Iceland review - 2013, Page 42

40 ICELAND REVIEW
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Save the Goat
the icelandic goat, which also accompanied the norse settlers
some 1,100 years ago, is the country’s only endangered farm
animal. in 1930, there were approximately 3,000 goats in
iceland, up from 100 some decades earlier, but shortly after
1960, their number had dropped to a pitiful 86. since then,
the stock size has slowly but surely been on the increase, now
numbering 818.
the main goat products are skins, meat and milk but there
is potential for others. the wool is cashmere—in fact, the
scottish cashmere goat is one quarter icelandic—and trials
are being run on cleansing and spinning the wool in iceland.
Experiments are also being made on producing salami, goat’s
milk ice cream and cheeses.
in July 2012, the icelandic goat Center opened at háafell
in hvítársíða, West iceland, home to the country’s most active
goat farmers and largest goat stock of around 200 animals.
people can foster goats at the farm to help preserve the breed
and pay them a visit: a newborn kid in spring is the sweetest
thing. Check out geitur.is
Sly aS a Fox
the arctic fox is the only wild terrestrial mammal native to iceland, that
is, the only mammal that arrived before man, approximately 10,000
years ago at the end of the last ice age. Foxes are believed to have
trekked across an ice bridge or drifted on sea ice, either from greenland
or Western Europe.
the species’ appearance is characterized by its adaptation to the
cold climate, namely a thick and fluffy coat in winter, which they shed
in summer. the coat has two color variants, white and rust brown; the
latter is often referred to as ‘blue.’
the estimated size of the stock is 11,000 animals, up from as few as

1,000 three decades ago due to improved feeding conditions during
the winter, probably related to a milder climate. arctic foxes are found
in all parts of the country but the density is highest in the northern
West Fjords, the only area off limits for hunters. Foxes are contentious
creatures as they feed on birds and eggs and sometimes attack sheep.
Foxes have many names in the icelandic language, as people avoided
referring to ‘evil’—of which foxes were considered a manifestation—in
direct speech. the original name for a fox is melrakki, which inspired
names of places known as fox territories, such as the peninsula
Melrakkaslétta in northeast iceland.
Number of goats: 818
Average weight: 45 kg (99 lb) for does and 60 kg (132 lb) for bucks
Number of foxes: 11,000. Average weight: 3.5 kg (7.7 lb) for vixens and 4 kg (8.8 lb) for reynards
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Tax & Duty Free
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