Q 01/05

Reindeer are unique among deer in what way?

A) They have no antlers at all

B) Females may grow antlers

C) They shed antlers twice a year

D) Their antlers never stop growing

Answer · why

B) Females may grow antlers

Since males shed theirs in early winter, the antlered team on Santa's sleigh is most likely all female.

Q 02/05

When do male reindeer shed their antlers?

A) Late spring

B) Early to mid-winter

C) The height of summer

D) They keep them for life

Answer · why

B) Early to mid-winter

Once the bulls are bare-headed, the antlered cows take the top ranks at the best feeding spots.

Q 03/05

A 2011 University College London study found reindeer can see which kind of light that humans cannot?

A) Infrared

B) Microwave

C) Ultraviolet

D) X-rays

Answer · why

C) Ultraviolet

Urine and fur, invisible against snow to us, stand out sharply to a reindeer in the Arctic gloom.

Q 04/05

The reflective layer in an Arctic reindeer's eye changes from gold in summer to what colour in winter?

A) Red

B) Green

C) Black

D) Blue

Answer · why

D) Blue

The shift in the tapetum lucidum improves vision during months of continuous darkness.

Q 05/05

What causes the clicking sound reindeer make as they walk?

A) Their hooves knocking together

B) Tendons slipping over bones in their feet

C) Air escaping from their nostrils

D) Antlers rubbing against each other

Answer · why

B) Tendons slipping over bones in their feet

Loud knee-clicking turns out to be an honest signal of body size, a rare case of non-vocal acoustic communication in mammals.