The Wonder of The Musk Ox

Musk oxen in a defensive circle

          There is on topic on musk oxen that I have purposely avoided since the start of my blog, but since this will be my last post and and next week I will have my ted talk, I find now to be the appropriate time to talk about the most fascinating and distinguishing characteristic of this wondrous arctic mammal, and that is the way by which they defend themselves. Since this defensive tactic is such a pivotal topihc when it comes to this creature I have made brief mention of it a time or two before, but it is only now that I can fully divulge in to the the full details of this amazing work of mother nature, for it is the characteristic of the musk oxen that teaches us humans so many important life lessons. 

"No other animal has the defense method of musk oxen. When danger 
threatens they do not run away. Instead, a herd of twenty to forty 
individuals backs into a rough circle facing outward with the calves in 
the center or under their mother's bellies. This ring of horned heads 
can defy such natural enemies as the arctic wolf and the grizzly bear. 
From time to time a bull dashes out to do battle, then returns to the 
circle. He is exceedingly nimble. A single sweep of his horns can 
cripple or kill a wolf, dog or Eskimo hunter armed with a spear."

        This quote taken from a wildlife website explains the way that these wise creatures defend themselves, as it remarks, the musk oxen do not run away -- in times of extreme threat and danger they stand their ground and face the incoming opposition. They are not fazed by the instinct of fear that most herd animals of their sort are controlled by, horses, buffalo, deer, even African herd animals like zebra and antelope instinctively flee in the presence of danger, however the musk oxen are willing to face the impeding danger. If they refused to do so they would not make it, for wool of a musk oxen insulates them to such an extant that they are often prone to overheating -- not to mention that the young musk oxen would not be able to out run the predators and would surely fall prey. 
          There are occasions where the musk oxen become afraid and break their defensive circle --rather than facing the threat they choose to turn and run. These cases always turn out tragically. The young musk oxen cannot keep up with the herd and they are singled out and taken down. Without the cooperation of the entire herd their numbers dwindle. The very young and the very old -- the weakest links  so to speak cannot defend themselves alone. Without the protection of the herd -- without the defensive circle these more vulnerable oxen fall victim. Here is a video that shows how breaking the defensive ranks can affect the herd, it does not end well for the musk oxen so you may not want to watch of you are faint of heart...even I look away when I see the tragic fate.

          Because these musk oxen neglected to hold their ground -- because they worried about saving themselves and forsook the defensive circle that is used to preserve even the weaker musk oxen they were overtaken by the enemy. We philosophize the nature teaches us to believe in such terms as "survival of the fittest" and "you are only as strong as your weakest link" but these are human terms. When the musk oxen demonstrate behavior of these terms the turn our is fatal, however when they stand their ground and cooperate they are able to overcome their foes.
          I beleive that nature does not teach us to "look out for number one." Instead, if we looked to the musk oxen, we would see that nature compels us to look out for the weakest link, come around that area of weakness and defend it. If we were to look out for one another and embrace each other in times of stress perhaps we could face our foes without dwindling in number. The musk oxen is a survivor -- Miraculously they overcame the Ice Age; a time when all other large animals perished from this earth. They have survived thousands of years with thousands of perils but they have always faced these perils head on.
           Perhaps the fact that the musk oxen is unable to run away because their bodies cannot stand the heat is precisely the reason for their survival. We as a species could better learn to survive too, if we learned to not flee from hardship but to face it, furthermore not only to face our troubles, but to do so in cooperation, looking out for others around us instead of leaving them to the wolves.
1. http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/natbltn/700-799/nb740.htm

Musk ox Myth and Legend

Cave Drawing of a Musk ox

"Although there is nothing in the appearance or in the life of the musk-ox to suggest romance, yet the Indians and the Eskimo surround it with much mystery. They say it is not like other animals, that it is cunning and plays tricks on them, that it is not safe to approach, that it understands what is said. The Indians among whom I travelled have a tradition that long years ago a woman wandered into the Barren Grounds, was lost, and finally turned into a musk-ox by the "enemy." Perhaps this accounts for the occasional habit these Indians have when pursuing musk-oxen of talking to them, instructing them as to the direction of their flight, etc. Several authors maintain that these Indians, when hunting, do not talk to other animals; but I have heard them jabbering while hunting caribou after the same manner they do when running after musk-oxen."

This exert was taken from American author, editor, and explorer Caspar Whitney's book, Musk oxen, Bison, Sheep and Goats. A special part of the century-old cultural heritage of the Inuit are their myths and legends, which had been passed exclusively by word of mouth, because the Inuit had no written language and consequently had no literary tradition.  The oral recital of passed-on knowledge gave Inuit families particularly a feeling of immediate togetherness. At the same time, narrating made a connection between past and present, because the essential statements had been passed from generation to generation and accepted as the truth, without reservations. Among the Inuit, there are even nowadays no authors in the strict sense, so finding any such myths or legends on musk oxen was a bit of a hopeless cause despite my determination. Although it was very difficult -- nearly impossible -- for me to find any written Indian or Inuit legends of musk oxen I was able to find strong evidence from several sources that this type of folklore did exist quite commonly throughout the history of mankind such as the expert from Caspar Whitney's book that was written in the 1900s. Another article I came across talked about a completly different Inuit legend about musk oxen and their interactions with the native peoples:

"People and muskoxen have a long tradition of coexistence. From prehistoric times to the present, this shaggy mammal has provided the Inuit with meat, warm sleeping robes, and horn used in the manufacture of weapons and implements. The muskox also gave spiritual gifts to the Inuit. The people of western Hudson Bay have an old story of how two muskoxen provided the hunters with a song. These muskoxen had taken off their skins and were standing rubbing the skins to soften them and singing praises of their country. They sang of how beautiful the land was and how in summer they could always see the sun. While they were singing they heard a pack of dogs. Quickly they put on their skins and went up a hill where they thought they could defend themselves. Soon after they reached the top, the hunters came and killed both animals and took the song for their own (2)."

I wish I had more complete versions of all the legends that the Inuits had of the musk oxen, but sadly these resources are just not found on the internet, they are traditions passed down through word of mouth generation to generation -- many may have even been lost through the years. However the important point that I am trying to illustrate is that musk oxen have been significant to the human race sense these two species first crossed paths.  The lessons that these wise and ancient arctic creatures have to teach us are not unknown to man kind, rather they are forgotten.

Here are some examples of Inuit artwork -- carvings of musk oxen. These small relics demonstrate the importance that these animals held to these people, "The image of the muskox is commonly used in Inuit art as a symbol of strength and survival (3)." 

Wooden Inuit carving

Soapstone Carving

1.http://books.google.com/books?pg=PA70&dq=musk%20oxen&ei=mZzaTPzHOsX7lweblf3GCQ&ct=result&id=2CBJAAAAMAAJ&output=text2.http://www.hww.ca/hww2.asp?id=95

2.http://www.hww.ca/hww2.asp?id=95

3.http://www.nunavutmuskox.ca/muskox_art_products.html
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inuit_culture