Table of Contents
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Overview
Brief Summary
Description
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Mammal Species of the World
Click here for The American Society of Mammalogists species account
- Original description: Zimmermann, E.A.W., 1780. Geographische Geschichte des Menschen, und der allgemein verbreiteten vierfüssigen Thiere. Zweiter Band. Enthält ein vollständiges Verzeichniss aller bekannten Quadrupeden. Weygandschen Buchhandlung, Leipzig, (2nd volume) pp. 86-88.
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Distribution
Range Description
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Geographic Range
Ovibos moschatus is a circumpolar species native to Canada, Greenland, and up until the late 1800's, Alaska. The species was reintroduced to Alaska from animals captured in Greenland in the 1930's. Muskox have also been introduced into Russia, Svalbard, Norway, and Siberia. Some herds have also found their own way from Norway into Sweden.
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Introduced , Native ); palearctic (Introduced )
Other Geographic Terms: holarctic
- 1995. "Muskox (Ovibos moschatus)" (On-line). Wildlife Species Information: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Accessed November 18, 2004 at http://species.fws.gov/species_accounts/bio_musk.html.
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National Distribution
Canada
Origin: Native
Regularity: Regularly occurring
Currently: Present
Confidence: Confident
Type of Residency: Year-round
United States
Origin: Native
Regularity: Regularly occurring
Currently: Present
Confidence: Confident
Type of Residency: Year-round
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Global Range: Northern Alaska (extirpated then reintroduced from Greenland), northern Canada mainland, most arctic islands, and Greenland. Introduced populations occur in Scandinavia and Taimyr Peninsula. Distribution may fluctuate somewhat in response to longterm climatic variation.
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Physical Description
Morphology
Physical Description
Many of the physical characteristics of O. moschatus can be attributed to arctic adaptations. Musk oxen have barrel-shaped bodies with short legs, and their entire bodies are covered with fur except for the small area between the nostrils and lips. Both sexes have cream-colored horns with black tips that grow together at the center of the head, drop down along side of head, then curve up to form sharp hooks. These horns grow with age. The tail is short (5 to 10 cm) and is entirely covered and hidden under the fur. Fur can be divided into two types: guard hair and qiviut (pronouced kiv-ee-Ute). Guard hairs are the continuously growing dark hairs that create the characteristic long, shaggy coat. This portion of the pelage can grow long enough to brush the ground on older muskoxen. This long hair is sometimes refered to as a skirt. The guard hairs act as protection against wind and precipitation, as well as insects. Qiviut is the insulating winter coat of muskoxen. It begins growing in the fall and is shed out through the guard hair in the spring. The back is marked by a lighter colored patch of brown or cream where the guard hairs are shorter. This is refered to as the saddle. Legs of these animals are white. Older adult muskoxen sometimes develop a large mane of fur that sits on the shoulders.
Subspecies include barren ground muskoxen, Ovibos moschatus moschatus, which are native to Canada and were native to Alaska until extirpation in the late 1800's. White-faced muskoxen, Ovibos moschatus wardi, are native to Greenland and have been introduced to many locations. Ovibos moschatus wardi tends to be slightly smaller than O. moschatus moschatus, but distinction between the two is based mostly on location of the animal. The two subspecies can interbreed.
Calves are born in the early spring with very short guard hair and nubs where the horns will begin growing soon after. They are also born with a layer of baby qiviut and over the harsh winter are dependent on the cows for both additional body warmth and protection from the elements by standing in the skirt.
Female weight ranges from 180 to 275 kg, with an average of 250 kg. Head and body length can vary from 135 to 200 cm. Muskoxen typically stand 120 cm at the shoulders. Females grow horns, but lack the extra thickness of a horn boss at the base of the horns. Hook size typically matches that of males. Ovibos moschatus has an udder with four teats, also covered in fur.
Males typically weigh an average of 320 kg, with a range of 300 to 400 kg. The combined head and body length varies from 200 to 250 cm. Males have a large horn boss, which is an extra thickness of the base of their horns at the top of the skull, that is between 15 and 20 cm thick. This feature protects them during mating behaviors that include headbutting.
