Endless Numbered Days

Monday, August 11, 2008

Musk Ox Farm

If you are not aware of this already, musk oxen are some of the neatest animals ever. In Alaska, they're mostly confined to Nunivak island, but you can also see them at the musk ox farm in Palmer, where their unusually warm and quality qiviut are harvested as a source of subsistence income for Alaska's native populations: workers pick up the wooly hair and give it to the native people to knit really expensive things with, so they can earn a living.
In the wild, each herd has one dominant male. This male is responsible for siring ALL of the calves. When encountered by an enemy, the herd forms a ring. The males (and some of the strongest females) face outwards, with the babies and females tucked in the middle. They will then send out their dominant male to fight the enemy. When he tires, he returns to the ring, and the next dominant male is sent out to continue where the first left off. It just so happend that the several-years-dominant male at this farm was recently deposed by an ox named Goliath (here he is below, stoically keeping watch at his fence).
Making eye contact with these guys freaks them out, so you're never to bend down to their level.
This guy is named Ferdinand. He was really itchy and was scratching every part of his body against the fence.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home