{"id":12239,"date":"2013-10-20T07:00:09","date_gmt":"2013-10-20T11:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/inbox\/?p=12239"},"modified":"2013-10-20T14:08:26","modified_gmt":"2013-10-20T18:08:26","slug":"miserble-times-for-moose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/inbox\/2013\/10\/20\/miserble-times-for-moose\/","title":{"rendered":"Miserable times for moose?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bats are struggling to survive white-nose syndrome. Bees are battling several problems, known and unknown. Monarch butterfly numbers have plummeted this year. These creatures are small in size, but important in the larger scheme of life.<\/p>\n

Now come reports that moose, the biggest land mammal in these parts<\/a>,<\/a> are also in serious trouble.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

A bull moose in Massawepie Mire (image taken from the air). Archive NCPR Photo of the Day 10\/4\/13: Larry Master.<\/p><\/div>\n

According to a recent New York Times article:<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

What exactly has changed remains a mystery. Several factors are clearly at work. But a common thread in most hypotheses is climate change.<\/p>\n

Winters have grown substantially shorter across much of the moose\u2019s range. In New Hampshire, a longer fall with less snow has greatly increased the number of winter ticks<\/a>, a devastating parasite. \u201cYou can get 100,000 ticks on a moose,\u201d said Kristine Rines, a biologist with the state\u2019s Fish and Game Department<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In Minnesota, the leading culprits are brain worms<\/a> and liver flukes<\/a>. Both spend part of their life cycles in snails, which thrive in moist environments.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

So, death by tick, brain worm, liver fluke, or plain old starvation. Sounds nasty.<\/p>\n

According to a similar report from Christian Science Monitor:<\/a><\/p>\n

In New Hampshire, the moose population has dropped from some 7,000 moose to around just 4,600 animals. In Montana, numbers have fallen about 40 percent since 1995, and in Wyoming there are just 919 animals left \u2013 a quarter of the state\u2019s target moose population. In Minnesota, the population in its northeast has been halved since about 2010, and moose have disappeared almost entirely from its northwest. Only Maine has seen an increase in its moose population, with some 75,000 animals living within its borders.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Moose aren’t found everywhere, but they do have a wide distribution across the north of this continent.<\/p>\n

\"Distribution<\/a>

Distribution of moose in North America (source: Wild Animals of Manitoba)<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

In the wake of those U.S. news reports this CBC article summarizes the animal’s population<\/a> and general health across Canada:<\/p>\n

While the moose population is stable in Yukon, some parts of Canada have seen declines.\u00a0According to B.C.\u2019s Ministry of the Environment,\u00a0moose\u00a0populations have dropped by 50 per cent\u00a0since 2005 in the Prince George region.<\/p>\n

Other regions in B.C. have seen declines of almost 70 per cent\u00a0in the same time.<\/p>\n

On the whole, moose populations in Ontario and Quebec appear to be stable and even increasing in parts<\/a>, but scientists are keeping an eye on the situation in the U.S. to see what lessons can be learned.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Here’s a little more on moose health in Ontario<\/a> from the Toronto Star.<\/p>\n

\n

Brant Allison, senior northwest regional biologist with Ontario\u2019s Ministry of Natural Resources, says that moose \u201care important to the biodiversity of the province.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n

Allison said he is seeing declines in Canadian jurisdictions near Minnesota, including Manitoba and the northwestern and northeastern parts of Ontario.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cWe are definitely concerned,\u201d he said, adding that biologists in Ontario have been in touch with their counterparts in Minnesota and Manitoba to see what the current research reveals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

\u201cWe are watching. They\u2019re still trying to figure it out,\u201d he said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

Stay tuned, I guess.<\/p>\n

In Box readers, for those of you who do encounter moose at home or on your travels, what have you been observing, if anything, in terms of animal health?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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