Claim: Russian, wild forest reindeer, similar to North American woodland caribou, reached their peak population in the 1800's.
Evidence: Wild forest reindeer, are similar to the woodland caribou in North America. The indigenous population (from 1872 to the 1950s when it was resettled to the mainland) consisted of about 50–300 Nenetses who subsisted mainly on reindeer herding, fishing, trapping, polar bear hunting and seal hunting.