Caribou on the move
鹿群在迁移
Each fall a quarter million caribou come together to form the Western Arctic Caribou Herd, a group that makes an epic migration through northwest Alaska. In great numbers they move south from their calving grounds in the Utukok River Uplands to their winter range on the Seward Peninsula. Fall is also the time when scientists attach radio collars to members of the herd, to track their location and health, and to gain information that will help conserve the species. When spring arrives, they’ll complete the trip again in reverse, covering a total of 2,000 miles each year, give or take.
每年秋天，二十五万只驯鹿聚集在一起，组成了西部北极驯鹿群。这一群驯鹿要在阿拉斯加西北部进行一次史诗般的迁徙。它们大量地从乌图角河高地的产犊地向南迁移到苏厄德半岛的冬季栖息地。秋天也是科学家们给鹿群成员戴上无线电项圈的时候，以追踪它们的位置和健康状况，并获取有助于保护鹿群的信息。当春天到来的时候，它们会再一次完成反向的旅行，每年大约走2000英里。
One of the best spots to see the herd on the move is where the great masses of animals cross this river, the Kobuk, at Onion Portage. The name of the portage derives from an Inupiaq (Inuit) word meaning ‘wild onions’ for the many wild onions that grow here. But the native Inuit people don’t come here just to forage for onions. For millennia, the caribou crossing has drawn native peoples who rely on caribou meat, a tradition that continues to this day.
观赏鹿群迁移的最佳地点之一是在洋葱港，有大群的动物穿过这条河，这个港口的名字来自于Inupiaq(因纽特语)，意为“野生洋葱”，指生长在这里的许多野生洋葱。但当地的因纽特人来到这里并不只是为了觅食洋葱。几千年来，驯鹿过境吸引了以驯鹿肉为生的原住民，这一传统一直延续至今。
Answer Key/答案：
What type of animal are these?
A Caribou
B Moose
C Elk
Caribou
Each fall a quarter-million caribou come together to form the Western Arctic Caribou Herd, a group that makes an epic migration through northwest Alaska. In dense masses they move from their calving grounds in the Utukok River Uplands to their winter range on the Seward Peninsula. If these elegant antlered beasts in formation remind you of the holidays, it’s no surprise. In Europe, the species is known as reindeer.
Which caribou have antlers?
A Males
B Females
C Both
Both
All members of the deer family have antlers, but caribou are the only species among them where females grow antlers as well as males.
Which Disney film stars a reindeer named Sven?
A Beauty and the Beast
B Frozen
C Zootopia
Frozen
The 2013 film and its sequel, ‘Frozen 2,’ are set in a fictional destination that closely resembles Norway—a home to real reindeer.
While technically reindeer and caribou are both members of the Rangifer tarandus species, there are some differences between the two. Reindeer are smaller than caribou and were widely domesticated in Eurasia about 2,000 years ago.
In ‘Frozen,’ Sven is described as a reindeer with the heart of a Labrador.