Range mass: 180 to 400 kg.
Average mass: 285 kg.
Range length: 150 to 260 cm.
Average length: 210 cm.
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; homoiothermic; bilateral symmetry
Sexual Dimorphism: male larger; ornamentation
- Rowell, J. 1990. The Muskox. Pp. 2-22 in B Holst, ed. International Studbook for Muskox: Ovibos moschatus .
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Size
Size in North America
Length:
Range: 2.1-2.6 m males; 1.9-2.4 m females
Weight:
Range: 186-410 kg males; 160-191 kg females
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Ecology
Habitat
Habitat and Ecology
Systems
- Terrestrial
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Habitat
Ovibos moschatus lives north of the tree line on the arctic tundra. Summers have a very short growing seasons of three to four months with lush and abundant vegetation. Winters are long and very cold with little precipitation and harsh winds. There is little vegetation in winter and shallow snow.
Habitat Regions: polar ; terrestrial
Terrestrial Biomes: tundra
- Gray, D. 1990. Muskox Biology. Pp. 23-48 in B Holst, ed. International Studbook for Muskox: Ovibos moschatus .
- Woodward, S. 1997. "The Tundra" (On-line). Major Biomes of the World. Accessed November 12, 2004 at http://www.radford.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/tundra/tundra.html.
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Comments: In High Arctic usually on well-vegetated sedge slopes on low-elevation coastal sites and valleys of watercourses. On mainland, vegetation mostly willow and birch thickets associated with sedges, grasses, and forbs. Feeds in wet meadows in summer, in lowland meadows or on windswept ridges in winter.
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Migration
Non-Migrant: No. All populations of this species make significant seasonal migrations.
Locally Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).
Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.
Relatively sedentary; seasonal movements between winter and summer ranges do not exceed 80 km and are probably often less than 50 km (Gunn 1982, Nowak 1991).
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Trophic Strategy
Food Habits
Muskoxen are generalized grazers. As calves, they are dependent upon the milk of their mothers for up to 1 year. Within weeks of birth, they begin incorporating the adult foods into their diet. In the summer months, the diet inculdes grasses, leafy plants, sedges, mosses, shrubs, herbs, and generally any vegetation available. The fecal matter of the animals at this time is very moist and still has high levels of nutrients available. In the winter months, the diet of muskoxen changes to willow, dwarf birch stems, roots, mosses, lichen, and any vegetation they can locate under or above the snow. The fecal matter during these months is very dry and has very few nutrients left after the animals have digested the food.
Plant Foods: leaves; roots and tubers; wood, bark, or stems; seeds, grains, and nuts; fruit; flowers; bryophytes; lichens
Other Foods: fungus
Primary Diet: herbivore (Folivore )
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Comments: Eats mainly sedges, grasses, and willows in summer, primarily sedges or woody plants in winter. See A88LEN01NA for details. Often grazes on cliff-edge habitats.
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Associations
Ecosystem Roles
Ovibos moschatus is herbivorous, and consumes plant life. It also provides a food source for arctic scavengers, wolves, polar bears, and brown bears. Muskoxen may help to disperse seeds as they graze.
Ecosystem Impact: disperses seeds
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Predation
The known predators of O. moschatus are polar bears, brown bears, and wolves. When faced with a predator coming head on, muskoxen line up with their heads down and horns facing the attacker. The calves are generally located behind the adults. When attacked by multiple predators, the herd creates a circle with horns pointed out and calves in the center of the herd. Larger adults may charge out to attack a predator. When a predator approaches the herd, the muskoxen attempt to headbutt or hook that predator with their horns. Muskoxen have been known to throw and trample wolves. As O. moschatus is adapted to arctic life, these animals can overheat easily and cannot run faster than wolves or bears long enough to escape from them. They therefore tend to stay in the circle formation as long as possible.
