Editing Antler (section)

=== Female antlers in reindeer ===
[[Image:20070818-0001-strolling reindeer.jpg|thumb|Reindeer in Kebnekaise valley, [[Sweden]]]]
[[Reindeer]] (''Rangifer tarandus)'' are the only cervid species that inhabit the Arctic and subarctic regions of the globe, yet their most striking distinction is the presence of pedicles after birth and antlers in both males and females.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nasoori |first=Alireza |date=2020 |title=Formation, structure, and function of extra-skeletal bones in mammals |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/brv.12597 |journal=Biological Reviews |language=en |volume=95 |issue=4 |pages=986–1019 |doi=10.1111/brv.12597 |pmid=32338826 |s2cid=216556342 |issn=1464-7931}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lin |first1=Zeshan |last2=Chen |first2=Lei |last3=Chen |first3=Xianqing |last4=Zhong |first4=Yingbin |last5=Yang |first5=Yue |last6=Xia |first6=Wenhao |last7=Liu |first7=Chang |last8=Zhu |first8=Wenbo |last9=Wang |first9=Han |last10=Yan |first10=Biyao |last11=Yang |first11=Yifeng |last12=Liu |first12=Xing |last13=Sternang Kvie |first13=Kjersti |last14=Røed |first14=Knut Håkon |last15=Wang |first15=Kun |date=2019-06-21 |title=Biological adaptations in the Arctic cervid, the reindeer ( Rangifer tarandus ) |journal=Science |language=en |volume=364 |issue=6446 |pages=eaav6312 |doi=10.1126/science.aav6312 |pmid=31221829 |bibcode=2019Sci...364.6312L |s2cid=195191761 |issn=0036-8075|doi-access=free }}</ref> One possible reason that females of this species evolved antlers is to clear away snow so they can eat the vegetation underneath.<ref name=Hall/> Another possible reason is for female competition during winter foraging.<ref name="Gilbert"/> Espmark (1964) observed that the presence of antlers on females is related to the hierarchy rank and is a result of the harsh winter conditions and the female dominated parental investment.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Espmark |first=Yngve |date=1964-10-01 |title=Studies in dominance-subordination relationship in a group of semi-domestic reindeer (Rangifer tarandus L.) |url=https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0003-3472%2864%2990061-2 |journal=Animal Behaviour |language=en |volume=12 |issue=4 |pages=420–426 |doi=10.1016/0003-3472(64)90061-2 |issn=0003-3472}}</ref> Males shed their antlers prior to winter, while female antlers are retained throughout winter.<ref>{{cite journal|date=December 2001|title=Antlers on Female Caribou: Biogeography of the Bones of Contention|jstor=2680172|journal=Ecology|volume=82|issue=12|pages=3556–3560|last1=Schaefer and Mahoney|doi=10.2307/2680172}}</ref> Also, female antler size plateaus at the onset of puberty, around age three, while males' antler size increases during their lifetime.<ref name="Melnycky"/> This likely reflects the differing life history strategies of the two sexes, where females are resource limited in their reproduction and cannot afford costly antlers, while male reproductive success depends on the size of their antlers because they are under directional sexual selection.<ref name="Melnycky">{{cite journal|last1=Melnycky|display-authors=et al|title=Scaling of antler size in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus): sexual dimorphism and variability in resource allocation|journal=Journal of Mammalogy|date=December 2013|volume=94|issue=6|pages=1371–1379|doi=10.1644/12-mamm-a-282.1|s2cid=86047535|doi-access=}}</ref> In other species of deer, the presence of antlers in females indicates some degree of [[intersex]] condition, the frequency of which has been seen to vary from 1.5%<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wishart |first=William |date=1985 |title=Frequency of Antlered White-Tailed Does in Camp Wainwright, Alberta
|journal=Journal of Wildlife Management|volume=49|issue=2|pages=386–388|doi=10.2307/3801538 |jstor=3801538}}</ref> to 0.02%.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Donaldson|first1=John|last2=Doutt|first2=J. Kenneth|jstor=3798545|title=Antlers in Female White-Tailed Deer: A 4-Year Study|journal=Journal of Wildlife Management|date=1965 |volume=29|issue=4|pages=699–705|doi=10.2307/3798545 }}</ref>