It is said that every year Santa Claus drives a sled to give gifts to children, and Santa Claus does not pull the sled with a horse, but with a deer. Do you know why you use deer to pull sledges?
It turns out that the legendary Santa Claus lives in the Arctic, where there is a special kind of deer - reindeer. Both female and male deer have long horns, complex branches, sometimes more than 30 forks, wide hooves, developed hanging hooves and good at walking.
Caribou is about 1.8m long and weighs 100kg. The male deer is slightly larger and can reach 180kg. It is widely distributed in the cold zone around the Arctic. China only exists in the northwest of Daxinganling. Reindeer adapt to life in the snow. Their wide hooves can avoid falling into the snow and push aside the snowbank to find food; And its eyes can change color to prevent the strong light reflected by the snow from stabbing the eyes. Reindeer is one of the most familiar breeding animals for residents around the Arctic. It is gentle and easy to domesticate. It can easily cross the snow, swamp and forest that horses are difficult to cross. Therefore, Santa Claus will choose reindeer to pull sleds.
In China, reindeer is also an indispensable means of transportation and livestock of Ewenki nationality, known as "the ship of the forest sea". They are used to carry prey when hunting, carry goods and ride for women and children when moving, and carry food and daily necessities down the mountain. Now they have become a highlight of receiving tourists.