756 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



maturity any food or game animal. We had been told 

 that reindeer would not live unless they had an abund- 

 ance of the so-called reindeer moss. This may be 

 true, but the 60 reindeer that arrived from Norway on 

 March 10th, today is a herd of 81 and a finer lot of 

 animals will 

 be found no 

 other place in 

 the country. 



Th% Depart- 

 ment of Con- 

 servation of 

 Michigan has 

 every reason 

 to believe that 

 t h e propaga- 

 tion of rein- 

 deer in Michi- 

 gan will be 

 successful and 

 we predict that 



within 

 coming 

 years a 

 ber of 

 sighted 



the 

 ten 



num- 



far- 



busi- 



THIS MIGHT BE A WINTER SCENE IN MICHIGAN, BUT IT JUST HAPri;.\> 

 PICTURE OP THE REINDEER COUNTRY IN NORWAY. 



ness men will enter this industry in making use of the 

 so-called idle acres of this State. 



Reindeer Industry Most Important In Norway 



The herd of 60 reindeer originally imported into 

 this State from Norway were purchased at a price of 

 $125.00 each. The herd consisted of 50 cows and 10 

 bulls and were secured through Dr. Hafton Chris- 

 tiansen, who is engaged in the reindeer industry in the 

 Norwegian countries. Dr. Christiansen and two na- 

 tive Laplander boys accompanied this herd from Nor- 

 way to their destination. Dr. Christiansen said, on his 

 arrival in Michigan : 



"There is no reason to believe other than the rein- 

 deer will do well in your State. You recognize that 

 in our country they represent our most miportant in- 

 dustry. This is particularly true in the northern sec- 

 tions among the Laplanders and I believe the native 

 Laplander has no superior as a reindeer herder and 

 breeder. There seems to be something almost uncanny 

 in their success and care of these animals. The rein- 

 deer is food, clothing and life to these people. When 

 a Lap has a herd numbering from 200 to 600 reindeer, 

 he is considered a poor Lap because a herd of that 

 size will take care of his own immediate needs and 

 those of his family. However, when his herd reaches 

 1,000 in number, he is then considered as being in the 

 reindeer industry." 



Reindeer breed about the middle of September, and 

 as a rule produce but one calf, that in late May or 

 early June and unlike other members of the deer fam- 

 ily, both the male and female possess antlers which 

 are shed annually during the months of March and 



April. It is not unusual to see a spread of horns on 

 the male reindeer of five feet from tip to tip, and in 

 the Michigan herd today there is one magnificent bull 

 with a spread of four feet ten inches. The average 

 weight of the reindeer is about 250 pounds, but, as Dr. 



Chris tiansen 

 remarked, "we 

 do not judge 

 these animals 

 by weight, but 

 by what is 

 termed 'Maale' 

 from all meas- 

 urements taken 

 around the 

 four quarters 

 of the animal. 

 Other terms 

 used are 

 'staalpe' and 

 'kvart,' each 

 having to do 

 with measure- 

 ments. A 250- 

 pound rein- 

 deer when 

 dressed will average about 190 pounds, and the fresh 

 meat in Norway sells at the rate of two pounds for 

 three crowns, or the equivalent at our present rate of 

 exchange of 30 cents per pound. In Norway the cow 

 is called "simle," the bull, "grabuk," and the calf, 

 "calv." 



How Reindeer Fight the Wolves 



"The greatest enemy of the reindeer in our country, 

 and you will find this true in Michigan," said Dr. 

 Christiansen, "are the wolves. The shape of the rein- 

 deer hoof does not make it necessary for them to yard 

 in winter like your wild deer, but they can travel all 

 over regardless of the depth of the snow. They can 

 range as freely in winter as they can in summer. In 

 Norway when the Lap shepherds are tending their 

 flocks in the mountainous country, they set up their 

 tent near their flocks and build a big fire. If the 

 reindeer are disturbed at night in their feeding and 

 rest by wolves, or if they scent a wolf from afar, they 

 immediately form a big circle with the fire in the cen- 

 ter and keep traveling continuously around the fire 

 until the wolves are either killed or chased off." 



"On such occasions," said Dr. Christiansen, "it is 

 impossible for the Lap caretakers or their shepherd 

 dogs to penetrate outside of this circle. They would 

 be crushed to death by the hundreds of moving rein- 

 deer. The shepherds therefore build platforms at the 

 top of their tents where they climb and with their rifles 

 frighten away the wolves." 



"Oh ! yes," continued Dr. Christiansen, "I have heard 

 of your fighting deer, but let me tell you that two 

 male reindeer during the breeding season could teach 