Known Predators:
- Wolves
- Grizzley or brown bear
- Polar bear
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General Ecology
Not territorial. Forms herds of up to about 100 (generally 5-45); group sizes are larger in winter than in summer; density generally less than 1/sq km (Heard 1992). Breeding age bulls are solitary or in single-sex groups except when they join herd during summer rutting season. Basic social unit: females and young. Productivity and mortality are greatly influenced by weather. Major predator is the gray wolf; sometimes preyed on by brown bears and polar bears in summer.
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Life History and Behavior
Behavior
Communication and Perception
Ovibos moschatus has very interesting vocal abilities. Calves, when communicating with cows or each other, bleat. The pitch of the bleat lowers with maturity. Adults have deeper voices that sound closer to roars and rumbles that can be heard long distances. Adults also grunt and snort at each other, at calves, and at other animals. Pushing and shoving, as well as chasing and stomping, are used to communicate dominance.
Much of the non-vocal communication among muskoxen occurs during the breeding season when males compete for dominance and breeding rights. Males have very strong-smelling urine and urinate on their front legs and dribble urine during displays as warnings to competitors. They will also use a gland near each eye to mark objects by rubbing their faces against the item to be marked. Bulls also swing their heads, walk sideways, and horn the ground to gather chunks of earth to make themselves look larger.
Communication Channels: visual ; tactile ; acoustic ; chemical
Other Communication Modes: scent marks
Perception Channels: visual ; acoustic
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Life Expectancy
Lifespan/Longevity
Ovibos moschatus lives in very harsh climates and harsh winters may cause death for young calves as well as older adults. Females typically live 15 to 18 years though some older than 20 years have been recorded in the wild and in captivity. Males typically only live 10 to 12 years, as the breeding season is very strenuous. Adult muskoxen typically die through the inability to properly digest food because of excessive wear on molar teeth, or as a result of predation.
Range lifespan
Status: wild: >20 (high) years.
Average lifespan
Status: wild: 14 years.
Range lifespan
Status: captivity: >20 (high) years.
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 14 years.
Typical lifespan
Status: wild: <1 to 18 years.
Average lifespan
Status: wild: 14 years.
Typical lifespan
Status: captivity: 10 to 18 years.
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Lifespan, longevity, and ageing
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Reproduction
Reproduction
Ovibos moschatus is considered a harem breeder in which one dominant male attempts to mate with all of the estrus females of the herd. Beginning in late summer and into fall, males compete for dominance using very ritualized behaviors. Males attempt to intimidate each other through posturing, roaring, head swinging, urinating on forefeet with strong scent markers, displaying broadsides to show size, and headbutting. During headbutting, males face each other up to 45 meters apart, then charge up to 20 or 25 miles per hour and crash together on the horn bosses. They can repeat this procedure up to 10 or 12 times or until one of the males cannot continue or runs away. This behavior is rarely fatal. Males that compete for dominance are typically between the ages of 6 and 8 years old. Older bulls are usually not strong enough, and younger males are typically not large enough, to compete. Competition between bulls sometimes results in solitary males. Once dominance is determined, a bull attempts to keep the females close together to defend them from other males. Dominant males may breed multiple times with each female during one season. Young muskoxen and non-dominant bulls typically keep their distance from the breeding harem.
Mating System: polygynous
Ovibos moschatus breeds from late August into September and gives birth between mid-April and mid-May. Muskoxen usually have single offspring after a gestation of about 8 months. Twins are very rare and do not usually survive. Generally within 45 minutes of birth, calves are standing and nursing. Calves typically weigh 9 to 11 kg at birth and can gain up to 0.5 kg a day. Though calves are born with a layer of baby qiviut and brown fat, they are dependent upon their mothers for warmth and food for the first winter of their lives, sometimes longer. Calves start eating adult food within weeks of birth, although they continue to nurse for 10 months to 1 year, sometimes longer depending on food availability, birth of a new calf, or temperament of the cow. Muskox calves follow their mothers and hide underneath the mother's skirt of guard hair.
Females typically reach sexual maturity between 1 to 4 years of age, depending on body condition, and will calve alternate years. Calving every year is possible if food sources are available. Males typically reach sexual maturity between 3 and 4 years.
