Caribou genes reduce its ability to cope with climate change
During the last glacial maximum 20, 000 years ago, glaciers traversed the North American continent, engulfing areas suitable for reindeer and separating reindeer from European populations for thousands of years.
Now, researchers have confirmed that it is this climate event that shapes the genes of caribou, which may make caribou unable to adapt to future climate change.
Glenn Yannic, a population geneticist at Laval University in Quebec, Canada, who led the study, said: 'it makes me pessimistic about the future of reindeer species. 'on December 15, the study was published in the journal nature climate change.