Muskox at the Muskox Farm

Last week I posted photos from the Muskox Farm and focused on the Caribou.  The Muskox were not cooperative on that visit, choosing instead to stay back in the woods.  I did get a shot of one of this year's calves through the fence. 

Here you can see some of the Muskox lounging back in the trees.


I did do better last year on a visit on August 23, 2013.  I posted these photos last fall, but to give you a better shot of the Muskox thought I would repeat them here.


Because it was a rainy day, I added some enhancement to the photos in the collage below to bring out the definition a bit.


The old log barn that still sits on the property is used to store lichen for the Caribou and Reindeer.  Click HERE for more posts on the Muskox Farm.

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Caribou Break

The University of Alaska's Large Animal Research Station raises and studies caribou, reindeer, and musk oxen.    I took these photos on a rainy day last August.

The animals are a little different, but it looks much like any other farm.

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Musk Ox Matriarchs

 A few weeks ago I visited the Musk Ox Farm with my son and his family.  It was raining lightly, but the cooler weather was much appreciated by the musk oxen.  That heavy coat is designed for really cold weather, and our warm summer was not very comfortable for them.

 They really aren't very large, as you can see in the photo below.

The lighting wasn't the greatest, but adding a poster edges filter brought out more detail.  The two musk oxen here are the old ladies of the group,and they love willow branches!

I loved watching them devour the willow branches!

Caribou at the Musk Ox Farm

While we were at the Musk Ox Farm last week we also saw caribou.  Caribou and reindeer are the same species but different subspecies.  In North America caribou are wild and reindeer are domestic, but in Europe both are called reindeer.  Reindeer were first domesticated 2000 years ago in Scandanavia.  They were brought to Alaska in 1900 in an attempt to provide a stable food source for the Native people.  The animals in the photos here are caribou, and while they are not domesticated they are referred to as tame.  The caribou are enticed to the fence by willow branches, a favorite treat.  In summer caribou eat willows, grasses, flowering tundra plants, and mushrooms.  In September they switch to lichens, dried grasses, and small shrubs like blueberry.

Both the male and female grow antlers and shed them each year.  Bulls shed their antlers in October, but cows don't shed theirs until they give birth in May.  The bulls' antlers start growing in March, and a cow will begin growing antlers shortly after the birth of her calf.  Above is a bull and below is a cow.  They look a little scruffy as they are shedding their winter coat.

Below is a yearling with antlers just beginning to grow.

The star of the show though was a little three-week-old baby caribou.  The coat of a calf is reddish-brown, and they weigh about 13 pounds at birth.  They will double their weight in a couple of weeks, and a mature bull will weigh 350-400 pounds and a cow will average 175-225 pounds.

Calves begin to graze within a few days of birth and by mid-July will generally no longer be nursing.

I visited the farm in September of 2009 and did a post on the caribou, which you can read by clicking HERE.  For a post on reindeer at the farm, click HERE, and for another post on reindeer at the Experimental Farm click HERE.

Old Barn at the Musk Ox Farm

The Musk Ox Farm (formally the University of Alaska Fairbanks Large Animal Research Station) sits on an old homestead.  Mike Yankovich was one of many emigrants to Fairbanks from Yugoslavia in the early years of Fairbanks.  He took up residence in Fairbanks in 1906 and received the patent to his homestead in 1926.  He raised potatoes, cows, chickens, and pigs.  He experimented with Siberian wheat.  Mr. Yankovich never married and left his homestead to the University in 1963 for the purpose of conducting musk ox research.  The site consists of 134 acres, half in pasture and half in boreal forest.  The barn below is one of the last standing structures of the Yankovich homestead, and is used today for lichen storage. 

A newer barn, along with research facilities, classroom, offices and living quarters are part of the present day complex.

The farm is home to not only musk oxen but caribou and reindeer.  Remember that lichen stored in the barn?  That's for the caribou to eat in the winter.  None of the animals are housed in the barns as they are all arctic animals, and the warm summer weather can actually be a bit difficult for them.

