Moose are the largest wild animal in North America, growing to an average of 1,000 pounds and standing taller than most humans, at six feet at the shoulder. Moose reach this impressive size by eating 40 to 60 pounds a day of leaves, twigs, aquatic plants, and tree buds. They do not see distant objects well, but compensate with keen hearing and a strong sense of smell.
Male moose, known as bulls, are larger than the female cows, and are further distinguished by dark brown or black muzzles and large antlers that can weigh up to 60 pounds. Antlers begin to grow in the early spring and mature by late summer or early fall. During the winter, mature bulls lose their antlers completely, while young bulls may keep their smaller spikes into early spring. Cows, who do not have antlers, have a light brown face and a patch of white fur beneath their tail. The distinctive flap of skin and long hair that hangs from a moose’s throat, called a bell, is typically less noticeable in cows.
Mating season, also called the rut, begins in mid-September and lasts about a month. During the rut moose tend to expand their ranges. Bulls don’t breed until they’re five years old, while cows begin at a year and a half and usually have one calf by age two. Calves are born in late May or early June, weighing 25 to 35 pounds. By fall they will weigh 300 to 400 pounds. Cows are extremely protective of their calves and have been known to kill wolves and black bears while defending their young. Moose can live more than twenty years, although many die earlier due to predation, disease, human hunters, and automobile accidents.
Possible conflicts and solutions
The main concern people have about moose is motor vehicle collisions, which can be quite dangerous for both the animal and vehicle occupants. Citizens can help to reduce this risk by adopting these tips on avoiding collisions with moose and other animals. Additionally, communities can adopt proven, humane structural changes, which are more impactful than hunting, to reduce moose-vehicle accidents.
Moose have large home ranges covering many square miles, and removing animals in one area only allows other moose to move into the available habitat. In addition, moose are transient animals whose habitat is fragmented by roads that they frequently cross; thus, simply removing animals will not reduce collisions.
Instead, state officials recognize that education—not hunting—is key to reducing vehicle-moose collisions. In Maine, which has a moose population more than seventy-five-times that of Massachusetts, driver awareness programs were identified as the factor that could most effectively reduce animal-vehicle crashes.
In addition to reducing driving speed, other nonlethal strategies to reduce vehicle-moose collisions are being implemented in states such as Alaska. With over 175,000–200,000 moose and an estimated 765 collisions per year, Alaska experiences more moose-vehicle accidents than anywhere else in North America. The Alaska Department of Transportation experimented with several methods to reduce collisions, such as erecting fences, constructing under and overpasses, and increasing lighting in dark areas. A review of these efforts showed that collisions were reduced by 70% in lighted areas.
In Massachusetts, in 2015, MassWildlife began working with MassDOT to place large message boards along the road in many moose-vehicle collision hotspots during the months of September and October, moose breeding season. In 2020 (the most recent year data is available), Massachusetts saw its lowest number since 2008, at 15 collisions. While the pandemic likely accounts for some of this record low, MassWildlife also speculates that it is due in part to increased signage. Further, the state has seen a downward trend line in moose-vehicle accidents going back to 2012.
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