features I couldn’t see in front of me, and was probably really reassuring to Andi when I kept repeating “the reindeer should be at the bottom of the orange segment just in front of us”.
Andi: Between Daisy using the tech to pinpoint where the reindeer should be, and me keeping us on a compass bearing with the old-school methods, it felt like we had a plan! It was reassuring having two brains on it, keeping each other right and cross-referencing to ensure we were on track. Most of our reindeer herding is not done in a white-out, so it was a fun challenge to be testing out our nav skills.
We found the herd! (Trust us, they are in the photo…)
Daisy: We came to a stop and scanned the landscape, the reindeer should have been metres from us at that point. Then like magic, some cloud lifted and Andi pointed off into the distance: “Reindeer!”. There they were, 73 reindeer hunkering down on a hill edge. Several cheers followed as we dug our spikes in to descend a small ice sheet to get to them.
Andi: I was glad to have a fair bit of experience picking out a herd of reindeer on a hillside, as their camo was excellent, but something in the shape/shade of these particular bumps ticked the box of not just being rocks! It felt like such a prize to have managed to follow our bearings directly to them.
Can you spot the reindeer? The hard part’s over right?…
Daisy: It was my first time seeing how effective a reindeer’s coat is against heavy snow and winds and it was amazing to see the snow piling up against them. As I got nearer and walked around the back of the herd to encourage them up, I could see just how cold it must have got overnight with all the frozen snow and ice on them – not bothering them at all!
Andi: It amuses me how reindeer are so blase about weather, actively choosing to wander up to exposed ridges in the worst of conditions. There is actually method in their madness, as wind will blow snow off the ridgeline, meaning they have to dig less for food, and there is also less risk of getting stuck in a snow drift. But still!
Thanks to the hollow guard hairs that make up the outer layer of a reindeer’s coat, the snow doesn’t melt on them. This keeps them warm on mornings like this, lying in the snow at -4.
Daisy: With the herd up and already eager to follow Andi, we set off into the white to move the reindeer off the mountains and down to much lower ground. It wasn’t long before the winds started to pick up and throw quite a bit of snow at us. The herd stuck together really well and I got my first experience of how they stay together in low visibility. Usually they spread themselves out a fair bit when on the move, some will stop to graze and take their time – but in the harsh windy conditions and terrible visibility they were staying close as a herd the entire time.
Andi: The herd were in a very co-operative mood and as I set off in the right direction, shaking a bag of food, they all trotted after me. I tried to set a pace where the herd were close enough to me that I could still see Daisy, who was following at the back. It felt sensible to be able to keep an eye on each other!
The winds started to pick up as we got lower, here you can see gusts of snow blowing up from the ground and gusting into the herd.
Daisy: I’m glad that it was actually probably the easiest herding I’ve ever done, the reindeer wanting to get off the windy plateau as fast as we did. It gave me plenty of time for photos and to take in how amazing the experience was. Plus I was able to focus on my own struggles in the wind – like making sure I didn’t get blown over every 30 seconds!
Andi: As the wind buffeted us, humans and reindeer alike, I had to stop myself from feeling guilty that the reindeer were in these conditions, reminding myself that they had chosen to come up this high themselves!
Daisy was pushing the reindeer from the back, watching them disappear into the snowy winds ahead. As Daisy watched them disappear, Andi watched them steadily appear following her to lower ground.
Daisy: I was so grateful to be at the back! Apart from making sure I kept up with the herd, (which did involve the occasional sprint whenever they ran on ahead to regroup around Andi – slightly stressful as I’m much slower than a reindeer!) I at least didn’t have to worry about navigating. Andi had to lead 73 reindeer and one herder down off the mountains following just compass bearings!… I did not envy that task at all.
Andi: When fetching the herd, we generally take turns at either leading or pushing. Today Daisy had volunteered me to lead, as I knew the hills better than her so there was some theory that I would pick a good route. In reality, I’ve found it’s a case of heading in roughly the right direction, glancing back at which way the savvy reindeer are going, and repositioning yourself to be in front of them, which makes it look like you knew exactly what you were doing… The reality is that the reindeer spend their whole lives in these mountains and know them far better than any human. Once you have the herd on side, the job of leading becomes much more straightforward, though it is the first time I have brought reindeer in whilst using a compass!
The visibility continued to get worse, but thankfully Winnie (seen in the middle here) kept Daisy company at the back the whole way and made sure she didn’t get left behind!Andi leading the herd solely using compass bearings!!
