Animal Life
Mammals
In Iceland there are only seven species of wild mammals: foxes, reindeer, mink, brown rats, black rats, field mice and house mice. Reindeer were introduced from Norway in the 18th century and now live wild in herds in the northeast of the country. The Icelandic horse is special because of how small yet imposing it is. It is also special because of its five gaits. There is an indigenous breed of sheep dog, with much hair and renowned for its good nature. The sheep are a hardy breed that grazes freely in mountain pastures during the summer. The cattle are rather small, with a wide range of colours. About twelve hundred types of insects are found in Iceland, but are seldom seen. About the only ones that might bother humans are bees, hornets and mosquitos, but they are relatively rare. There are no reptiles.
Icelandic reindeer in Northeastern Iceland
Birds
Iceland is paradise for bird-watchers. About 78 species nest in the country, of which the Eider Duck, the Swan, the rare Falcon, the Ptarmigan, Arctic Tern, Snow Bunting and the imposing Gannet are typical birds of Iceland. But there are few that can match the Puffin in terms of appeal or population size: 5 - 6 million birds, which is larger than that of any other Icelandic species. The rarest species is the Osprey, whose population numbers only about 100. At the coast there are great colonies of sea birds: Guillemots, Razorbills, Fulmars, Cormorants, Gannets, gulls and Puffins in their thousands. Inland there are fifteen species of duck, two species of geese and many waders, such as the Redshank and Whimbrel. The Plover is one of Iceland's most common birds. The Red-throated and Great Northern Divers are found on the lakes. Iceland is the only country in Europe where the Harlequin Duck and Barrow's Goldeneye are found. Other species include the Horned Grebe, the Red-Necked Phalarope, Grey Phalarope and the ill-tempered Great Skua.
The Icelandic Dog
The Icelandic Sheepdog is Iceland's only native dog, and one of the world's oldest dogbreeds. It's forefathers were brought over to Iceland (mostly from Norway, Finnmark, Norbotten and other parts of northern Scandinavia) by the original viking settlers who first arrived in the year 874 A.D. They soon became common all over the country, evolving seperately from other breeds of dogs on this isolated island (in a similar way as the Icelandic horse, cow and sheep). The Icelandic Dog is a rare breed, with only about 3.300 registered dogs around the world.
