Oops! Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a Girl
It appears there has been a bit of a mix-up at the North Pole. Someone better hurry up and tell Santa. Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer is not a male! According to the University of Edinburgh Professors Gerald Lincoln and David Baird, the proof is in the antlers!
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Reindeer and caribou are the only deer in which males, females and calves produce antlers. Adult males cast their antlers each year in November or somewhere around mid-December once mating season is over. Adult females, or cows, retain their antlers much longer, until spring, well after the Christmas holiday. Cows use their antlers to compete with other cows when digging in the snow, searching for lichens for their young. So how can Rudolph be a male?
There are several scenarios that could explain the gender conundrum. Although Santa’s reindeer may at first glance appear similar to the common reindeer, Rangifer tarandus, most would agree the flying reindeer are far from ordinary. Perhaps these nine reindeer are just young lads that haven’t quite “matured” yet? And according to Lincoln, it is quite possible that Rudolph could in fact be a eunuch or castrated male, known as a steer.
According to the Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Santa’s reindeer, R.t. saintnicolas magicalus, are expected to live forever. Although only nine of these reindeer are known to exist, they are not considered endangered. They spend their entire lives at the North Pole gearing up for one very special event held each December.
Rudi the Red-Nose Reindeer just doesn’t have the same ring to it, does it? Since Santa never seems to get lost, perhaps it only makes sense a female is leading the way in that oh-so-famous sleigh!
The scientists will present their findings, Rudolph and a Lamb’s Tale, at the Queen’s Medical Research Institute in December.
Reindeer photo by Monitotxi
