This lesson introduces students to caribou and their migratory behavior. Students will learn some basic facts about caribou and map the migration route of the Porcupine caribou herd of Alaska and northwestern Canada. They will conclude by drawing pictures of scenes along this migration route and writing captions to describe their drawings.

Geography, life science

Standard 9: "The characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on Earth's surface"

Two to three hours

• Computer with Internet access
• Blank Xpeditions outline map of Alaska (one for each student or pair of students)
• Drawing materials

Students will

• read and answer questions about a paragraph on caribou;
• think of words to describe the caribou and the landscape where they live;
• map the range and migration route of one caribou herd;
• discuss what it would be like to follow a caribou herd during its migration;
• draw pictures pretending they are traveling along the migration route; and
• write captions to describe their pictures.

Have students look at this picture of caribou. Ask them if they recognize the animals and know what they are called.

If students say that these are reindeer, tell them that they are almost correct. Write the words "Reindeer" and "Caribou" on the board, and tell the class that they are the same type of animal, but they do different things and live in different places. Reindeer are domestic animals that people use to help them do work. Caribou are wild animals. Reindeer live mainly in northern Europe and Asia. Caribou live in North America and Greenland. Point out these regions on a world wall map, or have students point them out.

Explain that the animals in this picture are caribou; the picture was taken in Canada.

Print and copy the following paragraphs, and have students read them as a class, or read them to younger children. (The information was taken from E-Parks: Caribou.)

• Caribou are a type of deer. They are three to five feet tall at the shoulder. Some caribou are brown with white parts. Others are almost all white.
• Both males and females have antlers. Males' antlers can grow up to five feet long!
• Most caribou live between seven and ten years. Caribou live in Alaska, Canada, parts of Washington, and Greenland. The largest group lives in Alaska.
• Caribou live in herds, or groups. Herds spend the summer in the northern part of their range. There, they eat and have babies. When autumn comes, they migrate south for the winter.

Discuss the meanings of any new vocabulary words, such as "antlers" or "migrate." Then ask students to answer these questions, either in writing or as a class:

• Are all caribou the same color? What colors can they be?
• Where do caribou live?
• Why do you think caribou migrate?
• Do you think caribou are related to the deer you might see near your home?

Have students look at caribou photographs in the Caribou Photo Gallery. Ask them to look at the background scenery as well as the caribou. As they look at these pictures, ask them to write or say words that come to their minds to describe both the scenery and the animals. Write these words on the board.

Explain that caribou migrate each year. They do this in order to find good places to give birth and to eat.

Give each student or pair of students a blank outline map of Alaska.

On a world wall map, point out the summer range of the Porcupine caribou herd on the coastal plain of northeastern Alaska and northwestern Yukon, Canada. You may need to have students take turns coming to the front of the room to see where you are pointing. Ask students to shade in this area on their own maps.

[Note: The Conservation GIS Center provides a detailed map showing the full caribou range.]

Point out the Brooks Range on the wall map. Ask them to draw and label the Brooks Range on their maps.

Explain that the Porcupine herd spends its summers in the flat coastal plain they have shaded. It is in this area that the caribou give birth to their babies. Every fall, they migrate from this area to the Brooks Range to spend the winter. They like this mountainous region in the winter because it's easier to find places where there is not as much snow, such as ridges where the wind has blown the snow away. They can then more easily dig under the snow for plants to eat.

Ask students to draw the Porcupine herd's fall migration route on their maps.

Have students look at pictures of the scenery in the Porcupine herd's summer grounds. Then have them look at this picture of the Brooks Range. Explain that the caribou live in the grassy area during the summer and migrate to the lower parts of these mountains for the winter months.

Ask students what they think a large animal such as a caribou would need when migrating over such a long distance. They might mention such "basics" as food, clean water, and open space.

Ask students to describe the terrain through which the caribou must travel. What is the landscape like? What do they think the weather might be like during the spring and fall, when the caribou are migrating? (In Barrow, Alaska, which is a short distance northwest of the herd's range, the average temperatures are as follows: January: between 0 and minus 10 degrees Fahrenheit; May: around 30 degrees; July: in the mid-40s; October: in the low 20s).

Review the reasons that caribou migrate: to give birth and to find food. Ask students whether people do the same thing. They should agree that, in general, people do not need to travel long distances to give birth or to find food.

Hold a brief class discussion comparing and contrasting caribou migration with human movement across long distances. Students should recognize that people in the United States generally move for their jobs, to live near their families, for recreational opportunities, or for other reasons that are not essential to their survival. They should recognize that caribou, on the other hand, must migrate to survive.

Pose these questions to the class: If you could follow a caribou herd on its migration from the northern coast of Alaska to the Brooks Range, what would you see? What would the scenery look like? What would the caribou do along the way? Ask them to assume that the caribou do not know they are being followed. Discuss students’ ideas, and list them on the board.

Have students draw pictures of two scenes they might see on their journey with the caribou. They can do this individually, in pairs, or in small groups. Their pictures should show the animals and the landscape and should demonstrate what students have learned about caribou, the region where they live, and their migration route.

Have students write captions to describe what each picture shows. They may use ideas from their recent class discussion as well as words from the list they created earlier in the lesson to describe the caribou photographs.

For more advanced students: Have students see developments in the most recent Porcupine caribou herd migration by going to the Journey North caribou page. They should click on "Migration Updates," select the most recent journey (at the bottom of the page) and click on the map. [Note: The map images are quite large and may take a few minutes to download.]

Have students look at the map legend with the individual caribou names. Explain that a few female caribou are wearing special collars that people can use to track their movements. The collars do not hurt the caribou—the animals don't even know they are wearing them. Each of the colored dots represents an individual caribou that is wearing a collar.

Have students choose one caribou to "follow," and ask them to trace that animal's movements on the map. Has she moved north or south? Why has she gone in this direction? Where is she headed? How many miles has she traveled on this migration so far (see the map scale)?

Have students write paragraphs describing this caribou's route and predicting where she will go next.

E-Parks: Caribou
Journey North
National Geographic: Radio Expeditions—Caribou Crossing
Old Crow—Caribou