MUSK OX. Adult males are 6-8 feet long, stand 5 feet tall at the shoulders and average 600
pounds in weight. Females are stand 4 feet tall and weigh about 350 pounds. Their fur is very
long, dark brown with creamy patches on their nose, forehead, legs, and saddle. Their under fur
called qiviut helps the musk ox stay warm at temperatures that drive polar bears and arctic
foxes into shelter.
A single calf is born to a musk ox mother in April or May. They weigh about 19 pounds. Musk ox
live about 20 years.
The foods the musk ox eats are grasses, sedges, forbs, willows, and lichens. Their predators are
wolves, grizzly bears, and humans.
MUSK OX are found on the open arctic tundra, along the northern coast, on Nunivik Island, and on
Nelson Island.