The festive story of Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer, may be based on scientific fact, according to the findings from a new study.
Researchers in Sweden have used thermal imaging cameras to capture the heat coming from reindeer as they graze.
They found that while most of the animals’ bodies are well insulated by their fur, their noses glow bright orange in the images due to the large amounts of heat they release. That’s because reindeer have a high concentration of blood vessels in their nose and lips to help keep them warm and sensitive when rummaging through snow as they search for food.
Professor Ronald Kroger, a zoologist at Lund University in Sweden, said that in some cases these even led to the animals’ mule, or snout, taking on a reddish colour in the cold.