BIOLOGY OF REINDEER. 
DESCRIPTION. 
The typical reindeer of Alaska (Rangifev tarandus) (PI. II) is 
colored approximately as follows : The neck and shoulders are a gray- 
ish white, becoming darker on the back, and shading into the much 
darker sides of the abdomen and hind quarters ; the legs are dark to 
almost black ; around the root of the tail there is a whitish area that 
descends between the legs; the head is dark, except for the muzzle; 
and the mane, which becomes long in winter, is almost white. In 
viewing a herd from a little distance, the various colors unite to give 
the appearance of soft browns and grays with a tinge of yellow. In 
conformation the reindeer is symmetrical, and gives the impression 
of blockiness, as in a well-bred beef animal. The average full-grown 
reindeer stands about 13 to 13^ hands high, and measures about 7 feet 
from nose to tip of tail. 
As compared with the caribou {Rangifev stonei and related forms) , 
the general color aspect is similar; but the caribou on the whole is 
lighter colored, having a white belly and less black on the legs. The 
caribou is much longer of leg and more ungainly in appearance. Its 
nose is inclined to the Roman type, and the underlip is short and 
drawn up, whereas the reindeer is frequently dishfaced, and the un- 
derlip is not nearly so trim. The ears of the caribou are a trifle larger. 
Reindeer and caribou have the distinction of being the only mem- 
bers of the deer family in which both sexes have horns. These sec- 
ondary sexual characters are nearly as large in the female as in the 
male, and it would seem possible that her powers of prepotency may 
be greater than in the females of other deer. In the course of the 
investigations in Alaska, a doe was rarely seen which did not have a 
fawn colored and shaped like herself. As regards color and confor- 
mation, the female seems to impress her characters strongly on her 
offspring (PI. Ill, Figs. 1 and 2). Under present conditions where 
the sire is unknown it is difficult to generalize, but to a geneticist rein- 
deer should be of special interest, since there has been so little inter- 
ference by man in its breeding, with the exception of the preservation 
of the white animals. 
White and spotted reindeer (PL IV, Fig. 1) are common in Alaskan 
herds. The spotted animals do not seem physically deficient, but the 
white animals are inferior to those of normal color. They are gen- 
erally smaller in stature and seldom look robust. Their horns (PI. 
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