Article snippet: As Santa Claus loads his sleigh led by flying reindeer, climate change proponents are spreading the story of the animals’ plight because of global warming. The Guardian’s Weatherwatch feature reports that reindeer, or Caribou as they are known in many locales, are adaptable to extremely cold weather. And while they can’t fly, their biological design seems proof of God’s hand in their creation: A few other fun facts about reindeer were reported on the Live Science website: But the Guardian says that a freeze-thaw weather pattern it blames on climate change is endangering the hardy caribou, by limiting access to lichen for grazing. The Guardian also reported that the death of 200 reindeer earlier this year in the Arctic archipelago Svalbard was caused by climate change, according to the Norwegian Polar Institute, which cited starvation. “Climate change is making it rain much more. The rain falls on the snow and forms a layer of ice on the tundra, making grazing conditions very poor for animals,” Ashild Onvik Pederson, who led an annual census of the reindeer population on the islands, said in the Guardian report. The article, however, also said a large number of reindeer deaths were recorded in 2007-2008, but not in subsequent years leading up to latest census. Moreover, the article also reports that a part of the problem is that the reindeer population has exploded despite weather patterns: Live Science also reported that Santa’s reindeer may have been misnamed, b... Link to the full article to read more