Daisy: The further we got and the lower we started to descend, the higher the wind speed increased and the snow began to feel like needles being fired at us. I quickly lost any feeling in my face, and loved watching how the reindeer turned themselves into the wind, the cows with their calves sheltered alongside them. While I struggled to stay balanced on my feet and really starting to feel the cold bite – the reindeer were in their element! Sticking together as a herd and following the hoof prints of the reindeer in front of them.
Andi: Whilst the reindeer made it all look easy, the conditions were not so easy for us humans. As we began descending we encountered more deep banks of snow, which resulted in a couple of complete face plants for me! The look of confusion from the reindeer at how useless us two-legged-creatures are was pretty funny!
Andi’s view of the reindeer fighting against the wind gusts as we dropped off the plateau. The wind speed was gusting up to 72mph during our herding mission!
Daisy: We had finally made it low enough that the cloud cover began to lift and I could see all the recognisable land marks to suggest we had nearly made it! We had one last push over a steep bit of rocky ground that proved quite difficult to navigate in the high winds and deep snow – at this point I had stopped bothering with my count of how many times I’d fallen over in suprise patches of knee deep snow. The reindeer were even bracing the final harsh whips of wind for some lichen grazing! The last stretch to the visit spot they picked up pace downhill towards Andi and I watched as they swapped to a very wide gait in the way they were running. It looked pretty comical – their legs so far out to the sides as if they were going to skid on their bellies at any moment, but worked perfectly. Their hooves hardly made a dent in the snow and they kicked through patches of powder at speed. I did attempt my own version to see how effective it would be for a person, and even tried to keep my boots in their hoof prints. You guessed it… I built up a lot of speed before hitting the snow hard and my arms disappearing in front of me. Thankfully only Winnie saw, who gratefully had kept me company the entire walk. I won’t be trying to run like a reindeer again anytime soon!
Andi: By the time we reached our ‘visit spot’, we were low enough to drop down out of the cloud, the skies were clear and there was only a smattering of snow on the ground. We fished out the reindeer feed from our backpacks and the calves tucked in – we give them a brief preferential feed through the winter. The adults know the drill and waited patiently, then we popped out a line of feed for everyone. A quick headcount – everyone was present and correct.
Andi couldn’t get the bag of feed open quick enough for the hungry calves after the long journey. Look at the difference in the weather at a couple of hundred metres lower altitude.Boogie helping Daisy get frozen spikes from her hiking boots.
Daisy: We had done it! Thanks to Andi’s amazing navigation, we had successfully led the herd of 73 reindeer from the mountain plateau down just in time for the days Hill Trip! We fed the hungry reindeer and checked we had everyone and they were all looking happy and healthy and then had a moments breather to chat about how amazing the experience had been. I can confidently say, that herding adventure was the best experience I’ve ever had! Being in such harsh conditions with the wind, the snow, the lack of visibility – it felt like being on a different planet. Experencing the kind of conditions the reindeer are built, not only to endure, but to happily live in felt like such a privilege. Stumbling and running after them at points to keep up, gave me even more respect for how incredible animals’ adaptations are to their home environment, and how much of a privilege it is to experience nature at its best!
Andi: Many visitors assume that being a reindeer herder means you’re incredibly fit and spend all of your time running round the mountains. The reality is that a lot of our job is actually based in the office, shop, and working with visitors. Yes, we do get to roam around on the mountains too, but the weather is not usually quite so gnarly! We had so much fun testing our skills and experiencing the extremes that the reindeer are so at home in, and were buzzing for the rest of the day! It really felt like we’d voyaged to a different planet…
Welcome back to the final installment of Reindeer Around the World! For the last blog in the series we’re travelling west to look at the four subspecies of Caribou that cover Canada, Greenland and a few northern states and Alaska of the USA. So firstly, are caribou and reindeer the same animal? Short answer, yes. Long answer, no, they’re not.
The caribou: similar in nearly everyway to the Eurasian tundra and forest reindeer.
In North America, the reindeer populations are seen as two difference categories of animals: semi domesticated = reindeer, and wild = caribou. But from an ecological stand point, the caribou are broken down into four subspecies:
You’ll notice the similarity in scientific name with the European subspecies of reindeer we’ve previously looked at, confirming they are the same species, but each have slight differences. So, what makes each subspecies of caribou different to each other, and to the reindeer we know and love here in Scotland.
