Muskox: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the muskox lives – recorded in 5 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Ovibos moschatus
Group	Antelopes, wild cattle, sheep & goats
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	5 countries
Continents	Europe, North America
Diet (main food)	moss, lichen, Salix arctica, woody plant
Class	Mammal
Order	Artiodactyla
Family	Bovidae

Where does the muskox live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the muskox in 5 countries and territories across Europe and North America. Wikidata gives its range as: Greenland. In Sweden it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

What does a muskox eat?

Wikidata lists the main food source of the muskox as: moss, lichen, Salix arctica, woody plant.

Is the muskox endangered?

The muskox’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the muskox?

The muskox (Ovibos moschatus) is a mammal in the order Artiodactyla and the family Bovidae, genus Ovibos. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the muskox

The muskox (Ovibos moschatus) is a hoofed mammal of the family Bovidae. Native to the Arctic, it is noted for its thick coat and for the strong odor emitted by males during the seasonal rut, from which its name derives. This musky odor has the effect of attracting females during mating season. Its Inuktitut name umingmak translates to "the bearded one".

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Muskox (revision 1378658614), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q184004 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).