In pictures: the reindeer herders

Sara Gaaup, 14, is dressed for her confirmation. The outfits that she and her father, Nils Peder Gaup, wear identify their hometown as Kautokeino, Norway. The upturned tips of their reindeer-hide boots were designed to hook into skis. Photograph: Erika Larsen/National Geographic

Mathis Gaup wades into the herd of pounding reindeer to sep­arate the pregnant cows – the ones that still have antlers – from the rest. In 2011 only 50% of the females bore calves in the Gaup family’s herds in Norway, down from the usual 80%. Photograph: Erika Larsen/National Geographic

A reindeer lies slaughtered in the Gaups’ modern kitchen. The family freezes, smokes, or dries the meat, as well as the organs, fat, blood, and even hooves. Some Sami make handicrafts using antlers and bones for tools and toys, tendons for thread, and skins for bags and garments. They spend months preparing hides by hand. Photograph: Erika Larsen/National Geographic