Merry Christmas! Dec 25, 2023

Merry Christmas!

Dashing through the snow on our homepage today, reindeer, or caribou as they are known here in North America, have been synonymous with Christmas for two centuries. American writer Clement Clarke Moore is credited with popularizing them as Santa"s helpers in the poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas," first published in 1823. And no wonder Santa picked them. With two layers of fur and eyes that adapt to the Arctic"s shifting light levels, reindeer are very versatile. You likely won"t see them fly, but you might find a herd migrating from tundra to forest in the North Polar Region, North America, Northern Europe, or Siberia. Their hooves can expand or shrink according to ground conditions, keeping their heavy frame stable on soft ground in summer, ice in winter, and steep rooftops at Christmas. If you"re celebrating Christmas today, we wish you a merry one.

© Michael Quinton/Minden Pictures

palette

Today in History

Dec 25, 2018Happy holidays!
Dec 25, 2019Merry and bright
Dec 25, 2020Big dreams require a big sleigh
Dec 25, 2021Merry Christmas
Dec 25, 2022Merry Christmas!
Dec 25, 2024Merry Christmas!
Dec 25, 2025Merry Christmas!

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Oct 13, 2018‘Hello’ from zero degrees longitude
Feb 22, 2024Bathing boxes at Brighton Beach, Australia
Mar 29, 2023Manatee Appreciation Day
Feb 4, 2026Rosa Parks Day
Nov 25, 2019The migrating monarchs of Michoacán
Apr 22, 2024Earth Day
May 7, 2021Deep in the North Woods wetlands
May 1, 2018The Sky Over Nine Columns in Venice, Italy
Aug 25, 2023National Park Service anniversary
Sep 17, 2024Mid-Autumn Festival
Apr 11, 2023Mossy Grotto Falls, Oregon
Mar 15, 2026Pacific Rim Whale Festival
Sep 10, 2022Mid-Autumn Festival
Nov 8, 2023Manatee Awareness Month
Dec 15, 2018A long winter’s nap, perhaps?
Apr 30, 2019It s International Jazz Day
May 31, 2024Gunnerside, Yorkshire Dales National Park, England
Aug 14, 2025Cable car station, Graubünden, Switzerland
Sep 5, 20242024 Toronto International Film Festival
Sep 9, 2018Welcome to ‘Hollywood North’
Apr 12, 2025International Day of Human Space Flight
Jun 24, 2022Cenote near Puerto Aventuras, Mexico
Jul 4, 2024Independence Day
May 23, 2022World Turtle Day
Mar 6, 2020Hello, harbinger of spring
May 12, 2024Happy Mothers Day!
Feb 23, 2021Giants of the avian world
Sep 1, 2021It s National Mushroom Month!
May 23, 2018Everybody loves World Turtle Day
Dec 29, 2022Silver-studded blue butterflies