Breeding interval: Female muskoxen breed once a year or once every two years, depending upon the availability of food.
Breeding season: Breeding occurs during late August and into September.
Range number of offspring: 1 to 2.
Average number of offspring: 1.
Range gestation period: 7.5 to 8.5 months.
Range weaning age: 8 to 24 months.
Average weaning age: 10-14 months.
Range time to independence: 8 to 24 months.
Average time to independence: 10-14 months.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 1.5 to 4 years.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 2-3 years.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 2 to 4 years.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 3-4 years.
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); fertilization ; viviparous
Average birth mass: 11460 g.
Average number of offspring: 1.
Although they are fully furred and able to stand from birth, calves are dependent upon their mothers for milk, warmth from their bodies and fur, and protection. Though calves can generally eat adult food within weeks of birth, to gain sufficient body weight to survive through the winter they require milk from their mothers. For warmth, calves often lie with their mother, or stand underneath her skirt next to her belly. During attack from predators, the calves are often pushed behind the rumps of the adults, or into the middle of a circle formation. Mothers also teach calves the social hierarchy behaviors by playing "games" such as king of the mountain, and mock headbutting.
Males are not reported to directly care for the young. However, since these animals are social, it is likely that the adult male in a herd helps to protect the young in the herd.
Parental Investment: precocial ; pre-fertilization (Provisioning, Protecting: Female); pre-hatching/birth (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Female); pre-weaning/fledging (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Male, Female); pre-independence (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Male, Female); post-independence association with parents; extended period of juvenile learning
- Gray, D. 1990. Muskox Biology. Pp. 23-48 in B Holst, ed. International Studbook for Muskox: Ovibos moschatus .
- Rowell, J. 1990. The Muskox. Pp. 2-22 in B Holst, ed. International Studbook for Muskox: Ovibos moschatus .
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Breeds August-September. Litter size usually is 1. Young are born mainly April-early May in some areas (e.g., Banks Island), mainly May (first 3 weeks) in northern Alaska. Calf nurses until after first winter. Female first breeds usually at 3 years, may not breed every year.
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Evolution and Systematics
Functional Adaptations
Functional adaptation
The coat of a muskox provides insulation via bilayer structure: a shaggy outercoat of guard hairs, and a thick silky undercoat.
"The musk ox has shaggy outer hair and a thick silky undercoat in which it can withstand any blast or blizzard…" (Foy and Oxford Scientific Films 1982:84)
Learn more about this functional adaptation.
- Foy, Sally; Oxford Scientific Films. 1982. The Grand Design: Form and Colour in Animals. Lingfield, Surrey, U.K.: BLA Publishing Limited for J.M.Dent & Sons Ltd, Aldine House, London. 238 p.
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Molecular Biology and Genetics
Molecular Biology
Statistics of barcoding coverage: Ovibos moschatus
Public Records: 0
Species: 8
Species With Barcodes: 1
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Conservation
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List Assessment
Red List Category
Red List Criteria
Version
Year Assessed
Assessor/s
Reviewer/s
Justification
History
- 1996Lower Risk/least concern
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Conservation Status
Though herds of O. moschatus native to Alaska and parts of Europe were driven to extinction through hunting pressures and climate fluctuations in the late 1800's, the species has been successfully reintroduced from suviving populations in Canada and Greenland and is doing well, currently numbering greater than 60,000 world wide. Ovibos moschatus is currently not listed as a threatened species.
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern
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National NatureServe Conservation Status
Canada
Rounded National Status Rank: N4 - Apparently Secure
United States
Rounded National Status Rank: NNR - Unranked
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NatureServe Conservation Status
Rounded Global Status Rank: G4 - Apparently Secure
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Trends
Population
In Alaska, 3,714 animals were estimated from aerial and ground counts between 2001 and 2005: Nunivak Island 609; Nelson Island 318; Seward Peninsula 2050; northwest Alaska 369; northeast Alaska 268. The re-established herds either fluctuate or are increasing in size and range, and in some areas, local people are concerned that they will compete with caribou and reindeer.
