Polar Animals: First Grade Research

"Musk Ox", from Encyclopedia of Animals, 2006.

What is a Musk Ox?

• Musk oxen are large goat antelopes.  They are covered with a thick coat of long, brownish black hairs. They have a coat of shorter fur during the summer and longer fur during the winter.
  

• Musk oxen have a large hump on their backs right behind their heads. This hump is covered with shaggy, long fur. Musk oxen grow to be between 5 1/2 and 8 feet long, and between 3 1/2 and 4 1/2 feet tall. Musk oxen usually weigh between 750 and 1,450 pounds.

Where does a Musk Ox live?

• Musk oxen live in the very cold arctic and tundra areas from Alaska to Greenland. They do not live in the coldest places, such as the North Pole, but they do live where there is some snow on the ground most of the year.

What does a Musk Ox Eat?

• Musk oxen are herbivores, or plant-eating animals. They eat grasses, lichens, sedges, herbs, and the branches from some trees. {Picture}
  

 Musk Ox Babies

• Mating season for musk oxen is in August and September.  The female then gives birth to one baby. Musk oxen get their name from the musk-like smell the males give over during mating season.{Picture}

Other Facts

• The main predator of the musk ox is the wolf. When wolves approach, female musk oxen form a circle around the young and the males form a circle around the females. Some of the males rush at the wolves and the wolves go away.  {Picture}