Population map of the four subspecies of caribou and smaller herd populations throughout North America. (Map credit: Cephas)
The Porcupine caribou closely resembles the barren-ground caribou, covering similar landscapes in the northern most territories seen on the above map. They cover a calving ground based on a river system including the Porcupine River – hence the name. They have a darker colouration to them, but their environmental adaptations and ecosystem role are what we’re familiar with throughout the other subspecies of reindeer we’ve been looking into.
Herd of porcupine caribou crossing a river (photo credit: Animalia.bio).
The woodland caribou is again very similar to what we imagine when we picture our tundra reindeer here at home. Adaptations for sub arctic habitats, dealing with deep snow and harsh temperatures, keeping on the move and fulfilling the same ecosystem role. The differences we know of with the woodland caribou are more to do with diet, it seems, than anything else. Inhabitating a lot of areas of old growth forest and smaller herds found in different rugid mountain ranges further south than any of the other populations, they have different species of fauna available to them to feed off. The woodland caribou feed almost exclusively from aboreal lichens for the colder half of the year, followed by dried grasses and some tree species throughout the warmer months.
An example of aboreal lichen, growing along the bark of a tree as opposed to carpets of lichen on the ground. These types of lichen are found at a lower altitude than the rocky mountainous ranges we expect to find reindeer, where they typically live above treelines amongst far shorter growing vegetation such as grasses and heathers.
The Peary caribou are the smallest subspecies of caribou and are found in much smaller herds than any other. During winter time you are most likely only going to find up to four of them travelling together and this expands to maybe a dozen during the summer months. They feed on similar plant life to the other subspecies, having limited choice due to their sub arctic and arctic home ranges. But unlike the others, they predominantly feed on purple saxifrage which can stain their noses with a purple tint. Their migratory path is not as large as other subspecies of caribou, moving up to 150km between winter and summer home ranges, sometimes between islands (seen on the map above as number 6). Similarly to the others they are ready for anything winter can throw at them, but do choose to avoid areas of very deep and heavy snow, retreating instead to rocky mountainous outcroppings and beached areas.
Can you spot the Peary caribou? (Photo credit: Animalia.bio.)
Finally, the last animal on our list to discuss… The barren-ground caribou. Maybe the best to last if that’s fair to say. Let’s meet the animal with the largest ground migratory path in the world! You heard that right, a bigger migration even than the wildebeest in the Serengeti. They migrate twice a year between summer and winter ranges with each journey potentially covering more than 1,000 km depending on the location of their calving grounds. They use higher spots for calving grounds, out of reach of predators such as the wolf, then descend to lower ground and migrate in large herds to areas for summer grazing. Their winter diet consits of some grasses, lichen and leaves from low growth trees. They share their other qualities and adaptations with the other subspecies of caribou, making them efficent at moving and feeding through shallow snow and coping with cold temperatures found in arctic regions.
Barren-ground caribou grazing.
And there we have it – we’ve learnt all about the different subspecies of reindeer all across the globe! Thanks for sticking with me, and I hope you’ve all enjoyed reading this blog series as much as I’ve enjoyed researching it. I feel it’s important to say there are other indivdual named herds that I haven’t covered, but to learn about the different adaptations and qualities, I think we’ve got all bases covered. Reindeer truly are a remarkable and wonderful animal, with clearly a lot more to them as a species than we may first realise.
Calving 2026 went really well but it’s now all done for another year with the last calf born on 24th May. It’s an absolute favourite time of year for all the herders welcoming the new additions into the herd and enjoying the few weeks with them before they head onto the free range for the summer. We try to get out when we can to visit them but what happens on the summer free range is completely natural so we don’t always see every calf returning which means it is what it is! I thought I’d write down a few moments that I’ve enjoyed this summer to share our lovely experiences with the reindeer and their calves so here goes:
Calving season of 2026 is all wrapped up and the herd has so many new wondeerful additions!
Filming – Mid May we took part in some filming which you will no doubt see later in the year (watch this space). As a result Andi and I headed onto the hill with a very small film crew of two other people and spent the whole morning hanging out with the herd which was mainly the cows and calves. As there was quite a lot of standing around while they were getting the shots they were after, it’s always during these moments you really get to enjoy being around the calves who are finding their feet within their new environment. Now and again they’d get the zoomies which usually meant mum flying after them trying to keep up and get them back under control… They can also be quite inquisitive and if you stand still long enough then you find a few calves come sniffing round your legs and giving a wee tug on your trousers.
