Caribou are found in a variety of habitats from the Arctic coastal plain to foothills and mountains. Calving areas are usually located in mountains or on open, coastal tundra. Caribou tend to migrate to the same areas year after year, leaving deeply scoured trails in the tundra. Like most herd animals, caribou must keep moving to find adequate food. In the summer, caribou eat the leaves of willows, sedges, flowering tundra plants, and mushrooms.
Bulls rub their antlers against low brush and small trees, leaving worn bark and broken branches.
In early September, bull caribou fight in brief episodes to control a space around them to prevent other bulls from breeding females within their space. These large groups of caribou stay together in the high mountains and along seacoasts where wind and cool temperatures provide relief from summer heat and insects. After insects decline in August, caribou scatter apart and feed heavily on willow leaves and mushrooms to regain body weight. Identifying Sex Young bulls before the age of three are similar in appearance to female caribou. It is important to know that you can not determine the sex of the animal solely by the antler size or the color of the mane.