Reindeer near Oulu, Finland (© Juan Carlos Muñoz/age fotostock)

【December 25 2015】In North America they’re called caribou. But here in Finland and across northern Europe, the same animals are called reindeer. They’re well adapted to handle the extreme cold of the Scandinavian winter. Spiral bones inside the reindeer’s nose increase surface area, so that icy air warms up as it travels into its lungs. And reindeer hooves actually tighten and toughen as winter comes on, for better traction on ice and snow. Those hardened hooves also help them dig through the hard snowpack to get at their winter diet: lichen. Maybe next year consider leaving some lichen out for Santa’s team.Explore breathtaking Gallery from the HuluTrip homepage over the past 5 years..