Making the most of all the time we get hanging out with the lovely calves while they’re still tiny before their summer of free ranging.
Another nice moment I had was bringing Lolly and her calf in from our main enclosure which is around 500 acres of hill and forested ground into our smaller ‘creche’ where we keep the cows and calves once they’re born. I first had to locate them and of course they were at the furthest back point of the enclosure in the woodland, so, as I started pushing her back towards the herd the calf kept getting stuck in deep heather. Eventually I decided Lolly wasn’t taking her calf on the best route home so I thought I’d try catching her instead and walk them in via a more sensible and less vegetated route. Lolly is one of these reindeer who it’s hit or miss whether you can catch her to put her on a head collar or not so I was going in with caution, however, she was obviously in a good mood today and I caught her no bother. The three of us then set off, at a very slow pace, back towards our final destination. The calf at this point was only a day old so still pretty doddery… We stopped a couple of times, the calf had a lie down then a suckle of milk from mum then we’d carry on. It was a lovely sunny morning so I didn’t feel like I needed to rush. Both Lolly and calf were totally relaxed. From a reindeer who in the past was never up front and had a shy character Lolly has definitely gone up in my estimations.
Can you spot Lolly’s wee one trying to get through all the deep heather?… A much easier route… A snack break before continuing on the long journey across the enclosure (long for wee legs anyway).
The last wee story I’ve got for you, or maybe this was more of a challenge during calving time, was when Winnie, our hand reared female from three years ago decided to start calving during one of our guided Hill Trips in front of 40+ tourists… There is a time and place Winnie! Herder Amy swiftly popped her on a head collar and brought her into an area a bit quieter and out popped a little pale coloured female calf. At first Winnie was not impressed by what had just happened and was showing no signs whatsoever of wanting or loving this new addition in life! So, Amy dried off the wee bundle and we all worked out where to go from there. We held Winnie so her calf could get it’s first milk as this is really important, however, her milk wasn’t coming through as it should so I suspect this little lass was premature. We brought her off the hill to our paddock area where we could monitor her more closely and after chatting with our vets decided to give her a hormone injection to help bring her milk on but also help with the bonding.
Winnie and her beautiful calf getting some time together in the barn at the centre.
This worked a treat and 2 hours after her injection she loved her wee calf and was licking her. The calf was still a bit too weak to stand and feed herself so we had to assist, however, with Winnie being so tame this only required some extra lichen (reindeer’s favourite food) for her while we held her calf in place. We did this every 3 hours roughly through the day and her last check/feed was around 10pm and first feed around 5am. The two then joined the reindeer on the hill so the wee calf could learn how to be a reindeer, not a human! Then at the beginning of June they headed for the high tops of the Cairngorms to spend the summer free ranging. With all the extra handling the calf got she was super tame and became a quick favourite amongst us herders.
It didn’t take long for Winnie’s calf to feel well rested and safe around all of the herders. Here’s to the excitement and cuteness of calving season 2027!
At the end of May, the first group of cows and calves made their way out onto the free range for the summer as the younger group were growing stronger and more confident. A week into June the last group of cows and calves were walked out onto the free range to spend their summer there. Meanwhile lower down, the reindeer are starting to moult their winter coat, meaning they are looking rather scruffy. By the end of the month, we have most of our male reindeer in our hill enclosure and their appetites have definitely ramped up. It has also been great to catch up with all of our male yearlings since they have spent the last few months at our secondary site- identifying them all has been a challenge and us herders have been relying on their ear tag numbers to identify them at the moment.
5th of June: Aztec is showing off his panda eyes. One of the first places that the summer coat will pop through is on the nose and around the eyes of a reindeer. 5th of June: It’s the season where you go for an itch and come back with a mouthful of hair. Lovely Scolty with a mouthful of fur. 6th of June: Elbe after an itch along side one of our Volunteers.7th of June: Who could resist this little face. Here is Elbe chancing his arm for some extra feed! 7th of June: The last group of our cows and calves were led out to the free range; we will hopefully catch up with them again soon.10th of June: Despite there being food on the ground Cappuccino is looking for more10th of June: I enjoyed a morning heading to our secondary site to check our reindeer there. After gathering the herd there in our shed for a feed, they were moved back out onto the hill side again. Here is Butter and Quickstep after their food. 13th of June: Perks of being a reindeer herder – you can walk dogs sometimes too! Sanna, Tiree and Fraoch having a pit stop in the shade 14th of June: Fraoch and Sanna with the Northern corries behind; as you can see the Fox glove is in full swing. 15th June: Irish marching down hill looking for extra food on one of our Hill Trips24th of June: Here come the boys! Yearlings (left to right) Bolero, Morris and Oro are now in our hill enclosure after spending time at our secondary site. 25th of June: Whilst feeding the reindeer we put their food out in a long line which allows us to count the reindeer a lot easier. (Left to right) Tub, along with Choc- ice and Cappuccino raced from one end of the feed line to another to ensure they get some food.