I posted photos yesterday of some of the musk oxen, along with a set of twins born this spring, and you can check those out by clicking HERE.  I'll post photos of caribou and one of the caribou babies in the next few days.

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Check out more old barns at Tricia's Barn Charm.

Open House at the Musk Ox Farm

Yesterday the University of Alaska Large Animal Research Station, better known as the Musk Ox Farm, had its annual open house.

Marty and I took Sydney.  Sydney loved seeing the Musk Oxen, but really wanted to get a bit closer to them.  They are kept behind a high wire fence, and the public is kept back away from that fence.  You'll see lighter lines in most of the photos where the fence wire is, although I've tried to crop it out as much as possible.

A mature male measures about 5 feet high at the shoulders and weighs 600 to 800 pounds.  Cows are smaller, about 4 feet tall and weigh 400 to 500 pounds.

I did an earlier post on the Musk Ox Farm in September of 2009, and you can read that post by clicking HERE.

We were particularly interested to see the new babies born this spring, among them a set of twins.  The moms kept their babies back in the field away from the crowds of people, so sadly no good close-up photos.  It is very rare for a musk ox to give birth to twins.  The mother is Yakutia and the twin boys will be named with the help of the public.

This is the sixth recorded instance of musk ox twins born in captivity, and none of the earlier twins survived more than a few months.  The babies are a little over a month old and are growing strong and eating well.  The next big critical period for the twins is likely in August when they are weaned. 

They have more than doubled in size in the past several weeks and now weigh about 40 pounds.  The mother will often keep her babies under that long skirt of hair and all that will be visible is their feet.  

We also saw a three-week-old Caribou calf, which I'll post about in a few days, along with some views of the barns and fields.

Musk Ox

Yesterday we drove by the Muskox Farm. The Farm is surrounded by a tall chain link fence, and inside that is another tall fence. It is a little difficult to take photographs through that, but I thought you would enjoy seeing these guys, even with the shadow of the fence. They really are an interesting animal built to survive in extreme cold temperatures, and the warm days of summer are not all that comfortable for them.

This guy is headed for the hay bin and looks very focused on it.

I like the look on his face in the photo below with his tongue sticking out. It must be really good hay!

I posted last summer about the Muskox and the Farm last year at Muskox Farm Part 1 and Part 2 if you are interested in learning a bit more about them.

Tour Time: Muskox Farm, Part 4 Reindeer

The last animal we'll see at the Muskox Farm is a reindeer, and remember to click on the photos to enlarge them. This old gal is in the enclosure with the caribou and she is elderly and overweight. Her status is on the bottom of the totem pole. She waited until the caribou had moved away from the willow branches to make her way down to the fence to get what was left. Reindeer are in a different subspecies than the caribou at the farm. Our tour guide said the difference between the reindeer and the caribou at the farm is that the reindeer are considered to be domestic animals and the caribou are considered tame animals. Reindeer were introduced into Alaska in the late 1800s. Whalers moved along the Bering Sea coasts of Alaska and traded with the Natives. When they left, the marine mammals population had been severely impacted, and the Native people also had developed a dependence on the food and good provided by the whalers. Noting the successful herding of reindeer by Eastern Siberian Natives, in the late 1800s Congress approved the introduction of reindeer in Alaska. The reindeer was used in Nome during the gold rush to haul sleds and for meat. In the 1930s there were 600,000 reindeer in Western Alaska and the Reindeer Act was passed restricting ownership of reindeer to Native Alaskans. Harsh winter conditions, predation by wolves, loss to migrating caribou, and lack of attendance on the herds have caused that number to drop drastically. Today there are some 20,000 reindeer in Western Alaska.

This old gal is very sweet and her chubbiness attests to the fact that she has fared well with regard to to getting her share of food.

Reindeer are short and squat when compared to the caribou. They do not migrate, but some of the herds of reindeer have joined the wild caribou when the caribou have migrated through their range.

