Snøhetta reindeer

The wild reindeer in Snøhetta are from a genetic perspective the closest to the original Scandinavian wild reindeer. The Snøhetta reindeer is known as the shiest wild reindeer in Norway, making it especially vulnerable to intrusion.

Photo: Brendhagen

Typical for the wild reindeer is its herd behaviour and its nomadic way of life, constantly migrating to make the best possible use of the lean food base in the area. Snøhetta east, which is the largest, has its habitat in the areas east of the lake Aursjøen – in the valley of Eikesdalen. The area around the mountain Snøhetta comprises the main natural habitat. With a view towards preserving our wild reindeer stocks, the aim is for the winter population to number 1800 animals. In the 2002/2003 the population was just half this. As a consequence, the reindeer in this area were protected from hunting in the autumn of 2003.

The wild reindeer stocks in Snøhetta are managed as two sub-stocks

Snøhetta east, which is the largest, has its habitat in the areas east of the lake Aursjøen – in the valley of Eikesdalen. The area around the mountain Snøhetta comprises the main natural habitat. With a view towards preserving our wild reindeer stocks, the aim is for the winter population to number 1800 animals. In the 2002/2003 the population was just half this. As a consequence, the reindeer in this area were protected from hunting in the autumn of 2003.

Snøhetta west, which is the smaller of the two, has its habitat in the areas west of the lake Aursjøen – in the valley of Eikesdalen. The aim is to have a winter population of 500 animals. The lake Aursjøen comprises, along with the road southwards along Jore and northwards to Eikesdalen, a barrier for migration between the two areas. However, an exchange of reindeer occurs from time to time. A lot of relevant information has been compiled about this wild reindeer.

Do you want to read more about the wild reindeer at Dovrefjell? You can read the book Snøhettareinen (The Snøhetta reindeer) by Per Jordhøy, which has collected a lot of relevant material about this reindeer.