The population size in Greenland in 1991 was estimated to number 9,500-12,500. Of this total, (Boertmann et al., 1990) recorded the following population estimates:1,000 to 1,500 in North Greenland between Newman bight (82°N, 55’W) and Nioghalvfjerdfjorden (79°N); around 35 animals in the northern East Greenland region between 79°N and Jokelbugten (78°N); 450 to 550 between 78°N and Ardencable fjord (75°N); 2,900 to 4,600 in the areas between 75°N and Kong Oscar Fjord (72°N), and 4,600 to 5,000 the southernmost part of the species’ natural range in East Greenland, between 72°N and Scoresby Sund (70°N) (although recent unpublished surveys suggest that the population here has been reduced to approximately 4,000 animals (P. Aastrup pers. comm. to M. Forchhammer.).
Population Trend
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Threats
Threats
In Greenland, there are no major threats, although the fact that populations are often small in size and scattered, make them vulnerable to local or regional fluctuations in climate. Most populations are within the National Park, where they are protected from hunting. The portion of the population which is south of the National Park sustains a regulated quota harvest. Climate change in Northeast Greenland is expected to bring increased precipitation and milder winters, which might negatively affect the muskox population.
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Management
Conservation Actions
In the United States, all five extant populations are the result of re-introductions of the muskox within and outside its historic range. The re-introductions began in 1935 with the translocation of animals, originally from northeast Greenland, to Nunivak Island. From 1967 to the most recent transplants in 1970, the Nunivak island population has been the source for all other Alaskan translocations (Klein 1988). Fully protected by law, muskox occurs in five protected areas and hunting is allowed under permit, with limited quotas on three of the five populations. Local subsistence hunting is given preference. Its status within the country is Not Threatened.
In Greenland, muskoxen occur in four protected areas, with indigenous populations in the vast Northeast Greenland National Park, and three introduced populations in Arnangarnup Qoorua Nature Reserve, and Kangerlussuag and Maniitsoq Caribou Reserves. Within these protected areas, muskox receives full protection. Most natural populations are within Northeast Greenland National Park. Outside protected areas, controlled hunting is allowed on Jameson Land in East Greenland, and near Kangerlussuaq in West Greenland. In both, quotas are determined annually and hunting is permitted only by full-time subsistence hunters. Between 1963 and 1991, muskoxen were translocated to three areas in the southwest previously uninhabited by muskox (near Kangerlussuaq, central West Greenland; Nunavik Peninsula, West Greenland; and Ivittuut, south Greenland), and a fourth population was reintroduced into former muskox range in Avanersuaq (Thule) in north-western North Greenland. Conservation measures proposed for Greenland: A proposal for development of a long-term management plan for existing muskox populations in West Greenland, is presently being considered by the Home Rule administration. A new system of game wardens in the West Greenland region, between Disko Bay (68°30’N) and Paamiut icecap (62°30’N), is being established to strengthen the enforcement of renewable resource legislation, and to control the performance of hunters in general.
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Management Requirements: Capable of high productivity after reintroduction (Latour 1987).
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Relevance to Humans and Ecosystems
Benefits
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no known adverse affects of O. moschatus on humans.
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Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
One of the arctic adaptations of muskoxen is the winter coat of underwool, called qiviut (pronounced "kiv-ee-Ute"). Qiviut is an Alaskan native word that has adapted many spellings. The wool is finer than cashmere and eight times warmer than wool. When collected from the few domestic muskox herds, it can be bought by companies or individuals to make garments, and can be sold raw. The rarity of the fiber and the garments makes it very valuable. Managers of 'domesticated' herds supply qiviut to companies and co-operations for use in making garments. A main producer of these garments is the Musk Ox Producer's Co-Operative.
Research is also performed at the Large Animal Research Station at the University of Alaska Fairbanks on nutrition and arctic adaptations which can be applied to wildlife conservation, biology, and many other aspects. LARS has a captive herd of approximately 40 muskoxen.
