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Moose stories Mistaken Identity Moose
Moose are not herd animals and spend solitary lives except during the breeding season or "Rut" which occurs in late September and early October. The Calves are born in late May or early June, and twins are not unusual. The calves spend the summer with the Cow Moose and are weaned prior to the Fall Rut. Moose are both Grazers ( foraging on grasses ) and Browsers ( foraging on woody shrubs ) for their food supply. Moose do not migrate like herd animals but make relatively short travels because of changing food supply or seasonal weather changes. The natural predators of the Moose are Wolves and Grizzly Bears, and are most vulnerable during calving. The largest of the deer family the American moose has been the mainstay of meat for families since before the European immigration to the Americas. One mature moose will provide enough meat for a winter for an average family. So how do you bag a moose. The most preferred bore amongst Moose hunters is the 30.06, as this is a large animal and a hunter needs the power to penetrate the hide and severe an artery or spinal chord. It is never advisable to belly shoot any animal but even more so with a moose. Heck even a lung shot is not advisable because of the habitat that moose frequent. They often wade in water up to their shoulders and even swim from location to location and you do not want to have to fish a carcass out of the muskeg or a lake that the wounded moose may have fled to while trying to avoid you. Sure it would be OK if it was only a few feet from shore and it weighed, oh say 150 lbs, but such is not the case with a bull moose. We are talking about a 1/2 to 3/4 ton animal. A neck shot is your best bet and if you think the neck is too small of a region just remember that your target spot is only the size of your bullet never any bigger. You don't just shoot "at" an animal. You pick an exact location the size of the end of your little finger and that is where you put your bullet. In this case it is half way from the top of the neck and 4" in front of the shoulder. A good shot should drop him but if not you may have some tracking to do. Notify your buddies of your intent as wanders off on the path of a wounded animal, which may take you into regions that your friends would never think to look should they need to find your. You can't always count on snow to show your tracks on on snow not covering your tracks. Stay in touch with walkie-talkies. If nothing else be sure to leave a trail by bending over twigs, bio degradable Blaze orange paint. or a bark blaze on a tree (keep it small- these are always visible when facing your direction of travel). Make sure that you stop tracking with enough light to return to camp or be prepared to hunker down and wait out the night in a hastily created but proficient shelter. This is not advisable for the inexperienced and you are encouraged to visit our survival section for tips on shelters and general survival methods. Feel free to submit both hunting and survival tip, stories and photographs.
How to find a Moose If you live in the region then you may already have some ideas of where you are going to go but if not, then you may want to hire a guide or sign on to outfitters hunting party. Alaska may require that you have a guide, even for people who have lived there for less than two years. This is because of the arctic danger and protection of the wildlife from wanton destruction. Hunting as your own small group can be quite rewarding but you need to do the research first which obviously you are doing or you wouldn't be reading this. Contact the Fish and Wildlife Department or similar, the local hunting clubs and sporting goods stores to find out if Moose are in the region. Once you have decided basically where you want to be then you need to get to know the lay of the land. Literally, you can order topo maps and satellite images from any of several government agencies such as the Department of the Interior or more localized ones, again this is a good question to ask of the same people you question about the existence of Moose. When you get to the town that will be your staging point, carry a map with you and have the locals point out possible areas. Generally you will not find moose in the uplands. Moose prefer flatter and even low laying areas and preferably wet regions and meadows. Moose are active throughout the day with activity peaks during dawn and dusk. Their sight is poor but their hearing and sense of smell are excellent. They are good swimmers, and can run up to 35 mph or 55 km/h. for a considerable distance. Scout an area for obvious sign of moose such as tracks and fresh dropping. If none then move on as they tend to range over a relatively small regions. If you do find that the area shows signs of recent visitation, then this is one place to check daily, but not the only place you should have about 4-5 possible locations that you visit each day. Moose are fairly easy to sneak up on as they are often out in the middle of a shallow lake where they feel fairly safe. Of course you will not want to drop it out there or you will regret it., Nor do you want to scare him off or all you will get is a butt shot, not good. Wait for him to pick his own time to exit the lake and then drop him. If he is obviously exiting to the far side of the lake you may be able to retreat into the trees and circle the lake quickly and quietly and approach from a down wind side, Most of the lake they frequent are just deep muskeg of swamps and traveling around the perimeter may not be easy. If you are going to take a long shot, make sure that it is something that you can accomplish and that it is not so far the bullet will be spent and not have enough energy left to be a kill shot. Moose are not normally aggressive, however, they can be very aggressive when hungry, tired or harassed by people, dogs, and traffic (sounds familiar!). During the mating season bull moose are often more aggressive toward people. Mothers with young calves are very protective and will attack humans who come too close. You can identify when a moose might attack if the long hairs on its hump are raised and it's ears laid back. A moose may also lick its lips. Charges may only be "bluffs", warning you to get back, however take this seriously, even a young calf could cause significant injuries from it's size alone. When a moose does charge, it often kicks forward with its front hooves. Unlike other animals, such as dogs and bears, it's usually a good idea to run from a moose because they won't chase you very far.
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