The bodies of reindeer go through many changes allowing them to cope with huge temperature difference throughout the seasons. In summer reindeer can cope with temperatures above 30 degrees and the lowest recorded temperature that reindeer have been know to survive is -72 degrees Celsius. Reindeer have two different coats, a thick white winter coat as well as a fine, dark summer coat. Their antlers grow in an annual cycle and the different times of growing and shedding them allows different animals to be dominant at different times of year. One of the most interesting, and important, changes to a reindeer though, you can’t see – their metabolism.
Magnum in his winter coat.Colorado, Iskrem, Yangtze looking smart in their summer coats.
Reindeer have adapted to eat vast amounts of food throughout the spring, summer and autumn to gain enough weight to survive the winter, when food is scarce. To cope with these changes in food availability their metabolism changes too. In the summer reindeer will graze around the clock, eating a huge variety (between 200 and 300 different species) of plants which are high in nutrition. This allows each individual to grow a new set of antlers, they start to grow in the spring and are fully grown by the end of august and the heaviest set we have had in our herd, weighed a whopping 8.9 kgs. The summer is also the time that the young reindeer grow in body size. Finally, every reindeer will need to gain body fat which will act as reserves over the winter. All these things require their digestive system to work in overdrive converting the food they are eating into energy that can be used by their body to create protein, bone, fat, and whatever is needed.
Ryvita grazing and growing her beautiful antlers.Cow and calf grazing on the high plateau plants.
On the contrary, winter is all about survival. During the winter most of the plants will have died under the snow and 70% of a reindeer’s diet is made up of lichen. Lichen is a symbiosis of fungi and algae and is very resistant to extreme changes in temperature. Over the winter lichen won’t grow but it will stay dormant, preserved under the snow. Reindeer will then dig down through the snow to reach the lichen. But lichen is relatively low in nutrients, just enough to sustain the reindeer through the winter and their metabolism shifts in line with this. In fact, even if you gave a reindeer a big pile of food, during the winter, they just aren’t as hungry and wouldn’t eat it all.
Winnie eating lichen under the snow.
During the winter reindeer are no longer growing their antlers, they won’t increase their body size at all, a calf will grow lots in the first 6 months of their life and then stay the same size for the next 5 months, until the following spring. They will survive the winter by using their fat reserves. The one important growth that does happen in winter is that of a growing foetus. This is the reason that the females grow antlers and keep them after the males have shed them, as it gives them a physical advantage during the time that they are pregnant and therefore they get first dibs on the food.
Vienna and Amazon showing off their beautiful antlers right through the winter.A group of our males in the winter having cast their antlers.
But how does a reindeer know that it’s time for spring? Rather than responding to food availability or temperature which may well change year by year, the changes in their metabolism are triggered by the changes in daylight. The increased daylight associated with spring is detected by specialised receptor cells in their eyes which then convert to a hormonal signal using melatonin. Melatonin is synthesised during the dark period each day and then synthesis stops during daylight. This means that the amount of melatonin varies based on the time of year. The concentration of melatonin has many effects. In terms of metabolism, in the spring as melatonin decreases, this increases the appetite of the reindeer. In the autumn, as melatonin increases, this decreases the appetite of the reindeer and increases the breakdown of fat stores. The changing melatonin levels also controls their antler growth and release of sex-hormones but that may be another blog in the future.
Eye of a reindeer.
For anyone particularly interested in a much more in-depth description of the physiology behind these changes, I would highly recommend reading this article.
If you have made it this far, thanks for reading my very nerdy reindeer biology blog! Hopefully you have learnt something and enjoyed the pictures of the reindeer along the way.
Following on from a blog I recently wrote all about Cheer, I thought I’d write another blog about another white-faced reindeer born in 2012 – Merida!