In some areas, including Alaska, current laws allow hunting if the hunter is selected through a periodic lottery system, though laws vary across locations and countries. There are domestic herds of muskoxen that can be used for meat, though the qiviut of the animal is much more valuable and continually produced.
Positive Impacts: food ; body parts are source of valuable material; ecotourism ; research and education
- Chambers, W. 1993. Qiviuq. Spin Off, Summer: 48-55.
- Applied Microsystems, Inc. 1996. "Oomingmak: Musk Ox Producer's Co-operative" (On-line). Accessed November 18, 2004 at http://www.qiviut.com/store/index.cfm?target=home&CFID=341026&CFTOKEN=87725359.
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Wikipedia
Muskox
The muskox (Ovibos moschatus, musk ox) is an Arctic mammal of the family Bovidae, noted for its thick coat and for the strong odor emitted by males, from which its name derives. This musky odor is used to attract females during mating season. Muskoxen primarily live in Arctic North America and Greenland,[2] with small introduced populations in Sweden, Siberia and Norway.
Contents |
Evolution
The muskox, or its ancestor, is believed to have migrated to North America between 200,000[3] and 90,000 years ago,[4] during the Pleistocene period,[5] when it was a contemporary of the woolly mammoth. It is thought that the muskox was able to survive the last ice age (Wisconsin glaciation) by finding ice-free areas away from prehistoric peoples.[4] The muskox gradually moved across North America and arrived in Greenland during the late Holocene.[6]
Physical characteristics
As members of the subfamily Caprinae of the family Bovidae, muskoxen are more closely related to sheep and goats than to oxen, but are in their own genus, Ovibos (Latin: "sheep-ox"). Both sexes have long curved horns. Muskoxen stand 1.2 m (4 ft) high at the shoulder on average, with females measuring 135 to 200 cm (4.4 to 6.6 ft) in length, and males 200 to 250 cm (6.6 to 8.2 ft). Adults, on average, weigh 285 kg (600 lb) and range from 180 to 400 kg (400 to 900 lb).[7] Their life expectancy is 12–20 years. The thick coat and large head often suggests a larger animal than the muskox truly is, but heavy zoo-kept specimens have weighed up to 650 kilograms (1,400 lb).[8] Their coat, a mix of black, gray, and brown, includes long guard hairs that almost reach the ground. Rare "white muskoxen" have been spotted in the Queen Maud Gulf Bird Sanctuary.[9] Muskoxen are occasionally domesticated for wool,[10] meat and milk.[citation needed] The wool, qiviut, is highly prized for its softness, length, and insulation value. Prices for yarn range between $40 and $80 per ounce (28 g).[11][12][13]
Range and ecology
Muskoxen are native to the Arctic areas of Canada, Greenland, and the United States. The Alaskan population was wiped out in the late 19th or early 20th century. Their depletion has been attributed to over hunting, but it may alternatively be because the climate had become unsuitable.[14][15] However, muskoxen have since been reintroduced to Alaska. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service introduced muskox onto Nunivak Island in 1935 as a means for subsistence living. The species has also been introduced from Banks Island to northern Europe, including Sweden, the Dovre mountain range of Norway, and Russia and from Ellesmere Island to Eastern Canada. In the province of Quebec, muskoxen were close to extinction at one point, but have recovered after being protected from hunting.[citation needed] The world population is estimated at between 80,000[16] and 125,000,[17] with an estimated 68,788 living on Banks Island.[18] The last known muskox population outside North America lived on the Taymyr Peninsula of Siberia, and died out about 2,000 years ago.[5] The muskox was successfully reintroduced to the Taymyr Peninsula in 1975.[citation needed]
During the summer, muskoxen live in wet areas, such as river valleys, moving to higher elevations in the winter to avoid deep snow. Muskoxen will eat grasses, arctic willows, woody plants, lichens and mosses. When food is abundant, they prefer succulent and nutritious grasses in an area.[19] Willows are the most commonly eaten plants in the winter.[19] Muskoxen have a high threshold of fat reserves before conceiving which reflects their conservative breeding strategies. Winter ranges typically have shallow snow to reduce the energetic costs of digging through snow to reach forage.[1] Predators of muskoxen include Arctic wolves, grizzly bears and polar bears.
