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Muskox
Description
The
muskox is covered all over, except for the horns, hooves, lips and nose,
with an under layer of short fine wool of exceptional warmth. A
much longer outer coat composed of shaggy hair up to 62 cm long covers the
animal, hanging nearly to the ground and giving the muskox its
characteristic appearance.
The coat is generally
dark brown or nearly black. About the shoulders it is extremely shaggy and
forms a distinct mane, especially noticeable on bulls. Behind the
shoulders is a short white or creamy yellow "saddle". The lower
legs have light brown to white "stockings".
In
May when arctic temperatures begin to rise, muskoxen start to shed their
inner coats, becoming untidy and tattered as the woolly hair falls off in
patches with pieces left clinging to the long outer coat. Rocks and bushes
about the tundra become littered with bits of fleece, which may be used by
small birds for nest building. The new undercoat grows throughout the
summer and by August, muskoxen are again sleek and dark. The outer hair is
not shed at any specific time, but probably discarded and replaced
continuously throughout the year.
Other adaptations for cold are small furry ears, and a very short tail
hidden beneath the coat. Rounded hooves with sharp rims provide traction
on ice and rocky surfaces. Muskoxen have exceptionally good hearing,
eyesight and sense of smell. In their most northerly ranges they
experience no difficulty in moving about and locating food in winter
darkness.
Muskox horns begin to grow when a calf is 4 to 5 weeks old, and continue
to grow until the muskox is about 6 years old. The large and sweeping
horns of an adult bull merge at the bases to form a massive, heavily
ridged and furrowed boss. On cows, the boss is smaller and divided in the
middle by a tuft of white hair. The horns become darker with age, and may
also be stained brown from vegetation when the bulls butt at peat banks in
summer. The largest set of muskox horns on record, found near Perry River,
measured 80 cm between the tips.
Because of their shaggy coats and massiveness, muskoxen appear to be
extremely large animals. In fact, a full grown bull may measure only
between 130 and 150 cm at the shoulder, which is about the height of a
man's chest. The average weight of a male is about 340 kg, while females
usually weigh about 90 kg less. In captivity, muskoxen reach much greater
weights as a result of better nutrition.
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