I first met Merida in May 2017 when she was five years old. It was my very first week as a reindeer herder and I have a very strong memory of sitting in the hill enclosure with Sally who was showing me the ropes. Two cows and calves were in a smaller part of the enclosure and we were spending time observing how they were getting on – what a tough job! Merida and her new born calf were there, and whilst Merida herself was fairly uninterested in us, her calf came right up to me and starting nuzzling my shoe laces. It was instant love! This tiny reindeer calf grew into the mighty Dr Seuss, who everyone knows is the best reindeer ever. As the ‘mother of the greatest’ I am also very fond of Merida, so this blog is full of photos of her.
Merida has a very distinctive hourglass pattern on her face and therefore one of the first reindeer I learnt to identify. She is friendly around people and enjoys hand feeding. She has been an excellent mother over the years and has three surviving sons – Dr Seuss, Ärta and Mr Whippy.
Merida and her newborn calf – who later was named Dr Seuss. This was around the time I first met them both.
I left the Reindeer Centre in March 2018 for another opportunity, but missed the herd (and my colleagues!) too much so returned to herding in March 2021. Most of these pics are therefore of Merida, and her offspring, over the last 5 years or so.
2021
Catching up with Merida whilst she’s out free ranging in the hills. With no calf at foot in 2021 she was able to put more energy into herself and grow lovely big antlers.Merida looking beautiful with her beard blowing in the breeze in October 2021. Camembert is the reindeer in the background.Spartan doing his best to woo Merida. She looks a bit unsure but it must’ve worked as the following spring Merida had a male calf.
2022
Dr Seuss and his mum in early January 2022, hanging out together – both waiting in line for the hand feed.A heavily pregnant reindeer in April 2022. Her new antler is just beginning to grow. Merida and newborn calf in May 2022. We later named him Mr Whippy! You can see the antler that had a head start (see above photo) is taller than the other.Merida and her calf the day they were released out on to the free range for the summer.Torch & mum Magnum and Mr Whippy & mum Merida in September 2022 after coming back into the hill enclosure.
2023
Merida and Mr Whippy back out free ranging in the hills in January 2023.Merida enjoying herself on the free range in early August. She looks a bit scruffy as she’s moulting the final bits of her old winter coat. She’s grown another set of cracking antlers!Merida on the end of the feed line in October 2023 with a lovely rainbow behind.
2024
Merida in February 2024 with her epic antlers!In May 2024 Merida had a new male calf. When Merida grunted for her new calf, her 7 year old son Dr Seuss would come running over!Merida and new calf with older son Dr Seuss (mid-moult with a sunburnt nose). Dr Seuss was often by his mum’s side for the few weeks they all overlapped in the hill enclosure. Very sadly Merida’s calf picked up a tick-bourne illness in August and despite receiving medication and all our best efforts he sadly didn’t survive.Ärta in October 2024 – Merida’s son born in 2020. I can’t resist including this photo – he looks so magestic! Whilst Merida has never had a female calf, son Ärta has been bred from so her line continues.Merida in October 2024 with rather silly antlers. Merida invested so much energy into her calf that her own antlers were a rather poor show this year.
2025
Merida in March 2025 – just beginning to grow her antlers. Her old winter coat is quite faded so harder to see the distinctive hourglass pattern on her face.Merida in August 2025 looking great in her short summer coat. She’s now retired from breeding so will spend most of her days free ranging in the hills and enjoying life!
2026
Cameron’s photo of Merida enjoying free ranging in February 2026. She’s in a big herd which includes her three sons – Dr Seuss, Ärta and Mr Whippy.
Rangifer tarandus tarandus and Rangifer tarandus fennicus
Continuing on from learning about the lovely Svalbard reindeer (we all remember how cute those guys are!), this time we’ll look at the two other European subspecies of reindeer, the forest and tundra reindeer. Starting with the tundra reindeer…
Our very own tundra reindeer, Chickpea and Morven roaming the Cairngorm mountains.
Found across Northern Scandinavia and across Northern Russia with a large population in Siberia. They are also found here in the Highlands of Scotland roaming the Cairngorm mountain plateau. The southern most population on continental Europe is found in the mountain regions of Norway, however it is quite tricky to know where the tundra reindeer population ends and the forest reindeer population begins.
Forest reindeer grazing amongst trees.
The most notable population of forest reindeer is found surrounding the Karelia region, near the border of Finland and Russia. The population is then further wide spread across Russia.