Social behavior and reproduction
Muskoxen live in herds which number from 12–24 in the winter and 8–20 in the summer.[20] They do not hold territories but they do mark their trails with preorbital glands.[21] Male and female muskoxen both have separate age based hierarchies with mature oxen being dominant over juveniles.[20] Dominant oxen tend to get access to the best resources[19] and will displace subordinates from patches of grass during the winter.[20] Muskoxen bulls assert their dominance in many different ways. One is a "rush and butt" in which a dominant bull rushes a subordinate from the side with its horns and will warn the subordinate so it can have a chance to get away.[22] Bulls will also roar, swing their heads and paw the ground.[19] Dominant bulls sometimes treat subordinate bulls like cows. A dominant bull will casually kick a subordinate with its foreleg, something they do to cows during mating.[23] Dominant bulls will also mock copulate subordinates and sniff their genitals.[23] A subordinate bull can change his status by charging a dominant bull.[24]
The mating (or "rutting") season of the muskoxen begins in late June or early July. During this time, dominant bulls will fight others out of the herds and establish harems of usually 6–7 cows and their offspring. Fighting bulls will first rub their pre-orbital glands against their legs while bellowing loudly and then display their horns.[24] The bulls then back up twenty meters, lower their heads and charge into each other and will keep doing that until one bull gives up.[22] But subordinate and elderly bulls will leave the herds to form bachelor groups or become solitary.[19] However, when there is danger, the outside bulls can return to the herd for protection.[25] Dominant bulls will prevent cows from leaving their harems.[19] During mating, a bull will casually kick an estrous cow with his foreleg to calm her down and make her more receptive to his advances.[23] The herds reassemble when summer ends.[25]
While the bulls are more aggressive during the rutting season and make the decisions in the groups, the females take charge during gestation.[19] Pregnant females are aggressive and decide what distance the herd travels in a day and where they will bed for the night.[26] The herds move more frequently when cows are lactating to get enough food to nurse their offspring.[26] Cows have an 8–9 month gestation period with calving occurring from April to June. Cows do not calve every year.[19] When winters are severe, cows will not go into estrous and thus not calve the next year.[19] When calving, cows stay in the herd for protection.[19] Calves are able to keep up with the herd within just a few hours after birth. The calves are welcomed into the herd and nurse for the first two months.[19] After that, a calf then begins eating vegetation and nurses only occasionally. Cows communicate with their calves through braying. The calf’s bond with its mother weakens after two years.
Muskoxen have a distinctive defensive behavior: when the herd is threatened, the bulls and cows will face outward to form a stationary ring or semicircle around the calves.[27] The bulls are usually the front line for defense against predators with the cows and juveniles gathering close to them.[19] Bulls determine the defensive formation during rutting while the cows decide the rest of the year.[25]
Status
Historically this species declined because of over-hunting, but population recovery has taken place following enforcement of hunting regulations.[1] Management in the late 1900s was mostly conservative hunting quotas to foster recovery and recolonization from the historic declines.[1]
In Greenland, there are no major threats, although the fact that populations are often small in size and scattered makes them vulnerable to local fluctuations in climate. Most populations are within the national park, where they are protected from hunting.[1] Muskoxen occur in four of Greenland's protected areas, with indigenous populations in Northeast Greenland National Park, and three introduced populations in Arnangarnup Qoorua Nature Reserve, and Kangerlussuaq and Maniitsoq Caribou Reserves. Within these areas, muskoxen receive full protection.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Gunn, A. & Forchhammer, M. (2008). Ovibos moschatus. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 31 March 2009. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is of least concern.
- ^ Animal Life in Greenland – an introduction by the tourist board. Greenland-guide.gl. Retrieved on 2011-09-15.
