sierraclub.org - sierra magazine - july/august 2012 - arctic - arctic ice: the other recession
Florian Schulz photographs the wildlife at the top of the world
Photography by Florian Schulz, from To the Arctic | Text by M.P. Klier
The long-haired musk oxen, with their smile-shaped horns, are a living, breathing remnant of the Pleistocene epoch—their wooly mammoth, saber-toothed cat, and ground sloth compatriots did not fare as well. Like most year-round inhabitants of the Arctic, musk oxen are exceptionally good at conserving energy: Instead of running from predators, they bunch together in a tight circle, with their heads facing out and their calves in the middle. They forage for lichens in places where the wind has blown away most of the snow and spend much of their time standing still.