20 BULLETIN 1089, IT. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
have been is only partially true. Caribou are not herded, but roam 
at will. By traA'eling in small bands and covering much territory 
they thrive on small moss areas and a certain amount of timber 
vegetation. A reindeer herder would have a hard time attempt- 
ing to utilize some of these ranges. He might do so in some cases 
perhaps by adopting the nomadic mode of existence of the Lapps 
of northern Norway and Sweden. In the large timbered areas of 
the interior it is unlikely that a reindeer herd could be handled 
without considerable fencing. Grazing could be carried on success- 
fully, however, wherever there is suitable forage and an area large 
enough to accommodate a reindeer herd the year round. 
An accurate statement of the possible future carrying capacity of 
Alaska for reindeer grazing can not be given until a complete range 
reconnaissance has been made. Judging from a very general pre- 
liminary survey of the field as a whole, there are probably between 
150,000 and 200,000 square miles of open grazing lands available. 
This area is estimated to be capable of supporting between 3,000,000 
and 4,000,000 reindeer. The estimate includes all potential ranges, 
on the islands, along the coast, and in the interior. Development of 
some of these ranges for grazing, particularly in the interior, will 
probably come only with a greater development of transportation 
facilities, particularly roads. The immediate coastal areas and those 
along navigable rivers and the Alaska railroad will undoubtedly be 
developed in the near future (Fig. 1). 
RANGE SUITABLE FOR REINDEER. 
The suitability of range for reindeer depends principally upon 
climate and forage and to some extent upon character of site. The 
natural habitat of the reindeer is in the arctic and subarctic regions, 
and the animals will undoubtedly do best on ranges falling within 
these climatic zones. Whether they can be grazed successfully 
farther south is not definitely known, but is a matter for experimenta- 
tion. Michigan is now (1922) undertaking the experiment and the 
results will be awaited with interest. 
Reindeer on the range most closely resemble cattle, but band to- 
gether more like sheep, and like the horse they trample over much 
range in nervous feeding, but, unlike the horse, they travel against 
the wind. In winter they paw through the snow with the fore feet 
to reach lichens and other forage (PL X, figs. 1 and 2). During 
the summer they move about over the range a great deal, and at times 
cover considerable distances against the wind. In winter they graze 
more quietly over a comparatively small area, and remain mainly in 
one general locality. At fawning time the herd divides, the does 
grouping by themselves and the bucks, steers, and some of the year- 
lings banding together elsewhere, 