Population map of all subspecies of reindeer, including the N.American caribou populations and the European domestic and wild populations. (Map source: found at the bottom of the image)
Unlike the Svalbard reindeer, these subspecies do follow a larger migratory pattern, and will usually cover anywhere from 12 – 34 miles per day. They move between areas following the availability of vegetation and to avoid the harshest environments during winter months.
The herds will also move alongside humans. Both species are heavily domesticated and have been for over 10,000 years now. Not only are the reindeer used for food, income, and general way of life by indigenous communities (most noteably in Europe – the Inari Sámi), but the reindeer themselves benefit. Knowledge passed down through generations regarding migratory behaviour, and the animals role in the ecosystem means a huge positvie impact on Arctic conservation. This not only benefits the domestic populations of reindeer, but also the wild ones, as well as all other forms of life living in these ecosystems.
Sámi communities will follow the reindeers migratory habits, travelling vast distances with them every year. (Photo credit: Norsk Teknisk Museum)
The vast numbers of these two subspecies, the distribution of their population, and their movement patterns, give them a much larger impact on the ecosystem than the Svalbard reindeer. With grazing habbits helping to maintain Arctic tundra, it prevents the release of stored carbon in the permafrost. Being farmed in the traditional methods that they are – constantly moving, following the behaviour of the reindeer rather than using other methods of stationary farming – the reindeer are still able to exhibit their natural behaviour. It has also maintained a positive coexsistence between man and the fragile Arctic ecosystem.
Moving home and following the natural behavioural patterns of the reindeer.
This means that the reindeer have not needed to adapt to a stationary lifestyle. Their bodies are still designed to cover large distances and they remain successfully adapted to their role in the ecosystem – dispersing seeds in the trampled ground they’ve moved over.
Something they have adapted for over the last 10,000 years though, is sledge pulling.
Bigger males, often castrated herd members will be used to pull belongings when following the reindeers migratory habits.
Due to living alongside humans for such a long period of time, the European tundra and forest reindeer are semi domesticated. They don’t perceive humans as a threat and are very accumstomed to interacting with people and being handled. This means their strength and good hoof structure can be utilised for sled pulling.
Reindeer toes!
During the winter months, their footpads will shrink and tighten, this exposes the edge of the hoof and allows them to dig it in to the snow. They’ll maintain grip for descending and ascending hills/mountains, and still be able to run at high speeds without the risk of losing their footing. Their strong and muscular build, easy going/ docile nature, and drive for yummy rewards(!) makes them the perfect Arctic sled pulling animal. Second to the sled dog of course, also having worked alongside humans for approximately 8 – 10,000 years (I don’t think anyone could be happier pulling a sled than those guys!).
Keeping tradition alive. Our very own reindeer pulling sleds here in the Cairngorms. (Photo credit: Alex Smith) Our wonderful boys Zoom and Mivvi pulling a wheeled sleigh through Glenmore.
So, in summary, it seems the main adaptations for the European tundra and forest reindeer are behavioural more than physical. They have adapated to be more docile around humans, whilst still maintaining their natural drive to move. Not only for their benefit of chasing good grazing, but also for the benefit of the ecosystem – keeping the Arctic environment healthy.
Next time we’ll jump over 4000 miles from Europe to North America, and find out what the difference is between a reindeer and a caribou (if any).
Daisy
Further reading:
www.//oneearth.org/species-of-the-week-reindeer/
Reindeer and Caribou: Health and Disease, edited by Morten Tryland and Susan J.Kutz (CRC Press, 2019)
The month has got away from us somewhat, so this blog is a bit of a mish-mash of photos from several of us, rather than just Amy. Calving season always leaves us battling to get the day to day stuff done – it’s hard enough just keeping the essentials under control, let alone the ‘extras’, such as blogs! It does mean of course that this blog is pretty heavy on calf content, but we didn’t think you’d mind!