There is another facility at the University of Alaska that is doing research on the reindeer. It is called the Reindeer Research Program and is located next to the Georgeson Botanical Garden. Their projects range from herd management and animal health to nutrition and meat quality. In Alaska, there are several places where you can see reindeer. If you are extremely lucky you might even be able to see some of Santa's Reindeer at his North Pole enclave. Only problem, the location is a highly guarded secret.

Tour Time: Muskox Farm, Part 3 Caribou

We'll walk just around the corner at the Muskox Farm to see some of the caribou. Remember you can click on the photos to enlarge them. The world population of caribou is around 5 million, and Alaska is home to about 900,000. In Europe, caribou are called reindeer, but in Alaska and Canada only the domestic forms are called reindeer. All caribou and reindeer throughout the world are considered to be the same species, but there are 7 subspecies. Alaska's caribou are the barren-ground subspecies. An average adult bull weighs between 350 to 400 pounds. Both male and female caribou grow antlers, a trait unique among deer. Antlers are cast off and re-grown annually. The males grow massive antlers and the females grow smaller simpler racks. Mature bulls start to grow their antlers in March and they are covered in velvet. In September they shed the velvet in preparation for the rut. The velvet comes off in strips and the antlers are bright red until they are polished by the bull rubbing them until they are brown and white. The bull with the biggest antlers is dominant. After the rut the bulls shed their antlers. You can see some of the velvet clinging to the antlers in the photo below of the dominant bull of the herd at the Muskox Farm. The photo below is of the dominant female in the herd. Females average around 175 to 225 pounds. The pregnant female will not shed her antlers until April. They use them to protect themselves and their developing baby. In the winter the females get first crack at the food because they have the biggest antlers.

The caribou also consider the willow leaves as a treat and are enticed up to the fence to show off for the tour.

The caribou have large concave hoofs that spread widely to support the animal in snow and soft tundra. Their anklebone is attached in such a way to make their movement more efficient and you hear a castanet-like clicking when they walk.

Caribou migrate long distances in order to find adequate food for the large herds. They can migrate 400 miles between their summer and winter ranges. In summer they eat the leaves of willow, sedges, flowering tundra plants, and mushrooms. They switch to lichens, dried sedges, and small shrubs in the winter.Calving occurs in mid-May. Newborn calves weigh an average of 13 pounds and grow very quickly. In the wild the mortality rate of the calves is very large due to grizzly bears and wolves. At the calving grounds all the calves are born in a short space of time, thus ensuring that more will survive. There were three calves born this year at the farm. Newborn calves can stand and walk within minutes of birth and within hours are strong enough to follow their mothers.The caribou follow traditional routes in their migration. However, some exceptions do occur. In September of 1992 there was a severe storm here in Interior Alaska and a heavy snow fell the week after Labor Day and was followed by cold. The snow did not melt until spring. The Denali Herd, whose usual range was blocked by the deep snow, migrated on a different pattern, some moving close to Fairbanks. I was privileged to see some 100 or so of these animals migrate through our yard. I just happened to be looking out the window when I saw them running down the hill above our house, across our driveway, and then on down the hill and disappearing into the trees. It was all over in the space of a few minutes. At that time I wasn't into photography, but I don't know if I would have had time to get my camera even if I had tried. We actually were spellbound watching them and it is an experience I will never forget.

There are about 25 herds in Alaska, ranging over most of Alaska. Along with the larger predators, mosquitoes take a toll. To escape the insects they will sometimes stampede in panic. The caribou's circulatory system is uniquely adapted to the cold climate. The veins and arteries in their legs are in close contact. Blood returning up their legs is heated with the warm blood from the arteries. Their legs stay at about 50 degrees while their body core remains nearly normal at 105 degrees. Their muzzles are covered with a dense layer of short hair. They thrust their muzzles into the snow to sniff for food or to push snow aside while feeding. The caribou is an animal constantly on the move.

After eating the willow leaves, the bull moved away from the fence and back into the field. He turned and looked at us as he moved away. I couldn't help but wonder what his thoughts were. Perhaps he was looking at our lack of antlers and thinking that he was still top dog.

Next, we'll meet the reindeer who came down to feed after the caribou were done.