Gijrra
Gijrragiessie
Temperatures rise, and spring-winter melts into
spring. The migration to the mountains must be quick,
as the soft, melting earth makes the journey more
arduous. The females are heavy with calf, and they
trudge northward towards the foothills of the mountains. The landscape is shrinking and rising. The trees
shrink from tall spruce and pine to Arctic and alpine
species such as dwarf birch (Betula nana) and alpine
pussytoes (Antennaria alpina), which are miniature in
size to survive the frigid cold and rocky soils.
The once flat and boggy ground begins to rise into
humps and gullies splashed with colourful patches of
tiny vegetation. Here, in the foothills, the females will
calf. This is the most sensitive and vulnerable part of
the lifecycle. Stress from predators or human disturbance could cause the females to miscarry.
During pre-summer, the calves have arrived. They
begin to walk on shaky legs immediately after birth.
Danger lurks above, as golden eagles fly ready to snatch
a newborn. The earth is exploding with life, and plants
become green and leafy to feed hungry calves. This is
the season of growing. The mosquitoes also hatch, and
begin to drive the reindeer up the mountains to cooler
temperatures. The Sami herders rest after their long
journey, and prepare for the earmarking of calves.
Giessie
The darkness of winter is a distant memory, and the
sun-soaked days and nights bathe the fast-growing
reindeer. Their bodies grow big, their antlers form,
and their coats begin to thicken in preparation for
the autumn. The reindeer herders work day and night
to round up and earmark their calves. They must
be sure to mark their reindeer and not those of the
neighbouring Sameby (Sami villages). Reindeer are
corralled, and calves separated based on their mother’s
marking. Each group carves a distinct marking into
the ear of the calves. Sleep is short with the presence of
the midnight sun, and the light across the mountaintops radiates in one million golden hues. This is the
season of contemplation.
Tjakttjagiessie
The light begins to wane in pre-autumn, and the
reindeer are fat from their summer feasts. They have
been eating a lot of vegetation: grasses, sedges, woody
plants, and herbaceous species such as fireweed
(Epilobum angustifolium) and wild celery (Angelica
archangelica). Herders choose some of the fattened
bull reindeer, sarvss, for slaughter. This is the season
of harvest, and families are busy collecting the many
berries, herbs, and mushrooms that grow in the mountains. Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) and lingonberry
(Vaccinium vitis-idaea) are sweet from the midnight
sun and dye fingers dark purple and red. Cloudberries
ripen and disappear as quickly as they came. There is
urgency in the air; both reindeer and Sami must maximize the summer’s gifts, as soon the weather will turn
and the herds will be on the move again.
Gijrragiessie: An explosion of young flowers
and herbs in this forest glade mark the
beginning of pre-summer
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