20th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Female Musk Ox, Kangerlussuaq, Greenland

When I got to Kangerlussuaq in July for a three-week stay documenting the town as part of a long term project, I told my Greenlandic guide that one of my goals was to get some good photos of the wild muskox that roam the hills today — all descended from 27 calves brought there as an experiment by a Danish biologist in cooperation with the US Air Force in the 1960s. It was a long day of hiking on squishy steep terrain until we quietly managed to creep around a small hill and hide behind a rock about 25 meters away. For a little over 15 minutes they tolerated our presence, including this winsome female who looks ready for a modeling career.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 07.2022
Date Uploaded: 11.2022
Photo Location: Kangerlussuaq, Greenland
Copyright: © Helen Glazer