Reindeer. — Barren Ground Caribou* 



71 



ARTICLE VIII. — Th& Northern Reindeer, or Barren Ground Caribou^ 

 ( Tarandus arcticus.) 



GENUS TARANDUS. 



Dental Formula. 

 Incisive I ; Canine i-^ ; Molar ^ — 34. 

 Horns in both sexes, Canine teeth in both sexes, muzzle small, horns 

 slender, smooth, palmated, lachrymal sinus. 



Tarandus arcticus, (Richardson.) 

 Smaller than the common deer, Cervus virginianus, general colour 

 dove brown in summer, whitish in winter. Inhabits the " Barren grounds" 

 and Arctic regions of North America. 



Head of Tarandus arcticus, — Front view. 

 There are two species of Reindeer, commonly called Caribou, in North 

 America, confined in their geographical distribution to the eastern and 

 northern portions of the continent. One of these, the subject of the present 



Note. — The Reindeer have eight incisors or front teeth in the lower jaw, and 

 twelve molar or grinding teeth, six on each side. In the upper jaw they have no 

 incisors, but two small canine teeth and twelve molars, six of the latter and one 

 of the former on each side. The above figures represent the numbers, the upper 

 row standing in the place of the upper jaw, and the lower row the lower jaw. 



" Tara7idtis,'' a Reindeer ; Arcticus, latin ; " Arctic." In the Natural His- 

 tory of New York this animal is called Rangifer tarandus ; in Audubon and 

 Bachman's Quadrupeds of North America, Rangifer Cariboic ; by many authors, 

 Cervus tarandus ; by the Cree Indians, Attehk ; by the Chippewyans, Etthin ; 

 Esquimaux, Tooktoo ; Greenlanders, Tukta i French Canadians, Carre-b(Buf ov 

 CariboUf literally a " square oxP 



