Reindeer Are Amazing Swimmers

Only Santa Claus’ reindeer can fly. But all other reindeer can swim, and they do it quite well. They are capable of swimming in fast and dangerous rivers with ease and swim faster than an average human.

Their Eye Color Changes Depending on the Season

Reindeer have changing eye color. In the summer, their eyes are golden. But when winter comes, their eye color turns into shade of blue to help them cope with a lack of light.

Their Fur Contains Hollow Hair

Considering they live in harsh and cold conditions, reindeer need all the warmth they can get. Luckily, their fur has a neat trick to help them capture it. On top of their thick undercoat is a layer of hollow and long hair, which traps air and provides added insulation for these majestic animals.

Reindeer Calves Are Able to Run Shortly After Being Born

Unlike most animal babies, reindeer calves are immediately ready for the world they are born into. Just a couple of hours from their birth, they are able to achieve a running speed of 50 mph and cover large distances.

They Have a Favorite Food

Reindeer eat all sorts of plants, but their biggest treat is lichen. They are a symbiosis of fungus and an alga and can grow on all surfaces, from bark and soil to rocks.

The post Fun Facts About Reindeers You Probably Didn’t Know appeared first on Our Funny Little Site.

This year, the Running Reindeer Ranch’s reindeers accompanied local yogis on their weekly vinyasa or hatha sessions in Fairbanks, Alaska. This is a new take on the popular trend of practicing yoga with goats, kittens, and puppies.

Classes are being held throughout the summer, on most Mondays and Fridays at 6 p.m. They begin with a talk by Elsa Janney, a yoga instructor, who informs the attendees about the class and shares safety tips. The session lasts for an hour and it basically looks like a normal yoga class, except the reindeers are present, too.

The instructor encourages the class to pay attention to the animals that wander around by listening to the sounds they make. Occasionally, the attendees get to see reindeer do some fun stuff, whether it’s scratching their antlers in a yoga-like pose or falling asleep and snoring between the rows of mats.

It definitely sounds relaxing and we’d love to try it! How about you?

The post You Can Take Reindeer Yoga Classes in Alaska appeared first on Our Funny Little Site.

Neuroscientist Glen Jeffery studied a collection of eyes of reindeer killed at different times of the year. “I opened the eyes up on my lab bench and almost fell off my chair,” he said. “The differences were so dramatic, and I knew no one had ever seen anything like that before. However, it has taken us 12 years to slowly find out what is going on and why.”

Now, the scientists want to find out if this change also influences the way reindeer see ultraviolet light. “We have some evidence that the blue reflection in winter amplifies ultraviolet light, while in summer it suppresses it,” said Jeffery.

The post Did You Know That Reindeer Eyes Turn Blue in the Winter? appeared first on Our Funny Little Site.

Reindeer Are Amazing Swimmers

Only Santa Claus’ reindeer can fly. But all other reindeer can swim, and they do it quite well. They are capable of swimming in fast and dangerous rivers with ease and swim faster than an average human.

Their Eye Color Changes Depending on the Season

Reindeer have changing eye color. In the summer, their eyes are golden. But when winter comes, their eye color turns into shade of blue to help them cope with a lack of light.

Their Fur Contains Hollow Hair

Considering they live in harsh and cold conditions, reindeer need all the warmth they can get. Luckily, their fur has a neat trick to help them capture it. On top of their thick undercoat is a layer of hollow and long hair, which traps air and provides added insulation for these majestic animals.

Reindeer Calves Are Able to Run Shortly After Being Born

Unlike most animal babies, reindeer calves are immediately ready for the world they are born into. Just a couple of hours from their birth, they are able to achieve a running speed of 50 mph and cover large distances.

They Have a Favorite Food

Reindeer eat all sorts of plants, but their biggest treat is lichen. They are a symbiosis of fungus and an alga and can grow on all surfaces, from bark and soil to rocks.

The post Fun Facts About Reindeers You Probably Didn’t Know appeared first on Our Funny Little Site.

This year, the Running Reindeer Ranch’s reindeers accompanied local yogis on their weekly vinyasa or hatha sessions in Fairbanks, Alaska. This is a new take on the popular trend of practicing yoga with goats, kittens, and puppies.

Classes are being held throughout the summer, on most Mondays and Fridays at 6 p.m. They begin with a talk by Elsa Janney, a yoga instructor, who informs the attendees about the class and shares safety tips. The session lasts for an hour and it basically looks like a normal yoga class, except the reindeers are present, too.

The instructor encourages the class to pay attention to the animals that wander around by listening to the sounds they make. Occasionally, the attendees get to see reindeer do some fun stuff, whether it’s scratching their antlers in a yoga-like pose or falling asleep and snoring between the rows of mats.

It definitely sounds relaxing and we’d love to try it! How about you?

The post You Can Take Reindeer Yoga Classes in Alaska appeared first on Our Funny Little Site.

Neuroscientist Glen Jeffery studied a collection of eyes of reindeer killed at different times of the year. “I opened the eyes up on my lab bench and almost fell off my chair,” he said. “The differences were so dramatic, and I knew no one had ever seen anything like that before. However, it has taken us 12 years to slowly find out what is going on and why.”

Now, the scientists want to find out if this change also influences the way reindeer see ultraviolet light. “We have some evidence that the blue reflection in winter amplifies ultraviolet light, while in summer it suppresses it,” said Jeffery.

The post Did You Know That Reindeer Eyes Turn Blue in the Winter? appeared first on Our Funny Little Site.