- ^ Wildlife Management Advisory Council (North Slope) fact sheet
- ^ a b Hinterland Who's Who ISBN 0-660-13637-6
- ^ a b "Science Daily". Science Daily. 2005-10-06. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/10/051006085912.htm. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ Bennike, Ole; Andreasen, Claus (2005). "New dates of musk-ox (Ovibos moschatus) remains from northwest Greenland". Polar Record 41 (2): 125. doi:10.1017/S0032247404004127.
- ^ "Ellis, Ovibos moschatus''". Animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu. http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Ovibos_moschatus.html. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ [1] (2011).
- ^ "Search for the Legendary White Musk-ox". Thelon.com. 2010-08-06. http://www.thelon.com/geese.htm. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ "Alaska Department of Fish and Game page about muskox". Adfg.state.ak.us. http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/biggame/muskoxen.php. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ "The Qiviut Fiber and Yarn". Qiviut.com. http://www.qiviut.com/store/index.cfm?target=Fiber%20/%20Yarn. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ Large Animal Research Station
- ^ Muskox Wool – Qiviut (Kiv-ee-oot)
- ^ Muskox at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game
- ^ "The Incredible Journey". Nps.gov. 2010-12-28. http://www.nps.gov/gaar/naturescience/muskox-the-incredible-journey.htm. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ "Robert G. White Large Animal Research Station, University of Alaska". Alaska.edu. 1963-10-12. http://www.alaska.edu/opa/eInfo/index.xml?StoryID=161. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ "Muskox, (Ovibos moschatus) US Fish & Wildlife Service". Fws.gov. http://www.fws.gov/species/species_accounts/bio_musk.html. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ "Annual Report of Research and Monitoring in National Parks of the Western Arctic 2003, Parks Canada". Pc.gc.ca. 2009-04-15. http://www.pc.gc.ca/docs/v-g/rs-rm2003/sec4/page10_e.asp. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Lent, P. (1988). "Ovibos moschatus". Mammalian Species 302: 1–9.
- ^ a b c Tener, J. S. (1965). Muskoxen in Canada a biological and taxonomic review. Ottawa: Queen's Printer.
- ^ Owen-Smith, N. (1977). "On Territoriality in Ungulates and an Evolutionary Model". The Quarterly Review of Biology 52 (1): 1–38. doi:10.1086/409720.
- ^ a b Wilkinson, P. F., Shank, C. C. (1976). "Rutting-fight Mortality among Musk Oxen on Banks Island, Northwest Territories, Canada". Animal Behavior 24 (4): 756–758. doi:10.1016/S0003-3472(76)80004-8.
- ^ a b c Reinhardt, V. (2005). "Courtship behavior among musk-ox males kept in confinement". Zoo Biology 4 (3): 295–300.
- ^ a b Gray, D. R. (1986). "Standing his ground: How the muskox survives the rigours of an Arctic winter". Nature Canada 15: 19–26.
- ^ a b c Freeman, M. (1971). "Population Characteristics of Musk-Oxen in the Jones Sound Region of the Northwest Territories". Journal of Wildlife Management 35 (1): 103–108. doi:10.2307/3799877.
- ^ a b Jingfors, K. (1982). "Seasonal Activity Budgets and Movements of a Reintroduced Alaskan Muskox Herd". Journal of Wildlife Management 46 (1): 344–359. doi:10.2307/3808645.
- ^ Miller, F. G., Anne. (1980). "Behavioral Reesponses of Musk Ox to Simulation of Cargo Slinging by Helicopter, Northwest Territories". The Canadian field-naturalist 94 (1).
Source:
Wikipedia
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Names and Taxonomy
Taxonomy
Comments: Groves (1997) examined mtDNA variation and found low levels of variability and no support for the recognition of the two nominal subspecies.
See Georgiadis et al. (1991) for a phylogeny of the Bovidae based on allozyme divergence among 27 species. See A91KRA03NA for a phylogenetic analysis of pecoran ruminants (Cervidae, Bovidae, Moschidae, Antilocapridae, and Giraffidae) based on mitochondrial DNA data.
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