Study the photo above, taken in Finnish Lapland, and see if you can work out how these patterns in the snow formed.
For the answer, I would like to thank “Chris in Finland” for his wonderful email:
Hi Tristan,
This magnificent and intriguing aerial photo was taken this winter at Muotka, Sodankylä in Finnish Lapland.
When you’re 68 degrees north in the arctic winter you get to witness many amazing sights and this is one of my favorites.
As a student of natural navigation, I am always keenly aware that everything in nature has a message.
It’s fascinating to try and work out what has happened here? What does it tells us about the environment, the creatures that live here and the weather conditions?
Guiding
I have been lucky to spend this last winter working as a wilderness guide in Finnish lapland.
It’s a great joy to do something you really love and have a level of expertise in.
One of the greatest pleasures is sharing that WOW! moment when people suddenly see something as if for the first time.
Whether its reading tracks in the snow and working out which way the mountain hare was running, looking at the shapes of trees covered with snow to find your way back home. Or using the stars to find which direction to observe the northern lights. For me, first seeing this photo which my friend kindly shared with me was one of my own Wow moments!
The Answer
In the photo we can see the distinctive pattern created by the grazing of a small herd of Reindeer.
I would summarize it’s probably a group of 5-10 female reindeers with their young calves.
Male reindeers tend to be solitary in the winter and the females,sporting their winter antlers, often live in small groups to help keep safe from predators.
During winter time one of the many food sources reindeer utilize is the lichen Reindeer moss. This grows beneath the snow and is adapted to survive extreme cold and dryness.
This year we had 90 cm of snow so it’s no small feat to dig the snow away and access this food source. How the reinders know where to dig in the pitch dark of arctic winter is an intriguing lesson in adaptation. This includes reindeer having eyes that change colour in winter to help them see better in the dark and having a good sense of smell in their high tech noses so they know where to dig.
Now we know Rudolfs wives and offspring created these tracks we can explore what else this photo tells us.
We can deduce that the weather has been cold and dry, at least a few degrees below zero at the time the reindeer were here. The snow conditions have to be dry and powdery to enable such deep excavations. However, the absence of snow on the trees indicates that there must have been some strong winds and milder conditions since the feeding took place.
Thank You Chris for one of the most interesting emails I have received recently!
You might also enjoy:
Natural Navigation Using Snow on Trees
The Temperature Rises Before Snow Arrives
Chris’ Winter Bushcraft Course
The Beginner’s Guide to Natural Navigation – Online Course