The Scientist Is In: Reindeer Special

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

2 pm ET

Herd of reindeer traveling single file across the tundra.
A  herd of reindeer, including descendants from the herd of conservation biologist Mary Blair's great-great-grandfather, travel across the tundra.
Mary Blair/© CBC-AMNH

Conservation biologist Mary Blair, director of biodiversity informatics research at the Museum's Center for Biodiversity and Conservation, takes us on a family-friendly journey North of the Arctic Circle, and to Finland, Russia, Sweden and Norway—where her people, the Sámi, have been nomadic reindeer herders for centuries.

Find out about the cultural significance of reindeer for this indigenous group, as well as about conservation efforts to help generations of both people and reindeer face global warming.

Watch a recording of the livestream, first aired on December 22, 2020.