Sunday, April 1, 2012

Moose and People

In addition to having the largest human population in the state, South Central Alaska also has one of the highest moose populations. For most of the year, the wide open expanses offer plenty of room for coexistence. In winter that changes. Cold temps and snowfall shrink the world of the moose, bringing them into the human world much more often. The Anchorage moose population in summer is estimated to be about 300. In winter, the estimate jumps to 700 to 1000, as moose migrate down out of the mountains and woods in search of food and a break from heavier snow. Here in the Mat-Su Valley to the north, there are fewer people but a lot more moose, and the moose flock towards inhabited areas here too.

The snow and cold present a number of challenges for moose. Their available food is greatly reduced; they are forced to rely mostly on twigs and small tree limbs. Not only is this food harder to find, it is also less nutritious and filling. The heavy snow causes the moose to expend much more energy to get to this scarce food. To compensate, they frequent roadways, railways, sidewalks, trails, yards, areas where the going is easier.

As our worlds collide, the results are sometimes humorous. A popular Youtube video from earlier this winter showed a moose wandering into a hospital lobby in Anchorage. Fortunately, both moose and people escaped injury. Also in Anchorage, a man came home to find a moose on the roof of his garage; the moose had walked up a snowbank right onto the roof (photo below courtesy of Anchorage Daily News and adn.com). Both moose and man were unharmed as the moose later walked back down the way he had gone up.



According to troopers at the nearby Alaska State Trooper post, this year's tough winter has increased the number of moose-human calls. Among them:

* A moose had his leg tangled in a dog chain and couldn't escape. The more he struggled, the more he was trapped. After some tense moments, the moose was freed by troopers and quickly ran into the woods and out of sight.

* A moose cow somehow made its way into a shed and was feasting on horse feed. She reluctantly ran out of the shed, but it took a lot of encouragement from the troopers.

* A cow charged two women as they walked their kids to the bus stop near the town of Houston. Thankfully, there were no serious injuries.

Moose are generally not very aggressive, unless they feel threatened, endangered, or crowded. They usually will not seek a confrontation with people if people leave them alone. Sometimes, though, people are just stupid. Another recent popular internet video shows a woman who actually touches a moose in an Anchorage neighborhood as it sat near a house. Luckily for her, the moose didn't charge, but simply turned and trotted away. It is stupidity like this that often causes real problems between moose and people.

There are times when moose-people encounters do not end well, especially when dogs are involved. Dogs and moose do not react well to each other. A well-placed moose kick to a dog rarely ends well for the canine. One of the better known moose-dog encounters happened during the 1985 Iditarod. Future 4-time race winner Susan Butcher appeared on the way to becoming the first woman to win, but a pregnant moose changed that. Butcher's best efforts to persuade the frightened moose to yield her ground were unsuccessful. The moose attacked Butcher's team, killing two dogs and injuring six others.

Instances like Butcher's sometimes cannot be avoided, but most of the time we humans can dictate the outcome. When we act with caution, common sense, and patience, we can prevent harm to ourselves and the moose.

As I sit in my den typing this, I notice that our neighborhood cow and calf (more on them in a later post) are in the woods across the street. I think I will go out onto the front porch and watch them for a while -- from a safe distance, of course.



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