1st May – Fiona and friend observing the reindeer.1st May – Calving has begun!3rd May – Alicia and Daisy headed out to move the free-range group. Daisy was super excited to spot them!4th May – Mr Whippy having a lie-in7th May – Brie (left) hanging out with her adult son Cicero (right). He’s about twice her size!11th May – Calves coming thick and fast!12th May – Funky face markings!12th May – Here is one of our ‘normal’ coloured calves.13th May – Beret having a siesta14th May – Calves following their mum’s example, so are often happy to investigate us!15th May – Testing out the environment.16th May – Our cows often head off to find a quiet spot so we do lots of walking round to find them with their new calves. Can you spot the reindeer?17th May – Snoozing.18th May – Lots of spotty white noses this year!19th May – Sticking close to mum whilst checking out the world.20th May – Whilst most calves are born strong and capable, occasionally one is a little early. This toot needed a few days down at the Centre with her mum to get them establlished.23rd May – Cornetto giving relaxing his full effort.23rd May – Herder Ruth came to visit with her new baby – Fiona meanwhile is sticking to reindeer babies!23rd May – This wee calf needed a little extra help in her first few days as she was a little premature. Extra love needed too!23rd May – We check over the newborn calves when they first come into our nursery area – here Hen and volunteer Ruth are under close supervision from mum!24th May – Whilst the calves are born out in our large hill enclosure, we then bring them into our smaller nursery area. Sometimes their legs get tired – here Daisy has the hard job of providing a taxi service!26th May – Growing in boldness!27th May – The calves start coming through our handling shed at an early age, to ensure they remain relaxed in the future.27th May – Caz and Alicia rocking the wide hat/rainbow shorts look27th May – Old boy Stenoa chilling out in the sun at the farm.
Up and moving from Kent to Glenmore to live amongst the reindeer hasn’t just been a big change for me, but also for my dog, Echo. He’s certainly used to the outdoor lifestyle, having spent most of his life on hiking holidays and the last three years living in a van. But this new chapter for him has meant daily hikes, new friends, and endless adventures!
I’ve made it to the home of the reindeer!
Parking up in our camper after my first day of work, it was time for Echo to meet his new neighbours. He spent a decent hour that evening watching the reindeer through the door, desperately trying to spy antlers through the trees.
My first glimpse of my new neighbours.
Echo was very excited to be introduced to the official team of Reindeer Dogs, and swiftly made good friends, and found some new adventure buddies.
Many hikes up Meall a’Bhuachaille with Fraoch, the world’s fastest dog and must be the record holder for Meall a’Bhuachaille summits! Including sunrises up there before the herders head off into the hills in search of reindeer.Lots of walks spent with Ginger (I always have to look my best when Ginger’s here!).
Shortly after we arrived in Glenmore, someone else was quick to join Reindeer House… Sanna the pup. Sanna instantly took to Echo, and it was lovely to see him playing with a puppy in his older years.
Playing with my new pal and the newest reindeer dog.
Echo quickly fell into the routine of his new life – spending time around the Centre while I was working, and hiking in the hills in our free time.
Getting to work straight away! My first day on the job helping wash the Hill Trip welly’s.Helping herder Kate put up bat boxes in the reindeers woodland paddock. Helping eat – I mean make – the reindeer food.Looking for reindeer.Exploring more of the reindeers home range.
Echo soon got to enjoy the benefits of his new life here in the Cairngorms, including lots of lovely antlers to chew, and lots of fuss and exercise with the herders.
Unlimited antlers!Posing with my best pal on a hike with herder Maisy. Loving life in the snow with Sheena and Zoë!Visiting the reindeer and making sure I was on my best behaviour.
Echo even put in a shift on Christmas Eve, keeping us herders’ company all day and meeting all our lovely visitors while getting into the Christmas spirit with antlers of his own! He even made it onto Trip Advisor – 5 stars of course.
Christmas Eve is hard work at the Reindeer Centre.Christmas Eve Crew – I even got to meet Santa!!
As the new year began, six months into our new lives here in the Cairngorms, the biggest change arrived. I had loved seeing how healthy and happy Echo was here – especially playing with his new pals and enjoying spending time with the lovely Sanna, that I made the decision to expand our mini family. Echo was no longer the newest addition to the Reindeer Dogs…
Snoozing with my new sister on her first day home.
Meet Asta! It didn’t take long for her to fall in love with our home and all her new pals (Echo being the best thing since sliced bread, and Sanna a close second!). Now Echo gets to show her the ropes around the Centre – including where all the best spots for finding reindeer food to hoover up are, and where all the antlers are kept!
Asta’s first day at work.
I’m looking forward to seeing what she thinks of the reindeer when she finally spots them from afar, and all the adventures her and Echo will have with their pals over the coming summer and beyond. The Reindeer Dogs are a very lucky bunch, and it’s so lovely for Echo and Asta to get to be apart of the gang!
Asta’s first summit of Meall a’Bhuachaille (she cheated and got to be carried most of the way!). Posing for a summit photo with all my pals Asta, Tuva, Moskki, Tiree, Sanna and Fraoch (plus the humans).
