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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMoose Die-Off Alarms Scientists - Climate Change Suspect
By JIM ROBBINS
Published: October 14, 2013
CHOTEAU, Mont. Across North America in places as far-flung as Montana and British Columbia, New Hampshire and Minnesota moose populations are in steep decline. And no one is sure why.
Twenty years ago, Minnesota had two geographically separate moose populations. One of them has virtually disappeared since the 1990s, declining to fewer than 100 from 4,000.
The other population, in northeastern Minnesota, is dropping 25 percent a year and is now fewer than 3,000, down from 8,000. (The moose mortality rate used to be 8 percent to 12 percent a year.) As a result, wildlife officials have suspended all moose hunting.
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Winters have grown substantially shorter across much of the mooses range. In New Hampshire, a longer fall with less snow has greatly increased the number of winter ticks, a devastating parasite. You can get 100,000 ticks on a moose, said Kristine Rines, a biologist with the states Fish and Game Department.
In Minnesota, the leading culprits are brain worms and liver flukes. Both spend part of their life cycles in snails, which thrive in moist environments.
Another theory is heat stress. Moose are made for cold weather, and when the temperature rises above 23 degrees Fahrenheit in winter, as has happened more often in recent years, they expend extra energy to stay cool. That can lead to exhaustion and death.
more...
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/15/science/earth/something-is-killing-off-the-moose.html?_r=0
haikugal
(6,476 posts)Submariner
(12,504 posts)will suffer this fate with ticks. Climate change is weeding out those that do not adapt and change their habitat to a much colder and thus survivable climate.
cui bono
(19,926 posts)What if it doesn't have the same foliage, etc...?
Submariner
(12,504 posts)where that exists, the moose can survive. If their preferred food types are not present, they will be absent from that terrestrial scene. Sad story.
KT2000
(20,581 posts)It is a $32 million business. Ships have gone out this year and found zero sardines. I imagine they are a food source for other critters as well.
Scientists from the US and Canada will meet in December to find out what happened.
cui bono
(19,926 posts)Last edited Wed Oct 16, 2013, 04:05 AM - Edit history (1)
I heard this on the radio news. This article indicates West Coast declines the last few years.
http://news.yahoo.com/lost-sea-fishers-cant-sardines-climate-change-may-205936746.html
lastlib
(23,241 posts)And does her alibi check out?
flamingdem
(39,313 posts)onethatcares
(16,169 posts)then we lost the moose
how close are we to losing "us"?