The L.C. Bates Museum recently welcomed a new animal to its mammal collection, a musk Oxen.
The musk ox is a male originating from Alaska, where musk oxen were hunted to extinction during the nineteenth century but reintroduced in the twentieth century through the transplantation of musk oxen from Greenland. Today, musk oxen are most famous for their long, rugged fur designed to keep them safe and warm in the cold and snow of the Arctic. Musk oxen’s coats contain a protective outer layer called guard hair and a soft underlayer called qiviut.
The musk oxen was donated by Alana Albee and Robert Headley.
Students will be able to see an animal adapted to the colder northern climate.
For more information, call 207-238-4250, email [email protected] or visit gwh.org/lcbates.
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