This is a "reindeer cyclone", a defensive behavior that has been observed in herds of reindeer, even in captivity.
The fawns and older animals are at the center, the strongest animal in the outer lanes.
The point is to confuse the brains of predators accustomed to stalking a single outlier.
The fawns and older animals are at the center, the strongest animal in the outer lanes.
The point is to confuse the brains of predators accustomed to stalking a single outlier.
Comments
There's a paper here that explores the inherent direction of turning, and possible underlying reasons why they prefer a counter-clockwise direction:
https://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/rangifer/article/view/687
This article by one of my favorite science writers, @laminda.bsky.social has more details: